Have yourserself a home-made Christmas ...

Christmas decorations don't have to come from a store.  You can make your own for hardly any cost and they can be so much more precious to you and your family than anything you could buy in a store.  And with a little bit of effort your decorations will look just as good as something you bought - if not better!

This year I have made some crochet Christmas ornaments for the Doctor Who fan in My Splendid Family.  I made six for the tree and all it cost me was $3!  I already had the white yarn, fiber-fill, and crochet hook lying around the place - I only needed to buy the blue yarn.  But even if I had to buy everything from scratch I estimate it would cost $15 in total.  That's still a great saving when you consider to buy something similar in the shops is $10 (plastic) - $20 (glass) for just one.  And of course you get to keep the leftover fiber-fill, hook, and yarn for other projects.  And trust me, once you have a supply of something in your hands you will start coming up with ideas on how you can use the rest of it!

Make your own Doctor Who Tardis Christmas Tree Ornaments!

The result is super cute and I think you will agree looks fantastic on the Christmas tree!  And our Doctor Who fan thought it was just the best thing ever!  For those of you who would like to make something similar I've included some instructions at the end of this article.  But if Doctor Who is not for you, then why not make something to do with what your Splendid Family loves?  Chances are there will be a free crochet or knitting pattern to make something cute from a favorite cartoon / computer game / book on a website like Ravelry.

If it wasn't intended to be a Christmas ornament, there is no reason why you can't add a loop and turn it into one!  Just create a loop out of a length of single crochet stitches and pull it through the top of your item with a crochet hook before you add stuffing and finish it off.  Just remember that smaller is better (and cuter!) for the Christmas tree - don't go for something that will be too big.

Best Wishes for a fantastic Christmas with your Splendid Family!

How to Make a Doctor Who Tardis Christmas Tree Ornament

If you want to make these for your own Christmas tree, you can download the basic pattern from here.

To make one just like mine do the following ...

• Use 8-ply yarn in blue and white.
• Ignore the instructions for the snowy top.  I think it looks fabulous in the picture, but I just couldn't recreate it myself and it looks like a lot of people have struggled to create something as good.  So my advice is don't do it - it looks fabulous on the Christmas tree even without it!
• Use white yarn to cross stitch the windows on all sides of the Tardis and the notice on the front of the Tardis.  Stitch around the cross-stitched areas to create a nice defined shape.  

If you intend on decorating the Tardis in this way, you should alter the pattern to join each row with a slip stitch rather than crocheting in the round.  If you crochet in the round, your windows will not all be in a nice straight row right around the Tardis..  I crocheted the top of the Tardis in the round according to the instructions, but finalized the top pyramid shape with a slip-stitch and then completed all the rows of the body using a slip stitch

• Crochet 20 single crochet stitches and make a simple knot in the ends over the stitches to create a nice big knot that will not pull through.  Pull the loop up through the top of the tardis with the help of your crochet hook.
• Half stuff your Tardis with fiber-fill.  Crochet a square to form the bottom of the Tardis.  Sew 3/4 of the square onto the Tardis.  Finish filling the Tardis with fiber-fill and then fully sew the bottom square onto the Tards.
• If you want to make it look a bit more Christmassy, consider adding a bit of tinsel, or holly, or ribbon or whatever else you can think of.