How to Choose a Fabric to Sew a Handmade Christmas Stocking

By eHow Holidays & Celebrations Editor

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A handmade Christmas stocking is a thoughtful gift for a newborn. There are plenty of stockings available ready-made, but when you take the time to choose the right fabric to create your special stocking, it can be the source of many wonderful Christmas memories for that child. The choice of fabrics is so vast that choosing only a few can be the most difficult part of making your stocking.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Step1

Choose a natural fabric such as cotton for its durability and array of colors and patterns. Cotton is a good choice for quilting because it holds its shape well and is easier to sew when you're joining small sections together.

Step2

Select 7 or 8 different color variations so you'll have enough combinations to make the design interesting. A color wheel is a good way to select shades that complement each other. Many fabric and quilting stores have them available for their customers to use, or you may want to purchase one for other projects.

Step3

Think about using fat quarters of fabric. They are 18-by-22 inch pieces of fabric, usually 100 percent cotton and often available in color coordinated bundles. Less waste on small projects and a large choice of patterns and styles are 2 reasons why quilters enjoy using them.

Step4

Spend a little time laying out your fabric before cutting out the pieces. Try different arrangements to get an idea of how you want the overall stocking to look. If there's a particular design that jumps out at you, accentuate it by the way you join the stocking pieces together.