Lion

I made all 17 i-cords for the lion's mane while watching the finale of the Bachelorette...I tell myself that it's ok to watch 3 hours of reality TV, because, look!--I made a toy while doing so!  :)  Anyways, I sewed all the i-cords onto the lion last night.  I find that when attaching arms/legs or details like the mane to a knitted animal, it's best to just dive right in.  I don't try to plan out exactly where they're going to go, or worry too much about symmetry.  If I did that, I would never get anywhere!  The beauty of hand-knitted toys is in their imperfection and the little details that make them one-of-a-kind.  (Love this pattern by Susan B. Anderson!)

Anyways, without further ado, here is my lion!

When Drew came downstairs this morning, he noticed the lion laying on the couch and ran over and said, "Oh, a lion!  CUTE!!"  I agree. :)  The face came out really sweet, and on the first try!  (Usually I have to rip out embroidery and re-do it a few times until I'm happy with it.  Small victories. :))

Looking forward to finishing the elephant...just have the ears left and the face.