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.




Comments

Post a comment

Popular posts from this blog

Life Hack: How to Remove Spray Paint from Clothes

-
Image
Are you looking for a way to get spray paint out of clothes? My husband came home with bright pink spray paint on his work pants from sitting in a newly gratified train carriage and I thought that was the end of those pants - but no!  It was actually incredibly easy to remove and the secret is hair spray! I really wish I had taken a video of the removal process because it was simply magic and unbelievable unless you can see it for yourself.  The spray paint literally disappears before my eyes just with just hairspray and a bit of scrubbing on the more stubborn stain. Here is how I removed spray paint from the garment .. Step 1: Spray hairspray directly on the stain long enough to soak the fabric with hairspray. If you have a minor stain you might see the spray paint disappear completely. If you have a more difficult stain you will see a dulling in the intensity of the spray paint. If you can still see the stain, continue on to step 2 or skip straight to step 3 if you can'
Read more

Paper Plate Yarn Heart

-
Image
I just love simple crafts with the kids that are quick to complete and use supplies I have already and this is one of those great little projects. My turn at a paper plate yarn heart. This is the first time I have attempted something like this with my 4 year old.  She was super excited to do the project after watching the how-to video (see below). The craft was a little too old for her, but with lots of help from mummy we have something that she is really happy with. My 4 year old's paper plate yarn heart. I think this project would look great with red yarn too - especially for Valentines day.  Use a card instead and you would have a lovely Valentine's day card. Mummy and daughter's paper plate yarn hearts look great on the door of my daughter's bedroom. We were inspired to do this craft thanks to Lincraft's video (below). They are starting to produce some great craft content as they try to connect with their customers online. Their projects
Read more

Frozen Elsa Costume Using McCalls Pattern M7000

-
Image
My daughter's much loved Elsa Frozen costume had reached the end of it's days. Not only was it ripped and stained, it was also too small. I'd looked in the shops for the next size, but found no luck. So when I was walking past the local fabric shop and saw 40% off everything, I thought it was time to make one myself. The Frozen Elsa costume made with McCalls Pattern M7000. I made the biggest girls size for her so it has a pretty ugly hem for now, but it will last her for years as I can redo the hem when she grows. My daughter and I located the Elsa costume pattern which we'd seen featured in the store a while ago and chose some material. $50 dollars later we left with three different materials, for the outside of the dress, and a pattern.  Is it any wonder sewing is now just a hobby if that's how much a costume costs to make with 40% off! McCalls M7000 pattern for a Frozen Elsa costume along with the material we bought to make it. Now i
Read more