Nutcracker Needlepoint Ornament

Needlepoint gives an ornament a weight a printed one never has, and this nutcracker is built square by square: red hat, green jacket, a brown belt with a gold buckle, and a heavy brown moustache. A red whipstitch finishes the edge and a cotton cord loop hangs it. Velvet backs it, so it is soft when you pick it up. At 4 by 2 1/2 inches it fits an interior branch or the top of a package. Mud Pie makes the sort of ornament that ends up in a grandchild's first box of decorations.

• Needlepoint nutcracker worked in red, green and gold
• Velvet backing
• Cotton cord hanging loop
• Measures 4 by 2 1/2 inches
• Ties onto a wrapped gift as a second present