Pattern Review: Jolly Holly Leaves

Crochet holly leaves attached to my little Oval Gift Bags

Before Christmas, I decided to make a few gift bags that could be used to transport some of the more fragile gifts that I had selected. In the picture you can see the ones containing glass jam jars that I really didn't want to smash! The jam was from a lovely little local company called Avril's Country Kitchen. Where possible, I always like to buy local produce. As the preserves are all additive free, gluten free, suitable for vegans and vegetarians they are suitable for people with all sorts of dietary requirements.

I loved the way the little gift baskets turned out however, they were a little boring and lacking when it came being festive. The oval gift baskets were lined with cotton in a Christmas print, but you couldn't see that from the outside. The pattern I created for these bags is available here for free.

The solution was therefore to create a few little holly leaves to make them look a little more seasonal. I thought I had a few little green felt and burlap holly leaves (left over from a previous year's Christmas project) hanging around. But unfortunately, I only found one left over in my Christmas box. I did however, re-discover my stash of multi-sized red coloured buttons. I have a whole bag of the things (tiny ones to ones with 2cm diameters!). I can't remember when I bought them and I must have had that bag of buttons for quite some time. Some of the smaller buttons would make perfect holly berries so it was a really good find!

I then decided to go through my stash of wool and found an appropriate green in my left-over box. If fabric scraps are cabbage, then there really should be a name for left over balls of yarn!

I wasn't initially sure whether to knit or crochet, but eventually, I decided to keep the continuity going by sticking with crochet (the baskets are crocheted). I then did what I usually do when I want a quick pattern, and logged onto ravelry. I love all the free patterns available on there, I hope that the patterns that I've added in some way help to contribute back to the community that use the site.

I searched for free crochet holly leaf patterns and I ended up with quite a long list. Which was great! I looked through them and chose a few to try out. Eventually, I settled on the Jolly Holly Leaves pattern by Lucy of Attic24.

It was a really simple and affective pattern which created rather distinctive holly leaves. I particularly like the way the stem is formed and the raised central ridge of the leaf. They are quite adorable. The photo tutorial is really easy and clear to follow.

One of the holly leaves that I made using this pattern 

(please excuse the fluffy bit - I had it pinned to my coat)

So, that the gift baskets could be re-used, I decided to attach the holly leaves to safety pins so that they could be removed and re-attached as required. I also made a couple of extra holly leaves, I pinned one of these to my coat over the holiday period. It made a very cheery little brooch.

Back of the holly leaf: I attached the safety pin with a bit of yarn 

(please ignore the red threads from the buttons - I did this one quickly and you don't notice the extra threads from the front.)

With the safety pins attached, I had my finished little brooches. I pinned one to each of my gift bags. I ended up using these little holly leaves as a way to attach the brown card gift tags. They did a really good job. I am very happy with the way this pattern turned out and I might use it again in future festive crafts.