It’s really starting to feel like Christmas… will you join in?

Dear users, dear co-authors,

last year we wrote a wonderful—and at times funny—Christmas story together here on the forum. I’d like to inspire you to do the same in 2018.

It’s really simple:

• Everyone adds to the story with one sentence (or sometimes two). Feel free to make it funny.
  
• The story will be even more interesting if it includes something related to crafts.

And now, let your creativity run wild. I’ll just get things started in the next post.

Wishing you lots of fun with this, Monika

Once upon a time, there was a crochet hook and a knitting needle who were happily getting ready for Christmas.

(And now it’s your turn.)

I’ve arrived just in time :-)

The crochet hook was crocheting glitter garlands, while the knitting needle was still searching for its partner, because it couldn’t knit all by itself.

Oh dear, her partner… where could he be?!

A shrewd deduction ... Stricknadlerich could really only have been hiding in that half-finished sweater that had been grumbling to itself for months.

Unfortunately, the owner had moved all the unfinished projects into the storage room last week to make room for the Christmas decorations. 

So, how was the knitting needle supposed to get to her beloved Mr. Knitting Needle? Help!

Suddenly, the crochet hook has an idea....

“Come on, knitting needle,” she said. “Let’s put out some bait!”

As she was tidying up, the knitting needle gently fell into the armchair, and its owner pricked herself in the bottom. She picked up the knitting needle and put it in the storage room with the unfinished projects.

First they looked around in the shelf compartment. Their partner wasn’t there.
How could they get into the other compartments?
Crochet Hook had a brilliant idea...

“I see some yarn,” she cried. “And I have a crochet hook. Let’s go...”

And just like that, she began crocheting a long foundation chain.

But as time went on, she got bored, so she added a few more single crochet stitches.

Meanwhile, the knitting needle spotted her beloved partner and tried to roll toward him... bit by bit... getting closer and closer to him. 

When she was already quite close, she called out, “Erich! I need you!” (Erich is the pet name for “Stricknadlerich,” which is a bit of a mouthful to pronounce).

“Finally,” Erich exclaimed happily. “Finally, you’re here. I need you, too.”

I missed you so much. Now that we’re together again, let’s think about who else we can bring a little joy to.

They wanted to find out, in a friendly competition, who could make the prettier things. 

But they both quickly realized that they could only knit a beautiful piece together.

The crochet hook watched the two of them and felt a little neglected. 

So she suggested to the two knitting needles that they try making Christmas tree decorations instead, and she could then crochet loops onto them for hanging.

The two knitting needles were thrilled with this suggestion and immediately set to work.

So... where should we start? There are so many ideas, for example...

… tiny socks… in red and white. Or perhaps red and green?

Since they couldn’t agree, they knitted one red and one green sock. So they both set to work on their joint project.

Meanwhile, the crochet hook has been hard at work, too.

She crocheted a little bell using gold glitter yarn. She’d found it in the yarn basket, which had also been left here.

The knitting needles have finished knitting their little socks. There are still lots of colorful shades in the yarn basket.

But they soon got bored of just knitting little socks…

And so the knitting needles began to think… and suddenly they thought of something wonderful. Yes, that’s exactly it!

Of course, little angels with golden wings were a must on the tree!

The knitting needles and the crochet hooks were completely absorbed in their work when they suddenly heard a noise.

Just then, someone opened the door to the storage room!

Before we knew it, poof—our freshly finished little socks and even the bell on the crochet hook had vanished.

The owner of the needles had hidden them because her husband was picking up their little daughter from preschool, and of course she wasn’t supposed to see any Christmas preparations. Psst!

“Oh, great!” cried the crochet hook, all excited. “If our creations bring so much joy, let’s get started on the next project right away. Are you in?” The knitting needles nodded in unison...

and when they saw the amazing Christmas yarn, the way it sparkled, they got
all excited and wanted to get started right away on knitting or crocheting something beautiful

“What do you think,” the crochet hook took charge again, “if you two knit a Christmas stocking now and I...”

