DIY Spool Knit "Merry" Christmas Letters in Candy Cane Colors

In a similar vein to my candy cane spool knit ornament, I made these festive holiday letters. I decided to spell out "merry", but you can use whatever word or phrase you wish.

You'll need a spool with nails or tacks knocked in, some sort of fiber for the "knitting" part, flexible wires, needle-nose pliers, and a needle. I used red and white baker's twine as my fiber.

For my spool knitting tutorial, please click here.

I used graph paper to draw my letters, making sure they'd be the same height and I used similar widths as well. Make sure you draw your letters as one continuous line. You can see here where I changed straight lines into loops to do this. We'll recreate these letters in wire to provide an inner structure and form for the spool knit tubes.

Here's an example of what some of your finished letters will look like.

A close-up of some of the letters so you can see the details better and the effect that variegated twine creates.

To form your inner wire frames/structures, cut a long length of wire. I believe I used 20 gauge gold-tone wire for mine. Lay the wire on top of your sketched letters (I traced my finished letters onto white paper so I could see the wire better as I bent it). Use your pliers to bend the wire into each letter. I found a few gentle bends where the wire overlapped or curved was all that was needed. You can also use your hands to bend parts of the wire into shape.

Make sure you leave 1/4" or so of overhang at the beginning and end of each letter. You'll be bending this later (see two pictures down).

Here's my almost-finished "Y". I closed my pliers on the place where the wire overlapped to keep the pieces fairly close together. You want enough room to slide your tube past this point, but not so much that the top piece is up in the air.

To finish your wire forms, bend each end down into a loop (you can see this here on the end I left uncovered). This will prevent the wire from getting poked up through the tubes.

When each letter's form is completed, knit your tubes. As I spool knit each piece, I'd pause along the way, lay it over my forms, and make sure I was going to have a long enough knit tube for each length of wire. You want a little bit extra on the beginning and end of each letter so the tube isn't stretched tight. Don't leave so much, however, that your tube ends up bunched and wrinkled. I'd say about 1/4 - 1/3 an inch extra per end is good.

Leave an extra six inches or so of twine/fiber at each tube's end. Pull the spool knit tube's ends up over the wire loops and use your needle to gather the ends together. Cinch tight 

When you're done, insert the needle into the tube for an inch or so, and then back out. Pull slightly tight, and cut the extra off close to the tube. This will ensure that each end "disappears" inside the tube.

The finished product!

And, because I couldn't resist, I snapped a photo of the letters in our tree surrounded by white lights. This year, I'm displaying the letters as a banner. I strung them on white yarn and hung them over a doorway to make my little guy smile!

DIY Spoolknit Candy Cane Ornament Decoration

I first introduced spool knitting on the blog in this post. I then promptly forgot about this craft for a few years.

Luckily, during a recent frantic I-really-REALLY-need-to-organize-all-my-craft-supplies session, I came across my knitting spool again and began to brainstorm.

I decided on a candy cane ornament, but didn't want to have to switch colors. So I used red & white baker's twine (widely available on the internet) to give the impression of swirling colors combined with the simplicity of only one strand.

I made my tube about 4.25" long, and cut a piece of heavy wire about an inch longer (so 5.25"). Then I threaded the wire into the center of the tube so it stuck out a half-inch on both ends. I folded each end back on itself about a half-inch so it resembled the outer edge of a paperclip, and pulled the tube up around the crook to cover it (you'll find your tube will stretch a bit, allowing you to do this). Next I threaded each string end (you'll have a tail from starting and ending the tube, one per end) onto a needle and stitched in and out of the tube - making sure to catch the wire - so the ends of the tube were firmly secured around and to the looped wire ends.

Then I simply bent one end until it had a good candy cane shape, threaded some yarn through the back of the top for a hanger, and hung it on my tree! You could also bend your wire before you thread it into your tube. I just thought this way might be a bit simpler. This is a pretty quick project. The wire part can be a bit fiddly at first, but you'll get the hang of it after you do it once. Subsequent candy canes are much easier and faster!

Free Jams, Jellies, Vanilla Extract, Etc. Labels

It's marmalade season around here! Bitter oranges - also called Seville oranges - have a very short season. So when we saw them in our local Whole Foods, we just had to buy some. This weekend we'll be slicing them up and making Darina Allen's recipe for marmalade. And in less than a month, it should be strawberry jam season as well! So, in the spirit of fellow preserve-makers and canners, I decided to take the time to alter and clean up two vintage labels so that they can be used to label your homemade jams, jellies, syrups, liqueurs, etc. I made them red and white because it reminds me of vintage gingham and vintage kitchens. Just right click and hit "save as", then print to whatever size you like! Attach with rubber cement, a gluestick, or glue or print them on sticker or label paper and then just peel off the back.

The first one shown above is perfect for homemade vanilla extract. It may sound complicated, but it's actually incredibly simple to make! Just pick a jar you like, add 5 - 6 vanilla bean pods scored down the middle but with the seeds intact, and then cover with vodka or rum. Let steep for at least three months, shaking at least once a week. Keep adding liquor as you use it up, and replace one pod every six months or so with a fresh one and you'll have homemade extract for years! So much more flavor than the store-bought stuff, and much less expensive. I know vanilla pods can be pricey in the store, but if you look for bulk amounts of them online, they are insanely cheap (as in less than a dollar per pod)!

This one is perfect for jams, jellies, marmalades, liqueurs or even your own homemade loose tea or spice mixes! You could use them for baked goods or handmade candies as well. Just write what it is on the line, then sign your name under 'Prepared By". It has enough space to add "with love", "in honor of your birthday", "Happy Easter!", or other little notes below the name. So many possibilities!

Please note that these are for personal use only. Please do not alter them and sell them, or sell them as is. If you link to them, please credit me. Thanks!

New Prints in the Shop, 3LambsIllustration

I've been trying to get ideas out of my head and onto paper lately, and these two new prints in the shop came from that. I think Valentine's Day probably influenced the red and white color schemes! This "Love You" print with hearts instead of o's has a watercolor-textured background and script/calligraphic-style lettering.

This piece features a heart with the word "yours" written over and over on it. So, naturally, it's called "This Heart is Yours". I like the idea that you can symbolically give someone your "heart" by giving them this print!

See more prints in my shop here.