Our Mother Mary receives a very special visit from our Angel Hand Puppet, to bring great tidings and marvelous news!
Well, we know looking back, how marvelous the news would be. I’m sure, that even though Mary received this with grace, she had questions and concerns! In fact, the Bible even tells us “Mary was greatly troubled,” at first. But what faith she had to just put her trust in the Lord’s plan for her, her marriage, and her child.
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
~Luke 1: 26-33
Add the Angel Gabriel Hand Puppet to your Nativity Story and bring the true meaning of Christmas to life with your little ones!
If you’re interested in a printer-friendly PDF of the Angel Hand Puppet Pattern, you can find the design in my Ravelry or Etsy shops! If you prefer to use the free blog copy below, I still appreciate you being here! And another great way to support my blog is simply by sharing! Thank you for supporting my business!
Materials:
Worsted weight yarn –
- Red Heart Super Saver Yarn – Aran, skin color (A) – approximately 44 yds
- Caron Simply Soft Party Snow Sparkle OR Red Heart With Love Metallic White, for a white sparkly color – robe and wings (B) – approximately 120 yds
- Red Heart Super Saver Yarn – Bright Yellow, hair – (C) – approximately 36 yds
- Red Heart Super Saver Yarn – Saffron or Gold (D) – approximately 20 yds
- Small amount of worsted weight black yarn for the eyes.
Terms and abbreviations to know:
magic ring
rnd, rnds – round, rounds
ch, chs – chain, chains
st, sts – stitch, stitches
sl st – slip stitch
sc – single crochet
hdc – half double crochet
dc – double crochet
inc – increase, 2 sc sts in same st
dec – decrease
invsc2tog – invisible single crochet 2 together; this is essentially a decrease, but done in such a way as to make the continuous stitching smoother, and the decrease not as noticeable.
- Insert hook into front loop only (use BLO where specified in the wings pattern) of next stitch, DO NOT yarn over.
- Insert hook into front loop (use BLO where specified in the wings pattern) of second stitch.
- Yarn over. Pull through 2 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through last 2 loops.
dc bobble – double crochet bobble
- Yarn over, and insert hook into designated st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 2 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 3 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over, and pull through 2 loops, leaving 4 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over, and insert hook into same st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over and pull through 2 loops, leaving 5 loops left on hook.
- Yarn over and pull through all 5 loops.
Notes:
The Angel Hand Puppet Pattern is worked from the top down, in the rnd, with no joining. The arms, hair, wings, and halo are made separately and sewn on. The eyes are embroidered on with black worsted weight yarn; the nose with matching skin color.
Size: This is one size, fitting child through adult, but if you wish to make it smaller for a smaller child to play with, simply tighten gauge or go down a hook size.
Gauge: 7 sts across and 7 rnds down = approximately 2 inches
Angel Hand Puppet
Body – beginning at the head, with skin color (A)
Begin with a magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: inc in each st around; 12 sts
Rnd 3: (inc, sc in next st)6x; 18 sts
Rnd 4: (inc, sc in next 2 sts)6x; 24 sts
Rnd 5: (3 inc, sc in next 9 sts)2x; 30 sts
Rnds 6-14: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnd 15: (3 invsc2tog, sc in next 9 sts)2x; 24 sts
Rnd 16: sc in each st around; 24 sts
Pull white (B) through to complete the last st of rnd 16 and fasten off your skin color. Continue with white.
Rnd 17: (ch 7, sk next 4 sts, sc in next 8 sts)2x; 30 sts, counting the chs
Rnd 18: (sc into each of the 7 chs, sc in next 8 sts)2x; 30 sts
Rnds 19-21: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Rnd 22: sc in next 4 sts, inc, sc in next 14 sts, inc, sc in next 10 sts; 32 sts
Rnds 23-24: sc in each st around; 32 sts
Rnd 25: sc in next 5 sts, inc, sc in next 15 sts, inc, sc in next 10 sts; 34 sts
Rnd 26: sc in each st around; 34 sts
Rnd 27: sc in next 6 sts, inc, sc in next 16 sts, inc, sc in next 10 sts; 36 sts
Rnd 28: sc in each st around; 36 sts
Rnd 29: sc in next 7 sts, inc, sc in next 17 sts, inc, sc in next 10 sts; 38 sts
Rnd 30: sc in each st around; 38 sts
Rnd 31: sc in next 8 sts, inc, sc in next 18 sts, inc, sc in next 10 sts; 40 sts
Rnds 32-35: sc in each st around; 40 sts
Fasten off and weave in ends.
Arms, make 2
Begin in skin color (A)
Begin with a magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: (inc, sc in next st)3x; 9 sts
Rnds 3-4: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Rnd 5: dc bobble, sc in next 8 sts; 9 sts
Rnd 6: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Pull sparkle white through to complete the last st of rnd 6, and fasten off skin color.
Continue in sparkle white.
