elephant

heirloom doll

1
 M AT E R I A L

FA B R I C EMBROIDERY NEEDLE
• A piece of fabric 39 in (99 cm) wide
x 15 in (38 cm) long as your body fabric FA B R I C PA I N T, C O L O U R P E N C I L
OR BLUSH FOR THE CHEEKS
• A piece of fabric 11 in (28 cm) wide
x 7 in (18 cm) long for the inner ears
T U R N I N G TO O L
• A piece of fabric 4 in (10 cm) wide
x 3 in (8 cm) long for the tusks (optional) (It could simply be a chopstick)

• A tiny piece (scrap) of fur or faux-fur (optional)

E R A S A B L E FA B R I C P E N
Recommended fabric
For the body, I suggest a medium-weight woven SEWING MACHINE
fabric, such as cotton, linen or a blend of both.

FA B R I C S C I S S O R S
STUFFING
Approximatlly 5 oz (150g) of stuffing. It can be
polyester stuffing which you can find in most P I N K I N G S H E A R S (optional)
craft shops or tall surfaces. You could also use
natural fibers such as carded wool.
PINS

SEWING THREAD
100% polyester thread that matches RULER
the color of your fabrics

IRON
E M B R O I D E RY T H R E A D ( F LO S S )
for eyes and trunk wrinkles embroidery

Please go through the General Instructions document before starting this project. There, you can find important
information for sewing and detailed tutorials for the different hand stitches.

This pattern is for personal use only. © Copyright 2023 Mes petites lunes - All Rights Reserved

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 C U T T I N G L AYO U T
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B O D Y FA B R I C

15 in (38 cm)

selvedge
fold

13 in (33 cm) 13 in (33 cm)

2 layers

T U S K FA B R I C
I N N E R E A R FA B R I C 3 in (8 cm)
selvedge
fold
7 in (18 cm)
selvedge

2 in (5 cm)
fold

2 layers

5.5 in (14 cm)

2 layers

S E A M A L LO WA N C E
3/8 in (0.9 cm) seam allowance included
except tusk 3/16 in (0.5 cm)

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 SEWING INSTRUCTIONS
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Cut out your pattern pieces from the fabric following

the grainline and mark the notches (notches are the
little lines printed on the pattern pieces).

You should have 1 back, 1 front, 2 face pieces, 4 legs,

4 arms, 4 ears and 4 pieces for the tusk (optional, not
shown in the picture).

With right sides facing, pin each pair of legs and arms
and sew along the line as shown.

Trim the seam allowance of the curves of the legs and

arms to reduce bulk.

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Turn both arms and legs the right side out using
a loopturner or a chopstick.

Align the seams at the center for the legs and at the
sides for the arms and iron.

Begin to stuff both legs and arms by pushing small

amount of stuffing towards the feet and hands.

Make sure the feet and hands are stuffed firmly and
then continue stuffing up to 1 in (2.5 cm) before
opening.

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With right sides facing, pin in place the two pieces of

the face and sew along the line as shown.

Press the seam open at the neck and at the top of head.

With right sides facing, sew the face and the front of
the doll as shown.

With right sides facing, pin in place each pair of ears

and sew along as shown.

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10

Turn both ears right side out.

Fold one side of each ear 3/8 in (1 cm) towards the inside
of the ear. Folded sides of the ears should be facing
each other.

Sew to secure at 3/16 in (0,5 cm) from the edge.

11

To ruffle the ears, set your machine to the widest stitch

possible and sew a basting stitch along the open edge
at about 3/16 in (0.5 cm) from the edge.

It’s important not to backstitch at either end and do

not forget to leave a couple of inches of thread when
clipping.

12

Carefully pull on one of the threads to gather the fabric

as shown.

Gather the fabric until the length of the ear is equal to

the distance between the two ear marks.

Do the same for both ears.

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13

With right side of the doll facing the inner side of both
ears, pin in place the ears at the ear marks and sew as
shown.

14

Pin and sew the arms between the arm marks and the
neckline. The top of arms should extend about 3/8 in
(0.9 cm) beyond the neck seam so that the arms are
perfectly aligned with the neck when the doll is turned
over.

15

To add a little bit of fur on top of your elephant doll, cut

out a tiny piece of real or faux fur.

(I use a piece which dimensions are about 1 in (2,5 cm)

wide and 3/8 in (1 cm) long, but really any scraps
will do)

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16

Fold it in half lengthwise.

17

Place it on the top of the doll’s head, aligning it with the

face middle seam, and position it so that almost all the
skin (fabric at the base of the fur) is extended further
out from the doll fabric.

Secure it in place by sewing very closed to the folded

edge of the fur, almost stitching on the hair only.

(You want the skin to be within the seam allowance in

order to have only the hair coming out once the doll is
turned right side out. See picture 21)

18

With right sides facing, place the front of the doll on

top of the back of the doll and pin in place, aligning the
neck marks on the back with the neck seam of the front
and the middle head mark of the back with the middle
seam of the face.

(All notches are written on patterns)

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19

Just like that.

20

Sew carefully all the way around leaving an 11/2 in (4 cm)

gap on the side at the opening marks for stuffing.

Make sure the whole arm openings are on the

outside of the seam, then double stitch the arms
and ears to reinforce the seam.

21

If you added fur, the skin (or fabric) should be outside

the seam as shown in the picture.

