I’m going to hash out everything I made in the last year with pictures! This year was a bit unhinged. My main goal was to create and craft as much as possible to help myself with my grief and grieving the loss of our wonderful daughter, Aurora, in November 2022. (Read about her here and here and also on my pinned Instastories.) I know she would’ve made the world beautiful, so I dedicated my hands and skills for a year to make beautiful things, especially gifts for others.
I don’t think I’ll be cranking out nearly as much in 2024, but that’s because I’m prioritizing my (absolutely wild) backlog of cross stitch projects. I really want to go into the 2024 holiday season with my, Josh’s, and Rory’s cross stitch stockings complete since our boys’ stockings are already done. (You can see them here.)
If you’re looking for more projects, I recommend you check out my diy board on Pinterest because it’s full of some really great (and a lot of free) patterns!
I’ve tried my best to link everything I could. Some of the materials I couldn’t remember, but most patterns give you a specific list anyway. Let’s gooooo!
January 2023
My finish in January was this Red Heart Houndstooth Throw Blanket, which is a free pattern from Yarnspirations. I used Caron One Pound in black and white. It whipped up really fast. I was sooo tempted to keep it for myself, but it was for my friend group’s Secret Santa we do every year. (We usually do it late because the actual holidays are chaotic for all of us.) This pattern is on my list to go back and make again for myself. I will note that while it says “throw” this is definitely a full-sized blanket.
February 2023
First up was the Caron Reversible Geometric Blanket for my oldest’s birthday. This is a free pattern on Yarnspirations. I definitely had to watch a YouTube video (this one) multiple times because the written instructions were too confusing. But once I got the pattern down, this one whipped up pretty fast. I used the rest of my Caron One Pound yarn in white from the previous blanket and also picked up Lions Brand Red Heart Super Saver in light blue.
The next one was made with the most tears and curse words ever, but also a lot of love. It was made for a friend who was going through a terrible time so I was determined to get it out fast so she could have it during the worst bits. I frogged this thing FOUR TIMES!!!! You can only imagine the expletives. 🙂 Anyway this bitch of a pattern is called the Red Heart Aran Isle Throw by Yarnspirations. I love Yarnspirations for the free patterns, but their instructions are so ugh. I had to frog it so many times because they don’t want you to chain one at the end, but just turn, which makes for a clusterfuck of a time. But it came out beautifully and I got it out quickly and the person loved it so that’s what was most important!
(I want to say I made it using Red Heart Super Saver in amethyst, but I can’t remember. Sorry!)
March 2023
Another fast project and another project I want to make again with different colors! I doubled up worsted weight yarn for this one (bigger color range) rather than just buying super bulky. This was for my second son and he picked these really fun colors. It’s big enough to fit over a twin bed so keep that in mind. The pattern is Rustic Tartan Throw from Lovecraft. It’s not free, but it is one you can get a lot of use out of if you like making blankets as gifts. (And I can’t remember the yarn!)
April 2023
This is my precious Rory cardigan. I took some creative liberties with this pattern, which you’ll see after you check it out on Etsy. I used some pink yarn I had bought to make her cute outfits and that’s what you see in the sleeves and strawberries. My main goal was to finish this by her half birthday (April 28th) so I could wear it in her honor and I did. It was very emotional.
Rory is known as our “strawberry baby” because while I was pregnant with her the only thing I wanted was strawberries. And I mean a lot of strawberries and strawberry everything. Usually my cravings calm down after the first trimester, but this craving kept on right till the very end. She’s even buried wearing a cute strawberry bow because it was the only bow she’d let us crown her with while she was alive. Now this cardigan is my Rory cardigan and I wear it during the spring/summer time, which also happens to be peak strawberry season in Sonoma County.
Anyway, as a side note, the pattern maker is very explicit about not wanting her pattern to be created and then sold. So please be mindful while making!
May 2023
No pattern for this one! What I did was find flower outlines of the flowers I wanted to embroider on Canva and then printed them on this transfer paper. It’s important to use transfer paper that can wash away otherwise all that hard work will have been for nothing. And as always, I’m partial to DMC for thread. Since I had hand-embroidered this, I preferred embroidery floss instead of spooled thread. I used a technique known as “thread painting”, which usually uses a single strand of floss to blend the colors together to look more realistic. Yes, it takes forever! But I love it and it comes out pretty no matter how “skilled” you are.
These are the birth flowers of all our children. Violet for our oldest, marigold for our second, and a white rose for Rory, our youngest. Rory’s is technically also a marigold, but she was wearing roses when she passed away. So, naturally, roses became her flower. We all wore white rose pins at her funeral. I also attempted planting white roses (known as Clouds of Glory from Jackson & Perkins) over the summer, but I got a bad batch so I’m trying again this summer.
