This was the third year in a row I’d competed in the Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival’s Fiber Arts contest. There was no way I was going to do anything but Baby Yoda, from the TV series The Mandalorian.

The biggest challenge with this figure was capturing the impish expression he makes when he’s done something he knows he shouldn’t have done—and wants to know what you’re going to do about it. In the first picture, he’s just swallowed a frog whole and is like, “What? Did you want some?”

I also paid attention to fuzzing up the top of his head and ears, adding ridges to the top of his head, and touching up his face with bits of pink that really give him that little-kid look on the backs of his ears, around his eyelids, on his mouth and on his nose. He’s also got only three digits on each hand and foot, so making the fingers expressive (and mobile enough to hold a ball) was a challenge. For his clothes, it was fun to try to recreate two kinds of fabric using only wool: the fleecy collar and cuffs, and the flatter coat fabric.

Also, this Baby Yoda is ready for any future costume changes! There’s a whole body under that coat, because sticking a head and hands onto a bunch of stuffing looks weird. I’m hoping he gets some teeny tiny Mandalorian armor and maybe a jet pack, although that could be pretty flammable.

Why’s he holding a ball? If you’ve seen the show, you’ve seen him messing around in the cockpit of the Mandalorian’s ship. Specifically, he loves to steal the metal ball that’s screwed onto the top of the throttle because it’s shiny and I think he’s teething.

So: Here he is with his favorite toy in his right hand, hanging out in, and on, my ancient apple tree.