How about crocheting a Santa Claus with a red coat and a curly white beard?

“Great idea!” the knitting needles exclaimed excitedly. “However… we need some backup now—namely, our sock experts.”

Hmm, but where have they disappeared to again? I’m afraid we’ll have to plan an abduction…

“Maybe there’s a half-finished sock in this basket?” the crochet hook murmured hopefully.

But—oh no! The ball of yarn and the sewing needle were gone

Where did they go?

Panic spread, and everyone moaned and groaned. What are we going to do? How can we crochet and knit the St. Nicholas stocking and St. Nicholas without help? We need the ball of yarn and the sewing needle for that!

Suddenly, the door opened, and Mrs. Schmidt, the apartment’s owner, put her full basket of yarn back on the shelf.

Phew, that turned out okay after all! Immediately, all the needles and needleworkers descended on the yarn basket.

A deep sigh of relief went through the room ... and a soft clatter came from the many balls of yarn. 
Something was stirring there, wasn't it?

Was that a knitting dolly buried under those balls of yarn?

Sure enough! And there were a few sewing needles and pins and colorful sewing thread in there too—and even a round embroidery hoop!

Suddenly thousands of ideas came pouring in! And everyone was shouting wildly all at once.
Christmas blanket, gnome, winter hat, scarf, heart, cord, and.....

During a brief lull that everyone happened to have at the same time, Erich spoke up—wait, stop...

Please don’t all start chattering at once.

We need to divide up the projects among ourselves, each according to their abilities. Strickliesel, what are you going to make? A lovely scarf for the little one.

“Ouch!” The knitting dolly was just about to reply when she felt a prick from below. The set of double-pointed needles was making its way up—it was determined to join in on the Christmas knitting and crocheting magic.

“We’re not getting anywhere like this,” said the crochet hook. “We need someone to coordinate and lead everything. Who could that be?”

“Me!” a voice called out from a shelf above the tangle of needles. All the needles instantly looked up and were amazed to see who was sitting there: a beautiful Christmas elf.

Hey, don’t look so surprised! I’m going to take matters into my own hands now!
It had grown very quiet, and everyone listened to what the elf said.

"Someone has to take care of a gift for the little one. Mom and Dad need something, too. So: set of double-pointed needles, you knit a pair of socks for Dad."

Dear Crochet Hook, would you like to crochet a shawl for the little one? One of those airy ones, you know.

“And I,” called the knitting dolly, “what should I do? We still need something for Mom!
I can make coasters!” So they all set to work.

There was lots of eager crocheting and knitting. The Christmas elf looked very pleased. He began to tell a story.

A story about what the Advent and Christmas season is really all about. It would be a shame if, in the midst of all our creative energy, we were to forget the true meaning of it all...

Everyone listened to the Christmas elf, and all you could hear was the soft clicking of knitting needles. Then suddenly a loud “Darn!” rang out.

Everyone jumped! They had been so engrossed in the story of the Christmas elf... What had happened?

The knitting needles weren’t paying attention for a moment, and in their panic, they dropped several stitches—oh my goodness, what now...

It was a complicated lace pattern. There was only one thing to do: unravel it all!

The Christmas elf encouraged us and said, "Let’s try again, my dears. Don’t lose heart!
We can do it!"

“Yes, we can do it, and we’ll crochet and knit the most beautiful Christmas surprises the world has ever seen,” announced the crochet hook. 

Everyone was full of energy. They crocheted and knitted like world champions. Everyone gave their best. The days flew by when suddenly, out of the silence, came a cry of “Finished!”

The crochet hook was the first to finish because she had crocheted a pattern of double crochets and treble crochets.

The Christmas elf examined the beautiful lace shawl for the little girl. “It looks great,” he said. “She’ll be so happy, I’m sure!!!!”

Right away, the crochet hook had a new idea for Grandma: a shawl for cold winter days.

