What is the difference between Animal of the Year and a Visiting Friend? Back when we only made one new limited-edition animal each year, we referred to them as the Animal of the Year. Now that we have the capacity to do multiple animals, there are no more animals of year – they’re all just visiting friends! 

What kind of animals come to visit Hazel Village? Generally the new limited-edition friends are North American woodland animals (specifically those native to the Northeast), but it’s really whatever Jane imagines.

How often do you release new animals? We release new limited-edition animals 3-4 times per year. 

Will old animals ever come back to the Village? Yes! Every holiday season we bring back an old limited-edition friend. In 2019, Kit Skunk visited the Village. In December 2020, Clover Horse returned. 

How do you decide which animals will be the next limited-edition? Jane decides! The entire Hazel Village world lives inside her mind, so she communicates to the rest of our team and together we make her ideas a reality. 

How long does it take to make a limited-edition animal? Have you already started the process for the next one? From design to launch, it takes anywhere from 3-6 months. We’ve been trying to plan ahead, so we’re already working on our summer friend and Jane has designed animals for later this year!

Who designs the animals and writes their stories? Do you take into consideration what people suggest or is it more of Jane’s vision? It’s all Jane! Sometimes other Village elves will give suggestions about names or details about the animal (for example: Jane gave us a few names and we all voted for Gaspard Duck!). On occasion will take requests into account, like Jane saw how popular unicorns were and knew one had to visit Hazel Village. 

Will you ever have a vote contest for a limited-edition animal? Not this year, but we’ll send the suggestion along to Jane. 

Would you ever do a pre-order Hazelnut exclusive limited-edition animal? Maybe someday! We would need additional capacity with our artisans that we do not currently have.

Will all limited-edition animals have their own trunk? It depends on the animal, the occasion, and the holiday! 

Will you ever bring back Augustus Wild Boar? Maybe!

What are the quantities on limited-edition friends? Now that there are multiple a year, how limited are they? It varies! In the past limited-edition friends have stuck around for as little time as a few days to as much time as more than a year (Josie Chipmunk lingered at the Village for a year and a half!). We’re not always sure how popular they’ll be, so we always recommend shopping at launch just in case they sell out quickly. 

Would you consider making “babies” along with some of the limited edition animals? There’s definitely more of our mini animals in the works right now! 😉