The elephant in my sleeve

One of the more interesting aspects of the sewing is that you do start thinking more about recycling material.  Anyway, I have settled on the pattern for my daughter, though I probably won't start cutting the pieces out until I get the sewing machine back (I am dropping it off at the repair centre this afternoon).  I am hoping there is enough material left for a second quilt for my son, but it is not clear right now if that is the case.

I had bought more material (right around the time Fabricland moved away from Honest Eds) that could be used for a quilt for me (probably backed with my old t-shirts tacked to a sheet, though that may end up being just too involved).  While the kids' quilts would be flannel, this one will be cotton.

As I was going through my shirts, including some that I haven't worn in a really long time, I realized that there were a couple that were 100% cotton with somewhat interesting patterns and that also could no longer be worn, since the button holes had been shredded.  So I put them into the pile to be cut up for scrap (mostly the back panel).  I thought I might see if possibly the materials from the sleeve or the shirt front might have enough excess to make one of these stuffed animals.

I then cut off the sleeves.  If you have ever wondered what a dress shirt sleeve looks like with all the seams and buttons cut off, it looks like this.

I decided this might actually give me enough material for an elephant (well, the side view of an elephant) with some clever cutting (and maybe I can use the cuff to make ears).  I think this is a bit too involved for tonight, however.  I'll check back in with further progress, either on this or the other projects down the road.