Stash-busting knit and crochet Christmas decorations
Patterns from top to bottom, L-R: Christmas star ornament by Truly Crochet, Woven Stars by Frankie Brown, Scrap Bin stockings by Vicki Howell, Brighton stocking by Silver Maple Stitches, Christmas baubles by Sophie and Yarn Designs, and Jolly Holly baubles by Drops Design
As the holiday season approaches, it’s the perfect time to bring out the yarn stash and create some festive cheer with handmade decorations! There’s something so cozy and personal about decorating your home with pieces you've made yourself—and they’re even better when they help use up all those yarn scraps we’ve been saving. Whether you’re looking for classic ornaments, tiny stockings, or festive garlands, there are so many creative ways to bring a handmade touch to your Christmas decor. In this post, I’ll be sharing a collection of knit and crochet ideas that are easy, beautiful, and perfect for using up leftover yarn. Let’s dive into some fun, stash-busting projects that’ll add charm to your holiday season!
In this blog I’m going to cover 8 different project ideas and share 18 crochet and knitting patterns that I’ve found via Pinterest and Ravelry that fit into these ideas.. I’ve created a board where I’ve saved all these patterns and more on both Pinterest and Ravelry for you to be able to access, the links to both are below. The patterns I mention are a mix of free and paid for patterns.
I have created a Pinterest board and Ravelry bundle page specifically for stash-busting Christmas decorations. Go check it out after you’ve finished reading this blog, and give me a follow there so you don’t miss out as I continue to add to the board.
If you prefer to watch, I have published a video showcasing these ideas and patterns, which you can watch just below.
If you’re looking for handmade Christmas gift ideas that use your stash, you’ll want to read this blog post. For all other non-Christmas theme ideas, have a look at these left over yarn blog posts for other ideas.
Note: My Pinterest and Ravelry board links to many different patterns, both free and paid. I have not checked the quality of each pattern, I have pinned based purely on appearance and/or style.
Stars
Knitted and crochet stars are a very versatile christmas decoration. Hung from a tree, strung together to make a garland. What’s more, each one could be made a different colour, the ultimate yarn stash-busting project. A couple of patterns that caught my eye:
Woven stars by Frankie Brown - FREE The description says they use less than 5g of dk weight yarn
Christmas star ornament by truly crochet - FREE on website, paid pdf for 2.50 USD.
2. Stockings
Stockings are classic Christmas decorations that bring warmth and tradition to any holiday setup, whether hung by the fireplace or used as festive gift holders. They’re customizable in size, colour, and pattern, making each stocking a unique addition to your holiday decor.
Scrap bin stockings - Vicky Howell - FREE - This pattern perfectly describes the type of pattern i’m looking for in this blog. The pattern encourages you to use different weights and textures of yarn to make this stocking really special and full of memories of projects gone before.
Brighton stocking pattern - Silver Maple stitches - $10 CAD. This pattern uses bulky yarn, but if needed you could use multiple strands of yarn to meet that weight. This pattern invites the opportunity to go striped, or just one block colour. The choices are yours. 3. Baubles and Christmas trees (knitting and crochet)
3. Baubles
Add a cozy, handmade flair to the Christmas tree, transforming classic ornaments into something truly special. With endless options for colours, patterns, and textures, these baubles are an inviting way to personalize your holiday decor using yarn.
I will note that baubles are going to require some extra material on top of the yarn. Most of the patterns I’ve seen are either worked around styrofoam balls or stuffed with wadding (toy stuffing).
I saw a lot of crochet bauble patterns, I had to dig a little deeper to find some knitted patterns. The Jolly Holly Days knitted baubles on Drops Design website (FREE). These are Nordic style Fair Isle baubles. Although knit at a small gauge, these baubles could also be good for a fair isle knitting introduction? The pattern page also links to tutorials, so really helpful if it is your first time trying this technique.
The Christmas baubles Sophie and Yarn designs is a FREE crochet pattern. I think it’s so pretty, I particularly enjoy the mosaic vibe, especially with the colours the designer has used. This pattern does require a tiny hook sizes at 2 and 2.5mm hooks. Made with sport weight yarn and worked around a styrofoam ball.
Patterns top to bottom, L-R: Falalala table runner by Briana K Designs, Star Posy table runner by Lulu Loves UK, Crochet Christmas tree by Fresh Knack, Retro Snowflake wallhanging by Love and Stitches Designs, Flower Star snowflakes by Renata Saj, and Holiday Frost snowflakes by Blue Sky Fibres.
