A homemade Christmas stocking is the perfect centerpiece for your handmade holiday!
Ugh, I just spent the most irritating hour of my life searching for the paper pattern for my favorite go-to Christmas stocking. The best I can remember, I first sewed this perfect stocking seven years ago, using a free pattern (that no longer exists ANYWHERE! I checked!) printed from someone’s long-ago crafting blog. I sewed stockings for my family, I sold a few in my Pumpkin+Bear etsy shop (I have no evidence for it anymore, but I’m certain that the pattern was also free for commercial use, ahem…), and for the past several years, I have made a stocking for every kid that my Girl Scout troop sponsors as part of our yearly Christmas service project.
That last one has done an excellent job ridding me of my ridiculous fleece stash!
And it was for this year’s Christmas kid’s stocking that I dug through my fabric stash and pulled out the last of my stocking-sized fleece pieces, then flipped through the giant binder where I keep my patterns. I found the plastic sleeve labeled “CHRISTMAS STOCKING,” but… no paper pattern! Grr!
Thus followed an hour-long scavenger hunt through all the messiest closets in my house, making discoveries all along the way–aha! I actually DO have more jarred candle wicks! Why, yes, I DID make myself a pattern piece for my sewing machine cover! Hmm, did I know that I own a dish towel with a portion of the Bayeux Tapestry printed on it?
Tbh, it was only after I’d actually given up the search, had resigned myself to tracing one of the family stockings and recreating the pattern, and was back in the messy closets digging out some large-format paper for the project that I happened to notice a stack of paper patterns sitting randomly on a shelf and remembered that a couple of weeks ago, on the eve of my in-laws’ visit/my kid’s Nutcracker performances/my road trip to drive my college kid back and forth from Ohio so she could watch her sister dance, I had gone through my study in a panic and dumped all my random piles of stuff onto random shelves in this closet and called that “cleaning.” Sigh…
Good news: five minutes later, and I was cutting out the pattern pieces for a new stocking!
My Christmas goal for you is that you do not have to go through a single hour’s worth of nonsense before you can even start to make your new favorite homemade Christmas stocking. Instead, simply choose a project from this list of my favorite Christmas stocking tutorials below, print out any pattern pieces you need (they’re all free!), and get that stocking DONE!!!
quilting cotton stocking. If you’re looking for a simple, serviceable stocking that’s still super cute, this is it! It’s especially fun with novelty prints.
embellished felt stockings. If it’s the embellishment that has you revved up, not necessarily the sewing, then make things easy on yourself with this simple felt stocking pattern. The post includes tons of tips for embellishing these stockings with sequins, pom poms, embroidery, applique, and more!
painted and embroidered stocking. Fabric paint is a good way to embellish boring stash fabric–I especially love this method when I sew with upcycled cotton sheets! You can also personalize any stocking with just a bit of easy embroidery.
stocking in two sizes. Now you can use the same pattern to make regular-sized stockings AND minis! Mini stockings are perfect for those favorite dolls and stuffies who also need a gift or two from Santa, or for party favors, class gifts, etc.
felted wool stocking. Upcycle old wool sweaters into the coziest of stockings!
quilt as you go stocking. If you don’t know how to quilt as you go, this is a wonderful project to learn on!
cuffed stocking. If you don’t have enough fabric to make a fully lined stocking, or you want to use some super special embellishments, this pattern has a separate cuff pattern that attaches to the top of the stocking.
knitted unicorn stocking. I don’t know how to knit, alas, but if someone knitted this unicorn stocking for me, I promise it would be my favorite item on the planet. I’d sleep with it 364 nights a year and hang it on my mantle on the 365th!
needle felted stocking. Start with a plain stocking sewn with wool fabric, then needle felt any embellishment on top.
upcycled tea towel stockings. Too many tea towels? Upcycle some of them into stockings!
P.S. Still not finding what you’re looking for? Here are five more ideas!
P.P.S. If you know where I put the kids’ Rainbow Loom kit after the Great Playroom Purge of 2022, please Comment and let me know! Those tiny rubber bands are endlessly useful and I really miss them!
