Crocheting an adorable elephant can be such a delightful and heartwarming experience! The soft yarn, intricate stitches, and cute design all come together to create a charming little companion. As you work on each loop and stitch, envisioning the finished product can bring a smile to your face. Whether you're making it for yourself, a loved one, or even to donate to a charity, the process of crafting this sweet elephant can be both relaxing and rewarding. Plus, once it's complete, you'll have a special handmade creation that is sure to bring joy to anyone who sees it. So grab your crochet hook and a cozy spot, and get ready to bring this lovable elephant to life stitch by stitch!
Materials needed:
Gray sport weight yarn
G hook
Fiberfill
Black embroidery floss
Yarn needle
*Ch 1 at the start of a round does not count as a stitch.
Instructions:
Round 1: make an adjustable ring, ch1, 6 sc in ring, join. (6 sts)
Round 2: ch 1, 2 sc in the same st as join and in each st around, join. (12 sts)
Round 3: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, 1 sc in next st, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in next st, repeat from * around, join. (18 sts)
Round 4: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, repeat from * around, join. (24 sc)
Round 5: ch 1, 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in each of the next 9 sts, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from *once, 2 sc in the next st, 1 sc in each of the next 5 sts, join. (27 sts)
Round 6: ch 1, 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in each of the next 9 sts, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 4 sts, repeat from * once, 2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 6 sts, join. (30 sts)
Rounds 7 – 8: ch 1, 1 sc in each st around, join. (30 sts)
Round 9: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and the next st, 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, *sc dec over the next 2 sts, 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from * around, join. (24 sts)
Round 10: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and the next st, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, *sc dec over the next 2 sts, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, repeat from * around, join. (18 sts)
Round 11: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and the next st, 1 sc in next st, *sc dec over the next 2 sts, 1 sc in next st, repeat from * around, join. (12 sts) Stuff elephant’s head.
Round 12: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, 1 sc in next st, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in next st, repeat from * around, join. (18 sts)
Round 13: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts, repeat from * around, join. (24 sc)
Round 14: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, *2 sc in next st, 1 sc in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from * around, join. (30 sc)
*For rounds 15 – 18, the increases made will be part of the elephant’s belly.
Round 15: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, *1 sc in each of the next 4 sts, 2 sc in the next st, repeat from * once, 1 sc in each of the next 19 sts, join. (33 sts)
Round 16: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, *1 sc in each of the next 5 sts, 2 sc in the next st, repeat from * once, 1 sc in each of the next 20 sts, join. (36 sts)
Round 17: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, *1 sc in each of the next 6 sts, 2 sc in the next st, repeat from * once, 1 sc in each of the next 21 sts, join. (39 sts)
Round 18: ch 1, 2 sc in same st as join, *1 sc in each of the next 7 sts, 2 sc in the next st, repeat from * once, 1 sc in each of the next 22 sts, join. (42 sts)
Rounds 19 – 25: ch 1, 1 sc in same st as join and in each st around, join. (42 sts)
Round 26: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, *sc in each of the next 7 sts, sc dec over next 2 sts, repeat from * once, sc in each of the next 22 sts, join. (39 sts)
Round 27: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, *sc in each of the next 6 sts, sc dec over next 2 sts, repeat from * once, sc in each of the next 21 sts, join. (36 sts)
Round 28: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, *sc in each of the next 5 sts, sc dec over next 2 sts, repeat from * once, sc in each of the next 20 sts, join. (33 sts)
Round 29: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, *sc in each of the next 4 sts, sc dec over next 2 sts, repeat from * once, sc in each of the next 19 sts, join. (30 sts)
Round 30: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, sc in each of the next 3 sts, *sc dec over next 2 sts, sc in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from * around, join. (24 sts) Start stuffing elephant’s body.
Round 31: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, sc in each of the next 2 sts, *sc dec over next 2 sts, sc in each of the next 2 sts, repeat from * around, join. (18 sts)
Round 32: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, sc in next st, *sc dec over next 2 sts, sc in next st, repeat from * around, join. (12 sts)
Round 33: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, sc dec over next 2 sts around, join. (6 sts) Finish off, stuff the rest of the elephant, sew hole closed and weave in end.
Trunk
Round 1: make an adjustable ring, ch1, 6 sc in ring, join in the back loop of the first sc. (6 sts)
Round 2: ch 1, sc in same st as join, working in the back loops of the previous round, 1 sc in each st around, join. (6 sts)
Round 3: ch 1, sc in same st as join and in each st around, join. (6 sts)
Rounds 4 – 11: ch 1, sc dec over same st as join and next st, 2 sc in each of the next 2 sts, sc dec over last 2 sts, join. (6 sts)
Rounds 12 – 14: ch1, sc in same st as join and in each st around, join. (6 sts)
Round 15: skip first st, sl st in each of the next 2 sts, sc in each of the next 2 sts. (2sc)
Rounds 16 - 18: ch 1, turn, 1 sc in each of the next 2 sts.
Finish off, leaving an 8 inch tail for sewing the trunk to the elephant’s face.
Legs (make 4)
Round 1: make an adjustable ring, ch1, 6 sc in ring, join. (6 sts)
Round 2: ch1, 2 sc in same st as join and in each st around, join in the back loop of the first sc. (12 sts)
Round 3: ch 1, sc in same st as join, working in the back loops of the previous round, 1 sc in each st around, join. (12 sts)
Rounds 4 – 8: ch 1, sc in same st as join and in each st around, join. (12 sts)
At the end of round 8 finish off; leaving an 8 inch tail for sewing. Stuff each leg and sew to bottom of elephant’s belly.
Ears (make 2)
Row 1: leaving an 8 inch tail for sewing, ch 8, sc in second ch from hook and in the next 6 chs. (7 sc)
Row 2: ch 1, 1 sc in each of the next 5 sts, sc dec over last 2 sts. (6 sc)
Row 3: ch 1, 1 sc dec over first 2 sts, 1 sc in each of the next 4 sts. (5 sts)
Row 4: ch 1, sc in each of the first 3 sts, sc dec over last 2 sts. (4 sts)
Row 5: ch 1, sc dec over first 2 sts, sc in each of the next 2 sts. (3 sts)
Row 6: ch 1, sc dec over first 2 sts, sc in last st. (2 sts)
Row 7: ch 1, sc dec over both sts. (1 st)
Finish off, weave in end, and sew ears to elephant’s head. (If you block the ears, they won’t curl.)
Embroider eyes on elephant’s face.