If you want to purchase an ad-free printable PDF version of this elephant baby teether, you can find it HERE on etsy.
A few weeks ago there was a baby shower for a friend of mine at church. She’s having her first little boy so I wanted to make them a little teether!
I figure it was the perfect opportunity for an impromptu pattern creation. And I had so much fun with it! Lionbrand’s Feels like Butta yarn is soooo soft and I love the slight halo effect of the yarn.
This pattern is fairly simple so you can quickly whip up a teether for the next baby shower you’re invited to, for a friend who’s expecting, or for a little one of your own! Either way you’ll have a sweet little elephant teether in no time.
NOTE: If you are wanting to sell finished products from this free crochet Chip the Chinchilla pattern you’re welcome to, just make sure you link back to my pattern here and credit me with the design. Thank you!
Abbreviations
- Sc – single crochet
- Inc – increase
- Dec – decrease
- FO – Finish off
- Rnd – round
- MR – magic ring
- Ch – chain
- sts – stitches
Materials
- Size D 3.25mm crochet hook
- 1 skein Feels like Butta yarn in the color Ice
- 1 pair of 6 mm safety eyes
- 1 6.00 cm macrame/wood teether ring
- 8 inches of white worsted weight yarn
- 8 inches of black embroidery floss
- Scissors
- Yarn needle
- Embroidery/sewing needle
- Stuffing (I use polyester fiberfill)
Head
Rnd 1: sc 6 in a MR
Rnd 2: *inc* 6 times (12)
Rnd 3: *sc, inc* 6 times (18)
Rnd 4: *sc 2, inc* 6 times (24)
Rnd 5: *sc 3, inc* 6 times (30)
Rnds 6 – 9: sc 30 each rnd
Rnd 10: sc 13, ch 3, skip 4 stitches and then sc 13 (29)
This chain creates the hole for us to attach and crochet the trunk onto later.
Rnd 11: sc 13, sc once in each of the 3 ch sts, sc 13 (29)
Rnd 12: sc 29
At this point, you’ll stop crocheting around the head and move to working on the trunk. To do this, remove your crochet hook from the live loop and place a stitch marker in it to keep it from coming loose.
Each skein of yarn has two ends to it, one on the inside and one on the outside. Since you’re using one end to make the head of the elephant, grab the other end in order to make the trunk.
Tie a slipknot in this end of yarn. With the open end of your head facing downwards (photo A), pull the slipknot through the middle of the 3 chain stitches you made in rnd 10 (photo B). Yarn over (photo C) and pull through to join it to your elephant’s face. Then make 1 sc in the same space you joined the yarn to (photo D).
Make another sc into the ch stitch directly to the left (photo E). Make sure your non-live yarn tail from your join is on the inside of the elephant head at this point (photo F). Flip your head upside down, and sc once in each of the 4 stitches you skipped over when crocheting the head (see the pink arrow on photo G). Flip your head right side up again, and make 1 sc in the ch space directly to the right of where you joined the yarn (photo H). This ends rnd 1 of your trunk! You should have 7 sts total.
The first stitch you’ll work into for rnd 2 is the first sc you made when joining the yarn for the trunk in rnd 1 (photo I).
Rnds 2 – 4: sc 7 in each rnd
Rnd 5: dec, sc 5 (6)
Rnd 6: sc 6
Sl and FO, leaving about a 6 inch tail for stitching the trunk down later (photo J).
Insert each safety eye 2 sts away from the edge of the trunk between rnds 9 and 10 (photos K, L).
You’ll now resume crocheting the head. Remove the stitch marker you placed in the live yarn at the end of rnd 12 earlier and reinsert your crochet hook to continue working in the round.
Rnd 13: *sc 3, dec* 6 times (24)
Rnd 14: *sc 2, dec* 6 times (18)
Sl st and pull the yarn tail through to finish off, leaving a long tail to sew the head on.
Stuff the head well.
Base
Ch 21, turn
Row 1: starting in 2nd ch from hook, sc 20, ch 1, turn
Rows 2 – 6: sc 20, ch 1, turn
Row 7: sc 20
Cut the yarn and pull the yarn tail through to finish off, leaving a long tail to sew the base onto the ring.
