I made this one after seeing a spiral hanging decoration in a shop window and thinking I could do it cheaper with the yarn scraps already sitting in my basket. Turns out I could. The whole thing is a long red and white coil with little Christmas characters dangling off it, and it spins slowly whenever anyone walks past.
It looks complicated hanging there. It isn’t. The spiral is one long row of double crochet worked into a chain, and every charm on it is a small ball or a flat shape. If you can make a magic ring and count to twenty four, you can make this.
Below is everything you need. The spiral, the eight charms, and how to hang it all together so it stays balanced instead of tipping to one side.
What you’ll need
DK or light worsted cotton is what I used. Cotton holds the spiral shape better than acrylic and the stitches stay crisp. You only need small amounts of each colour.
Red for the spiral, Santa’s hat, a bauble and the scarf. White for the spiral, Santa’s beard, the snowman, the snowflakes and the pom poms. Green for the mini trees. Brown for the tree trunks and antlers. Caramel or tan for the reindeer and the gingerbread man. Mustard or gold for the star. Black for the top hat and the embroidery. Orange for the carrot nose. Cream for Santa’s face, or any skin tone you prefer.
Use a 2.5 mm hook for everything. Go a little tighter than the yarn label suggests so the stuffing doesn’t show through the stitches.
You’ll also want polyester fibrefill, 4 mm safety eyes or black embroidery thread if this is going anywhere near a small child, pink embroidery thread or a blush pencil for the cheeks, a tapestry needle, a stitch marker, about a metre of 0.8 mm florist wire, and fabric stiffener or sugar water for the snowflakes.
Finished size is roughly 45 cm from the top hanging loop down to the lowest charm, and about 12 cm across at the widest part of the coil.
Abbreviations are US terms. ch is chain, sl st is slip stitch, sc is single crochet, hdc is half double crochet, dc is double crochet, inc is two sc in the same stitch, dec is an invisible decrease, MR is magic ring, BLO is back loops only, st is stitch. Work all rounds continuously in a spiral unless told otherwise, and move your marker up every round.
Part 1. The candy cane spiral
This is the piece that does all the visual work, and it’s the easiest part of the project. A spiral happens on its own when you crochet more stitches into a chain than the chain has room for. The fabric has nowhere to go, so it twists.
The foundation chain is made in blocks of colour. Change yarn on the last pull through of the previous chain so the colours stay clean.
Starting with red, ch 12. Change to white and ch 12. Keep alternating until you have twelve colour blocks, which is 144 chains in total. Don’t pull the chain tight. It should be relaxed and even.
Row 1. Ch 2, which does not count as a stitch. Work 2 dc into the third chain from the hook, then 2 dc into every chain across, matching your yarn colour to the chain colour underneath as you go. Fasten off and weave in the ends.
That’s the whole spiral. It will curl up in your hands as you work, which is exactly what’s meant to happen.
Two dc per chain gives you the open relaxed helix in the photo, with wide loops and plenty of space between them. If you want a tighter springier coil, work 3 dc into each chain instead. If you want it barely curled at all, work hdc. Try a twenty chain sample first and see which one you like before you commit to the full length.
Now the part nobody mentions in the video tutorials. A cotton spiral will slowly relax and sag once you hang charms on it, because the weight pulls the coil open. Fix it by threading florist wire through the back of the row before you attach anything. Run it through the base of the dc stitches along the inner edge of the coil, bending gently as you go. Fold both ends over by about a centimetre and tuck them back into the stitches so nothing sharp pokes out. The spiral will then hold whatever shape you set it to, and you can adjust the spacing of the loops with your fingers.
Part 2. The star topper
Make two identical pieces in mustard.
Round 1. 10 sc in MR (10) Round 2. Inc in each st around (20) Round 3. Inc, sc, repeated around (30)
Now the points. Working around the round, sl st in the next st, then into the next st work sc, hdc, dc, ch 2, sl st in the second ch from the hook, dc, hdc, sc. Then sl st in the next st. Repeat that sequence five more times. You’re making the whole point inside a single stitch, which is what gives it the sharp spike. Fasten off, leaving a long tail on the second piece.
On one piece only, embroider two closed happy eyes as small curved lines about five stitches apart, a tiny smile between and below them, and pink cheeks on either side.
Hold the pieces wrong sides together with the points matching. Sc through both layers all the way round, stuffing lightly with a few wisps of fibrefill as you close the last point. Fasten off.
Part 3. Santa
Head, in cream.
Round 1. 6 sc in MR (6) Round 2. Inc six times (12) Round 3. Sc, inc, repeated six times (18) Round 4. Sc twice, inc, repeated six times (24) Rounds 5 to 9. Sc around (24)
Insert the safety eyes between rounds 6 and 7, five stitches apart.
