Free pattern: Easy crochet Christmas card holder

Well, I looked in several shops online for some sort of reusable Christmas card holder, but drew a blank (and yes, I know I could probably find something on Amazon but well, I have a house full of craft stuff here you know?). 

My mother has a well-used card holder that is basically a length of red ribbon with cardboard "buckles" that she pins into the door between her kitchen-diner and the living room. As cards arrive, you slide the buckles up and down to hold the cards. Great idea. 

But I thought I'd like to have a go at something crafted and reusable, that didn't need to damage more of the house. In previous years we've blue-tacked cards to the back of our living room door, but because our cat is a bit of an idiot when it comes to doors, they end up facing the wall a lot of the time because we have to keep the door open. Ribbon taped to the backs of picture frames, with cards paper-clipped to them, only lasted about 20 minutes before falling down. So I thought something that used the picture hook would be more secure. And so it proved!

I used white acrylic DK yarn, and a 5mm hook. The basic pattern starts with ch 6, work a foundation treble (US double crochet) into the first chain, continue to work foundation trebles until you get the desired length - I found 114 trebles worked for me, but it depends on the size of the picture you're hanging it over and the distance of the picture hook to the top of the picture. For your first attempt, leave the live end unfinished until you have the length you need (and don't forget, this will stretch a bit once it's loaded). When you are happy, weave in both ends. Hang the chain loop over your picture hook, rehang your picture over the top and drape the crochet over the top of the frame. I used a bent paperclip (the same ones we use to hang the Christmas baubles) to hang a bauble on the bottom. Then you can mount your Christmas cards using a paperclip on the back face - it's better to work from the bottom up so you can have a bit of overlap. 

I'll come back and add a photo when I unload my camera. They look really good, and I can use them again next year! 

Current mood: working