Pickle

I personally never had a pickle on my tree but this past Christmas, someone asked to see my pickle.  Not knowing about the tradition, my immediate thought went to an entirely different direction than an ornament.
With some research, I discovered the pickle ornament is an American tradition in many homes (some say, German). The idea is to hang a pickle ornament somewhere on a Christmas tree and the first child to find the pickle receives a special treat or they can open the first package.  This would also engage your adult guests during a holiday party.
 
After my research I designed and stitched a pickle.  My pickle is stitch-painted on 18 mesh canvas, measuring 6 x 2 and includes a stitch guide, gold beads, and the Swarovski crystals.  Also included is a gold ornament hanger which is to be inserted behind the twisted finishing cord as shown by the back picture of my Santa ornament.  This eliminates having to have a looped hanging cord and you can use a hooked ornament hanger as you would with any non-needlepoint Christmas ornament.