Round 10. Sc twice, dec, repeated six times (18) Round 11. Sc, dec, repeated six times (12). Start stuffing here. Round 12. Dec six times (6). Finish stuffing, close the hole and fasten off.
Beard, in white, worked flat. Ch 11. Row 1, sc in the second ch from the hook and in each ch across (10). Row 2, turn, ch 1, then sc twice, hdc twice, dc twice, hdc twice, sc twice. Row 3, turn and edge the curved side with sl st, ch 2, sl st in the same stitch, repeated across, which gives you a row of little bobbles. Fasten off with a long tail.
Sit the beard under the eyes and sew it around the outside edge only, leaving the bobbles loose so they stand proud of the face. Add a small pink nose above it with a few satin stitches.
Hat, in red.
Round 1. 4 sc in MR (4) Rounds 2 and 3. Sc around (4) Round 4. Inc, sc, twice (6) Round 5. Sc around (6) Round 6. Inc, sc twice, repeated twice (8) Round 7. Inc, sc three times, repeated twice (10) Round 8. Inc, sc four times, repeated twice (12) Round 9. Inc, sc five times, repeated twice (14) Round 10. Inc, sc six times, repeated twice (16) Round 11. Inc, sc seven times, repeated twice (18) Round 12. Inc, sc eight times, repeated twice (20) Round 13. Inc, sc nine times, repeated twice (22) Round 14. Inc, sc ten times, repeated twice (24)
Change to white. Rounds 15 and 16, sc around (24). Fasten off with a long tail.
Pom pom, in white. 6 sc in MR, inc six times (12), sc around, dec six times (6), stuff and close.
Sew the pom pom to the tip of the hat, then pin the hat onto the head with the tip flopping to one side and sew it down all the way around the white band.
Part 4. Reindeer
Work the head exactly as Santa’s head but in caramel, ending at 24 stitches at the widest point.
Muzzle, in cream. 6 sc in MR, inc six times (12), then sc around once (12). Fasten off with a long tail, stuff very lightly and sew flat to the lower front of the face.
Nose, in red. 5 sc in MR, sc around twice, close. Sew to the centre of the muzzle and add a small vertical stitch underneath for the mouth.
Ears, make two, in caramel. Ch 5, sc in the second ch from the hook, hdc in the next two, sc in the last. Fasten off, fold the base in half and sew to the sides of the head at round 5.
Antlers, make two, in brown. Ch 8. Sl st in the second ch from the hook and in the next two. Ch 4, sl st in the second ch from the hook and in the next two, which makes the branch. Then sl st down the remaining chains of the main stem. Fasten off and sew to the top of the head, just inside the ears.
Add pink cheeks.
Part 5. Snowman
Head, in white.
Round 1. 6 sc in MR (6) Round 2. Inc six times (12) Round 3. Sc, inc, repeated six times (18) Rounds 4 to 8. Sc around (18)
Eyes go between rounds 5 and 6, four stitches apart.
Round 9. Sc, dec, repeated six times (12) Round 10. Dec six times (6). Stuff and close.
Body, in white.
Round 1. 6 sc in MR (6) Round 2. Inc six times (12) Round 3. Sc, inc, repeated six times (18) Round 4. Sc twice, inc, repeated six times (24) Rounds 5 to 9. Sc around (24) Round 10. Sc twice, dec, repeated six times (18) Round 11. Sc, dec, repeated six times (12). Stuff firmly. Round 12. Dec six times (6). Close.
Carrot nose, in orange. 4 sc in MR, sc around twice, close. Sew to the centre of the face.
Arms, make two, in brown. Ch 6, sl st in the second ch from the hook and in each ch across. Fasten off and sew to the sides of the body.
Top hat, in black. 8 sc in MR, inc eight times (16), sc in back loops only around (16), sc for two more rounds (16), then dec eight times (8) and fasten off without stuffing. Turn it right side up so the flared edge becomes the brim, and sew it flat to the top of the head.
Scarf, in red. Ch 24, sc in the second ch from the hook and in each ch across. Fasten off, tie it loosely around the neck join and use the ends to sew the head to the body.
Finish with three black French knots down the body for buttons and pink cheeks.
Part 6. Mini Christmas trees, make three
In green, worked from the top point downwards.
Round 1. 4 sc in MR (4) Round 2. Inc, sc, twice (6) Round 3. Sc around (6) Round 4. Inc, sc twice, repeated twice (8) Round 5. Sc around (8) Round 6. Inc, sc three times, repeated twice (10) Round 7. Sc around (10) Round 8. Inc, sc four times, repeated twice (12) Round 9. Sc around (12). Stuff firmly.
