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I hope he’s been a good boy this year then??

Having been commissioned, by a family friend, as a surprise for both his son and his wife, to create another gigantic Christmas Stocking, for their second son, my brief was…”make it BIG with a Polar Bear Please!” Well, there’s no doubting it’s big…in fact VERY BIG! At approximately 37 inches tall with a 24 inch opening and foot area too, I think it fits the size part of the brief at least;-) Then to make a Polar Bear from scratch…

First draw a cute Polar Bear Shape…tick! Cut out all the separate pieces from felt…tick! Make him a ‘turned out’ hat and scarf set with a little bell…tick!…Right!!…now he has to go on a suitable background to show him off ~ it would have been a shame to have him disappear almost, against the cream cotton fabric (Head scratch moment!!!) AH HA!!! I remembered the assistant at the fabric mill showing me some narrow, glittered snowflake netting ;-D Perfect!!…quick dash to buy half a meter!! Set over an A3 sheet of navy and polar ice blue sewn together, it was just the effect I’d hoped for, and, set off the polar bear perfectly! Standing cutely against a glittering snowy backdrop, Oh, and a little crescent felt moon under the netting too ~ I almost feel like I am in the North Pole with him now LOL 😉 Having loosely assembled all the panel parts, much hand stitching ensued, to attach him over the netting, before blanket stitching the felt panel onto the outer stocking shape.

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Must point out…I forgot to photo the step by step I’m explaining ;-/, as the quilting across the stocking was done afterwards, in fact all photos were done on completion

Next, twelve little hand drawn and cut felt tree shapes, then a mad rummage through my buttons, to find enough matching colour and sized buttons to stitch onto the trees, before they were also blanket stitched to the stocking, adding, as I went around, little beads to finish the tree decorations.Eventually, at the quilting stage, using a synthetic wadding this time to give a more padded feel, I also went around each tree too, which gives it a lovely raised profile from the stocking.

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From drawing to completion of each little felt tree seemed to take an absolute age, with so many stitches to achieve the end result. Though, always worth the effort, to have each one as nice as the first!!! I have completely secured all buttons and beads with triple stitching and double knotting at the back as the little boy is only two this year, as he gets older and the stocking is used year on year, it will be less of a concern, though I always keep in mind safety in all my designs!

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Of course, the stocking needs a back too! Simple but still, a heck of a lot of hand quilting, Each square is 2 x 2 inches which, kind of adds up, after already finishing the front quilting surface and also around each applique piece to give added structure and profile. Next…A matching tartan stocking top and tiny loop (for safety’s sake) were added and finally, after all the quilting, a cotton holly leaf print fabric to bind, which again has been hand stitched back to finish…:-D

et voilà!! I don’t think I ever did a post for the first gigantic stocking..??… well here it is!

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Our friend kindly lent it to me again to take pics, I believe it has had a good few years of use already, and, hopefully many more to be enjoyed before he grows up! Isn’t that what treasured childhood memories are all about??! The magical happy childhood memories of seeing/remembering a gigantic stocking ‘filled by Santa year on year!’  😀