Project introduction
This overview covers the Santa Gnome Crochet Lip Balm Holder, a small crochet gift project shared by Nicki’s Homemade Crafts. It summarizes the supplies, gauge, finished size and general construction described in the source; it is not a full step-by-step tutorial. For the complete written instructions, follow the link to the designer’s own page.
Project details
These Santa gnome lip balm holders are described as stocking stuffers or gift toppers. A lip gloss or ChapStick tube fits inside, and the design includes a necklace so the holder stays close at hand. Because the piece works up quickly, the source presents it as a last-minute gift option. It can hang on a necklace as written, or an ornament hook can be added to hang it on a tree; it can also be attached to a keyring as a handbag accessory.
The source notes that the size suits a standard tube of lip balm. Depending on the size of your lip balm, or if you want to fit a different item such as a lipstick tube, the designer suggests going up or down one hook size and/or adding or subtracting rows in the lip balm holder.
For the sample, the designer used Premier Cotton Sprout, a soft worsted-weight cotton yarn. A coupon code, DecMCAL20, gives 20 percent off Cotton Sprout through December 24, 2023. Leftover scraps of another worsted-weight yarn can also be used.
The designer encourages beginner crocheters to try the pattern, noting that it is made almost entirely in the single crochet stitch with simple increases and decreases. A video tutorial is available for further details.
All Advent Calendar Mystery CAL Patterns
This design was released on day 24, the final day of the 2023 Advent Calendar Mystery Crochet Along. The event ran from December 1st through December 24th and shared one free crochet Christmas gift pattern each day. The collection includes 24 free patterns, but there are actually 30 patterns in total, and each one comes with a video tutorial. Which of the 24 would be published for free was not revealed in advance.
All of the patterns are available right away, ad-free and printer-friendly, as an ebook. The source notes that code 5ADVENT saves $5 until December 24th.
- Premier Cotton Sprout worsted-weight cotton yarn (3.5 oz / 100 g, 165 m / 180 yds) in Red, White and Blush
- 4.0 mm crochet hook, the designer used a WeCrochet Dots Crochet Hook
- Scissors
- Tapestry needle (yarn needle)
- Lip balm
How to Crochet the Santa Gnome Lip Balm Holder
For complete written instructions, please refer to the original designer’s page linked below. This overview summarizes the key details such as materials, gauge, and finished size to help you prepare for the project.
Written project details
The designer offers a video walkthrough of this project on YouTube, so you can follow the stitches on screen if you prefer that to reading. The ad-free version of this pattern sits inside the designer’s Crochet Club membership, which also opens up more than 400 patterns and adds interactive checkboxes for tracking progress row by row. Members can log in to view that ad-free copy.
The source also mentions the paid ebook Last Minute Crochet GIFTS Made Easy, which collects this pattern with 29 more gift patterns and their video tutorials in one ad-free, printer-friendly file.
Materials you will need
Premier Cotton Sprout, a worsted-weight cotton yarn, is the sample yarn. It comes in a 3.5 oz / 100 g skein with 165 m / 180 yds. The colors used here are Red, White and Blush. With coupon code DecMCAL20 you get 20 percent off Cotton Sprout through December 24, 2023. If you would rather not buy new yarn, worsted-weight scraps from your stash also work.
Small and quick to finish, this holder works well as a last-minute gift or a stash-busting project. If your lip balm is a different size, or you want to hold something like a lipstick tube, the designer recommends going up or down one hook size and/or adding or subtracting rows in the lip balm holder.
Gauge
The source lists a gauge of 4 sts x 5 rounds = 1 square inch. Working at that gauge helps the tube fit a standard lip balm snugly, so it is worth checking your tension before you start.
Finished Size
| Abbreviation | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| st/sts | stitch/stitches | |
| ch | chain | |
| sl st | slip stitch | |
| sc | single crochet | |
| Inv sc dec | Work this decrease by putting the hook through the front loops of two stitches, yarning over and pulling through, then yarning over and pulling through once more. | |
| invisible join | finishing technique |
The abbreviation list also includes the invisible join as a finishing technique. For refreshers on the basic stitches and the invisible join, the source links to its own stitch library and invisible join tutorial.
The lip balm holder is started in red with a magic ring. Round 1 puts 6 sc into the ring, closes it and marks the start with a stitch marker. Round 2 works 2 sc per st, and rounds 3 through 12 work 1 sc per st to build the tube that holds the balm.
Once the holder is complete, a chainless single crochet foundation chain is added as the necklace. The designer made this chain 28 inches long, so the holder can hang around the neck or from a hook.
Gnome Hat
The hat is worked separately in red, beginning with a magic ring that holds 5 sc in round 1. Increases appear in rounds 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10, alternating with plain rounds of 1 sc per st in rounds 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 to widen the cone. Round 12 works ch 2, sk 1, 1 sc in the next 7 sts, ch 2, sk 1, 1 sc in the next 8 sts, then fastens off.
The white beard is attached to the next st of the second ch2 space from the previous round (the hat’s round 12). It is worked flat in back loops only, with decreases and turns shaping the lower edge, then fastened off after the final decrease round.
The white beard is attached to the next st of the second ch2 space from the previous round (the hat’s round 12). It is worked flat in back loops only, with decreases and turns shaping the lower edge, then fastened off after the final decrease round.
Nose (using blush)
The nose is a small rounded piece. The section heading notes blush, while the written Round 1 line says red, so the source does not state one color consistently. Round 1 begins with a magic ring containing 5 sc, and Round 2 works 1 sc per st before fastening off. Sew the nose to the top of the beard below the hat to complete the gnome’s face.
To assemble, the long chainless foundation chain is woven through one hole in the hat (from round 12) from the inside to the outside, then through the other hole from the outside to the inside, and finally sewn to the lip balm holder.
Original designer’s pattern and instructions
The written pattern is free on the designer’s website. An ad-free, print-ready PDF of the same pattern can also be purchased for a small fee.
