Thursday, April 18, 2013

Crochet Nativity set

I have been designing a nativity set since October.  I thought I would make ornaments for our tree since Christ's birth is our reason for having this celebration.  I thought I started in plenty of time but this project has really taken time to develop.  Part of that is because I wanted to design a nativity that would express what a wonderful gift God gave us.

I started with baby Jesus.  Metallic thread can be found at Christmas season at local stores or online.  I grabbed a bunch of gold and decided to make that nativity to hang on a wall or a tree or a wreath.  Of course with grandchildren in mind, I wanted them not to have breakable parts.   My darling grandson was thanking baby Jesus for all his Christmas gifts this year.
 

Next comes Mary.  When I had my babies, I remember how I adored the baby. I imagine that Mary felt that and so much more since she knew her Son was God's gift to save her entire nation.  I worked and worked to try and get this feeling expressed in a crochet piece.  I stuffed her arms so that she could look down at her new baby with wonder and amazement.  She was an amazing woman in her willingness to carry God's child when she knew that the Jewish law said she should be killed.  Again, I wanted the ornament to be child proof and crochet works so well with that. 
 

 
 
Next comes Joseph, Mary's betrothed.  I am sure that he felt betrayed by Mary when he found out that she was pregnant and he knew it wasn't from him.  Obviously, he cared for her and was going to send he away and not take her to the temple to be stoned.  God intervened with a dream and helped him understand that she hadn't been with any man and that this was God's miracle to our world that she was carrying.  Once he understood, he did an excellent job of protecting Jesus and caring for his new family.  I gave him a walking stick since they had just come from a long walk to the stable where Jesus was born.  I also gave him an oil lamp that would have been part of their everyday life to see the new miracle that God brought to our world.
 

 
 
What an amazing gift of love God gave us in His son, Jesus, knowing the He would not have an easy life and would end up dying as a sacrifice for our sins.   
 



Well all the patterns have been tested and now are ready for next year's Christmas season so that you too can make children friendly ornaments that can teach them the meaning of Christmas.  What are your favorite memories of this season?  I know one of mine will be my grandson thanking baby Jesus for his Christmas gifts.