Wednesday 3 December 2014

Crochet Advent Garland

Last year I was inspired to make a Crochet Advent Garland using crochet mittens. I came up with the idea when I saw this Cozy Mitten Garland posted by blogger Erica at Caught on a Whim. 

I used the preschool size mitten pattern referenced in Erica's post. It is available for free here. I made 25 mittens in a rainbow of colours, embroidered numbers 1 through 25 then joined the mittens with a row of chain stitches. The chain needed to support the weight of the mittens stuffed with gifts so I added a row of single crochet to make it stronger. It works perfectly as a Crochet Advent Garland.

I used red yarn to join the mittens, white yarn to embroider numbers and an alternating rainbow colour scheme for the garland. A white mitten with red lettering was saved for last to represent Christmas.

See how mittens 1 and 2 are red, mittens 23 and 24 are pink and the rest alternate colours? I could pretend I planned it that way. In truth, I embroidered a number 2 on the second red mitten by mistake then changed my plan to make it look intentional. Do you ever make creative adjustments like that? Surely I can't be the only one. 

I took a photo of my Crochet Advent Garland spread out on the floor. I also hung it on our mantle to see how it looked. I think it turned out just fine despite my colour scheme correction.
Finding so many tiny items to stuff in the mittens was challenging. I took my time selecting gifts and wrapping them in tissue paper. Little chocolate treats would have been easy but our daughter did not want her son eating chocolate every day leading up to Christmas. I understood her concern and agreed with her decision of course.
I was able to finish this project in time for Thanksgiving last year when our daughter and her family came to visit. My Crochet Advent Garland full of little gifts fit perfectly in this clear plastic pouch. I always save these zippered pouches when we buy linens as they work so well for this sort of thing and are great for storage too.
This year I have not yet made anything Christmas specific as I've been busy making dolls. I do have an idea for another Crochet Advent Calendar though. We need two calendars now that we have two grandchildren. 

Thank goodness there is no rush. This year our granddaughter is too young to care about such things plus they will be away for Christmas. Next year will be different though. Next year she will be almost two and they will probably celebrate Christmas at home. 

Next year if I decide to make a Crochet Advent Calendar, I will be sure to share photos and pattern details. 


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