Crafty Tutorial: Winter Waldorf Gnomes

~by Kendal

I know that it's just turned November and that it is a little - just a little, mind - too early to be getting festive (although my neighbour has decided it is the right time to put up his outdoor Christmas decorations...hmm) but we have started to think about what might go on our Winter Seasons Table.

It's so chilly outside, and sadly Autumn here is all too brief. So with winter in mind, today I will be showing you how to make these lovely little Waldorf Winter Gnomes - Flower Gnomes to be precise. They are quick and easy to make (it took me an hour to make two) and I like them so much I might make a whole Gnome family for every season!

What you need:

Felt of different colours (I used blues and whites)
Pipe cleaners
Wooden beads
Embroidery thread of matching colours
Stuffing of some sort (I like old pillows for this)

How to:

I'll tell you how to make the smaller gnome, and then you can adjust depending on whether you want to go smaller or larger.

1. First of all, cut three bits of felt. I cut mine 6cm by 4cm, and the two smaller bits were 6cm by 2cm.

2. The larger of the pieces will be the body. Folding the felt so the short sides are together, you need to do a blanket stitch up the side of the felt. This is super easy, but here's a tutorial if you haven't before.

3. Using the joined felt as a guide, cut a circle to fit the bottom. I totally guessd this, and it worked quite well. Blanket stitch the circular felt onto the bottom, like so.

4. Taking the pipe cleaner (it doesn't have to be sparkly, but all the better, no?) put it through the wooden bead untl the bead is about half-way down. Fold the pipe cleaner around the head so there is a little at the top (this will be the stamen) and then wrap the remainder around the bottom.

5. Put the pipe cleaner into the body and then add stuffing, surround the pipe cleaner so it stands up on its own. Stuff quite tightly. Then, knot a peice of thread and sew a running stitch along the top of the body. Pull tight. It should gather ncely around the 'neck' so that just the head (bead) is poppng out. Pull tightly, do a couple of stitches in the body and tie another knot, to secure the body.

6. On the two smaller peices of felt, cut out a flower design. One will be the hat, the other will go around the neck.

7. Using matching thread, sew a running stitch along the top of one of the peices and pull, gathering it around the neck. Once it is pulled tightly and fits well around the neck, sew a couple of stitches to secure and tie a knot.

8. Do exactly the same with the hat, this time securing it around the top of the pipe cleaner. Once you have sewn it to secure, you can also add a little craft glue to the head to further secure the hat and pin it down a little.

And there you have it! One Waldorf inspired, Winter Flower Gnome! I think these would work well in a variety of reds, oranges and yellows for Autumn and seasonal colours for Spring and Summer too.

(The larger gnome used a pece of felt 12 by 8cm for the body and 12 by 4cm for the neck and hat)