Christmas Gnomes

I came across these adorably, tiny “winter gnomes” on Pinterest, of course.  The minute I saw them, I had to make them.

You can find the original tutorial from Better Homes and Garden here.

My local craft store was out of the exact sizing listed from Better Homes and Garden, so I adjusted and thought I’d take you through my process and share my tips.

MATERIALS  NEEDED:

– (2) 1 1/4″ wooden flat bottom balls
– (2) 1 1/2″ wooden flat bottom balls
– (2) 1/2″ wooden balls
– gray and red felt
– hat template
– (2) jingle bells
– 20 gauge wire
– needle and embroidery thread
– gray and red paint
– white faux fur
– needle nose pliers
– paint brush
– scissors
– tacky glue

…AND AWAY WE GO…

BODY:  Start by painting one of the 1 1/2″ wooden balls red and the other gray.  Let them dry, then glue a 1 1/4″ ball on top of each.  Once the glue sets a bit, add the “nose” by gluing a 1/2″ ball in between the 1 1/2″ (body) and 1 1/4″ (head) balls.

FACE:  For the hair and beard, cut three strips of fur and glue one to each side of the red gnome’s head to make her pigtails and one on the front of the gray gnome right under his nose to make his beard.  Tie a bow around each pigtail with red embroidery thread and the beard too if you want!  Next, use the needle nose pliers to shape a piece of 20 gauge wire into glasses, leaving enough of a straight piece between the two circles to fit around the nose, then use a dab of glue to secure it to the top of the gray gnomes nose.

HATS:  Start by printing the hat template found in the list of materials above.  Use the template to cut the red gnome’s hat from the gray felt and the gray gnome’s hat from the red felt.  Notice (on the template) the gray gnome’s hat will be smaller than the red gnome’s hat.  Once cut, shape the felt into a cone and stitch the seam closed along the length of the hat, then stitch around the bottom of the gray hat.  As a finishing touch, stitch a bell on top of each hat!  Use a dab of glue on the inside, back  of the hat to help secure it on top of each gnome’s head.

OR MAYBE THIS:  Spice up the gnomes hats by stitching designs, like maybe a flower on the girl gnome’s had or vertical lines all the way down the boy gnome’s hat.  Customize one for each member in your family.

Aren’t they so tiny cute!  I hope they bring you as much joy as they do me!

Visit our other Holiday decor ideas!

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