A Challenge ... AKA: Custom Order #16

Work in Progress 

for 

Custom Order #16

(this should be an interesting WIP to watch progress)

Custom Order #16 comes from my long time friend-collector, Pat. She may live on the other side of the world from me but she has always taken great joy in continually challenging me with her Custom Order requests. And Custom Order #16 is no exception. While I am currently limiting my Custom Order to teddy bears only. Pat personally handed this mink to me way back in 2012 while she was visiting Laguna Beach. My long time friends know that they can request anything (not that I will agree to make it but they can ask). For example, Pat just asked me for a dog ... with teeth. I've never made anything with teeth and don't plan to, so I agreed to make her a dog with an open mouth.

This is what I have to work with:

I have scraps. Originally she gave me a mink stole and asked me to make her a bunny. Which I did but she didn't like the bunny. So someone else adopted it and I kept the scraps until she decided what else she wanted.
It's unlikely that there is enough usable mink scraps for a larger dog so I will use some of my mink.
I won't be able to match the color exactly but hopefully it will be a close match.

UPDATE

This is my pattern of my larger dog
Standing size: 10 inches
Sitting size: 8 inches

Pat wants her dog with an open mouth, 

this is an example of one of my smaller (6 inch) dogs.

So I will have to make some adjustments to my 10 inch dog pattern.

These are the scraps that I have to work with from Pat:

I cut out my liner pattern pieces:

In my mink supplies I found a mink that is just a little lighter in color.

As you can see ... I have one of Pat's scraps across the front of my mink.

This is the main reason that I want to use some of my mink ... the pelts from Pat's scraps are little strips of mink sewn together while my mink is a solid pelt.

A solid pelt is much easier to sew by hand. I will use my mink for the head and Pat's mink for the rest of the teddy.

I've got the head cut out and ready for sewing.

It's been a few years since I've tried to make a dog ... even longer since I tried to make one with an open mouth.

So far, so good ...