Crocheted Christmas Tree Ornament

I was digging through some boxes the other day and discovered a Christmas tree I'd crocheted a long time ago. So, I recreated it in miniature and made a Christmas ornament. It only takes less than an hour to crochet, which gives you time to make plenty to in someone's stocking. I hope you can translate my directions. I tried to make them clear since I just looked at the bigger tree and shrunk it to size. Have fun with this  tiny treasure.

 

Row 1.Chain 10 stitches

Row 2. 1 sc, turn piece

Row 3. 10 sc in remaining stitches to end,

Row 4. Turn, chain 1, and 10 sc in remaining stitches to end

Row 5. *turn piece Chain 3 stitches, sc in back of loop next to end of chain 3. Repeat from * across to end of piece.

Row 6. Turn, chain 1, yarn over and double crochet in remaining stitches, decreasing one stitch at beginning and end of row by skipping a stitch. You should have 8 double crochet and 1 chain 3 in the row when you are finished.

Row 7-10 Repeat from * 3 times. You should have 1 chain of 3 and 2 double crochets when you reach this point.

Row 11. Chain 3 stitches, sc in back of loop next to end of chain. Repeat until you have 3 loops in this row.

Row 12. Chain 3, sc in back of loop next to end of chain. Double crochet 2, spacing in row evenly to create top of tree.

Cut off enough yarn to create a hanging loop and secure tightly.

Decorate your tree using embroidery floss and French knots stitched into the tree’s boughs (looped rows) or stitch small decorative buttons or beads on the boughs.

To make a larger tree start with a long chain base and decrease accordingly as noted above. To make a stand up tree, crochet 2 larger base trees, stitch them together at the edges, decorate, and stuff with batting.

Christmas Heirlooms

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Are you ready for Christmas? Or if you’re not ready, hope you're at least enjoying a fun Friday, looking forward to the celebration of our Savior’s birth.

For children, the joy of Christmas comes from the wonder and anticipation of the season. Older people more often find joy in memories that settle deep into the soul, built layer upon layer. Christmas heirlooms are the catalyst guaranteed to recall those memories of Christmases past, and all the joy they hold.

Every family has its own unique heirlooms. One of the most enduring is the crèche.

According to tradition, Saint Francis of Assisi created the first nativity scene in 1223 as a live representation of the Holy Birth. The Nativity scene inspired communities throughout Catholic countries to stage similar pantomimes.

As the centuries progressed, figurines of clay, terra cotta, and porcelain were produced to display in public and in homes. Besides Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus, shepherds, sheep, angels, and the Magi were added to the setting. Displaying the crèche became almost as popular as the Christmas tree. Customs evolved, such as assigning the honor of placing the baby Jesus to the family’s youngest child.

The family crèche was a prized heirloom passed down from generation to generation, but it's not the only Christmas keepsake.

Whether store-bought or hand-made, ornaments are popular heirlooms. As the custom of decorating a Christmas tree grew, the need for ornaments naturally increased.

Victorians made most of their ornaments, and the instructions for constructing them were included the magazines of the day. Balls, bird nests, cones, and framed pictures were made of wood, fabric, paper, and whatever nature provided.

The late 1800s saw the rise of tin pressed ornaments, but the most prized ornaments were of blown glass, usually imported from Germany. These were so expensive a household would probably possess only one or two. Then sometime between the two world wars, American companies began manufacturing glass ornaments. After WWII, F. W. Woolworth made these ornaments available in his five and dime stores.

As the cheaper ornaments became available, hand-crafted heirlooms fell out of popularity. A shame in my opinion, because it’s the school projects brought in by grade-schoolers or things intricately stitched, embroidered, crocheted, and glued by mothers that hold the best memories.

When I was growing up we had a box of heirloom ornaments. A house fire destroyed them years ago, and only one of my crafts has endured to become a true heirloom. During a particularly lean year, I didn’t have enough in the Christmas budget to buy a nice Christmas tree skirt, so I looked through my left-over yarn. Not much was available in the colors I needed, but I started crocheting and this is it.

Half a lifetime later it still wraps around the trunk of our Christmas tree. Cats and puppies have played under it. Babies have chewed on it. Children have lain on it, playing games. Toys have snagged it. Large and small piles of packages have rested on top of it. After a wash, it’s good as new. I can’t imagine a Christmas without it.

That’s what an heirloom is—enduring through the years, bringing back the memories.

Does your family have a Christmas heirloom that means a lot to you?

Crocheted Christmas Decorations

Merry Christmas everyone. You know the feeling. You’ve spent weeks decorating and everything looks perfect…almost. There’s a niche that seems forlorn. A gaping hole in the Christmas tree screams out for one more decoration. It happens to me very year…the bane of a perfectionist’s existence.

So I get out my crochet hook.

 

Years ago the crafty ladies in the office met during lunch to crochet, and one year we all made these cute Christmas boots. As you can see, they’re simply made. Thirteen mini granny squares whipped stitched together with a shell border and a chain tie. The toe is stuffed with a weight (I use a box of staples) and tissues. A small cup is wedged in the opening and filled with candy. I show canes here, but everyone’s favorite is silver bells (Hershey's kisses).

The Christmas boot candy dish takes no time to make and adds that homey splash of color to any lonely nook.

Now for the tree. I grew up in rural Georgia, and we went into the woods to find our tree, always a cedar. Pines are nice, but the cedar’s heavy scent permeates the whole house.

We had only twenty glass ornaments, carefully unwrapped and oh, so strategically placed. I was in charge of filling in the gaps around those elegant ornaments. My creative soul came alive as I made things of beauty out of foil and yarn, pinecones and paint, popcorn and berries. What fun I had.

 

Most of my ornaments are purchased today, but there’s always that empty place, and this year I crocheted this little Christmas cone. All it requires is a few yards of yarn and a bit of ribbon. I’ll insert the directions for my crocheting friends.

(With worsted weight yarn and G hook tie on, 2 sc for anchor row. Sc in rounds, increasing 2 sc in every round until you have 16 sc. Attach contrasting yarn, dc in each sc around. Ch 3, sc in each dc around. Make a chain about ten inches long, dc in each chain to make handle. Tack handle to each side at top of cone. Weave two strips of ribbon through each side at the top dc row and tie into bows.)

It’s ready to hang on the tree. Drop in a piece of candy as a surprise, or as I hinted to my husband, it makes a perfect hiding place for jewelry. Just saying.

Do you have hand-made decorations on your tree?