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Knit Holiday Ornaments Three Ways

December 14, 2016 1 Comment

Add some handmade cuteness to your Christmas tree this year - knit up a colorful ornament for your tree with one of these three free patterns.
Aren’t these fun? This new trio of knit ornament patterns are all about adding pops of color to your Christmas tree. This star, heart and bauble are inspired by classic Christmas ornaments, and are the biggest of the ornament series. All of these can be customized with any color combination you choose, so consider today’s free patterns a great starting point to letting your creativity fly this season. :)

PS: Don’t forget to play along with #handsoccupiedhohoho on Instagram or leave a comment to share your take on this OR last year’s free ornament patterns! Looking for a page with all of the ornaments so far? Here you go!

Get inexpensive, printable, ad-free PDFs of these patterns here (heart), here (star), and here (bauble), or you can continue scrolling to find the free versions of the patterns now.

Add some handmade cuteness to your Christmas tree this year - knit up a colorful ornament for your tree with one of these three free patterns.
Knit a sweet bauble for your Christmas tree with this free ornament pattern. Handmade holiday crafts are the best!

Knit Bauble Ornament

Updated 12/8/18.

Baubles are, of course, the definitive Christmas ornament. You can find them in an infinite number of styles. This purple and white take on the classic bauble is a way to add nontraditional color to your holiday decor. Plus, you can easily customize this pattern with any design you like if you play around with rows 7 and 8. It’s so easy to make this ornament your own!

Skill level: easy

Supplies
2 packs Lion Brand Yarn Bonbons in Beach, which comes with 8 mini skeins. – You need 2 skeins of purple and less than a skein of white to complete the ornament.
size US 3 (3.25 mm) knitting needles
4 stitch markers
scissors
tapestry needle
poly-fil
scrap ribbon
sewing needle & thread

Abbreviations & Terms
CO – cast on
sts – stitches
clr – color (color A is purple and B is white in the pictured bauble)
rnd – round
M1R – make 1 right. Here’s a tutorial.
pm – place marker
M1L – make 1 left. Here’s a tutorial.
rep from * – repeat the instructions following the asterisk as directed
(X sts) – X indicates the number of sts that will now be on your needle
sm – slip marker
rep – repeat
ssk – slip one as if to k, slip one as if to p, k both sts together
k2tog – knit 2 sts together
BO – bind off

Gauge & dimensions: 22 sts & 28 rows over 4 inches, knit in stockinette stitch. The bauble measures about 8.5 inches in circumference.

Looking for a printer-friendly version of this bauble pattern? Grab an inexpensive, ad-free PDF of this pattern right here.

The Pattern

Increase Section
CO 8 sts in clr A and join into rnd.
rnds 1-3. k8.
rnd 4. *k1, M1R, pm, k1, M1L; rep from * 4 times. (16 sts)

rnd 5. k 16.
rnd 6. *k to m, m1R, sm, k1, m1L; rep from * 4 times (24 sts)
Rep 5-6 to 56 sts.

Colorwork Section
rnd 7. *k1A, k1B; rep from * 28 times.
rnd 8. *k1B, k1A; rep from * 28 times.
rnds 9-12. Rep rnds 7-8.
Cut Clr B, leaving a 4-6” tail.

Decrease Section
rnd 13. k56A.
rnd 14. *k to 2 sts before m, ssk, sm, k1, k2tog; rep from * 4 times, k to end of rnd. (46 sts)
Rep 13-14 until 16 sts remain. Stuff ornament with poly-fil.
rnd 15. k 16.
rnd 16. *ssk, k2tog; rep from * 4 times. (8 sts)
rnd 17. k8.
Break yarn, leaving a 4-6” tail. Draw tail through remaining sts to secure.

Finishing
Weave in all ends. Using a needle & thread, sew a scrap of ribbon to the top of your finished ornament to hang.

Knit a sweet bauble for your Christmas tree with this free ornament pattern. Handmade holiday crafts are the best!
Knit the free pattern for this festive star Christmas ornament.

Get the free Knit Star Ornament Pattern here.

Add a little love to your Christmas tree with a free pattern for this knit heart ornament.

Get the free Knit Heart Ornament pattern here.

Add some handmade cuteness to your Christmas tree this year - knit up a colorful ornament for your tree with one of these three free patterns.
Add some handmade cuteness to your Christmas tree this year - knit up a colorful ornament for your tree with one of these three free patterns.
Support for the 12 Ornaments of Christmas series on Hands Occupied was provided by Lion Brand Yarn. All patterns in this series were designed and knit with Lion Brand Yarn Bonbons in Beach.

Knit or crochet some adorable ornaments to trim your tree! Join Hands Occupied this holiday season to make Christmas ornaments with free patterns all season along. Each ornament doubles as a great gift topper & stocking stuffer!

