Holiday Sweaters - Christmas and Hanukkah Sweater Designs

Every year, when the weather turns cooler, Christmas and Hanukkah sweaters turn up in the mall.  For the most part, these sweaters are poorly made in factories overseas, mass produced and knitted from itchy synthetic yarn.  Turn them inside out, and you will find too many little yarn ends, all waiting to come undone.  And if you are looking for Hanukkah sweaters, you will have a hard time finding anything at all.

Don't you wish you could just tell someone what kind of holiday sweater you want, and have it appear in your size and colors?  You can. 

Instead of spending hours searching for a Hanukah or Christmas sweater, have one custom knitted just for you.  In this store, everything comes in your size.  You can choose the colors, the style  - pullover or cardigan, crewneck or v-neck, long sleeves or three-quarter length sleeves, very long length or shorter cropped length - it's all available here. 

A hand knitted custom designed Christmas or Chanukah sweater can be your own personal heirloom sweater, to be worn at each year's holiday celebrations, to show up in family photos again and again, a cherished vintage piece which you will proudly look forward to wearing, and which will add to your joy of the season. ("I can tell it's Christmas - Uncle Charlie's wearing his sweater!")

Below are photos of different designs for hand knitted holiday sweaters.  Each of them is unique, custom designed for the individual customer.  They are a joy to design and hand knit.  For your own sweater, you can choose from traditional Christmas and Hanukah designs, like Christmas trees, a snowman, dreidels, a menorah, Star of David buttons, etc.  Or, have an "ugly" sweater designed.  Every year, I get requests for Christmas and Hanukkah sweater designs that are designed to shock the relatives - ugly, outrageous sweaters.  They are great fun to wear.  (Be sure to see the "coal" and "candy" pockets on the bright red ugly Christmas sweater shown at the end of this page.)

Some of these holiday sweater designs are classic and speak of tradition and heritage; other designs are more playful and fun.  You may have some ideas of your own for your Christmas or Hanukkah design, such as details for the size of the sweater, the way it will fit, your choices for the colors and your choices for the designs. 

Because this is a one-person business, only a limited number of these hand knitted holiday sweaters are designed and knitted each year.  Orders are accepted year-round.  When you are ready, I will be happy to take your order.

The Christmas sweater shown below is a classic, traditional snowman design.  The crewneck long sleeve pullover is shown in color Yale blue, with a pure white snowman.  What makes this design so special is that Noel, the gentleman who received the sweater as a Christmas gift, has a bright red narrow-brim hat, flat-topped from years of constant use, which is one of his prized possessions.  Imagine Noel's surprise when he opened up the gift on Christmas morning and saw his own personalized snowman!

The photo below shows a close-up of the snowman design.  You can really see the bright orange carrot nose, the hand embroidered "Noel" beneath the snowman, the red and blue striped scarf - and of course the infamous flat-topped red hat.

What could be more traditional than a Christmas tree design - here's one of my favorites, knitted in loden, a shade of dark green, and decorated with hand sewn antique glass beads, set against a background of color "natural".  The tree is topped with a knitted gold star.   A star on the top of a Christmas tree is a tradition which goes back hundreds of years, mentioned as far back as the mid-1800's in Hans Christen Andersen's story, The Fir Tree.  It is always a pleasure to knit these vintage Christmas sweater designs.

The colors "red hot" and "loden" are good choices for a traditional Christmas design, with the color "natural ivory" as a background and for the lettering "Merry Christmas".  This particular Christmas tree design was on the front of a solid "loden" crewneck pullover sweater; the back and sleeves were completely plain.

Why are Hanukkah sweaters so hard to find?  It's true, they are few and far between.  Traditional Hanukkah designs such as a menorah, hand embroidered dreidels, complete with authentic Hebrew letters on them, and gold embroidered Stars of David can be combined in your own Hanukkah design.  There are wonderful Hanukkah buttons, such as hand painted dreidels or Star of David buttons.  Whether you want a vest, a long sleeve or three-quarter length sleeve pullover, or a long tunic-length cardigan with beautiful buttons and a couple of deep pockets (where else would you keep your grandchildren's Hanukkah gelt?), here's your chance to have your own personal Chanukah heirloom sweater designed and knitted just for you.

This traditional Hanukkah design was created for a lovely lady in Tennessee.  She told me she'd searched for years to find a beautiful heirloom sweater to wear to her family's Hanukkah celebrations.  I was proud to design and knit this sweater for her.  The main color is called "Paradise", a gorgeous shade of blue which makes a fine background for the other designs, especially the colorful candles on the menorah.

The design shows simple dreidels, complete with authentic hand embroidered Hebrew letters, scattered across the front of the sweater, a gold Hanukah menorah with brightly colored hand embroidered candles, and the words, "Happy Chanukah", along the bottom border of the sweater.  The single gold Star of David at the top of the sweater adds a beautiful final touch.  The quality work and craftsmanship in this design speak to generations of heritage and tradition.  