The set of double-pointed needles is also close to finishing the socks for Dad. The knitting spool has already finished several coasters. Solid-colored ones and colorful ones too. How many more coasters do you want to make, asked the crochet hook! Oh, I was so absorbed in my work that I hadn’t even noticed there were already so many!

It’s okay if there are a lot of them—Aunt Mimi will surely be happy to receive coasters, too.

“What is our pair of knitting needles up to, anyway? Hey, Erich! How far along are you?” asked the knitting dolly.

But Erich and his partner didn’t answer. They were so happy to have found each other that they had become entangled and were now struggling to separate from one another.

The knitting dolly is furious—after all, it’s just not right that Erich and his sweetheart aren’t doing anything.
(The knitting dolly would love to be truly in love herself and is jealous.) ...
She throws herself between the two of them, and just like that, they’re separated.

"Hey, not so rough, knitting spool!" said Erich. But now the two needles could continue their work. 

By now, you could already guess a little what the two of them were knitting...

Of course, they were working on a beautiful heart-shaped pillow. Unfortunately, the right decoration was still missing. But .... 

How about some pom-poms?
That’s when everyone first noticed that a certain yarn tool was missing—namely, the pom-pom maker.
Where on earth could it be hiding?

Everyone immediately set out to look for him.

Yay, they finally found him in the last box.
The knitting dolly almost fainted with joy—her wish for a partner had been granted; there was actually one slumbering right next to the pom-pom maker.

Everyone looked at him ... and marveled. Because there was something special about him. After all, he was a male knitting dolly.... 

And just like that, both little knitters were full of enthusiasm and set to work on a long knitted cord.
It would go perfectly around the heart-shaped pillow, as a symbol of their love.

Little by little, there was less and less yarn in the basket. And suddenly, something else came to light. It had fallen into a long Sleeping Beauty slumber......

It was... a half-finished Christmas stocking, slumbering away, lost and forgotten.
“Ooooh!” all the knitting needles exclaimed in amazement and immediately had lots of ideas.

“We already have enough socks,” they said. “Let’s make a sock animal out of them: a cute little reindeer!”

"Oh yes, that's wonderful," the knitting dolly rejoiced. "Then I'll make the little tail."

Who’s making the red nose?

“Me!” cried the crochet hook enthusiastically. She had quickly pushed her way forward because she was eager to help.

But the pom-pom maker protested vigorously: “No, I’m the best at making the red nose! You can crochet the antlers!”

Then everyone eagerly set to work, because after all, everything has to be finished in time.

Suddenly, the door opened and everyone was startled. As if on cue, they stopped what they were doing....

It was ... a Christmas angel standing there in the doorway. Of course, he knew what the needles were up to, and to the great surprise of the gathering of needles, he refilled the basket with new, colorful yarn.

There was no stopping now, and everything that was even remotely nearby was crocheted over and pinned down: the lamp, the doorknob, the electrical cords—yes, even...

... the broom that was standing next to the door had to be snugly crocheted over in wool.
In all their eagerness, however, the needles had overlooked something.... oh dear...

A muffled “Help!!!” from the yarn basket alerted her that both knitting nancies were missing. Now they had to be freed quickly.

The two of them had completely tangled themselves up with their long skeins of yarn. “That’s what happens when you’re not paying attention,” muttered the Christmas elf. But of course, she quickly untangled them.

The knitters breathed a sigh of relief… phew, that was a close call.
Then the door suddenly opened again… and who was standing there in the doorway?

The Christ Child!!!
The room shone with the brightest light, and the needles froze in awe and wonder...

... and suddenly, it was dead silent.

“Merry Christmas!” said the Christ Child. “You’ve all been very diligent.”

“May I take all the beautiful gifts you’ve conjured up from the yarn? In return, I’ve brought you something that will delight you hard-working little helpers.”

The Christ Child pointed to the yarn basket, which was suddenly brimming with the finest, most beautiful yarn.

A joyful murmur rippled through the room...

The pair of crochet hooks whispered new ideas to each other excitedly and immediately sank into one of the colorful balls of yarn.

The knitting nancies.....