Filed Under: Christmas, Free Patterns, Knitting Tagged With: 12 ornaments of christmas, bauble, bauble ornament, knit ornament, knitting pattern, ornaments of christmas

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad (she/her) is a craft book author & designer specializing in yarn crafts. Her work combines vintage and modern design elements, prioritizing color and graphic motifs. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Lisa @ Cucicucicoo: Eco Sewing and Crafts

    December 15, 2016 at 2:38 am

    These are really adorable! I need to try them out! :) Lisa

    Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), and I’ve been helping yarn crafters untangle various techniques on the internet since 2010. I got my start here, as a blogger, and since then I’ve shared more than a few tutorials here and on YouTube as I’ve grown as a pattern designer. 🧶 

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Heidi Gustad 🧶 knitting & yarn crafts

handsoccupied

Knitting & yarn crafts designer 🧶
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Stay up-to-date 💌 & shop new patterns ⤵️

POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern fits with no ease vs. 4” of positive ease. There’s a bit more length to the cotton (brighter color) sample, but both are cropped and feature shoulder seams designed to sit an inch back onto the shoulder instead of on top, giving it a little swing. Length is easily adjustable for folks looking for less of a crop. 
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Pattern: Bevelled Tank by @handsoccupied for @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn summer 2024. Available for free from Hobbii at the 🔗 in my profile.
Yarn pictured: @kelbournewoolens Skipper and Camper. 
Dress form is adjusted to a 36” chest and ~5’3”ish in height. 
Human has a 40” chest and is 5’5”.
Both skirts are vintage.
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #handsoccupied #intarsia #handmade #knitting #colorwork
Let’s talk about fit and ease! . During the Beve Let’s talk about fit and ease!
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During the Bevelled Tank design process for @pompommag, I knit 2 samples using 2 different @KelbourneWoolens yarns. One was in Skipper (100% cotton, second photo) and the other was in Camper (100% 2 ply wool). The Skipper sample was knit for a 36” bust, which measures in at 40” with 4” of positive ease. And I knit the Camper Sample for my 40” bust with a 44” finished measurement. (BTW, I’m 5’5” for folks that find that measurement helpful in visualizing fit.)
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Based on the size chart for the Bevelled Tank, that means I knit one size 3 sample and one size 4. As designed, I conveniently fit a size 4 as intended with 4” of positive ease. When I wear the 3, there is no ease at all because the garment and my body are both 40” in size. Comparing the 2 garments, you can see how the fiber content (cotton vs. wool) and fit (no ease vs. 4” of positive ease) makes a difference in the look and feel of the finished garment. 
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These samples are a great way to compare what ease looks like on different bodies. While I can fit both a size 3 and 4, the garment with no ease feels more like pajamas or a bralette when I wear it. On the other hand, when I wear the one with 4” of positive ease, I feel comfortable enough to wear it to work, even as a crop top. Plus, it leaves me with enough room to layer it with a nice button down if I’m not feeling the cropped look one day. 
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I’m curious - how would you style this tank? Would you modify it with a few stockinette rows for added length? I’m so curious now that this pattern is finally out in the world. :) 
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #bevelledtank #handsoccupied #knitting #intarisa #handmade #kelbournewoolens #croppedsweater #summerknits
After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m ba After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m back with a brand new pattern in 9 sizes, and it’s FREE as part of @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn’s summer design collection! (Link is in my bio.)
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In my December newsletter, I announced that I was soliciting test knitters for a pattern that had originally been selected for the summer ’24 issue of Pom Pom Quarterly magazine. However, the magazine ceased publication after its spring ’24 issue, leaving in-progress designs unpublished. (It happens.) As a result, I’d begun the long process of editing, testing, and photographing the pattern for independent release through the Hands Occupied pattern shop and Ravelry.
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Before I was done with that process, Pom Pom Quarterly’s former editors reached out with an exciting proposal for the pattern. Post-magazine, they’ve begun to partner with yarn companies to produce high quality pattern collections. They wanted to include designs from the would-be current issue of Pom Pom Quarterly in a new collection for Hobbii yarn, including my Bevelled Tank. I worked with the same technical editors I would have for the magazine on this one, and as you can see from the photos, Pom Pom’s team did an amazing job of styling the garment to the beautiful standards they’re known for.
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You can learn more about the pattern on my blog and get the free pattern from Hobbii yarn - links to both in my profile. I’ll post sizing info in the comments for quick reference too. 🧶
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #knitting #intarsia #sponsored #colorworkknitting 
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Photos: @dianascarrunz 
Model: @angel.jade_
Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vi Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vintage knitting pattern from 1938 called the Fernlace Pullover. A pattern so nice, I knit it twice.
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Yellow version 💛: knit with Despondent Dyes’ Vintage Vixen Sport after attending a @squidneyknits vintage knitting retreat in 2019 & learning *so much*. Paired with a self-drafted circle skirt pattern. 
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Blue version 💙: knit with @eweeweyarns Ewe So Sporty in Sky Blue. Paired with the 1940s Boardwalk Duet sewing pattern from @decades_of_style 
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Head to my stories for 🔗🔗 to the handmade wardrobe blog posts I wrote about each take on the Fernlace Pullover, working with a vintage pattern, where to find vintage patterns (including the one I used), & some thoughts on sizing. 
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Image descriptions available in alt text. 
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#handsoccupied #handmadewardrobe #fernlacepullover #vintageknitting #vintageknittingpatterns #knitting_inspiration
Frogging is a word in the knitting world that mean Frogging is a word in the knitting world that means to rip out your knitting. It’s called frogging because frogs say “ribbit,” and when you’re tearing out your knitting, you will “rip it” out, and that sounds like ribbit. No really. 🐸 Did you know this fun fact? 
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P.S. I did like this design concept, but to make the pattern more knitter friendly as well as more wearable, I am making some tweaks to the construction. Excited to share when it’s ready! 🥰🧶
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Yarn: @blueskyfibers Woolstok North in Morning Frost & Highland Fleece 
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#handsoccupied #knitting #frogging #blueskyfibers #knittersofinstagram #blueskymakers #knittingvocabulary #bsfmakers #knitdesign
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