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22

Trim the seam allowance around the head and neck

using pinking shears or by making small triangle cuts.

23

Turn the doll the right side out.

Begin to stuff the trunk by pushing small amount of

stuffing towards the tip of the trunk.

Then, stuff firmly the head. Make sure that the head is
round with no crease. You can push small amounts of
stuffing towards the sides of the head and towards the
trunk to shape the face.

24

Fold the bottom edge 1 1/4 in (3 cm) towards the inside

of the body and iron.

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25

With the front of the doll facing towards you, insert

1 in (2.5 cm) of both legs into the body and pin in place.
Make sure the feet are facing upwards and the legs are
the same length.

26

Sew the legs by stitching a straight line near the bottom

of the body.

27

Stuff the rest of the body starting by the neck area

making sure there is no crease at the sides and at the
back of the neck.

Stuff firmly the corner of the body close to the legs and
the center of the body.

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28

Hand sew the opening closed of the body using the

ladder stitch. (See the General instruction booklet for
detailed tutorials on all handstitches)

(I always fold my thread in half in order to use the knot-

less start to attach the thread to the edge opening and
finish with a slip knot to secure the thread.)

29

To draw the face of the elephant, start by measuring

3 in (7,5 cm) from the top head seam along the middle
face seam.

Place a pin to mark the spot.

30

Place your ruler horizontally directly below the pin and

measure 2 in (5 cm) on each side from the pin and
mark the spots with a dot.

I recommend using a flexible ruler or a a soft tape to

measure and try to follow the grain of fabric when
measuring.

(It is not easy to measure straight lines especially with

the trunk in the way, thats why its important to use an
erasable fabric pen to correct the position of the eyes
if necessary)

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31

Draw two circles of 1/4 in (0,6 cm) diameter around the

dots. Dots should be at the center.

(To help you draw round circles and eyelashes, you can
use the template in the pattern section.)

32

Cut a 20 in (50 cm) piece of embroidery thread.

(If you’re using 6-strand embroidery floss, I suggest

splitting the thread in half and stitching with three
strands to create thinner lines.)

Fold your thread in half and pull the tails through the
eye of your needle.

33

Bring your needle down into the fabric at the top far
right of the doll’s eye and bring it up directly across on
the opposite edge of the eye.

Pull the thread until you have a small loop left on the
right side and begin with the knotless start.

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34

Bring your needle into the fabric passing through the

same hole where the loop came out and bring your
needle up on the opposite side just below your first
stitch.

Pull tight to hide the knot into the doll.

35

Continue stitching until the shape is filled using

the satin stitch.

36

On your last satin stitch, bring your needle up

at the top center of the eye.

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37

Outline the eye using the backstitch.

38

(This step is optional) On your last backstitch, bring your

needle down into the fabric and up at the eyelashes and
stitch them.

Bring your needle back up close to the outline

of the eye.

39

To finish with a slip knot end, start by bringing your

needle under the closest stitch to your thread.

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40

Then, bring your needle through the loop and pull.

41

To hide the knot, bring your needle into the fabric

passing through the hole of the stitch you use for
the slip knot and bring your needle out a couple
of inches away.

Pull tight to tuck the knot inside.

Repeat for the other eye.

42

You can add little lines as wrinkles on the elephant trunk

starting as you did for the eyes with the knotless start
and finishing with a slip knot end.

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43

If you want to add tusks on your elephant, cut out the

pattern piece from your fabric.

44

Seam allowance for the tusk is 3/16 in (0,5 cm).

Place two pieces together right sides facing and sew

along the edge as shown.

Repeat for the other tusk

45

Turn both tusks the right side out.

Fold the edge 1/4 in (0.6 cm) towards the inside

and iron.

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46

Stuff the tusks by pushing the stuffing towards the tip

first and then stuff completely.

47

To attach the tusks to the face, thread your needle by

inserting both ends of a long folded thread through the
eye of your needle.

Attach the thread to the folded edge of the tusk using

the knotless start as shown in the picture.

48

Place and pin the tusks on either side of the trunk

where you want them to be.

(I can’t really give you any precise position here since

it’s pretty hard to measure, but i would say i position
them close to the trunk where it starts to get flatter.)

Use many pins to shape round circles.

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49

Sew the tusks in place using the ladder stitch.

Bring your needle through the fabric of the doll’s face,

then up through the bottom fold of the tusk and keep
going like this alternating between the two fabrics.
(See the next 3 pictures)

50

Just like this.

51

Narrow stitch using about 3 mm long stitches to create

a sturdy seam.

Pull the thread often to tighten the stitches and

connect both pieces together

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52

Keep stitching all the way around.

53

When reaching the end of circle, finish with a slip knot.

54

Pull tight to tighten the knot

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55

To hide the knot, bring your needle into the fabric

passing through the hole of the stitch you used for
the slip knot and bring your needle out a couple of
inches away.

Pull tight to tuck the knot inside and cut the thread.

56

Pretty mammoth !

57

The easiest way to blush the cheeks is to color them

using a pink color pencil. This method will fade over
time but it always gives a soft and pretty result.

Another option is to use fabric paint. This method has

the advantage of lasting over time but it could also be
a disaster if you don’t apply it correctly.

If you decide to use paint, wet your brush first, wipe it

off, then take a very small amount of paint and make
gentle circles on your doll’s cheeks. Try it on a piece of
fabric first before applying it to your doll.

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