Each
year, Arizona Reservation Ministries is blessed to provide filled Christmas stockings for children, teens and even some adults of the San
Carlos Apache Nation, thanks to the generosity of our partners! For
many, this will be the most they will receive this Christmas season.
All facets of ministry within ARM are evaluated and changed as needed.
The revised (2009) “wish list” for these stockings can be printed
simply by clicking on the link above.
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Calling all
seamstresses!
Although we have the majority of
stockings needed for 2008, we will need well over 400 fleece blankets!
The dimensions need to measure 45" x 60", the fabric needs to be fleece.
From there, let your creativity by your guide! All we ask is that the
fabrics be teen- or child-friendly!
Arizona Reservation Ministries
Christmas Stockings Instructions
Would you like to help us by making Christmas
Stockings? Below are the instruction and patterns you'll need. Feel free to download the pattern for our Christmas
stockings! They are typically constructed of a cotton/poly blend of
Christmas fabric. Others have arrived made from corduroy, velveteen,
etc. We’ll need nearly 750 stockings in 2006…YOUR help would be
appreciated! If you'd like, you can download a set of the instructions and patterns for the stockings. (Adobe PDF
file).
All seams are ½ inch. Press fabrics as you go. There will be a cord
run through the casing at the top of the cuff to tie the stocking into a
bag.
Each stocking will consist of the following fabric pieces:
-
2 stocking pieces 
-
1 contrasting cuff piece
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1 cord, 1 yard long
Please refer to the pattern below for cutting the pieces.
-
Stitch the stocking
pieces right sides together, leaving the top open. Clip if necessary
and turn.
-
With right sides
together, stitch cuff into a tube, leaving opening as marked. Top
stitch seams flat.
-
Turn hem twice, ¼ inch
each time, and top stitch. If you have a serger, serge hem, then
turn once, ½ inch, and top stitch.
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Stitch cuff onto
stocking, right side of cuff to inside of stocking, seam of cuff to
the back seam of the stocking. Turn cuff out and over right side of
stocking (it should be right side out now, and the seam should be
hidden inside the casing). Top stitch the cuff down to the stocking,
just below the opening, so it makes a casing to run a cord through.
-
Tie the cord to a large
safety pin and feed it through the casing and back out the opening.
Tie knots in each end of the cord so it will not unravel, but DO NOT
tie the two ends of the cord together. They will be tied together
when the stocking is filled.
-
Pick up the next stocking
and repeat!
A couple of tricks I found in my 2 years directing
this project for my church:
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A work party to cut out
the stockings is a lot of fun, and it is easier to do the cutting
assembly-line style, and have a lot of people helping. Even some of
the men might get involved—ours did!
-
Cutting the cuff fabric
in long strips, sewing it together, then cutting the right length
for cuffs works well and saves fabric. Just lay out the fabrics and
use a rotary cutter, cutting across the width of the fabrics. You
can do several layers at a time, and have someone on a sewing
machine or serger putting them together right there.
-
Bundle the stockings by
10’s or 20’s to be sewn by people at home, and hand them out in
bags. Keep a record of who you gave them to, and when. And note when
they return them, and how many they returned, if not all at once.
This method worked best for us, but some groups have had success
with big work parties, so do what works for you.
Thank you for helping with this project. Have fun, and may you be
richly blessed by our Lord. |