Spicy Pinecone: I'll be gnome for Christmas...

I love mail. Going to the mailbox is like a mini-Christmas everyday. I especially love it when I get catalogs, it's the laziest form of window shopping there is.

Flipping through the most recent "West Elm" catalog, I came across this:

West Elm Gnome Ornament $7

I thought it was adorable, but it only came in red. I figured I'd make my own.

Things you'll need:

Felt (2 colors)

Embroidery Thread (I used white, green, and black. I think on the next one I would just use the white around the borders, though, more closely matching the West Elm version.)

Scrap of yarn

Needle

Scissors

Pins

Scrap paper

Step 1- Cut out the general shape of the gnome using a piece of paper and pin it to a folded piece of felt. Cut around the template so you have both a front and a back piece.

Front and back piece cut out with template still attached.

Step 2- Cut beard and eyeball oval out of white felt. You can cut a template out of paper first if you'd like (I did) to get the size right so you're not accidentally wasting felt.

Step 3- Sew beard and eyeball oval to front piece of felt using two strands of embroidery thread.

Step 4- Embroider eyes and mouth using black embroidery thread. I did two French knots for the eyes, wrapping the thread around 4 times for a larger knot. The mouth was stitched straight across and secured in the middle to kind of give him a "happy" look.

French knot eyeballs.

Step 5- Tie your scrap of yarn so you have a loop the length you'd like the ornament to hang. Optional: Then, embroider the back piece of felt with your initials in whatever color you'd like. I embroidered my initials in black on the foot.

Step 6- Start sewing the front and back together, securing the loop of yarn at the top of the hat in-between the stitches. I used a whip stitch on this one, but might try a running stitch next time. Good thing about the gnome is it's super easy and any mistakes just make it more whimsical. ;)

When you get about an inch away from closing up the gnome, stuff it with a little bit of polyfill. Finish closing.