Knitted Candy Cane Ornament (Spool Knitting)

There is nothing like homemade Christmas ornaments at the holidays.  This yarn candy cane ornament is sure to please.  It's both fun to make and looks adorable hanging on the Christmas tree.

This knitted candy cane ornament is the first I've seen made from a spool knitting pattern, and it's free!  

If you want to learn more about spool knitting, be sure to visit our spool knitting tutorial page.

The spool knitting portion of the knitted candy cane ornament is easy enough for a child to make. However, maneuvering the wire into the knitting takes a lot of patience and time, but it is worth the work.

Keep in mind that a child most likely will need help with this portion of the candy cane ornament.

To make this cute yarn candy cane ornament, watch the video below or follow the written directions complete with pictures.

WHAT YOU NEED to create a knitted candy cane ornament:

• Spool knitter
• Red and white yarn
• Wire (floral arrangement wire was used in this tutorial)
• Wire cutter
• Ribbons
• Scissors
• Yarn needle

INSTRUCTIONS On How to make a candy cane ornament

STEP 1: load red and white yarn into the spool knitter

Take one end of the red yarn and white yarn, matching them up together.  Carefully load them into the spool knitter from the top.  Pull them through and out of the bottom of the spool knitter.

STEP 2: begin spool knitting the candy cane ornament

For this knitted candy cane ornament, begin with the red yarn.  The white yarn will remain in the center as the red yarn is worked around the spool pegs. 

The video above shows how to keep the white yarn in the middle as the spool knitting pattern is followed.

Knit 24 times around the pegs with the red yarn, always moving the white thread so it remains in the middle of the knitting.

step 3: switch colors on the spool knitter

After going around the pegs 24 times with the red yarn, it will be time to switch the yarn to the white.  Carefully hold the white yarn toward the back of the working area.

Take the red yarn and place it diagonally over the top of the spool.  To do this, make sure the white yarn is towards the back of the work area.

Take the red yarn from the last peg, skip a peg, and place the yarn above the  next peg.  Do not wrap it around the peg.  The red yarn should be laying diagonally across the knitter.

This step is important in order to prevent having a hole where the colors change. 

step 4: switch to spool knitting with the white yarn

Bring the white yarn over the top of the red yarn and continue making the yarn Christmas ornament by wrapping the white yarn over the peg that was skipped in step 3.

The video shows this step very clearly.

Continue spool knitting with the white yarn 24 times being careful to keep the red yarn in the center as in step two.

step 5: continue alternating the red and white yarns

Alternate the red and white yarns, spool knitting 24 times for each color.  There should be nine sections all together when the knitting is complete.  The final color block will be red.

step 6: remove the knitted cord from the spool knitter and close off the ends

Once the nine sections are complete, use the basic cast off method to remove the cord from the spool knitter.  Directions for casting off are on the learn to spool knit page.

The cord will be left with a red and a white yarn tail.  Thread each yarn tail through the eye of a yarn needle and weave the tail into the center of the knitted cord. 

Directions for weaving the tails are on the learn to spool knit page.

step 7: Insert wire into the finished cord

Cut the wire a bit shorter than the spool knitted cord.  Begin by inserting the wire into the center of one end of the cord.

Slowly and patiently move the wire up through the center of the cord until the wire is near the other end of the cord. Keeping the wire straight makes this step easier.

Do not push the wire out through the top.  The wire should be completely enclosed by the yarn cord.

Step 8: Bend into a candy cane shape and decorate

Take one end of the wired cord and bend it into a curved shape making it look like a candy cane.

Use ribbons or other small decorations to embellish the spool knitted candy cane ornament.

In this tutorial, narrow red, white and green ribbons are tied around the upper portion of the candy cane.  If you want to get creative, tie on charms or beads to further decorate the knitted candy cane ornament.

We hope you enjoyed this spool knitting pattern to create a festive yarn candy cane ornament.  Make some for your own tree or to give as gifts.  They also look adorable fastened on packages with the gift tags!

other holiday ornaments you might like to make:

• Christmas Basket Ornament with Plastic Canvas
• Glitter Ornaments
• Fabric Tree Ornaments
• Bead Garland Christmas Ornaments