Following the vote on Instagram, it was another close match between Braixen and Quilava; in the end, this week’s plush became Quilava.

This is another pokemon where I have a figurine version to work off of; this time it is one of those inject-molded plastic models. The flames are also removable, making it easier to focus on the shape of the body.

I think many years ago I tried making a fabric plush of this pokemon, but something about its shape made it difficult to decipher. It’s a somewhat conical shaped head with a tapered cylindrical body, finessed into a flattish butt. By contrast, the flames are rigid and flat. Essentially, it is a peak-performance body shape that makes it so popular.

At first, I was thinking of challenging myself with making the body in rounds and colourways; I spent a few hours being carried away with trying this method, before I eventually went back to a more practical approach. Sandwiching two halves together gives you way more control in how the colours meet on the body; you can see the first two attempts versus the third attempt with two halves. I guess I shouldn’t fix what isn’t broken!

Keeping to my somewhat-stubby style, the body got shortened considerably; it reminds me of a Guinea pig. In this form, I can really see that it is supposed to be a fire rodent.

From the official design, I’ve always thought the legs were strangely positioned on the body, so putting them onto the plush was just as strange. The toy I have suggests that it has chunky forelegs and mysterious thin feet tucked under its square butt. I have to admit, these are the reasons why I like quilava.

For the flames, it was a matter of assembling a bunch of flattened cones together into the shapes I needed. In terms of writing it down as an instruction, I find it hard to write about how I always reset the round back to one end of the shape. I hope I can make that clear for the future.

Adding all the strange bits together, here are the final results:

Thanks for reading! I’ve got some plans I’d like to share soon!