No Sew DIY: Polka Dot Christmas Stockings
Handmade fabric Christmas stockings add a special touch to your decorating or gift-giving. Whimsical polka-dot Christmas stockings are a quick DIY project that you can customize with cut-out fabric letters and trims. Make a batch of these stockings to give as office gifts or to hang on your mantel. Cut them from fleece or calico for sturdy stockings that will hold Christmas treasures, or make wispy creations of printed organza or chiffon to hang on your tree.
Things You'll Need
- Sheet of newspaper, construction paper or grocery bag
- Sock
- Measuring tape
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Polka-dot fabric, 1/2 to 1 yard
- Iron-on fusible webbing
- Iron
- Contrasting fabric, optional
- Fabric trim
- Fabric trim, ribbon, lace, optional
Instructions
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1
Draw a stocking shape on a sheet of newspaper, construction paper or grocery bag. Lay a long sock on the paper and measure 2 inches away from its edges as you draw a line with a pencil. Make the stocking larger or smaller by placing the measuring tape farther away from or closer to the sock.
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2
Fold the fabric in half with the right sides together and lay the pattern on it.
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3
Cut around the pattern with scissors, cutting through both layers of fabric.
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4
Remove the pattern. Keeping the fabric right sides together, insert narrow iron-on fusible webbing between the two fabric pieces and iron it in place. Work with one section of the stocking at a time, placing the webbing 1/4 inch away from the edges of the fabric. Leave the top of the stocking open.
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5
Clip the rounded heel and toe edges of the stocking with scissors. Make small cuts in the outside edges of the fabric along the 1/4-inch seam allowance. Do not cut through the iron-on webbing.
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6
Lay the stocking flat and measure the width at the top. Double this measurement, which is the length measurement for the cuff.
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7
Cut a rectangular piece of matching or contrasting fabric to the length measurement you took. Make it as wide as you like, adding 1/2 inch for joining and hemming.
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8
Lay the rectangular cuff section wrong-side up. Turn up 1/4 inch along one long edge for a hem and secure it with iron-on fusible webbing.
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9
Lay the cuff section wrong-side up on the stocking, aligning the left short edge of the cuff with the left edge of the stocking. The long raw edge of the cuff should be even with the top raw edge of the stocking, and the long hemmed edge of the cuff should be at the bottom.
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10
Join the cuff to the stocking along the top edges by inserting iron-on fusible webbing and ironing it in place. Join the short ends of the cuff section with fusible webbing using a 1/4-inch seam allowance.
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11
Turn the cuff section up and iron it until the seam lies flat. You should have a stocking with the wrong side of the fabric showing and a cuff with the right side showing.
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12
Turn the stocking right-side out. Turn the cuff down over the stocking.
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13
Iron on fabric trim, lace, ribbon or other decorations using fusible iron-on webbing.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Fleece fabric does not need hemming. If you make a fleece cuff, omit the hemming step.
Use the correct weight of iron-on fusible webbing for your fabric. Consult the manufacturer's directions to determine the weight needed for the type of fabric you're using.
References
- Photo Credit Martin Poole/Photodisc/Getty Images
