How to Make a Christmas Stocking

Steps

1. 1. Draw the Pattern

   On a sheet of paper, measure 7 inches across the top and draw a long rectangle down from it, about 16 inches deep. The measurements are not sacred - it is a stocking, not a dress.

   Tip: Copy paper taped together works fine. There is no need for proper pattern paper for a shape this simple.

   

2. 2. Curve the Foot and Cut It Out

   Draw a curve across the bottom to make the foot, then cut the whole shape out. If you want the curve even, draw around a 7 inch plate.

   Tip: Cut just outside your pencil line. It is far easier to shave a pattern down than to tape a slice back on.

   

3. 3. Widen the Ankle

   Measure 6 inches up from the end of the curve and mark a line straight across. Cut up to that line but not all the way through, so the pattern still holds together.

   Tip: It does not matter that there is now a hole in the middle of the pattern. You are only drawing round the outside of it.

   

4. 4. Cut the Outer and Lining Pieces

   Cut two pieces from your outer Christmas fabric and two from the lining. Fold the fabric double and cut both layers at once so the pair come out identical and mirrored.

   Tip: Right sides together or wrong sides together makes no difference at this stage. You just need two of each and they need to match.

   

5. 5. Cut the Cuff

   Cut two cuff pieces from a contrast fabric, 7 inches across to match the stocking top and 9 inches deep. The cuff gets folded in half, so the depth you cut is roughly double what will show.

   Tip: Watch the direction of a patterned fabric here. The raw edge ends up at the top of the stocking, so the print needs to be upside down relative to how you are looking at it.

   

6. 6. Sew the Cuff into a Tube

   Place the two cuff pieces right sides together with the print running the same direction, and sew down both short ends to make a tube. A quarter inch seam allowance is plenty.

   Tip: Turn the finished tube right side out and set it aside. It does not get attached until step 9.

   

7. 7. Sew the Outer Stocking

   Put the two outer pieces right sides together and sew around the edge, leaving the top open. Then snip into the concave curve at the ankle - up to the stitching but not through it - and trim some of the seam allowance away around the toe.

   Tip: If you are adding applique or a name, do it before this seam goes in, while the fabric is still a flat single layer.

   

8. 8. Sew the Lining and Leave a Gap

   Sew the lining pieces the same way, but leave a gap of a few inches in the long back seam near the heel. That gap is how the whole stocking gets turned right side out at the end.

   Tip: Put the gap low on the back seam. Nobody sees the inside of a stocking, but if you are going to close it by hand you may as well hide it.

   

9. 9. Attach the Cuff and the Hanging Loop

   Turn the outer stocking right side out and slide the cuff tube down over the top, matching the side seams and lining up the raw top edges. Fold a length of ribbon into a loop and pin it to the back, directly over the seam, with the loop pointing down into the stocking.

   Tip: Squash the seam allowances open where the layers stack up. Less bulk under the needle makes the final seam far easier to sew.

   

10. 10. Sew the Top, Turn Through and Finish

    Push the whole stocking down inside the lining so all three layers meet at the top, then sew right around that edge with a half inch seam allowance. Pull everything out through the gap you left in the lining, turn it all right side out, then stitch the gap closed.

    Tip: When you pull through the gap, the seam allowances fold themselves inward. Press them flat with your fingers before you sew across and the closure will be almost invisible.