Valentine's Day Gnome! - Our Wren's Nest

Make This Cute Gnome For Your Special Valentine!

Gnomes are everywhere lately! There are so many adorable different versions for every holiday. With the hustle and bustle of the holidays behind us, I like to find fun, simple projects to make for Valentine’s day. With a few items from around the house, you can make a special Gnome friend for your valentine.

There are so many ways to make your own gnome, this is our favorite, simple way. Feel free to use our instructions as a starting point for your project, and get as creative as you would like!

Gather Simple Supplies

To make these Valentine’s Day gnomes you are going to need a few items, you can probably find around the house. You will need a base for your gnome. I suggest a 4” Styrofoam cone for the “body” of your gnome. If you don’t have any Styrofoam cones around, you can even use some cardboard formed into a cone.

You will also need some yarn for your gnome’s beard. This is a great way to use up any scrap yarn you may have. For the Gnome’s nose, a ½ inch wooden ball works very nicely. To give your gnome some clothes and a hat, you will need a sock. For this pattern, we are using an adult size ankle sock. You will need just 1 to make a gnome. A Valentine’s day sock will give an extra special touch!

Lastly for your supplies, gather a good pair of scissors, and a glue gun. If you are doing this project with younger children, you can certainly use regular glue in place of the glue gun.

It’s Gnome Making Time!

To get started, start by preparing your sock. You want to cut the sock 2 to 2 ½ inches from the bottom of the sock. This will create the gnome’s body. If you want to be sure how much to cut off, carefully put your cone into the sock and measure from the bottom of the cone to the middle.

After you cut the bottom off, cut the uneven part off the sock at the top. The larger middle section of the sock will be the gnome’s long, tall hat.

Now make sure your glue gun is ready to go (or have your glue ready). You want to take the bottom piece of the sock and place it onto your cone.

Stretch and form the bottom until you like how everything is lined up. For ours, we wanted the hearts more towards the front, and in the back is the “toe” of the sock. Using your glue gun, tack the bottom of the sock into place.

Let’s Make a Beard

Grab your yarn to make the beard of your gnome. We are using worsted weight yarn for the project but feel free to use different types of yarn. You can even use some faux fur if you have any!

Wrap the yarn about 20 to 25 times around your 4 fingers. We are working to make a good amount of strands quickly.

Carefully take the looped yarn off your hand, and cut one end. Lay the yarn strands down on your work surface.

Now cut your yarn strands in half, so you have shorter “whiskers” for your gnome.

Using your glue gun, glue your gnome’s beard into place. You want to cover about ⅓ of your cone just above where the bottom sock ends. You can work a little at a time while gluing the strands into place.

After your beard is all glued on, you can give your gnome’s beard a trim. We cut ours very little, just at the ends to give the beard a more pointed look.

Top it Off!

To add a hat to your gnome, take the center cut portion of your sock, and tie it about an inch or so from the top with a piece of yarn. You can use another scrap piece of yarn for this.

Please the hat over the top of the cone, covering the “rough” edges of the yarn. You want it to look like your gnome is peeking out of his hat. We decided to keep the rough edge of the hat and allow it to roll naturally. You can also finish off the cuff of your gnome’s hat with some yarn, ribbon, felt, etc. Using your glue gun, glue the hat into place. You can pull the hat down a little more in the back to give the true look of a hat.

The last step is to glue on your gnome’s nose! Place the wooden ball where you would like your gnome’s nose to be. This is when your gnome truly comes alive! How cute is this Valentine’s Day gnome!

Hopefully, we have given you some inspiration to make your own special Valentine’s Day gnome! This is a simple and easy project, great for the whole family!

We would love to see your Valentine’s Day gnome creations, share a photo of your gnome on social media using the hashtag #owngnome22. Happy creating!