ho ho ho

edited to say, “HOLA.  The sewing is going really decent, but I am losing daylight and my children are feeding themselves Christmas tree ornaments.  I’ll have to take photos tomorrow and will load the etsy shop at 3pm.  GRACIAS.”

I just cracked myself up… I’ve been singing Ho Ho Ho and a bottle of rum but just realized it’s YO ho ho and a bottle of rum. *sigh* Funny.

As I sat down to ease my desire for home•made Christmas stockings, I realized I had no idea of the origin of the tradition.  A quick google search led to hundreds of versions of the same story:  

There was a kindly nobleman whose wife had died of an illness leaving the nobleman and his three daughters in despair. After losing all his money in useless and bad inventions the family had to move into a peasant’s cottage, where the daughters did their own cooking, sewing and cleaning.

When it came time for the daughters to marry, the father became even more depressed as his daughters could not marry without dowries, money and property given to the new husband’s family.

One night after the daughters had washed out their clothing they hung their stockings over the fireplace to dry. That night Saint Nicholas, knowing the despair of the father, stopped by the nobleman’s house. Looking in the window Saint Nicholas saw that the family had gone to bed. He also noticed the daughters stockings. Inspiration struck Saint Nicholas and he took three small bags of gold from his pouch and threw them one by one down the chimney and they landed in the stockings.

The next morning when the daughters awoke they found their stockings contained enough gold for them to get married. The nobleman was able to see his three daughters marry and he lived a long and happy life.

[source]

So, now you know.  It’s all about marrying off the daughters.  Isn’t it always?  I do love stockings, though.  As we get a little older, I’d like to transition from the Christmas Present Panic and move into the Presents Must Fit in the Stocking. Especially for the adults.

ANYWAY.  I found templates.  And photos.  And websites.  Thank you for all your help!  My printer and I are in the midst of performance negotiations… darn thing is seriously unionized.  It would not print even with considerable coercion.  I was left to my usual Wing It strategy and it worked lovely.  Sometimes, Winging It results in many tears and shredded fabric, but not this weekend.  I did make Curt look up from his ridiculous Angry Birds game several times and answer questions like, “Curt.  CURT.  Does this look like a sock?” “How ’bout now?”  “Should the toe be shorter?”  “Is the ankle too fat?” “Do you still love me?” Curt is awesome.

The stockings are made out of men’s shirting fabric, vintage sheets, and up-cycled sweaters.  IT makes every stocking different, which is a good lesson for me in conformity.  Wool knit has a mind of its own under feed dogs.  After playing a bit, I decided to use NO interfacing or stabilizer.  They hold their shape, but they are certainly not as stiff as traditional felt stockings.  But, these aren’t traditional stockings.   

[The NICE stocking… the toe… needs a little trimming, I see.  Too boxy.  This may never end.]

I ended up with three sizes: 

• Grande (7×14 from cuff to heel)
• Nice (5.5×12)
• Elf (4×7 • perfect for gift cards and neighbor treats)     

I’ll be loading what I can into the etsy shop today as my children permit.  It’s a lofty goal and assumes no one will puke on me OR the fabric.  I hope I didn’t just jinx myself.

 

I hope this isn’t too personal, but perhaps you can settle a debate:  Do your stockings hang with the toe facing left or right?