Help Build the World’s Biggest Stocking to Support Children of Fallen Soldiers

Yarnspirations is looking to build the largest knit and crocheted Christmas stocking, three feet at a time, in order to support the Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation.

The idea is that knitters and crocheters will buy Caron United, the acrylic, made in the USA yarn that already supports that foundation, whip up 3 foot by 3 foot blankets, mail them in and have them added to the stocking.

If you use Caron United, 15 cents from the purchase price of each skein goes to the foundation (though they will accept blankets made in any worsted/medium weight yarn) and when the stocking is done the finished blankets will be donated to military charities. They also prefer blankets worked in red, white or green for the holiday theme, but other colors will be accepted.

The Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation provides scholarships and educational counseling to the children of fallen soldiers.

Learn more about the project, get patterns and find out where to send your finished blankets at the project FAQ page. What a great way to help others this holiday season.

[Photo via Yarnspirations.]

Looking for more Christmas themed Knitting patterns? Check out some of our favorite Knitting patterns on Etsy and

These Christmas Knitting Pattern Books on Amazon

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time.

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring.

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row.

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves.

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body.

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy.

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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