Tiny Knit Sweaters for Christmas Trees, Garland or Wreaths

These Tiny Knit Sweaters knit up quickly and make adorable Christmas tree ornaments. They are equally cute on a garland, a wreath, as a gift topper, or as a place setting. Use some of your yarn stash for these knit Christmas ornaments.

I know I’ve said this before, but these wee sweaters may just be one of my most favorite knit projects, ever! I mean, could they be any cuter?

We are gathering with my entire immediate family, which really isn’t very many people, for Christmas this year. There will be ten of us for the week of Christmas and I am knitting a tiny sweater for every member of my family for a place setting at Christmas breakfast. My hope is that they will then use them as a Christmas tree decoration in the future as a remembrance of our week together.

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Luckily, you can easily make one of these tiny knit sweaters in a day.

Other Christmas Projects

These tiny knit sweaters are one of several Christmas projects you can find on the blog. Here are some of my other Christmas projects, knit and not-knit. Scroll through and click on the images below to go to that specific post.

White Christmas Tree Pillow on blue sofa with red tartan blanket in the background.

Christmas Stocking with nutcracker and presents tucked in.

Broken Rib Stitch Stocking on Stairwell.

Embroidered Christmas Trees on wrapped packages.

These wee sweaters use double-pointed needles to knit them in the round. If you need a refresher or a tutorial on knitting in the round with double-pointed needles, I have a post about that here.

Little knit sweater with embroidered letter T.

Material Needed for each 3” x 5” Tiny Knit Sweater:

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20 yards of worsted-weight yarn. I used Berroco Vintage in Buttercream which I had leftover from this hat.
US 5 (3.75mm) double-pointed needles (5 needles needed)
Additional yarn or thread for embroidery (I used a 4-strand DMC cotton thread, but use what you have!)
Large eye needle for embroidery, weaving in loose ends, and securing the sleeves on your knit sweater ornaments.
Wire doll hangers
Printable Pattern in the Subscriber Library. If you’ve forgotten the super secret password, it is at the bottom of every Monday’s News from the Nest.

Stitches and Abbreviations Used:

DPN: double-pointed needle
KBF: knit through the back and then the front loop of stitch (a one-stitch increase)
Rib Stitch: alternate knit and purl stitches

Gauge:

5 stitches and 7” for each inch of stocking stitch on US 5 needle.

Use Your Yarn Stash!

I used worsted-weight yarn for my sweaters because that’s what I had in my stash. But I encourage you to use what you have! First of all, these are wee ornaments, so the size really doesn’t matter. But, if you want some guidelines for casting on with what you have, here’s a good place to start. Use the appropriate size needle

Sock or Fingering Weight Yarn: Cast on 68 stitches then distribute them among the 4 DPNs: 18, 16, 18, 16

Sport Weight Yarn: Cast on 56 stitches then distribute them among the 4 DPNs: 15, 13, 15, 13

DK or Light Worsted: Cast on 52 stitches then distribute them among the 4 DPNs: 14, 12, 14, 12

Instructions for Tiny Knit Sweaters:

(This pattern is available for download in the subscriber library and you can access the video that shows how to knit tiny sweater, step by step)

These knit sweater ornaments are knit from the neck down.

Knit neckband and shoulders:

Cast 26 stitches on one of the DPNs
Divide the 26 stitches among four DPNs as follows: 7 on the first needle, 6 on the second needle, 7 on the third needle, and 6 on the fourth needle. Make sure the cast on row is not twisted.

26 stitches on 4 double-pointed needles.

Row/Round 1: Join and knit the rib stitch (K, P) in the round.
Row/Round 2: Continue rib stitch (26 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 3: Knit (26 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 4: KBF in the last stitch on each needle. (30 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 5: Knit all stitches (30 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 6: KBF in the first and last stitch on each needle (38 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 7: Knit all stitches (38 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 8: KBF in the first and last stitch on each needle (46 stitches total among the 4 needles)
Row/Round 9: Knit all stitches (46 stitches total among the 4 needles)

Separate the Sleeves from the Knit Sweater Body:

You now have 46 stitches divided between 4 needles; two needles have 12 stitches and two needles have 11 stitches.

Slide the 11 stitches on those two onto two scrap pieces of yarn.

I find it easiest to slide the 11 stitches off of the needle while holding the stitches between my fingers and thread a needle holding the scrap yarn through the stitches. Tie the scrap yarn to keep the stitches on.

Knit the Body:

Rows/ Rounds 1—10: Continue working in the round and knit the body of the tiny sweater in stocking stitch. The neck will be facing down as you work towards the bottom of the sweater.

Rows/Rounds 11 + 12: Work two rows in rib stitch.
Bind off in pattern.

Knit Sleeves:

Row/Round 1: Put the stitches of one sleeve back on two needles and knit in the round, KBF on the last stitch at the armpit. You will then have a total of 12 stitches between the two needles.
Rows/Rounds 2—7: Knit in stocking stitch
Rows/Rounds 8 + 9: Work two rows of rib stitch. Bind off in pattern.
Work the second sleeve the same way and weave all loose ends through the sweater.

Ideas for Embellishing Your Tiny Knit Sweaters:

I cross-stitched initials on mine. I made my letters 5 columns wide and 7 rows tall and didn’t use a pattern, just free-handed the letters.

Embroidering an E on a tiny knit sweater.

You could also embroider cursive letters with the back stitch or stem stitch.
Embroider a snowman using a cross stitch or a snowflake using a back stitch or stem stitch.
Use different colors of yarn to make stripes through the sweater. I didn’t have a colored worsted in my stash and was bound and determined to use what I had! But stripes would be too cute!

So, there you go my friend! As I said, you can easily knit one of these tiny knit sweaters in a day. If you make these sweet knit sweater ornaments, PLEASE take some pics to send to me. I love the inspiration you all provide when you put your own spin on the projects and send photos.

Would You Like a Printable Version of this Pattern?

This pattern is available as a downloadable PDF in the Subscriber Library. If you don’t remember the super secret password, I include it at the bottom of every Monday’s newsletter. But, you can also email me and I’ll gladly remind you of it.

OR…click this link and the pattern will automagically appear in your email inbox.

Bookmark this page or pin the following image to return back to the instructions for these Tiny Knit Sweaters.

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