Advent calendar wreath knitting pattern

Count down to the big day with this knitted bell advent calendar wreath, free for Gathered thanks to Monica Fuertes and Simply Knitting magazine, where the advent calendar wreath was first published in issue 191.

This colourful knitted bell advent calendar wreath features 24 knitted bells that are attached to the wreath with snap fasteners so you can remove them as the days pass to make your progress through advent. Go for an eye-catching, bright colour scheme like we've done here, or choose classic red and green with matching ribbon for a traditional festive theme. Best of all, the knitted bell's shape makes this a good fit for a couple of different brands of circular chocolate treats, so load up your knitted advent calendar pattern, free from guilt as there are no non-recyclable blister plastic trays as part of this advent calendar, and you can refill and reuse it for tasty chocolates every tear!

The finished knitted bell advent calendar wreath looks stunning, but it's a deceptively easy knit. With a bit of patience a complete beginner could take this on! The bells are quick to work up using just knit and purl stitches, and as they're so small they'd be great for making on the go – just pop one in your bag to work on whenever you have a few minutes to spare. You'll have a completed advent calendar wreath in no time at all!

Gold jump rings are used to top the bell and for threading a decorative ribbon through. Snaps are then added to the back of each bell so they can be fastened to the wreath. Allow plenty of time for the making up, as it's the finishing touches that make this project shine.

Made this and want more? Don't miss our other free Christmas wreath knitting pattern or try our knitted advent calendar with pockets

To make the knitted bell advent calendar you will need:

• Hayfield Bonus DK (100% acrylic, 100g/280m), oddments of each:
  Yarn A Ladybird (0698), 12g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn B Bright Lemon (0819), 10g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn C Azure (0824), 8g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn D Cupid (0944), 10g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn E Pink (0992), 8g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn F White (0961), 12g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn G Iced Pink (0958), 27g Buy from Amazon
  Yarn H Lime (0882), 8g Buy from Amazon
• A pair of 3mm (US 2/3) knitting needles
• 24 gold jump rings, 6mm diameter
• A piece of cardboard or plastic sheet, 24 x 24cm
• Yellow satin ribbon, 110 x 10mm wide
• Pink satin ribbon, 70 x 10mm wide
• Green satin ribbon, 40 x 10mm wide
• White satin ribbon, 30 x 5mm wide
• 6 green glass baubles, 20mm diameter
• 24 snap fasteners, 7mm
• A piece of white felt, approx 10 x 2cm
• 24 small wooden hearts with holes, for adding numbers Buy from Amazon

Knitted bell advent calendar wreath

This pattern uses our standard knitting abbreviations.

Tension

13 sts x 18 rows to measure 6x6cm (2¼ x 2¼in) over stocking stitch using 3mm needles

Advent calendar wreath measurements

Ring diameter: 23cm (9in)

Large Bells: 5cm (2in) tall

Little Bells: 3½cm (1½in) tall

Large knitted bells (Make 6)

Note Make 2 using Yarn A and 1 each using Yarns B, C, D and F.

Cast on 13 sts using 3mm needles.

Row 1 (RS) K13.

Row 2 (WS) P4, K9.

Rep these two rows until a total of 36 rows have been worked.

Cast off leaving a long tail of yarn for sewing up.

Thread yarn through the end stitches at the row ends of the garter stitch section and draw up tightly. Fasten off securely.

Make up the large knitted bells

1. Sew the cast-on and cast-off edges of your Large Bells together using mattress stitch. The st st section will curl naturally; use mattress st on the ‘wrong’ side of the st st section so that the visible seam is neat.
2. Fasten all the ends securely on the WS of the bell and trim (no need to sew in as they won't be seen on the inside of the bell) and turn right side out.
3. Referring to the photograph, place a green bauble into each bell and sew into place.
4. Add one half of a snap fastener to the bell.
5. Cut yellow, pink and green ribbon into approx 8cm lengths and tie into bows. Attach a gold jump ring to the top of each bell and tie a ribbon bow to it.

Little knitted bells (Make 18)

Note Make 2 each using Yarns A, C and D and 3 each using Yarns B, E, F and H.

Cast on 10 sts using 3mm needles.

Row 1 (RS) K10.

Row 2 (WS) P4, K6.

Rep these two rows until a total of 28 rows have been worked.

Cast off leaving a long tail of yarn for sewing up.

Thread yarn through the end stitches of the row ends of the garter st section and draw up tightly. Fasten off securely.

Make up the little knitted bells

1. Sew the cast-on and cast-off edges of your little knitted bells together using mattress stitch. The st st section will curl naturally; use mattress st on the ‘wrong’ side of the st st section so that the visible seam is neat.
2. Fasten all ends securely on the WS of the bell and trim (no need to sew in as they won't be seen on the inside of the bell) and turn right side out.
3. Referring to the photograph add one half of a snap fastener to the bell and attach a gold jump ring to the top of each bell.

Constructing the advent calendar wreath

1. Draw two concentric circles onto the card or plastic: the outer one measuring 23cm in diameter and the inner one 21cm, making sure that there is a uniform margin of 2cm all round.
2. Cut the 2cm ring out and cover by wrapping Yarn G all round, ensuring that the plastic or cardboard is fully covered.
3. Referring to the photograph, attach the other halves of the snap fastener to the wreath ring, carefully spacing them.
4. Attach a white ribbon loop to the top of the wreath for hanging.
5. Write the numbers 1 to 24 onto the wooden hearts, then sew the hearts onto the bells in a random order with sewing thread.

Download the advent calendar wreath pattern

Get your free beginner knitting pattern here: Advent calendar wreath PDF

More Christmas knitting patterns

Cast on for Christmas with our collection of free festive knitting patterns. Whether you're looking for gifts or decorations, we've got you covered! Try our Free Christmas pudding knitted hat pattern or maybe our Free Santa hat knitting pattern is the one for you. Free knitted Christmas cards pattern lets you use up yarn scraps in your cards. The Free Christmas star knitting pattern make a great card or tree decoration. Don't miss our Free stocking and snowman knitting patterns and our Christmas bunting knitting pattern.

For more ideas for your Christmas gifting, try our DIY stained glass and our How to make shrinky dinks tutorials. Little ones will enjoy our how to make friendship bracelets article, too.