A new toy in town

There's been a bit of an owl production line going on for a while now; I've made mountains of them, all kinds of sizes and colours - some have found new homes, but quite a few are still here...
Anyway, it's time to branch out and try something new, so I've started making elephants.

Not exactly sure why elephants, though it probably has something to do with the simple, retro 70's shape again. Always drawn to that. I found a few pictures I liked and came up with a rough pattern... then began tinkering.

I'm sure there's a proper method for working out the correct size of gusset you need - I've put one on top and one underneath to improve the shape, and used the see-how-it-goes method, so the elephants are evolving...
Definitely tested my moderate sewing machine skills with the corners and joins, but I am speeding up!

I'd love a little help with the ears - I've made some using the same fabric and others with crocheted ears, and can't decide....

This is the latest Ellie, made from a piece of vintage sheet - I could go for the same fab fabric, or use some cheery, bright orange wool, what do you think?

Linking up with Handmade Monday