April 24, 2014

Elephants Never Forget

When I was a new blogger,
I had made for baby gifts.



Ever since then, these little elephants
have been one of my favorite go-to baby gifts to make.
Lately, it seems I've had less time than ever for sewing,
and meanwhile many MANY of my friends
have been having new babies...and grandbabies...
entering their lives.

Since I'm waaaaaaay overdue on 
welcoming these new sweethearts into the world,
I decided to make a whole herd of Tillies and Tommys.
Want to meet them?


These new elephants look just like
the others I've made before, except...
they are MINI elephants!


{Don't you think everything looks cuter when it's smaller?}

I simply reduced the pattern pieces to 75%
and made them up according to the instructions.

Here's how they looked before the polyfil
stuffing was added.


{A nice pressing does wonders for the finished softies.}


Let's talk fabrics...
I had such fun choosing pairs of fabrics
for this batch.

For the brown elephant,
I selected two Joel Dewberry classics,
from the Chestnut Hill line.


I just had to make a gray elephant,
shown at the top of the heap, 
and this Lecien floral print looked lovely
with pink ears from Tanya Whelan's Darla line.


Because I am such a great Tanya Whelan fan,
I selected another print to be paired with that pink Darla fabric.
Isn't this sweet, with the aqua Rosey print for the ears?


And now let's try it again, reversed.


Look...they love each other!



For the last two baby elephants in this batch,
I decided to use some lovely yellow and gray prints


This time I did something a bit different...
I used one print for the front sections
and the other for the back sections...


and them reversed them for the other "twin."


It's subtle...can you see what I mean?


{Normally I use the same print for the entire body,
with only a contrasting print for the inner ears.}

They make an adorable set of twins, don't they?


It just so happens that my wonderful friend who is expecting twin girls
has decorated their nursery in...yellow and gray!


These little elephants are anxious to meet their new babies,
and for once I'm ahead of schedule!


But for those babies and grandbabies who are now more like toddlers,
I can fill their little arms with squeezy baby elephants...


with cute little tails to tug...


and the wonderful mommies and grandmas will know,
like an elephant, I didn't forget!

I'm off to make my next herd of baby elephants!

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18 comments:

  1. Very cute, I am going to send this post to a friend who may want to see yours before she makes one!

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  2. Oh my gosh you have outdone yourself!! These are great and they are fun to make.
    All adorable!!

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  3. It's hard to decide what I like most about your elephants! The big floppy ears, the cute little tails or the beautiful fabric! Everything is just so sweet and I'm sure your little recipients will think so too!
    Julie @ The Crafty Quilter

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  4. What a great bright idea for the new babes and different to the
    usual teddies that are made for babies...not that I don't like teddies
    but it's a nice little change from the usual. Love the colours you've used
    and it looks like one of those projects that are fun to make lots of at a
    time. Very nice.
    Cheers, Anita.

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  5. Love the elephants - soft and cuddly and so easy to make. The initaled basket is a lovely idea too - beautiful keepsake!

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  6. Your baby elephants are truly adorable, sweet fabrics, and a darling photo shoot!

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  7. These are so, so cute! I just love them!

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  8. They are ADORABLE! I love seeing all the reverse combos.

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  9. I think that these are just soooo wonderful! They really are perfect for a baby gift. I like the size too.

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  10. The brown and the grey elephants are my favorites, but what did I know? I guess the irony of your text related to elephants memory...:)
    Such perfect pattern, work and fabrics choice! Very well done!

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  11. I am so in love with this little babies!! You always put your fabrics together in a way that they end up making music. Seriously. I love them!!

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  12. Oh my !!! How adorable are these !!! Love them and the fabrics are fabulous !

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  13. Aww these are so beautiful and cute! So fun to see them in a little herd , with their pretty colors!!
    Looks like they tend to multiply like little bunnies!
    Susie

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  14. These are so cute!! What's cuter than one miniature elephant in beautiful fabrics... why a mini herd of them in designer fabrics!! These will be well loved gifts!

    Susie

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  15. Amei seus elefantinhos, todos lindos e combinação perfeita, tenho certeza que seus novos donos irão adorá-los.... Um xeru!

    http://pedacinhobysandra.blogspot.com.br/

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  16. All of them are so gorgeous, you are very clever at pairing fabrics!!

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  17. Amy- these are too adorable! Great job! ~Shari

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  18. Adorable!! and what a great idea to make some ahead of time. As usual your fabric selection is enviable. I imagined that you are Super busy as of late but still loving your work(play) when you have a chance!

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