Eckman - Christmas crochet for hearth, home & tree: stockings, ornaments, garlands and more

who celebrate the holiday season in whatever form it takes.

Whether you celebrate Christmas for religious or secular reasons, chances are its your favorite holiday. Its so easy to get into the spirit of the season when you see the lights and decorations that spring up in stores and on the streets, sometimes as early as October.

What could be better than combining a favorite holiday with a favorite pastime? The eighteen projects in Christmas Crochet include plenty of the primo Christmas project stockings as well as tree and home decorations. Most of the projects use relatively small amounts of yarn, and many are perfect for using up odd balls from your existing yarn stash.

Some guest designers have joined me to offer their take on Christmas dcor. Kristin Omdahls angelic ornaments, Andee Gravess adorable birds, Barbara Kreuters bows and freeform(ish) stocking, and Carol Venturas unique personalized tapestry crochet stocking round out a collection that has something for everyone. Their projects are credited with their names; all other designs are my own.

We offer a range of crochet techniques, from the most basic double-crochet circles to novel stitch patterning, tapestry crochet, and Tunisian techniques. Newer crocheters will delight in whipping up the easy . Different yarn weights are also represented, from crochet thread through worsted-weight yarn.

Patterns best suited for less-confident crocheters are marked as easy; crocheters of all skill levels can identify any beyond-the-basics techniques used by scanning the Pattern Essentials section at the beginning of each pattern. If you see a skill you dont know yet, dont panic. Weve written the pattern as clearly as possible to walk you through each step of the way. Dont shy away from adventure; try something new!

So whether its July and you are looking for warm-weather projects, or its late November and you need to crochet some quick gifts, youll find projects here to delight and inspire.

Mix-and-Match Stockings

One Pattern + Four Colors = Make It Your Own. From color combinations to embellishments, this stocking pattern is an empty palette for creating your own style. The stitch pattern is easy enough to memorize and creates its own rhythm. Its fun to use the mix-and-match concept to see how many different color combos/patterns can be generated from so little yarn. Four balls of yarn made three complete stockings, with yarn left over.

From left to right: Stocking #1, Stocking #3, Stocking #2.

Finished Measurements

• 13"/33 cm in circumference, 19"/48.5 cm long

Yarn

• Brown Sheep Nature Spun , 100% wool, 245 yds/224 m, 3.5 oz/100 g, 1 skein each Colors 109 Spring Green (A), N78 Turquoise Wonder (B), N85 Peruvian Pink (C), and 740 Snow (D)

Crochet Hook

• US H/8 (5 mm) or size needed to obtain correct gauge

Gauge

• 14 sts and 10 rnds = 4"/10 cm in stitch pattern

Other Supplies

• Yarn needle

Pattern Essentials

sc2tog (single crochet 2 stitches together). (Insert hook into next st and pull up a loop) two times, yarnover and pull through all 3 loops on hook.

sc3tog (single crochet 3 stitches together). (Insert hook into next st and pull up a loop) three times, yarnover and pull through all 4 loops on hook.

sc-dec (single crochet decrease). Into the 2 stitches indicated, insert hook from front to back through first stitch and from back to front through 2nd stitch, yarnover and pull up a loop, yarnover and pull through both loops.

standing sc (standing single crochet). Beginning with slip knot on hook, insert hook into stitch indicated, yarnover, pull up a loop, yarnover and pull through both loops on hook.

working into back bump of chain. With the wrong side of the chain facing, insert hook into the bumps on the back of the chain. (The right side of the chain is a series of Vs.)

Project Notes

• All the stockings are worked using the same basic pattern, with variations for color and cuff choices (see for variations).
• Stocking is worked in the round from the top down, with an opening made for the heel. The heel is worked after the foot and toe are complete.
• Change to new color on the last slip stitch of the previous round as directed.

Stitch Pattern

Rnds 1, 3, and 5: Ch 1, sc in each st around, join with slip st to first sc.

Rnds 2 and 4: Ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in each st around, join with slip st to top of ch-3.

Rep Rnds 15 for stitch pattern.