Change to brown.
Round 10. Sc in back loops only around (12) Round 11. Sc, dec, repeated four times (8) Round 12. Sc around (8) Round 13. Dec four times (4). Close.
Add three or four tiny red French knots scattered over the green for baubles, and one gold knot at the very tip.
Part 7. Snowflakes, make three
Use white cotton thread and a 1.5 mm hook if you want them delicate, or the same DK cotton and a 2.5 mm hook if you want them chunky and easier to handle.
Round 1. MR, ch 1, 12 sc into the ring, sl st to the first sc.
Round 2. Ch 3, skip one sc, sl st in the next sc. Repeat around for six loops in total, then sl st into the first loop.
Round 3. In each ch 3 loop work the following arm. Ch 8, sl st in the second ch from the hook, sc in the next two ch, ch 4, sl st in the second ch from the hook, sc in the next two ch, sl st back into the stem, sc in the next two ch of the stem, ch 4, sl st in the second ch from the hook, sc in the next two ch, sl st back into the stem, sc in the remaining ch, then sl st into the next loop. Repeat for all six arms and fasten off.
To stiffen them, dissolve two tablespoons of sugar in two tablespoons of boiling water, soak the snowflakes and pin them flat on a towel to dry overnight. Commercial fabric stiffener works too and won’t attract insects, which matters if these live in a loft between Decembers.
Part 8. Gingerbread man
Head, in caramel. 6 sc in MR, inc six times (12), sc and inc repeated six times (18), sc for three rounds, sc and dec repeated six times (12), stuff, then dec six times (6) and close.
Body, in caramel. 6 sc in MR, inc six times (12), sc three times and inc repeated three times (15), sc for four rounds, sc three times and dec repeated three times (12), stuff, then dec six times (6) and close.
Arms and legs, make four, in caramel. 5 sc in MR, sc for four rounds (5), flatten and fasten off.
Sew the head to the body, then attach the four limbs. Embroider white zigzag icing across the wrists and ankles with a running stitch, add two black dot eyes and a white smile, and finish with a small red bow at the neck made from a 15 chain length tied and trimmed.
Part 9. Baubles and pom poms, make five or six
Two in red and the rest in white.
Round 1. 6 sc in MR (6) Round 2. Inc six times (12) Rounds 3 to 5. Sc around (12) Round 6. Dec six times (6). Stuff and close, leaving a long tail.
Putting it all together
This is where people rush and end up with a lopsided garland, so take ten minutes over it.
Shape the spiral first. Set the coil so the loops are evenly spaced from top to bottom, and if you used wire, lock the shape in now.
Make your hanging cords next. For each charm, chain a length in white or cream, then sl st back along the chain to make a firm cord. Vary the lengths on purpose. Eight chains for the highest charms, up to twenty for the lowest. Charms hanging at identical lengths look flat and dull.
Lay the spiral flat on a table and arrange all the charms around it before you sew a single one. Alternate the heavy charms, which are Santa, the reindeer, the snowman and the gingerbread man, with the light ones like the trees, snowflakes and baubles. Alternate sides too, one charm on the left of the coil and the next on the right. That’s what stops the whole thing twisting sideways once it’s hanging.
Attach each cord to the underside of the coil so the stitching is hidden, then sew the other end firmly into the top of its charm. Small charms are fine hanging from a single point. Heavier ones like Santa sit better if you sew them at two points a couple of stitches apart.
Sew the star to the top of the spiral, then make a 30 chain cord, fold it into a loop and attach it behind the star.
Hang it up and live with it for a day before you finish. You’ll almost certainly want to move one or two charms, and that’s far easier to do before you weave in the last of the ends.
Ideas and variations
For a nursery mobile, skip the safety eyes entirely and embroider every face. Swap the red and white for pastels and use stars, clouds and moons instead of the Christmas characters.
For a car mirror version, make the spiral from a 60 chain foundation and hang only three charms.
For an advent version, make 24 tiny baubles and add one every day.
For scent, tuck a pinch of dried orange peel and a clove into the stuffing of the baubles.
Questions I get asked
How long does this take to make? About eight to ten hours in total if you’re comfortable with amigurumi, spread over a few evenings. The spiral itself takes under an hour. The charms are what eat the time.
Why won’t my spiral curl? You almost certainly worked too few stitches into the chain, or your foundation chain is too loose. The curl comes from forcing extra stitches into a space too small for them. Try 3 dc per chain and keep your chain tension snug.
Can I use acrylic yarn? Yes, but it’s floppier and the spiral will sag more, so the wire stops being optional