Ok, so I kept seeing the most beautiful handmade stockings made with antique cutter quilts this year, and I decided I needed to make some myself. I’ve actually wanted to make custom stockings for a few years, but just hadn’t set my mind to what I wanted.

I was very inspired by my friend Tami from @farmdownthelane. The way that she repurposes old quilts and gives new life to the treasures she makes is just so cool to me. After seeing her share several gorgeous stockings she was making, I decided it was time! I was ready to make some!

So, my hunt for the perfect cutter quilt to make our stockings with began! Welp, I looked and I looked and I looked… and I simply could not find one in good enough condition that would yield enough fabric to make 6 stockings and that wasn’t going to cost what our mortgage does 😂👍

Then I remembered that our friends, Garnet Hill, sell some gorgeous quilts! We have their Agnes quilt in grey and yellow and I practically squealed when I got on their site and saw they had released A RED version!

I did a little research on the average size of stockings and decided the Garnet Hill Standard Agnes Shams would be perfect to make our stockings with! I reached out with this idea and they were super supportive, encouraging, and generous, and just yes! We really enjoy working with Garnet Hill so much! We are always so pleased with the quality of everything we have ever received from them! I think it’s safe to say we officially have some Garnet Hill in every room in our house☺️

I decided to order 4 shams. Each sham would make two stockings and I decided it would be best to have an extra just in case I messed up… OR our family of 6 grows and we need more stockings😉☺️

I couldn’t find a tutorial for exactly what I was doing, so I kind of just winged it and tried to record what I did to help anyone who might want to make some themselves ☺️ I would consider myself a mediocre seamstress. I’m not great, but I can get stuff done👍 I like to wing things, I don’t plan much, and am not a perfectionist by any means. Mostly just real regular and a bit flighty ☺️

I printed off a couple templates but decided to make my own pattern, mixing a few together to get the exact shape and size I was imagining ☺️ Dudes! I was SO nervous to start cutting😂 I had the shams laid out on our table for days, pep talking myself like, “I can do this! I can do this!” Finally I decided I was ready!

I began with cutting the shape of the stocking pattern out of the fabric. Because these were shams that had a quilted front and cotton back, I simply cut out the whole thing.

Then I pinned the front and back together, facing in on themselves and was ready to start sewing. Always remind yourself you’re not sewing the top! I reminded myself this go around and didn’t have any issues, but I’ve forgotten this part on many sewing projects 😂

After I sewed her real good, it was time for the moment of truth! How was it going to look when I flipped it inside out?! Real fast, I should let you know I am very easily excited! It’s the little things in life that make me get crazy stoked, and this was one of those simple but magical moments for me! I flipped her inside out…. AND SHE WAS PERFECT! The shape was just what I had imagined, it was just the right size, and I was just smitten!

I made a little hem on the back and front to give the tops a clean finish and moved onto the next stocking until I made all 8.

The last step was to add on little loops to hang them. I used the sham trims that I had removed when I cut out my stockings for this little piece. I sewed those cuties on and our stocking were finished!

With each stocking, I learned something new and my sewing got cleaner. Each one is a little different with its own little quirks. By the last stocking, I had a little list of things I would have done slightly different if I were to ever make stockings again, BUT! I decided that these, the very first stockings that I got to make for my family and made with so much love, were absolutely perfectly imperfect!!

Our daughters and husband agreed and shared how much they like them and thanked me for making them! I am hopeful these will be treasured for many, many years to come! I know they’re just stockings, but a friend of mine gave me some beautiful perspective this year, and to anyone who has ever handmade something with love, we know there is no just about it.

Thank you so much for your inspiration and encouragement, Tami, and thank you so much to Garnet Hill for making these special treasures possible!

(Disclaimer: This post was made possible thanks to Garnet Hill who kindly gifted us the Agnes Shams, but all opinions expressed are entirely my own.)