Plushy Sniff

After I noticed the shape of the kangaroo pattern was similar to Sniff from Moomin, I decided to try to hack the pattern by changing some parts of the pattern and also making some new parts that would fit the design I had thought about.

This was my first time trying to make a plushie by my imagination and drawings (from both Moomin and myself). I did draw a very simple drawing of him to see how I wanted him to look like when he was finished.

I made a story on my Instagram where you can see the process of how I did it.

Before making the final product, I chose to make a plushy with cheaper plush fabric, to see if my hack and new pattern parts fitted. I am glad I did because it really did make me see what needed to be fixed or changed before sewing the final product.

I had two options:

The first one was making a Sniff that is filled with a lot of filling to make him solid and very comforting. A real good old-fashioned “teddy bear” look, just in Sniff/Moomin style.

The second was making more of like a ragdoll style, with long arms and legs. This idea felt more Scandinavian than the first idea. I decided quickly after seeing how the body was, that I did not want to go for the ragdoll style. It was too heavy and not quite my style either.

Choosing to make him more like “teddy bear” was a good idea for me. He really does look well as an interior decoration in my sewing room. Also a good hug buddy for days when it is needed.

What I learned with this project was to take time, draw a few sketches and research as much as possible.

I think I used about two-three weeks to make him. I used the first week to draw and find materials that fitted the idea of how Sniff is going to look like. Then I used the second week to change the pattern and make new parts and making both the test plushy and the final. Not sure if I used that short time on making him but from my Instagram story, I can see that I used about three weeks to draw, sew and take pictures.

If I should have changed something with the plushy, it might be the color. I chose a dark brown color instead of light brown. However, I created him out of my memory of how I remember Sniff looks like. Therefore, it feels like I have created something from a childhood memory and that is giving me a sweet feeling. Sniff is my favorite character from Moomin, so it was fun to make a plush version of him. I know I made my younger self very happy too.

Am I going to make more cartoon or anime plushies again? Well I do have one more idea… I do not know when I am going to try it. I am busy now with creating TWO mini collections.

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