Do you have a stash of cozy socks that are missing there mate? Found some clearance socks and want to make a gift to give away for the holidays. These sock gnomes are an easy project. You can get the whole family involved in making sock gnomes for an adorable Christmas display or make a fun game of hiding them around the house to find during the holidays.
I honestly have never thought of or heard of sock gnomes before our family trip to Kee-Nee-Mo-Sha. We go to this resort every other year as a family cabin week. This year we went with my parents, my brother, my sister-in-law, my nephew and of course my family! The resort does an amazing job offering some fun activities that are super fun for all ages of your family. This year one of the activities was making gnomes out of socks. IT WAS A BLAST!!!
Why you should try making sock gnomes diy?
Sock gnomes are a fun craft for kids. Sock gnomes are a lot of fun and it makes a great craft to do with the kids because you can do pretty much whatever you want with them for a fun activity and even make them for different seasons with some cheap socks from the dollar store.
These adorable creatures are sure to keep the kids busy for a while and give them the opportunity to show off some of their creativity. For us, this was a great family activity that let us all show a bit of our own personality in our projects.
How to make sock gnomes
What You Need to Make a DIY sock Gnome:
- Chunky Yarn or decorative cord
- Socks
- Scissors
- Craft glue
- Rubber Bands
- Buttons
- Wooden bead
- Rice (or other fillers)
How do you make gnomes out of socks?
Start with a white solid-colored sock for your sock gnome’s head. Fill the bottom with rice to shape the head and give it a heavy base. You can even get sneaky and fill the inside of this with rice on the bottom and a couple of rolled socks that have no mate to use as a filler for the head.
After filling your sock use a rubber band to help secure it. You can add a few drops of glue to help as well. You can cut the top of the sock down or leave it to act as a filler inside the sock gnome hat.
Cut your yarn or cord into strips 5 to 7 inches long depending on how long you want your gnome’s hair. Now this is typically how I have heard of people doing it but what was cool is for the activity to be easy for all ages, the resort showed us how we can loop the hair under the rubber band FIRST and then cut the yarn at the bottom of the loops. I found this super helpful for my younger kids to still be in control of their project.
If you cut your yarn first now is the time to attach the hair to your sock gnome with a rubber band to hold it in place. you can add glue to help secure it as well. If you looped it like discussed above, then now is the time to cut the bottom of the loops.
Add your hat to the top of your gnome over the hair. We discovered this can be a bit difficult to keep on but you can fold a rubber band into the end of the sock to help the hat stay in place and keep the hair in place.
Use craft glue to add a wooden bead to make your gnome’s nose.
After your sock gnome is assembled you can use buttons, more yarn, and even things you find in nature to decorate them more like we did when we made our sock gnomes during our vacation at the cabin we rent each year. Get creative and have fun with it. Don’t be afraid to use extra craft glue to keep it all together.
What to do with sock gnomes?
Sock gnomes make a great option for holiday fun. In the 18th century, gnomes were believed to be house spirits that helped around the home and sometimes became a bit mischievous. This led to the Christmas gnome tradition. Many families now participate in this tradition where instead of an elf on a shelf they have a gnome named Nisse that they move around the house to find during the holiday season.
This tradition is a lot easier for parents than Elf on the Shelf because the kids are allowed to touch the gnome and even be the ones to hide it next so there is no stress for parents about moving or creating elaborate scenes while the kids are asleep. and no creepy elf following your every move.
What I would do differently next time?
This project was definitely not a Pinterest Fail. We had a great time and everyone in the family ended up with a successful craft from preschool to adults.
We didn’t use rubber bands inside to help secure the hats and hair when we first attempted everything. Sadly we discovered the hard way that adding an extra rubber band or securing the hair with glue makes it a lot easier to hold your sock gnomes together particularly if you plan to move them around at all. If you are planning to use them to hide around the house during the holidays with the kids you will want to secure the entire thing with craft glue very well.
For sitting out as a decoration this is less necessary. As much as everyone loved this project and let their creativity shine I was a bit disappointed about how they don’t quite look like gnomes. Next time I will leave the eyes off but everyone wanted them this time and I didn’t want to be the odd one out with no having eyes.