I *heart* Giraffes!

What is your favorite animal? When I was young enough to be asked that question with some regularity, I always answered with panda bear. It made sense. Kids called me Manda Panda. The stuff with panda bears on it was super cute, and I'm a sucker for cute and cuddly. Then, at some point in college when I was far too old for anyone to ask me what my favorite animal is, I realized I've been wrong all along.

If anyone asked me what my favorite animal is today, I would proudly tell them that I love giraffes. They are absolutely adorable in the animated and stuffed animal versions, and in real life they are just overwhelmingly and endearingly geeky. I've got a soft spot in my heart for geeks and that long neck and those gangly legs just make me want to hug them. But when you see them moving, there is nothing awkward about them; they are amazingly graceful.

So, since the secret knitting continues, I am going to share some giraffe patterns that I have queued.

The Giraffe Illusion Scarf (Rav Link) by Isis Kowarik is so much fun. I love the concept and execution of illusion knitting, but I rarely see something that I want for myself. This scarf is going to be awesome though.

I don't have nearly enough hand knit dishcloths so all three of these will be great to add to my tiny collection. They are: The Giraffe Dishcloth by Lindsay Sasseville, Giraffe Dishcloth by Emily Jagos and Giraffe Dishcloth by Whitney Webster.

And of course there are fantastic giraffe knitted toys!

In order of appearance, but certainly not any special ranking I present to you:

Sock Giraffe by Bobbie Padget, Giraffe (Rav Link) by Susan B. Anderson (I have to get this book!), Jelly Bum Giraffe by Raynor Gellatly and Little Giraffe by Christine Landry.

What is your favorite animal? Has it inspired your crafting at all?

*None of the pattern pictures are mine. They all belong to the pattern designers.