Here's a similar heirloom Hanukkah design, this time a Yale blue crewneck pullover with a more detailed, elaborate European menorah holding striped blue and white candles, the colors of the Israeli flag.  There are three dreidels, each with authentic Hebrew letters on them, and a bright red gift box, complete with silver bow.  The gold Star of David, traditional symbol of the more ancient "Shield of David", crowns the design with a touch of historical elegance. 

This Hanukkah sweater is a classic, to be cherished and treasured, and worn to family gatherings and holiday parties each year.  It was a pleasure and a joy to design and knit.  My customer was delighted with her new sweater.  She told me that she could not wait to wear it to her family's Hanukkah dinner in the fall.

This particular Hanukkah sweater shows how individual each sweater really is.  Designed to be a vest rather than a long sleeve sweater, it was created to be colorful and fun.  The dreidels on this baby blue sweater vest are pure white, outlined with a border of gold, and then each hand embroidered with an authentic Hebrew letter, each in a different color. 

This Hanukkah custom design was truly a labor of love.  It took hours and hours to design and knit, and was worn by a senior lady in Florida, who would go each year at Hanukkah to her town's community center and read Hanukkah stories to the children.  This was her hand knitted custom designed "Hanukkah storyteller's vest".

This closeup photo shows a large gold menorah, with the words "Happy Chanukah" beneath it. 

"Chanukah" can be spelled any number of ways, for instance, "Hanukkah", "Hanukkah" and "Chanukah".  Wikipedia shows that the spelling "Hanukkah" is most commonly used in the United States, while "Chanukah" is often used in Europe.  You can have it spelled however you want on your own custom design.

Against a main color "soldier blue" background, the gold menorah with its brightly colored candles, complete with tiny yellow "flames" above each one, add to the colorful nature of this beautiful Hanukkah sweater design.  The edges of the bottom and the sleeves are knitted in a narrow border of gold, to match the menorah.

Every year, I get requests for "ugly" holiday sweaters.  Yes, I can design ugly, outrageous Christmas sweaters - ugly, but fun, too!  If you are going to a special Christmas or Hanukkah party and want to ... shall we say, shock the relatives - an outrageous custom designed sweater can be just the thing. 

A sweater is like a blank canvas, on which you can place any number of holiday designs.  Designs can be placed on the sleeves and the back of the sweater, not just the front.  For instance, this photo shows the back of a sweater.  Across the shoulders, the words "Santa's Elf" appear knitted in color "California gold", against a background of "red hot".

Santa's Elf wore this sweater to a holiday party last Christmas.  She was quite a hit.  Apparently, her office hasn't been the same since.

What's the most outrageous sweater I have ever designed?  This has to be the winner.  It was completely covered with hand knitted custom designs, on the front, back and up both sleeves.

Across the top is a row of real, functional, tinkly silver bells, each one sewn on by hand.  The Christmas tree is topped by a knitted gold star.  There are three "gift" boxes, each with a real bow sewn onto the surface of the sweater.  The words "MERRY CHRISTMAS" are knitted in gold across the bottom of the tunic-length sweater. 

My favorite part of this custom design is the "CANDY" and "COAL" pockets.  They are real working pockets, nice and deep, and each edged with fluffy white "fur" such as you would find on a Santa's hat.  In one pocket, candy can be stored for good little children.  And in the other pocket, "coal" can be stored for those who have not been quite as well behaved.  Imagine the fun you would have at a party with this sweater!

This custom knitted Christmas sweater was truly a labor of love.  It took over a week to design and knit, and required hours and hours of patience and hard work.  When I was finished, I had worked on it for so long that I really wanted to keep it! 

When my customer received the sweater, she said, "The sweaters are wonderful! ...  I also found candy coal for the pocket.  I can't wait to see [her friend's] face when she opens the gift ... It is so awesome to see the finished product.  The sweater is beautifully knitted."

And yes, I do knit Santa's hats!  Sometimes, a Christmas sweater just needs a matching hat.  Or, the hat can be worn alone, for instance, with a business suit to a company party after work.  Amazing how wearing a hat can cause so many comments. 

I hope that looking at these Christmas and Hanukkah sweaters has entertained you and provided you with some ideas for your own personal design. Maybe you have an annual holiday event that you look forward to each year (or not), or a family celebration or party.  This year, you could show up in a beautifully designed and hand knitted custom holiday sweater, in your favorite colors and with all of your favorite design features, a personal heirloom sweater that will be your own signature look.  It will make your Christmas or Hanukkah celebration that much more special, knowing that you look your best.

Because each sweater is unique and different, prices will vary.  Your sweater will be priced according to the complexity of the design and how long it will take to knit.  Prices range from $195.00 to $425.00.

Why not tell me what you want, and I will knit it for you in your size and colors.   Send me an email, and we will get started on your own custom design sweater holiday sweater.