Giant Crochet Hippogriff

 In a KNUTshell

• The Hippogriff is approximately 34cm tall. 
• They are crocheted in (vegan) nernst blanket yarn
• Their bronze eyes are attached safety backs, to ensure they can’t fly off! 
• The Hippogriff comes with a custom book-page badge, as with all other beasties.
• They are stuffed with recycled polyester filling.
• Crochet beasties are made to order, so please allow 4-6 weeks from the point of adoption, before they will be ready to fly free.
• While all my beasties are made with love and care, they are not CE-tested, so are not intended as toys for young children

The Backstory 

Who doesn't love a hippogriff? Well, I can think of one person... but to quote a famous redhead, he needed to sort out his priorities. And schedule some remedial biology lessons, because I've seen chickens and they bear as much resemblance to Buckbeak as Crookshanks does to Mrs Norris! 

But that's enough Moaning about Malfoy... back to the hippogriff! I genuinely do have a very special place in my heart for hippogriffs, and I think that part of this links to my childhood love for horses. I was at the Stables every weekend for the best part of a decade and, for me, the best part was always being with the horses; as far as riding goes, I wasn't exactly a natural; like Neville and flying, I preferred to be 'closer to the ground', so always preferred dressage to jumping. 

Yet above all else, I was happiest simply spending time with the animals I came to know and love. I can still remember Maisie and Bella, who many people didn't like riding because they were a bit 'difficult'. I loved them all the more for this, just like Hagrid and 'beaky'. In a KNUTshell, those hours spent with these magical creatures instilled my love for Hippogriffs and, in turn, my passion to tell their tale in crochet form. I'm also a Ravenclaw, so you could say they're my spirit beastie! 

The Design Story 

Given this personal connection to Hippogriffs, I admit that - for a long time -  Procrastinating Perfectionism got the better of me; what if they didn't live up to expectations? What if I didn't do them justice? Yet in 2020, I picked up a crochet hook and solemnly swore to find a way - come what may! 

When it came to making my giant hippogriff, I wanted to keep the same colour-changing style of yarn as for my standard size ones, and found my answer with my trusty blanket yarn brand - Bernat! I loved how the  yarn changes so naturally too.

Onto the design itself. My first two hippogriffs were loosely based on my Mooncalf, but as this uses a "bottoms up" strategy (starting with the legs and moving up into the body), I found that it was impossible to crochet the head as part of the body. I therefore crocheted the head separately and sewed it on at the end.

While many people over on social media seemed to love the design, I found that I wasn't completely happy with the final result - it looked a bit more cartoon-like and not quite in proportion. I put it on the back-burner until 'inspiration' struck, and in January 2021 it did... just not quite in the way I expected! After receiving a custom commission for a Thestral, I finally devised a new "all-in-one" horse pattern, that is worked "top down" and uses short rounds to create a seamless head and neck. 

I am so delighted to have finally found a Hippogriff pattern that feels like a keeper! What's more, now that I have plenty of the yarn in both shades, I can safely say that my current generation of 'Stella' hippogriffs are here to stay too.

Your Story 

As with all other Spew Crew beasties, each hippogriff  is handmade to my own pattern, so is 100% exclusive to Bumble and Be. As they are made-to-order, it means that no two will be quite the same, but I like to think that is part of their magic - just like an Ollivander wand!

Every single thestral adopted will also come with their own exclusive adoption card and "beastie book badge", which I make from the secondhand pages of Harry Potter books. Before your beastie flies off to you, I will ask if you have a name in mind and - if so - put this onto the adoption card. On that note, this name will often form the basis for the book badge too; for example, past customers have called Hippogriffs  Beaky and Minerva, so I have chosen passages with these words included!  

My makes are inspired by the Wizarding World, but are unlicensed and have no affiliation with Warner Bros/JK Rowling.