4. Table runners
If you’re having family or friends over, a table runner can set a festive tone for meals and celebrations. With options for intricate lacework or simple, rustic designs, these handmade runners make any table feel extra cozy and inviting.
Those stars that we talked about before, how about making a bunch and joining them together?! This Crochet star posy table runner ($3.50 CAD) by Lulu Loves UK fits that idea.
I found this table runner by Briana K Designs, the Falalalala table runner, A pattern you can get for free from their website, or paid PDF pattern for $6 USD on Ravelry. But the best bit….she’s designed it for both a crochet and knit version! I think it’s great, simple and stylish.
5. Wall-hangings
I did also suggest wall-hangings in my blog post about stash-busting handmade gifts, but why not make one for your home too? They are something that can be bought out year after year. Of course, you could gift these versions too. A couple o festive wall hangings I like:
Crochet Christmas tree wall hanging by Fresh Knack (FREE) This is a pattern I have made before. I made a couple to give as gifts a couple of years ago. The original design is a block colour, but I made mine using a contrast colour for the tree - I went with the very obvious contrast colour of green because I had some yarn leftover from the Nutured sweater that I had knit earlier in the year.
Retro Snowflake wallhanging - Love and stitch designs ($7 CAD) I like that this pattern has 4 panels, allowing you to use different colours, or tones, but the snowflakes are all the same to bring it all together.
6. Snowflakes
Just like real snowflakes, there are multiple different snowflakes patterns available online. You could follow a bunch of different patterns so that, just like real-life, no one snowflake is the same! Going back to the table runner idea, you could make a load and seam them altogether for the table runner. You could stick to the “traditional” white colour or, as with the stars, mix up all the colours to really get through those balls of leftover yarn.
Flower star snowflake - Renata Saj (FREE) This is such a pretty design, and I believe one of 4 snowflakes created by this designer. The description says that pattern is part of a Christmas snowflake mobile, so that’s another option for stringing all these snowflakes together.
In a similar fashion, the Holiday Frost snowflakes by Blue Sky Fibres is a knitted pattern bundle, containing three snowflake patterns. Available for FREE too. Made with worsted weight yarn, but you could use any weight and it would just impact the final size of the finished project.
Patterns top to bottom, L-R: Knitted paper chain garland by Vicki Howell, Granny yarn chain by handmade at my place, Granny stitch Christmas wreath by alt., amigurumi snowglobes by Amy Gaines, and Christmas stripes tree skirt by Violet Le Beaux
7. Paper Chains
As a child, I loved making paper chains! I just stuck strips of paper together to make the longest chain that I could to hang up around our living room. It was the beginning of my love for crafty Christmas, I guess.
Now I plan to take it to the next level with knitting and crochet paper chains! I’ve seen lots of patterns, and I love how bright and colourful they look while also bringing a vintage style.
Knitted paper chains can be achieved by simply knitting multiple small strips by doing rows of garter stitches to the desired length and width, and then sewing each end of the strip together when chaining all the strips together.
If you stray away from the festive colour scheme, you could keep this up year-round to bring some colourful cheer to any room.
Knitted paper chain garland another pattern by VIcki Howell (FREE) This one looks like a very straightforward pattern that would be great even for beginner knitters. Each strip is garter stitch and then to build the chain you simply sew each end of the strip together to form a loop, just like real paper chains!
For the crocheters among us - how about the granny square paper chains?! Granny yarn chain by Handmade at my place is available for FREE. Make a series of granny rectangles, in any colour combinations that you would like. There’s options to join as you go, or sew in like the knitted garland we just talked about.
View my stash-busting xmas decs Pinterest board for all the paper chain inspiration.
8. All the other Christmas ornaments!
Ok, so I’m cheating for my final idea. Look, there are so many options out there, I could probably spend all year making decorations! I really recommended checking out my Pinterest board, or Ravelry bundle page (or both), to look at all the inspiring patterns i have seen. Give them a follow, because I’ll just keep adding to them as i go.
Some other honorable mentions for other Christmas ornaments:
Granny stitch Christmas wreath by alt. This pattern is free from their website, but written in Danish. Google translate should be able to help us non-Danish speakers!
These knitted elves by Hojrth Sisters.
Amigurumi snowglobe ornaments by Amy Gaines.
Christmas stripes tree skirt by Violet Le beaux.
So, those are some quick and easy stash-busting Christmas ornament and decorations for the season. I hope this list gave you a little inspiration! Don’t forget to check out my Pinterest board for more ideas and patterns – there’s a mix of free and paid options, so you’ll find something for every budget.
Let me know in the comments if you’re planning on making any decorations yourself this year or if you have any other stash-busting ideas. y7