Handmade Holidays Part 1 – Create Your Own Christmas Stocking

Knitting your own Christmas Stockings puts you in a happy place. Besides, look at the perks, they don’t really have to fit, there doesn’t have to be the dreaded “second sock syndrome”, you can make them with huge needles and yarn, and, if you knit them in the round, there’s practically no finishing.

There is some prep, however. Is it decoration? Is it to be useful? Will some “allergic to wool” little elf be sticking his paw inside to discover the contents?

Plan your stocking to suit you. Heirloom or modern. Plain stripes or color work. And what about the colors? Christmas doesn’t have to be all red, green and white. Knit with whatever colors you want. Brights, pastels, muted heathers, it’s your stocking, knit it the way you want it.

Choose from several types of tops. A common top would be a k1, p1 rib for however long you want it. The legs are basically an empty canvas. Fill them with anything from fair isle designs to snowflakes and santas. Go ethnic, or use cables or even lace. Even knit in your name, we wouldn’t want Santa getting all confused. Confused Santa’s are not a good thing, we like to keep them happy and on track.

For the heel, use a standard heel flap and you should be good to go. Think about a different color for the heel and toe. Shape the toe as you would the top of the mitten with decreases and a Kitchener stitch at the end. Now comes the fun part.

Sequins, bells, beads and bling, you name it, it has a place on your stocking. Have some fun fur yarn? Why not give Santa a real fur hat? Embroider fun things, use unique embellishments. It’s your stocking. Make it original, make it a work of art. Make it designer!

To finish it off, gently steam, knit up an icord for the loop and hang it by the fireplace. But, you’re still not done. Don’t forget the cookies and milk, it’s all about keeping Santa happy!

Next Pattern:

It’s been well documented that I love a knitting pattern with a bit of whimsy, so when I saw the Mine! Pullover from Sarah L. Kelly recently I knew I had to share it with you.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to knit a sweater with a yoke full of seagulls? And another seagull at the waist? Chasing little crabs?

The story behind the sweater (and you knew there had to be one, right?) is that while Sarah was traveling around Europe there were a lot of cheeky seagulls about. They reminded her of the scene in Finding Nemo where the seagulls say “mine, mine, mine” and thus the Mine! series of patterns was born.

Oh yes, there’s a whole set. It was the sweater I saw first but there’s also a pair of socks (and the pattern says there’s a cowl, too, but I couldn’t find it as of this writing. If you see it let me know and I’ll add the link here!) so you can totally deck yourself out in pesky seabirds if you want.

But back to the sweater for now. This is worked in DK weight yarn from the top down in the round. The yoke and a section at the bottom are worked in stranded colorwork, with stripes on the body, though you could make the body a single color if you wanted. Details like the beaks and eyes are added with duplicate stitch to make the knitting a little easier.

The colorwork sections are charted. The pattern comes in 10 sizes, with a finished chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 80 to 170 cm.

The socks are worked in sock yarn and come in three sizes. There worked from the cuff down and change needle sizes to accommodate the less stretchy nature of stranded colorwork. You can choose from a side profile or a seagull that’s looking out from the sock. Make a matching pair or mix it up.

Both patterns are available on Ravelry: sweater and socks. If you make them I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Sarah L. Kelly]

Next Pattern:

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