yarn ornaments

The other day I came across a forum post on Ravelry that talked about making yarn ornaments, which got me to thinking .... wouldn't it be cute to make little ornaments to decorate the packages containing handmade socks? Crazy, but cute!

Mom and I used to get ourselves into all sorts of crazy projects - my fault mostly - so this idea made me all sentimental and nostalgic. This morning I decided to give it a go, and you know, it's not so crazy after all. In fact, it's pretty easy! The tiny one is made with leftovers of Wandering Cat Alley Cat sock yarn in a Raspberry Beret colourway. And the one behind it? Alley Cat sock yarn in a Tea Time colourway.

Materials:
• dollar store ornaments - small 1.5" diameter or tiny 1" diameter
• leftover sock yarn - 6gr for small or 3gr for tiny ornaments
• tacky white glue that dries clear
• seed beads in a wood-like colour
• round toothpicks

I poured out some glue and then rolled the ornament to coat it. The first few minutes of wrapping the ornament with yarn were a sticky mess, but as soon as 30-40% was covered it became easier. When the ornament was entirely covered I cut the yarn, dragged the last couple inches of yarn through glue and then stuck it down to the wrapped ornament. For the knitting needles, I dipped the head of a toothpick into glue, pushed a bead onto it as far is it would go, then trimmed the tip of the toothpick level with the top of the bead. Insert two needles through the yarn wrapped ornament and voilà!