November 16, 2013

Handmade Sock Snowmen Tutorial

Last year I had pinned a tutorial to my Pinterest board for making these really cute sock snowmen.  They were simply adorable, easy, and looked like they would make wonderful gifts for the kid's teachers.  Like usual, life got busy and I found myself running to the Hallmark store for gifts.  This year, I'm on top of it!

Suzanne triggered my memory of last years good intentions by posting a brief tutorial on her blog.  Since I'm still laid up at home, having something fun to do is a MUST!  I called my sister, we went for coffee and stopped at the Dollar General and Rite Aid for supplies.  I wasn't using old socks for these since they are gifts.

A few friends on facebook had asked me how I made their cute little hats and scarves.  I had offered to do a tutorial on them and then figured, I may as well share the entire process from start to finish.  So, here goes... another Sock Snowman Tutorial.  This could be the longest post I have ever written to date.

Supplies you will need:

Crew socks (new or old) 
  Fabric, old clothes, ribbon, sweaters or other socks for hats and scarves  
Rice (only $3.00 for a 5lb bag)
Scissors
Rubber bands
Buttons, and embellishments from your crafty stash

Making the Sock Snowman Body.

Cut your sock about 1/2" from below the ribbed part of the neck.  This will be the body of your snowman.

Tie your rubber band tightly around the top of your sock.  I recommend this side because you will need to trim the other side and all that fabric is a bugger to cut.  TIP:  I turn my sock inside out first, then tied the rubber band on.  I found it easier to get that band right up to the edge of the stitching.

Now turn your sock right-side in so the rubber band is on the inside of the sock.

Suzanne suggested a glass to fill your sock, and believe me, I understand why.  LOL!  Place your sock over a glass filled with rice.  Hold on to that sock tightly and flip the glass over to fill the sock.  Just jam the rice in there.  It will fit.

After squishing it down, it all fit.

Tightly tie another rubber band to the top.

Shape your rice filled sock.  Yes, it will hold it's shape.

Then wrap the another rubber band around the shape you made.  You will also want to trim the excess material from the top of your snowman so the hat sits on well.

You can use the other half of the sock as a hat and waste nothing.  Use it this way, or turn it inside out for a different texture.

Place the hat on top of your snowman's head.  Viola!

Now lets move onto the fun part...

Dressing your Sock Snowman


These were $1.00 at Rite Aid.  You can dress 2 snowmen with one pair.

Cut your sock as shown.  The heal will be extra material.  I'm sure I can still find another use for it.

Start with the first 2 pieces.

The top of the sock is perfect for the neck.  It has elastic in it that fits snug around your snowman.

Next, cut the next piece.  Pull it through the as shown.

Tie a knot.  You can trim this piece if you want.

Take the foot part of the sock.

Fold over the open side for the brim of the hat.

Place it on top of  your snowman's head.

Use a hot glue gun or fabric glue to attach a pom pom to the toe of the sock.

I used self adhesive pearls for eyes.  I ran out of black.  It's an easy fix.  Grab a sharpie marker to change any color pearl to black.

See, it worked on the pink ones too.  Be sure to let them dry so they don't smudge.

Attached the eyes and start adding embellishments.  These leaves were from a very old collection of Prima Flower sets.

Add a few buttons.
How easy was that!  There is absolutely no sewing, they are totally adorable, and you get to use up lots of embellishments that you probably would have thrown away.  I went back later on and hot glued a few spots on the hat to make sure they stay in place.  You will also want to have a lint brush handy to remove the extra fuzzies from your snowman.

Here are some more examples of ones we have made so far.







 I hope you have fun making your own snowman family.  :)

Until next time.


39 comments:

  1. Thanks, Kimm!!! i know what I am making for gifts this year!!!!! Yours are amazing!!!! :)

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  2. What a great idea!!! Thank you Kimm!

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  3. What a great gift ideal and look like a lot of fun to make. I am going to book mark this one for sure and as soon as it stops snowing and the sanders get out I am off to the Dollar store. Thanks for the great instructions, I can not wait to make some myself.

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  4. Adorable snowmen! I'm tempted to go get stuff to make these little cuties for a craft show I have this weekend! Thanks for the great Tutorial!

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  5. Soooo adorable! I am such a sucker for snowmen anyway. Great tutorial, very clear instructions, I'll definitely be making my own. I bet you could use tube socks and children's sock to make different sizes. Oh, my wheels are turning! Thank you!!!

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  6. Adorable!! I Love them all! Great tutorial and wonderful inspiration. I'm going to make some up for the care home. Thank you so much for sharing! I've made rice bags that can be heated in the microwave for cold days to warm your bed or neck. I wonder if I could make these the same way. Hmmmmmm my head is spinning. Thank you again!

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  7. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these little guys!! They're so flippin adorable!! I can't wait for the boys and I to make ours tonight!! You did a fab step by step too!!! Hugs!! ~ Kristy

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  8. Thanks for doing such a detailed tutorial. Suzanne's was good but I love your tutorial since you show exactly how to make the scarf and hat, etc. I'm very visual and this helps so much! I can't wait to make some myself!