Rnds 7-8: sc in each st around; 9 sts
Rnd 9: (inc, sc in next 2 sts)3x; 12 sts
Rnds 10-13: sc in each st around; 12 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Weave in all the ends inside the arm, and then use the long tail to sew onto the arm holes of the body. Weave in ends.
Nose in skin color (A)
Use the same yarn used for the face and hands, cutting about an 8 inch strand. Sew it over about 3 sts centered at about rnd 12. Sew the yarn over the same spot about 3 to 5 times, or until nose is as puffy as you’d like. Knot and fasten off inside the head, and weave in ends.
Eyes, in black
Using black yarn, st the eyes onto the face over 3 sts on rnd 10, about 5 sts between them, with the nose centered below and between. Insert your needle through 2 to 3 sts from the outer edge of the face. Pull it back through 3 sts over. Insert the needle back into the original st, and pull it back out under rnd 10, pulling the black yarn under the arch you just made. Wrap the yarn around itself to help hold that curve in place, and then create the first eyelash by inserting the needle to the side and slightly below the eye. Use the beginning tail to create the other lash in a similar fashion. Place the other eye to the other side, over the same rnds, about 4 to 5 sts from the first eye. Knot and weave in the ends on the inside of the head.
Hair, in bright yellow (C)
Ch 7
Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and next 5 chs; 6 sts
Row 2: ch 1 and turn, inc, sc in next 4 sts, inc; 8 sts
Row 3: ch 1 and turn, inc, sc in next 6 sts, inc; 10 sts
Rows 4-12: ch 1 and turn, sc in each st across; 10 sts
Row 13: ch 1 and turn, dec, sc in next 6 sts, dec; 8 sts
Row 14: ch 1 and turn, dec, sc in next 4 sts, dec; 6 sts
Do not turn.
Rnd 1: beginning with a sc in the same st as last st in row 14, continue to work 38 sc evenly around the hair until you get back to where you started. This amounts to 13 sc down each side, and 6 sc across the bottom and the top. Sl st into the first st of the rnd to join, and continue forming the bangs.
Bangs, in bright yellow (C)
Continuing from where you left of in rnd 1:
Rnd 2: ch 1, sc in same st as joining sl st, 2 hdc in next st, 2 dc in next st, 2 hdc in next st, sc in next st, sl st in next 2 sts (which should make up the center of the bangs), sc in next st, 2 hdc in next st, 2 dc in next st, 2 hdc in next st, sc in next st, sl st into the next st. Continue on to the curls.
Curls, in bright yellow (C)
Still a part of rnd 2, but working in strands of chs and sc that connect back to rnd 1; sl st in the next st, (ch 6, turn and beginning in the second ch from hook, inc in each ch, sl st into the next st of rnd 1)6x, sc into the next 12 sts, sl st into next st, repeat ( to ) 6 more times, sl st to join and fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Sew the hair onto the head, sewing the bangs folded over the forehead, and sewing around rnd 2 of the hair, leaving the curls dangling free to each side. Weave in ends.
Wings in sparkle white, make 2 (B)
Ch 17
Row 1: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in each ch across; 16 sts
Row 2: ch 1 and turn, BLO sc in next 15 sts, ch 3; 15 sts, 3 chs
Row 3: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in next ch, BLO sc in next 14 sts, inc in BLO of last st; 18 sts
Row 4: ch 1 and turn, BLO sc in next 17 sts, ch 3; 17 sts, 3 chs
Row 5: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in next ch, BLO sc in next 16 sts, inc in BLO of last st; 20 sts
Row 6: ch 1 and turn, BLO sc in next 19 sts, ch 3; 19 sts, 3 chs
Row 7: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in next ch, BLO sc in next 18 sts, inc in BLO of last st; 22 sts
Row 8: ch 1 and turn, BLO invsc2tog, BLO sc in next 19 sts, ch 3; 20 sts, 3 chs
Row 9: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in next ch, BLO sc in next 20 sts; 22 sts
Rows 10-13: repeat rows 8 and 9; 22 sts
Row 14: repeat row 8; 20 sts, 3 chs
Row 15: turn and sc in 2nd ch from the hook, sc in next ch, BLO sc in next 18 sts, BLO invsc2tog; 21 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Sew each wing down across the arms at an angle. The ends of the last few rows will go across the arm, and the ends of the last 3 to 4 rows will be sewn together in the center of the back. I also secured my wings, by sewing the first row down to the back. Knot and weave in ends.
Halo, in saffron or gold (D)
Ch 31 (or just enough so that when looped it can sit on the head, resting above the curls).
Row 1: join to the first ch with a sl st, loosely sl st in each ch around, join to first st with sl st and fasten off; 30 sts
Sew the bottom half of the circle to the top back of the head in a half circle, so that the other half of the halo stays straight up above the head. Weave in ends.
I hope you have enjoyed making the Angel Hand Puppet! If you love this design, be sure to check out some of my other free patterns on the blog, and look for more from The Nativity Story! Follow me along on Instagram for more sneak peeks and new pattern releases! If you loved making any of my patterns, and show them off on Instagram, please be sure to tag @ekaygdesigns to let me know, and I will share in my stories!