Crochet Adult Niffler
In a KNUTshell
- The Niffler is approximately 22cm tall
- Their body, legs, arms and tail are crocheted in Sirdar 'Alpine' yarn
- Their snout and paws are crocheted in Deramores 'Studio' yarn.
- Their eyes are hand-painted and secured with safety backs.
- They are stuffed with recycled polyester filling.
- Each Niffler comes with a beespoke "beastie book badge" and adoption card, which will certify that they are a FREE BEASTIE.
- 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 Beastie Backstory
Forget the Zouwu (largely because he's still on my 'to-make' list)... the real beastie star of the second FB Film has to be the baby nifflers! Whether flying on wine corks, or diving into Jewellery Boxes, they are unashamedly fearless and determined to live their BEaST life… no matter the cost!
Alongside their Marauding Mother (of first film fame), for me the 'niffler' has come to symbolise determination and self-belief. Many of you may be familiar with my own 'Sir Nugget', Bumble & Be HQ's resident Niffler, whose personality is Gilderoy Lockhart mixed with the Weasley Twins. In many ways he is my 'alter-ego', as I am a chronic self-doubter and he is anything but - he is my daily reminder that I mustn't let the 'Mind Muggles' bring me down...
My hope (and head canon) is that all Nifflers possesses this unstoppable degree of self-determination... and can therefore be a similar source of motivation for you!
The Design Story
The Niffler was the first ever ‘fantastic beastie’ I crocheted, days after I saw the first film. This was also the start of a five year journey to ‘pawfecting’ my pattern, trialling new techniques and trying out different materials until I found a ‘keeper’.
In terms of yarn, my first nifflers were crocheted in standard acrylic yarn, one of those early prototypes being 'Nigel' - click here to see a photo of him alongside Sir Nugget! I then switched to a 'fluffy'/'teddy' yarn, which is the most common brand of fluffy yarn on the market in the UK. Yet for me, my Nifflers didn't truly come to life until I began using Faux Fur. In contrast to 'Fluffy' yarn, which is the type they often use for fluffy knitwear, Faux Fur is truly like cuddling a kitten or puppy - but is 100% cruelty-free, so never fear!
I primarily use the Sirdar 'Alpine' yarn, which is the same as my English Rose and House Beasties, but also use Scheepjes 'Furry Tales' for my light grey nifflers and other 'character' Nifflers, such as the Nifflebee and Nifflecorn. For the paws and snout, I have been through so many brands and shades of beige yarn (it's harder to find than you'd think!), and last Summer settled on the 'Studio' yarn by Deramores, which I also use with my elves and has the benefit of being anti-pilling.
Onto the pattern itself, as I said it has undergone quite the evolution. Until last year, I crocheted the arms, legs and tail seperately and sewed them on at the end. However, as someone who doesn't particularly enjoy sewing and has many other patterns that are seamless, I went back to the drawing board in Spring 2020. The pattern now uses short rows, so the pouch, tail, arms and legs are all ‘built into’ the main body.
Before this design change, I admit that the Niffler was one of my least favourite beasties to crochet... but now it's one of my favourites. If in doubt, go for faux!
Your Story
As with all other Spew Crew beasties, each Niffler 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 Niffler 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 Nifflers Newt, Nicholas and Norbert, so I have chosen passages with these names included!
For custom colour requests, please do not hesitate to message me.
Disclaimer: MY BEASTIES are inspired by the Wizarding World, but have no affiliation with JK Rowling/Warner Brothers.