DIY- Stockings for your holiday mantel

Stockings are one of my favorite things during the holiday season. It is easy to create your own to reflect your personal style.

Start off with a couple different fabrics, one for the front, one for the back, and one for the lining. You will also need a piece of ribbon. A great stocking pattern can be found here. It looks like this...

Layer your fabrics on top of each other: the front piece and the back piece facing each other and then the pieces of the lining sandwiching them facing out. Cut your pattern and lay it on top of the fabric pieces and pin everything together. Cut your fabric to fit the pattern. Remove the paper pieces.

Cut the ribbon to equal sizes, about eight inches long for each.

Keeping the fabric layered the same take your top two pieces- lining and front fabric panel- and re-pin them together. Sew these pieces along all edges. Do the same for the other lining piece and the back panel. For the back pieces, add your ribbon to the back corner so that it is sewn between the lining and the back piece. Re-pin the two new piece together in the same manner as previous. (Front and back pieces facing each other.)

Sew along the three sides of the stocking, leaving the top open. Turn the stocking inside out, so that your seam is on the inside and your fabric is on the outside. Fold out the top to reveal three inches of the lining. With a needle and thread, tack down the top to keep it in place. Do this on both sides along the seam.

For extra texture, chose a fuzzy fabric for your lining so that a nice strip of fur shows at the top.

To personalize your stocking even more, add your name in glitter. Using your Elmer's glue, practice writing your name on a piece of paper in even, thin lines. When you're ready, write the name on the stocking. Make sure not to leave any drips. Sprinkle craft glitter in the color of your choice on the glue. Let it dry for a couple of hours and then shake off any extra glitter on to a newspaper. (Then you can easily dump the glitter back into the container.)

 No mantle? Paint an old branch and fix it to the wall. Tie your ribbon pieces around the branch.

 Images via Living Etc.

Let me know if you try this out and how it goes for you!

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