Ollie the Elephant is the perfect choice for a beginner pattern. The head and body of the elephant are designed as one piece, to which you will be attaching four limbs with button joints, while the two ears are attached with a bit of hand stitching. Ollie's eyes are embroidered with a simple satin stitch, and his trunk is embellished with a few simple embroidered crosses.
The pattern works well with linen fabrics, and with scraps of cotton for the ears. Old jeans will work perfectly as well. Ollie the Elephant can be made into a lovely memory elephant by using old clothes.
Note that all our patterns are designed to be sewn with interfacing for better stability and structure, but you will also notice that sewing interfaced fabric is often easier and more precise.
You will be receiving 2 PDF files:
- 1 file with the sewing instructions, which include many pictures,
- 1 file with the templates.
To sew Ollie the Elephant, you will need the following:
Materials
- ½ yard (a little less than ½ meter) linen (medium weight)
- a 13” x 10” (33 cm x 26 cm) scrap of quilting cotton for the ears
- ½ yard woven fusible interfacing or fusible fleece
- Fiberfill stuffing
- Pearl cotton embroidery thread
- 4 buttons (not recommended if the doll is made for a child under 3 years old, in which case the limbs should be sewn to the body without buttons)
- Sewing thread
Tools and Notions
- Sewing machine
- Fabric scissors
- Pinking scissors (not an absolute must, but nice to have)
- Fabric pen
- Doll-making needle (5” / 12.5 cm)
- Embroidery needle
- Chopstick or knitting needle
- Iron
