MAKE IT ! The Wrapped Gift Ornament !

 Even this project is an "oldie" of mine, as I posted it on my Instagram feed in January 2019, but it went lost because of the hacking, so ...

It is a good time to re-purpose it with a fresh take, right?

... yes, you can decide to crochet single gifts or make a full Christmas tree ornament : so, let`s start!!!

WHAT YOU NEED

• leftovers of DK yarn : I`ve been using a selection of Rico Fashion Cotton Metallise` DK for the central part of the granny gift and some spare colours of Bergerac de France Ideal.
• 4mm hook
• scissors
• yarn needle
• baker`s twine
• clear nail polish (to fix knots and ends)
• blocking board/pins/white glue/small brush and bowl

Please, be aware I follow the US crochet terminology.

WRAPPED GIFT PATTERN

Using any metallic yarn, make a slip knot on your hook, 4ch, sl st in first chain to form a ring.

Round 1 : 3ch, 2DC, 1ch, (3DC, 1ch) 3 times, sl st in initial 3ch, fasten off.

Round 2 : join the new colour with a sl st in any corner, where you work (2ch, 2DC, 1ch, 3DC), (3DC, 1ch, 3DC) in next 3 corners, sl st in top of initial 2ch, fasten off.

Weave in ends.

HANGING LOOP and NICE BOW

Hanging Loop (look at first four pictures of the above collage)

Cut 30cm (or more, or less) from the baker`s twine or from the colourful yarn (same colour of the wrapped gift) and knot together the two ends. With the help of the hook, pass the loop through the top space of the square (front to back) and let the knotted end pass through the loop and pull it tight to keep it in place.

Nice Bow (from fifth picture to last one)

Cut 30/40cm from the metallic yarn (it matches the inner circle of the square) and fold it in half. Pass the loop in the previous top space (from front to back) and push the hanging loop in the centre of it. Pull down the metallic ends so to close the loop around the hanging loop. Now fold both metallic ends to the top, one to the left and one to the right. Let them go around (from back to front) the hanging loop and knot them together once they are to the front. Make a little bow and trim the excess of yarn.

Use the clear nail polish to fix the knot and to stop ends from fraying!

CHRISTMAS TREE ORNAMENT

You can crochet more wrapped gifts and join them together as you go, so to build up a lovely Christmas tree. 

 

In the above pictures you can see both front and back of the tree. I understand that knotting all those bows is time consuming, but think of the people who collect christmas ornaments and love to receive a new one each year... all that work it`s worth it and look how neat the back is!!!

Obviously you can decide to make an ornament without all those bows (just look at the third picture at the beginning of this post!) and it will look really lovely!

HOW TO

After choosing the colour or colours to use for your tree, you need to plan how many gifts your tree needs. My version is made out of  10 wrapped gifts (reaching an H=15cm without trunk, H=18cm with trunk), but you can do a nice one even with less, like 6 wrapped gifts!

I started mine from the top and just followed the given pattern, completing it with both hanging loop and bow.

Then I crocheted the second row of gifts (two squares), then the third row (three gifts) and the fourth row (four gifts).

For each row of gifts I`ve assigned a specific colour (for both metallic and colourful yarns) and joined the gifts (from left to right) using the join-as-you-go method (also known as JAYG) : when working the second round of the square, you use slip stitches to join this square to the one /s surrounding it.

When done with the joining of the last gift, turn the tree upside-down, so to work the trunk.

Trunk

Row 1 (RS): Make a slip knot on your hook and insert it in the top left corner of the first square, where you work your first sc. Then work 1sc in each corner and in each dc top. Your last sc is in the top right corner of the last square. Turn your work.

Row 2 (WS): 1ch, sc across, turn

Row 3: 5ch, insert hook in second chain from hook and work 1sc, work 3 more sc along this mini foundation chain, then sl st in top of first sc of row 2 and sl st in next sc, turn to work 4sc in back loops only (you are starting a ribbed trunk!), turn.

Repeat till you complete row 3 : 1ch, 4sc in back loops only, sl st in sc of row 2, sl st in next one, turn to work 4sc in back loops only, turn

If you like, you can finish the trunk with a line of sl sts along the to-be bottom. Fasten off.

Weave in all ends.

Bows

Cut 30cm lengths from the baker`s twine, as many as you need. With the help of the yarn needle, create an "X" over the hole of the square and bring the ends to the front, where you knot them and make a bow. Cut excess of twine, then brush the clear nail polish over the knot and on the ends of the bow.

Repeat for the other bows.

BLOCKING

Pin your tree on a blocking board/tile, with the WS facing you. Prepare a solution of white glue (50%) and water (50%), mixing them well together. Brush this solution on your tree and let it dry completely before removing it from the board.

Hope you really enjoyed this pattern!!!

Thank you, xxxx Ale

Please, show me your makes on IG using the following hashtag : #homemadeatmyplaceoriginals or  tagging me @alessandrapoggiagliolmi .

Text, Design and Photography : Alessandra Poggiagliolmi

All Rights Reserved. No part of this pattern may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder.