Meet the Otis Giraffe CAL Contest Judges!

Submissions for the 2017 Otis Giraffe CAL contest are over, and all giraffe entries have been scored by 11 judges total between 6 crochet experts and 5 of my family members too.

Now, allow me to reveal our crochet expert judges, and which of my family members judged!

Before we jump right in to meet all of these wonderful ladies and gents, remember we have two panels of judges, and their task was to judge each giraffe according to their liking AND what they thought of the overall skill level of each contestant. 

Each giraffe was individually scored from 1 to 10, with a 10 rating being the very best score. 

The judges' scoring from each panel counts as one-third of the contestant's total overall score with the public voting (beginning on June 12th) rounding up the final third of the score.

To ensure the judges could rate each giraffe fairly AND to keep the possible winners a secret until the end, only the winners' individual scores will be revealed at the close of the contest.

​That said, I can reveal all contestants have received at least ONE rating of 8 or higher!

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Family Judge Panel

The family judge panel includes my Mom, two sisters (15y & 17y), one brother (19y), and a close family friend of my mom's, who's nickname just so happens to be Otis like my giraffe.

My mom  and "Otis" were the most generous with their ratings - they absolutely love everyone's giraffes as much as I do, and both said it was a lot of fun to rate them.

My youngest sister is very random and creative, which made her the most spontaneous judge. She holds my crochet in very high regard. So, you really had to impress her. LOL, love you baby girl!

My other two siblings took their judging very seriously, giving fair ratings all round. You can tell they have watched judging competitions before! :D

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Crochet Expert Judge Panel

Now, it's time so meet our 6 crochet expert judges from Bentina's Crochet, Greybriar Hollow, Holly's Hobbies, Made by Mary, Midnattsol Design, and The Cheerful Chameleon!

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​Our first crochet expert judge, Berta Cohen, has been crocheting for 37 years. She has been sharing her creative patterns as Bentina's Crochet for the past 1.5 years. She also sells her finished items.

​Presently, she has 12 whimsical designs in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "I love to crochet and make crochet goodies."

Show your support & find her patterns here: Ravelry | Etsy
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Follow her here: Facebook

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​Our second crochet expert judge, Michele Henson, has been crocheting for 7 years. She has been sharing her radically awesome patterns as Greybriar Hollow for the past 5 years.

​Presently, she has 44 superb designs in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "Crocheting gives me the chance to express myself in a way I can share with others."

Show your support & find her patterns here: Website | Ravelry | Etsy
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Follow her here: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

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​Our third crochet expert judge, Holly, has been crocheting for 3.5 years. She has been sharing her character amigurumi patterns as Holly's Hobbies for the almost 2.5 years.

​Presently, she has 31 fantastic designs in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "I'm a freestyle amigurumist at heart, I love all things yarn and squishy."

Show your support & find her patterns here: Website | Ravelry | Etsy
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Follow her here: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

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​Our fourth crochet expert judge, Mary Smith, has been crocheting for 34 years. She has been sharing her adorable amigurumi patterns as Made by Mary for the past 4 years.

​Presently, she has 180 amazing designs in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "I have always loved stuffed animals and softies and now I love making them!"

Show your support & find her patterns here: Website | Ravelry
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Follow her here: Facebook | Instagram

Plus, checkout Made by Mary's Friday Feature here!!! Learn more about her and see which 3 of her designs are adored by all...

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Our fifth crochet expert judge, Amanda Flock, has been crocheting for 11 years. She has been sharing her beautiful crochet & knit patterns as Midnattsol Design for the past year.

​Presently, she has 16 lovely designs, crochet + knit combined, in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "There is an awesome sense of accomplishment being able to take a ball of yarn and a hook or needles and create something functional or decorative."
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Show your support & find her patterns here: Ravelry | Etsy
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Follow her here: Facebook | Instagram

Plus, checkout Midnattsol Design's Friday Feature here!!! Learn more about her and see which 3 of her designs (crochet + knit) are admired by all...

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Our final crochet expert judge, Charlyn Smith, has been crocheting for just about 2 years. She has been sharing her quirky critter patterns as The Cheerful Chameleon for the past year.

​Presently, she has 52 incredible designs in her Ravelry shop!

She says, "I think that everyone needs a little color and some cute and quirky critters in their life, and hopefully I can help bring some into yours!"

Show your support & find her patterns here: Website | Ravelry | Etsy
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Follow her here: Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter

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​Contest Schedule:

• ​Meet the Contestants - Monday, June 12, 2017.
• Popular Voting - From Monday, June 12, 2017 to Monday, June 26, 2017.
• ​Winner Announcement - Friday, June 30, 2017.

*This post will be updated tomorrow with links to meeting the contestants and the voting poll.

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Huge thanks to all my family and friends, who judged this contest, and thanks to you for visiting us today! ​Be sure to visit each judge, thank them for judging the contest and see their incredible work.

PLUS, check back tomorrow to meet all of the contestants and start the public voting...

UPDATE - June 12, 2017: Voting is LIVE + now meet the contestants too!

​​Help your favourite contestants have an incredible summer...

VOTE for your FAVES!