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  9. I made these! Thank you so much for your great instructions! They came out do cute!

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  10. Super cute and super easy, just my type of craft. I don't have to think real hard to do it. :)

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  11. These are so perfect! Just adorable! Super easy to follow tutorial! :-) Thanks!

    ~ Vanessa W

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  12. I was looking for snow men patterns because I'd knitted a pair of yoga socks that ended up too big. All that work made me sad so I've saved and thought about what to do. I finally realized that I could make little hats by cutting up the socks so just needed a snowman pattern for my colorful jolly hats! Thanks SO much!

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  13. I love this idea. I make something every year for my family and friends. This is this year's gift for sure. Thanks so much for the wonderful directions.

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  14. I am so grateful to you. Thank you so much for sharing such a easy but beautiful gift.I will be making these for a nursing home, hospitals, doctor's office and as gift's.

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  15. Thank you these are the cutest.

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  16. Adorable and so easy to make, i added some essential oil to the rice smells lovely. Thanks kimm

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  17. I want to make these with my grandson and I've been looking at tons of sites for snowman socks and I have to say your's is the cutest with the best ideas I have seen. I do have a few questions. Can you please tell me the sizes you used for the white and fuzzy socks, are they adult size, and what size are the pearls you used for the eyes? Thank you :)

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    1. We used adult socks for the snowmen. The kids socks are way too small. We used 1/2 pearls that you would typically find in the scrapbook section of the craft store. They are sticky on the flat size. If you can't find them in black, you can color them with sharpie marker. The sizes vary. I'm guessing 2mm to 8mm, but the package doesn't say. Good luck and have fun creating!!

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    2. Thank you so much for getting back to me. I can't wait to start making them :)

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    3. Adorable! Thanks for the clear directions, too!

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    4. You are welcome! I'm sure they turned out amazing!

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  18. there so cute made few myself I must add I use string to close up the socking elastic in time will deter ate

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  19. I am making these with my 2 kids and 4 nieces for Christmas but I was wondering do you think I can use kernel popping corn instead of rice? I have 4 bags that have expired and would like to use them instead of throwing them away? Thanks for you time!

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  20. AnonymousJuly 14, 2016

    I just ran across these cuties and have to tell you they are the cutest little snowmen I have ever seen. I hope to try them soon. Thank you for your inspiration and talent. Anonymous...July 14, 1016

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  21. I made a man and woman snow person a few years ago and I just love them. We used pipe cleaners to make arms and curled the ends by wrapping them around a pencil. We made a banner to attach to the woman and man's pipe cleaner arms and wrote Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays. added the embelishments making a stove top hat for the man and a little hat for the woman. I really like the use of the striped socks for the hats. Easier than making the stove top hat.
    Thanks for the ideas. I'm making a couple for each my grown kids for Christmas!!!










    t

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  22. I just love these snowmen! I know this is an old post but hoping you see this... We host a huge Christmas party each year that includes about 20 kids. Every year we have a craft project for the kiddos (we hire 3 high school girls to help with the kids so the parents get break.) Your directions are super clear and easy. I just have one question... can you tell me approximately how much rice is needed per snowman? Thank you so much!

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    1. Hi Karin! Thanks for your comments. They are super easy to make. When the kids did these, we made about 20. If my memory serves me correct, I bought 3 5lb bags of rice at Dollar General. We made over 20 since we gave them out the all the kids teachers and office staff in each school. Since then, we've made a few more and still have a bag and a half left for this year. We probably used 1.5 to 2 cups per snowman. The amount of rice you need will depend on the sock and how stretchy it is. Good luck! I hope you all have a great time making them! - Kimm

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  23. These are so adorable! I am so making these as christmas gifts this year!

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  24. I just made my first sock smowman. How fun! Thank you!!!

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  25. Thank you for the instructions!

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  26. I just made two little snowmen. I used little kid socks from Dollar Tree and stuffed them with fiber fill instead of rice. They are going to be ornaments for the bottom of my tree that my great niece can move around and play with while she and her parents stay with us for 10 days. I didn't use the colored socks. I left them white and dyed the white toe piece of the sock by dipping Sharpies in water to make pink dye and blue dye. I used pink and blue felt for scarves and gave each a tiny heart. The eyes and carrot noses are also felt and stitched on. These are so adorable. In the future, I plan to make the larger ones. Thanks for the pattern and the step-by-step tutorial.

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  27. Really cute and the kids loved it! Perhaps not for 55 4th graders! :)

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    1. That's a lot of sock snowmen! I bet the kids loved them. My youngest is in 4th grade too and loves when we have our "assembly line" of sock snowmen in action. The downside is when the rice spills all over the floor. Happy Holidays to you!

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  28. Best set of directions I've come across.Thank you.

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  29. Love your version of these snowman - best I have seen yet ☺ Thank you for sharing ☺

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  30. This is absolutely the best tutorial I've ever seen. You made it so easy to follow that even I can do it. I'm craft challenged! So cute!!!!! And Thanks for sharing.

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  31. Theses are great. I am making these for gifts this year. Thanks for sharing this winderful idea.

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Thanks for the love. :)