The Baby Jesus Finger Puppet is just about as simple in style as they come. The simplicity of that very first Christmas is so beautiful to me. Like I wrote in the last blog, I believe in our world, we have created far too many distractions. We are so wrapped up on our own lives, our material things, money, businesses, technology, you name it, that we find it hard to truly connect with God the way people did in the Bible. God isn’t far from us because He chooses to be. We have simply placed him at an impossibly low level of priority in our lives.
What if we needed Him for every meal? What if we needed him for every night’s sleep, never knowing where we might rest our heads? What if we truly lived day to day, and left our futures up to Him? What if we didn’t know the thoughts and opinions of every person on the internet, making us wonder what the world thought of us, but instead focused only on what God thought of us?
What if our Christmas was just as simple as that first Christmas in Bethlehem?
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. ~Luke 24-7
Maybe, with these puppets, we can help our little ones capture a simpler time and age, when the world rejoiced over a newborn baby boy, promised by God to save us all.
If you’re interested in a printer-friendly PDF of the Baby Jesus Finger 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:
Paintbox Cotton DK – Due to the size of the finger puppet, the amount of each color is very little.
- Light Caramel, skin color (A)
- Coffee Bean, swaddling blanket (B)
- Small amount of Black for the eyes.
Black crochet thread is also an option, if you’d like a thinner eye.
Clover Amour crochet hook – 2mm
Tiny amount of Polyester Fiberfill for stuffing the head.
Tapestry needle
Scissors
Terms and abbreviations to know:
magic ring
rnd, rnds – round, rounds
st, sts – stitch, stitches
sk – skip
ch, chs – chain, chains
sl st – slip stitch
sc – single crochet
dc – double crochet
inc – make 2 sc together into same st (only used in reference to sc sts)
dec – join 2 sc sts together into a single sts
BLO – back loop only
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. (Only used in rnds. Ordinary dec used in turning work.)
- Insert hook into front loop only of next stitch, DO NOT yarn over.
- Insert hook into front loop of second stitch.
- Yarn over. Pull through 2 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through last 2 loops.
dcdec – double crochet decrease
- Yarn over.
- Insert hook into designated st and pull up a loop. (3 loops on hook)
- Insert hook into next st and pull up a loop. (4 loops on hook)
- Yarn over and pull through 3 loops. (2 loops on hook)
- Yarn over and pull through remaining 2 loops.
3sctog – decrease, turning 3 sts into one
- Insert hook into designated st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Sk next st and insert hook into the second st from first st.
- Pull up a loop.
- Yarn over and pull through all 3 loops
Notes:
The Baby Jesus Finger Puppet pattern is made in continuous rnds from the top down. There is no joining unless otherwise specified. The body is made in one piece to go over the finger. The swaddling blanket is made separately and sewn on, left open at the bottom for the finger. Mary and Joseph Hand Puppets (sold separately) pictured with the Baby Jesus for context and size comparison.
Finished size: Approximately 3.5 inches tall, depending on tension
Baby Jesus Finger Puppet
Beginning at the head, color A
*Note: before beginning the body, cut about 6 inches of the skin color off to save for the nose later.
Begin with 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
Rnds 5-11: sc in each st around; 24
Rnd 12: (invsc2tog, sc in next 2 sts)6x; 18 sts
Stop here to sew on the eyes. Using your tapestry needle and black yarn, pull the yarn through just between rnds 7 and 8. Sew over one st of rnd 8, pulling the yarn through one row lower, and over top of the loop you just created. Wrap the yarn around itself, and then insert back between rnds 8 and 9. Knot off inside the head. Do this again, 3 sts to the other side.
Using your skin color strand you cut at the beginning, add a nose over the center st between the eyes, between 9 and 10. Sew over the same st about 4 or 5 times. Knot inside the head. Stuff the head and continue.
Rnd 13: (invsc2tog, sc in next st)6x; 12 sts
Finish stuffing.
Rnd 14: BLO this rnd (dec, sc in next st)4x; 8 sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing closed. Weave the needle through the last rnd to sew closed. Knot and weave in ends.
Reattach color A to the first front loop of rnd 13, to work rnd 15 around the front loops that were left unworked in rnd 14.
Rnd 15: sc in those front loops all the way around; 12 sts
Rnd 16: sc in each st around; 12 sts
Rnd 17: (inc, sc in next 5 sts)2x; 14 sts
Rnds 18-22: sc in each st around; 14 sts
Rnd 23: (inc, sc in next 6 sts)2x; 16 sts
Rnds 24-30: sc in each st around; 16 sts
Fasten off and weave in ends.
Swaddling Blanket, in coffee
*Note: turning ch does not count toward st count
Begin with a long tail to use for sewing later.
Ch 32
Row 1: turn and dc in 2nd ch from hook, dc in each ch across; 30 sts
Rows 2-4: ch 2 and turn, dc in each st across; 30 sts
Row 5: ch 2 and turn, dcdec 3 times, dc in next 18 sts, dcdec 3 times; 24 sts
Row 6: ch 2 and turn, dcdec 3 times, dc in next 12 sts, dcdec 3 times; 18 sts
Row 7: ch 2 and turn, dcdec 3 times, 2 dc in next st, dc in next 4 sts, 2 dc in next st, dcdec 3 times; 14 sts
Row 8: ch 2 and turn, dc in next 3 sts, 2 dc in next st, dc in next 6 sts, 2 dc in next st, dc in last 3 sts; 16 sts
Row 9: ch 2 and turn, dcdec, dc in next 5 sts, 2 dc in each of the next 2 sts, dc in next 5 sts, dcdec; 16 sts
Row 10: ch 2 and turn, dc in next 6 sts, 2 dc in next st, dc in next 2 sts, 2 dc in next st, dc in next 6 sts; 18 sts
Row 11: ch 2 and turn, dc in each st across; 18 sts
Row 12: ch 2 and turn, dcdec, (sc in next 2 sts, dcdec)4x; 13 sts
Row 13: ch 2 and turn, dc in next st, (dcdec, dc in next st)4x; 9 sts
Row 14: ch 2 and turn, dc in next st, dcdec, dc in next 3 sts, dcdec, dc in last st; 7 sts
Row 15: ch 1 and turn, sk first st, sc in next st, 3sctog, sk next st, sc in last st; 3 sts
Fasten off leaving a long tail for sewing. Center the baby onto the blanket, with the head centered into the last few rows as the hood.
Use the end tail to sew the blanket down around the head and neck. Then use the beginning tail to sew up the front of the blanket, folded over the body. Weave in ends.
I hope you have enjoyed making the Baby Jesus Finger Puppet! If you love this design, be sure to check out some of my other free patterns on the blog! Click here for the Mother Mary and Joseph Hand Puppets. 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!