Welcoming the Holidays

Whether you celebrate Christmas for religious or secular reasons, chances are it’s your favorite holiday. It’s 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 décor. Kristin Omdahl’s angelic ornaments, Andee Graves’s adorable birds, Barbara Kreuter’s bows and freeform(ish) stocking, and Carol Ventura’s 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 Felted Ornaments, while more advanced crocheters will enjoy exploring new techniques with the Candy Cane Stocking. 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 don’t know yet, don’t panic. We’ve written the pattern as clearly as possible to walk you through each step of the way. Don’t shy away from adventure; try something new!

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

Quick-Start Guide

• Imagine color. While Christmas red and green are always safe colors, don’t hesitate to choose modern brights or neutrals for an updated look. In most projects you aren’t committing to a lot of stitching. Use your imagination to see the projects in your favorite colorway, to fit right at home with you!
• Use your stash. The yarns specified are classic and easily found in your local yarn shop. If you have yarn in your stash that you’d prefer to substitute, we’ve made that easy to do. Refer to the yarn weight classification in each project, and to the Guide to Yarn Weights chart in the appendix to help you choose wisely.
• Get Exact gauge . . . or not. In many projects, gauge is not critical. However, it is a good starting point for determining the finished size of the piece, the amount of yarn needed, and the drape of the fabric you are creating. If you don’t care about the finished size, and you have plenty of yarn and are getting a crocheted fabric that is neither too loose nor too stiff, don't worry about matching the gauge of the pattern.
• Crochet to a symbol chart. Many crocheters prefer to work from a symbol chart, so when possible we’ve included those in addition to the text instructions. You’ll find a key to the symbols, as well as a list of abbreviations and glossary, in the appendix.
• For you “lefties.” Instructions are written for right-handed crocheters [with instructions for left-handed crocheters in brackets]. Left-handers may follow the same stitch diagrams, reading in the direction of the stitching.