Crochet Gnome Ideas: Christmas Gnomes, Beards and Snowmen

A crochet gnome is a small stuffed figure worked in rounds: a tall cone hat pulled down over the face, a long beard, a round nose and a short body. Six Christmas gnome ideas follow, then how the body, hat and beard are made, which yarn weight and hook set the size, and three snowman ideas. There is no gnome pattern on this site; the patterns shown are the stockings, tree skirt and advent calendar. Every gnome here uses the same parts, so one method covers all six.

Which crochet gnome ideas suit Christmas?

Six crochet gnome ideas suit Christmas: a tall red hat gnome, a tree ornament gnome, a sage green gnome, a striped hat gnome, a gnome pair and a gnome holding a heart. They share one shape and differ in hat, beard and one detail, so you can choose by where your gnome will sit. The lead image shows all six side by side. Each card gives the yarn weight, the Craft Yarn Council hook range for it, the skill level that fits the council’s definitions and the best place for the finished gnome.

How is a crochet gnome made?

A crochet gnome is made in three parts worked in rounds: a body, a hat and a nose, with the beard added last. Patterns write a round as “rnd”, an increase as “inc” and a decrease as “dec”. Gnome shaping uses those three, most often with single crochet, so you need nothing beyond the basic stitches, and once you can work a round, add a stitch with an increase and take one away with a decrease, every part of every gnome on this page is within reach, from the flat base to the tip of the tallest hat.

The body

The body is worked in rounds from a flat base, so your gnome stands on its own. Increase rounds build the base out to its width. Plain rounds build the height. The base comes first. You stuff the body before the last rounds close, because a narrow opening is hard to fill evenly.

The hat

The hat is a cone worked in rounds that increases slowly, so it grows tall and narrow instead of wide. You pull it down over the top of the body until it rests on the beard. You crochet no face. The hat brim and the beard frame the nose. That is the whole face.

The nose

The nose is a small stuffed ball sewn on where the hat and beard meet. It covers the gap between them, so the face reads as one piece. Sew it on last.

How do you make a crochet gnome beard?

Three beard styles cover most crochet gnomes you will see: a fringe beard, a loop beard and a braided beard. Faux fur and brushed yarns are also used for beards, in any of the three. Each style changes the look, so you can make two gnomes from one body and tell them apart by the beard alone.

Fringe beard

A fringe beard is cut strands knotted into a crochet base, with the same knot as a scarf fringe.

1. Cut your strands of yarn and fold each one in half.
2. Insert your hook into a stitch and pull the fold through.
3. Pass the ends through the fold and pull them tight.
4. Trim the ends level once every strand is in.

Each knot locks around its stitch, so the strands stay put when the gnome is handled.

Loop beard

A loop beard is crocheted, not knotted. Each stitch catches a loop of yarn formed around a finger, so the loops stand out from the fabric. Rows of loops stack up. The beard thickens. You leave the loops uncut.

Braided beard

A braided beard is a fringe beard divided into sections, braided and tied with a bow. The sage gnome wears two braids with gold bows. So does the green hat gnome in the pair. Braid it last.

Which yarn weight and hook decide a gnome’s size?

The yarn weight and the hook decide a gnome’s size, because a thicker yarn on a larger hook makes larger stitches, so the same rounds give a bigger figure. Four CYC yarn weights cover gnomes from tree ornament to large shelf figure:

You read each row from left to right. The weights and hooks are the Craft Yarn Council’s “Standard Yarn Weight System”; the gnome use column is our reading of it. The council calls its ranges guidelines only. It also says the system is not an interchangeability chart, so two yarns with the same number can still give you different sizes. Its advice is to always work a gauge swatch and compare it to the pattern gauge. Swatch first. Then you know your gnome’s size before you stuff it, and you can still change your hook.

How do you crochet a snowman?

A crochet snowman is stacked balls worked in rounds, with a hat, a scarf and a carrot nose. It is simpler than a gnome, because it has no beard and no tall cone. A gnome has both. For a snowman, each ball is rounds, increases, decreases and stuffing.

Snowman ornament

The snowman ornament is a small snowman with a red hat, a red scarf and a hanging loop. Make it in a finer yarn on its smaller hook, so it stays light on your branch.

Shelf snowman with a scarf

The shelf snowman wears a black top hat trimmed with holly, a red scarf and twig arms. The scarf is a short crochet strip tied around the neck, so it hides the join between two balls.

Snowman family

The snowman family is three snowmen in three sizes, each with its own hat and scarf, so the three read as a set. The image also shows a snowman mug cozy.

The snowman image shows all four ideas: a tree ornament, a shelf snowman in a top hat, a family of three and a snowman mug cozy.

Which Christmas decor patterns go with crochet gnomes?

Three Christmas decor patterns sit beside crochet gnomes on a mantel and under the tree: a stocking set, a tree skirt and an advent calendar. Each one is a full pattern with a stitch count at the end of every row. Each has a materials list. None is a gnome.

The Christmas Stockings pattern has four designs, Nordic Stripe, Cable, Snowflake and Plaid, with an optional personalised name panel. It uses worsted weight 4 yarn and a 5 mm (US H-8) hook. That hook sits just below the CYC range for the weight, which the council’s guidelines-only wording allows, because the pattern sets its own gauge. The design notes are on Crochet Christmas Stocking Pattern: 4 Designs with a Name Panel.

The stocking photo shows the four designs from the Christmas Stockings pattern hung on a mantel.

The Scalloped Christmas Tree Skirt comes in three sizes: 76 cm (30 in), 102 cm (40 in) and 122 cm (48 in) across. Its skill level is Easy. It uses worsted weight 4 yarn in three colours on a 5 mm (US H-8) hook. The pattern’s own guidance matches each size to a tree: small for tabletop and small trees up to 5 ft (1.5 m), medium for standard 6 to 7 ft (1.8 to 2.1 m) trees and large for 7 to 9 ft (2.1 to 2.7 m) trees. The sizes are set out in Crochet Christmas Tree Skirt Pattern: Scalloped Skirt in 3 Sizes.

The tree skirt photo shows the Scalloped Christmas Tree Skirt spread under a decorated tree.

People also search for a crochet gnome advent calendar. The Christmas Advent Calendar has no gnomes on it: it is a wall hanging with 24 pockets and a number chart, and everything in it is single crochet worked flat in rows. Its skill level is Easy. The pockets are described in Crochet Advent Calendar Pattern: 24 Pocket Christmas Countdown.

The advent calendar photo shows the 24 pocket wall hanging from the Christmas Advent Calendar pattern.

The rest of the crochet Christmas decor, from ornaments to stockings, is gathered in Christmas Crochet Patterns: Ornaments, Stockings and Decor.

Is a crochet gnome a good first project?

A crochet gnome is a good second project, once you can work single crochet in rounds with increases and decreases. It adds stuffing, shaping and assembly to those stitches, so your first project is easier if it is flat. Start flat. A plain gnome fits the Craft Yarn Council’s Basic level, “projects using basic stitches” that “may include basic increases and decreases”. A striped hat adds colour work, which the council’s Easy level lists. Learn rounds first. Small tree decorations use the same rounds on a smaller scale, and Crochet Christmas Ornament Patterns: 15 Types to Make gathers them. For the whole catalogue, see Crochet Patterns to Make: Christmas Decor and Winter Wear.