Simple Steps

Smocked Stocking Stitch-A-Long

to Heirloom Results

Woah... I could never make that!

If you can sew on a button by hand and sew a straight stitch on a sewing machine, you too can make a smocked Christmas stocking!

I'm serious - when I first started using sewing machines when I was little, I was convinced that they hated me and wanted nothing to do with them.

This was mostly due to a sewing machine needle snapping while I was sewing some of Dad's old socks together for drip lines to our squashes that were too far from the house to run a hose to.

Fast forward 10 years to when I started smocking and got a sewing machine of my own:

Now I realize that I don't need to mess with the fancy settings and it doesn't matter how thick of a stack I'm sewing - if I can get it under the foot it's going to feed through.

Pinning is essential and it's okay to go slow - this is not a race.

Sure, smocked fabric has a few more layers - but it acts just like any other piece of fabric once it's pinned in place.

To prove the point, that stocking in the photo isn't the result after I spent a few iterations refining the design - it's the very first one I ever made.

Canadian Smocking is a Fabric Manipulation Technique

Instead of piecing or folding or ironing, all the texture is made by stitching certain points together on the back of the fabric.

A template is used to mark all the points and how they're grouped together before you start stitching.

The stitching process itself is similar to filling in the background of a cross-stitch pattern, and is the most time-consuming part of the project.

Woah... I could never make that!

If you can sew on a button by hand and sew a straight stitch on a sewing machine, you too can make a smocked Christmas stocking!

I'm serious - when I first started using sewing machines when I was little, I was convinced that they hated me and wanted nothing to do with them.

This was mostly due to a sewing machine needle snapping while I was sewing some of Dad's old socks together for drip lines to our squashes that were too far from the house to run a hose to.

Fast forward 10 years to when I started smocking and got a sewing machine of my own:

Now I realize that I don't need to mess with the fancy settings and it doesn't matter how thick of a stack I'm sewing - if I can get it under the foot it's going to feed through.

Pinning is essential and it's okay to go slow - this is not a race.

Sure, smocked fabric has a few more layers - but it acts just like any other piece of fabric once it's pinned in place.

To prove the point, that stocking in the photo isn't the result after I spent a few iterations refining the design - it's the very first one I ever made.

Canadian Smocking is a Fabric Manipulation Technique

Instead of piecing or folding or ironing, all the texture is made by stitching certain points together on the back of the fabric.

A template is used to mark all the points and how they're grouped together before you start stitching.

The stitching process itself is similar to filling in the background of a cross-stitch pattern, and is the most time-consuming part of the project.

There are three pattern stages, with full explanations for each one

1. Mark the fabric

2. Smock the fabric

3. Assemble the stocking

Registration includes indefinite access to these videos - there is no deadline for completion.

All registrants will also have access to private channels on my Discord server to share your progress, get help when you need it, and celebrate your successes!

Registration for the Smocked Stocking Stitch-A-Long costs $15 and physical pattern templates are an additional $40-60 per template, with four textures currently available.

These templates can be reused as many times as you like and are optimized for ease of use and storage.

Alternative ways to get the templates are detailed inside the SAL portal and include using a Cricut to cut the template or printing the template.

All fabrics used can be found at Joann Fabrics and the quantities needed cost around $20 when buying in person for a single stocking.

The full shopping list for all fabrics, tools, and notions needed is in the SAL portal, so you can start getting ready right away!

Hi! I'm Madonna, your instructor

I learned smocking in 2018 from the perspective of an origami tessellation folder and was immediately hooked.

Many origami tessellations are translatable to smocking, so I use these patterns in addition to traditional motifs in my smocking.

I've designed over 400 origami tessellations and dozens of smocking patterns over the last five years.

I've also produced hundreds of hours of instructional videos for my YouTube channel and online courses and I was honored to receive the OrigamiUSA Teaching Award this June.

I'm excited to teach you these stockings that have fascinated my friends and family - and to show you that they really are easier than they look!

Got questions? Send me an email here!