Stash-busting knit and crochet Christmas decorations
1st and 3rd image, authors own. The middle image of a gnome is courtesy of Canva.
This blog is here to give you some inspiration for handmade Christmas decorations., linking to both crochet and knitting patterns.
One of my favourite things about Christmas is making decorations! Most years, I end up trying something new. One year, it was crocheted snowflakes; last year, it was Christmas tree wall hangings. Sure, sometimes I over-commit myself and want to make something for everyone as Christmas gifts…but it’s still fun!
I find it’s usually a great way to stash-bust too. Got a little pile of leftover yarn that you’re not sure what to do with? Many of the decoration ideas I’ve listed here are a great use of small quantities of yarn. It will also lead to some really unique, colourful decorations.
I have created a Pinterest board 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.
Note: My Pinterest 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.
Paper chains (knitting and crochet)
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 patterns for granny square paper chains, 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.
View my stash-busting xmas decs Pinterest board for all the paper chain inspiration.
Advent socks I knitted in 2020, pattern by Remembrance Pottery
2. Advent socks (knitting)
Ok, so this one isn’t technically a decoration, but I just love the idea and wanted to include it!
A twist on the traditional advent calendar, how about Advent socks? There are a number of designers who produce Advent sock patterns each year in the lead-up to Christmas. The idea is that each day, from 1st December, you will do a small portion of the pattern, continuing every day until Christmas Eve, at which point you’ll have a new pair of socks that you can wear on the big day! The designer Remembrance Pottery has a new design each year (here is the pattern from 2022). I followed along in 2020 and loved the process (see image above), including the opportunity to use up scraps of yarn!
3. Baubles and Christmas trees (knitting and crochet)
Now some decorations for the tree!
As with the paper chains, there are some really pretty ‘granny’ baubles. A crochet designer, Briana K Designs, even has some crocheted, cabled baubles that drawstring together around the bauble, which is really neat and something I haven’t seen before.
Christmas trees look brilliant, both crocheted and knitted. There’s no need to stay with the expected green; use all those scraps of yarn and get creative with it!
All the bauble and tree inspiration can be found on my Pinterest board
Crochet snowflakes made by me
4. Christmas stockings (knitting and crochet)
If advent socks aren’t your thing, how about one big sock that you can hang on your mantelpiece?! That’s right, stockings! The great thing about this is that it doesn’t matter too much about getting gauge, as it’s a decorative piece; it doesn’t matter if it ends up a little smaller or bigger than the original pattern listed.
See my inspiration for Christmas stockings here.
5. Snowflakes (crochet)
These pretty snowflakes can be multiple purposes! Like the real snowflakes, you can find patterns for a variety of snowflake shapes, from simple to very intricate designs. I find that once you’ve made one, you really get into the grove of it.
Once finished, they can be used as decorations on the tree, used as coasters, or strung together for some festive bunting. I even made a table runner out of snowflakes once (and unbelievably, I never took a photo of it, and I have no idea what happened to it!)
Find all the snowflake patterns on Pinterest
6. Gnomes (knitting)
A Scandinavian Christmas tradition that is growing with increasing popularity in North America, gnomes are cute editions to your festive decor. A few years ago, I discovered Imagined Landscapes- a very popular knitted gnome designer. She has loads of gnome patterns, but every year she also designs an advent gnome pattern. Each day of December, you receive a new piece of the pattern, leading to a completed gnome on Christmas Eve. If you sign up before December, you’ll be able to join in with this year’s advent.
Every Friday, In the lead-up to Christmas, I’ll be sharing all the crafty things I have seen over the week and sharing them on my Instagram stories. Be sure to follow me to check in!
If you’d like to see all my inspirations for this blog post, view and follow my Pinterest page. I’ll continue to add new patterns as and when I see them.