Ear (make 2)
Rnd 1: sc 6 in a MR
Rnd 2: *sc, inc* 3 times (9)
Sl st and pull the yarn tail through to finish off, leaving a 6 inch tail you’ll use later.
Repeat Rnds 1 and 2 again so that you create a second circle, but don’t finish off.
While your second circle is still on the hook, you’ll join it to the first circle you created. Do this by inserting the crochet hook into the second stitch in the first increase you made on the first circle (photo M). Make one sc. Sc 6 more around the circle (photos N, O).
Now you’ll join back over to the second circle you created. As you did last time, insert the crochet hook into the second stitch in the first increase you made on the second circle (see the pink dot in photo O). Make one sc. Sc 6 more around the circle.
You now have the first three rounds of the ear done! From here on it’s worked in one piece.
Rnd 4: sc 14 each rnd
Sc 3 more. Then sl st and pull the yarn tail through to finish off, leaving an 8 inch tail you’ll use to sew the ear onto the head. Flatten the ear so that the last sl st you made is on the top and you have two bumps on the other side as shown in photo P.
There’s still going to be a small hole in between the two ear bumps, so use the tail left from when you finished off your first ear circle to whip stitch it shut (photos Q, R).
Then trim off all tails coming out of the inside of the ear and flatten it again (photos S, T).
And an ear is complete!
Assembly
Begin by stitching the base to the ring. Thread the long tail you left for sewing onto a yarn needle and place your base along the ring so that the ends will meet on the inside of the ring (photos U, V). It’s okay that the sides don’t easily touch – this is intentional and helps prevent the teether from sliding around too much once completed.
To begin to stitch it together, poke the needle into the furthest right stitch on the opposite corner of the base and pull tight (photo W). Then poke the needle into the furthest right open st on the first side of the base and pull tight (photo X). Then poke the needle into the furthest right open st on the second side of the base and pull tight (photo Y). Continue this pattern all the way down the base until you reach the end, ensuring you pull tight after every stitch – this helps your teether prevent from sliding around once completed. (photo Z)
Then weave in the ends. Your finished base should look like this:
Next you’ll stitch the head onto the base. Using the tail you left earlier you’ll whip stitch each st on the bottom of the head onto the base of the elephant to secure it. Position your elephant head so that the hole on the bottom is centered on the base (photos .A, .B).
Then stitch it on by poking through one stitch on the bottom of the head and then one stitch on the base and repeating those two steps (see photos .C – .F for some process photos).
Weave in the end.
Next you’ll stitch the ears to the head.
Each ear should be stitched on 3 sts back from where you inserted the safety eye on each side of the head. Have the ear cover rnds 6 – 12 (7 rnds total). (photos .G, .H) The top should start being sewn on between rnds 5 and 6 (photo .I), and the bottom should end between rnds 12 and 13. Pin the ears on to help you position them and then whip stitch them to the head (photo .J). Weave in the ends.
And your elephant should look like this:
Thread the tail left on the trunk onto a needle. Poke into the center of the trunk coming out on the underside between rnds 2 and 3 (photo .K). Stitch it down onto the elephant’s head between rnds 11 and 12 (photo .L). Stitch between the trunk and face at this point 2 – 3 times to secure it and weave in the ends (photos .M, .N).
For finishing touches you’ll embroider white lines onto the edges of the safety eyes, and eyebrows above the safety eyes.
To embroider on the white lines, grab your small piece of white yarn and make one stitch on the right eye coming up from the middle of the bottom of the safety eye and going into the head at the top of the middle of the safety eye (photos .O, .P). Then on the left eye work in the opposite direction from top to bottom to create the eye stitch (photo .Q). Knot the ends together and weave them in (photo .R).
To embroidery on the eyebrows, separate three strands off of your 8 inch piece of embroidery floss. Thread it onto the embroidery needle.
To stitch the eyebrow on, begin by making a loose angled line arching from the outside of the elephant’s head to the inside, coming up out of the head at a higher midpoint between the two and under your looped eyebrow (photo .S). Pull tight, and then stitch back down into the head where you just exited at the eyebrow’s midpoint (photo .T). The finished eyebrow should look like the eyebrow in photo .V. Then repeat with the other eyebrow and weave in your ends.
And you’re done!
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