For those who aren’t familiar, “Lola” is Tagalog for “Grandma”. Since one of their aunties is their godmother, her parents have taken on being grandparents for the kids since our family of origin relationships are strained. So, for Mother’s Day, I made their lola a sweatershirt with her grandbabies’ birth flowers on it to honor her being their grandma as she watches them grow.
Side note: For Father’s Day, I made their grandpa a grilling plate that said “Grandpa Joe’s Grillin’ Plate” with all 3 kids’ hand prints. I copied Rory’s handprint over from her actual carbon handprints we have from the coroner. I laid plastic wrap over the print and painted her hand outline. Then, I pressed it to the plate just as I did the boys’ and cured it in the oven. I didn’t include it in this post though because it felt a little too personal to everyone.
June 2023
First was this Macaroon Blossom Afghan blanket. All my friends have gotten crocheted/knitted blankets except one and I didn’t want her to have to wait until another Secret Santa round to get hers (especially because it’s not guaranteed I’d get her). Originally, I was trying to finish it for her birthday in May, but then she decided to come out in June so I saved it till then. Which, honestly, I needed that time. This blanket was a doozy. It was gorgeous finished, but it had so many little pieces and moving parts that sometimes made it hard to keep track of. I won’t go into every color I used because it’s well over 10, but I will say I used Brava Sport yarn, which feels like butter and works well. KnitPicks also has a huge color range in their yarns and they’re always affordable. If I had loads of time and no other projects on the table, I’d make this one again!
The other June make was this Rory baby quilt. I made this for Josh for Father’s Day. Grief has been so hard for all of us, but I knew all he wanted was to hold her again. This blanket feels like that. I’ve never made a quilt before, but I enjoy sewing. I don’t think I will ever sew a straight line in my life, even with guides (which I definitely used liberally). The quilt top is made of Rory’s old clothes. I knew I probably wouldn’t put any future kids in them because they feel too sacred, but I also didn’t want them just sitting around. I saved all the scraps from all the clothes I used to for the quilt. I’m going to use them for stuffing of a little pillow or bear in the future. The back of her quilt is this fabric and it sewed wonderfully and feels so soft.
July 2023
I was in the midst of multiple fiber projects in July, but found an extra canvas in the closet. The boys love painting and I try to set it up as much as I can for them. So this painting was made with the worst, cheapest paints I’ve ever used! But inspiration struck. Took maybe 20 minutes? I named it “Aurora’s Ascent” because this is what I imagine she saw on her way to heaven: something just so beautiful and peaceful. I used the colors of dawn because Aurora is the ancient Roman goddess of the dawn whom we named her after.
August 2023
A couple projects from the summer came to a close. First, Sam’s quilt. The boys loved Rory’s quilt and wanted their own. So, I took them to Joann’s Fabrics to pick out their quilting fabric. They picked out some really fun fabrics! This quilt is twin size to fit on his bed. I watched a lot of YouTube tutorials and TikTok tutorials to figure out how to make this thing. But it’s still messy. Washes well. Has held up impeccably and Sam is obsessed with it, even months later. I will say that I tried to stick to non-stretchy flannel as much as possible because cotton can sometimes be too thin (and become ragged) and anything that stretches is a nightmare.
The other August finish is this beautiful fisherman’s sweater for my second son. He’s 4 years old and I made it in 3-4 yrs size. I wish I sized up. I kept true to size because sometimes things stretch after washing and I can knit large most times. This is the free Fabian sweater pattern from DROPS Design. I love all their patterns and they’re all free! I’ve pinned a lot of favorites to my DIY Pinterest board, including a section just kids and baby knits. I’ve also found some great vintage patterns on there, which is what this one is.
One thing I did change about the Fabian pattern is I decided to do a rolled collar bind-off instead of a standard bind-off. I just think it looks cleaner and wears better over time. It also stretches better. You just need to be sure to go down 2 knitting needle sizes or your collar will end up floppy.
September 2023
When I tell you that I was sweating and rushing trying to finish this one before October! I used the pattern “Let’s Boo-gie” from Ravelry. It’s such a pretty pattern and the instructions are top-notch. I definitely could’ve sized down and still gotten that oversized feel. I did the 3X to be safe, but it’s super duper oversized now!
I also found this creator on TikTok who has a colorwork tutorial for carrying multiple colors and/or colors over long distances that was a total game-changer and made colorwork feel so easy. And, as usual, I did a rolled color bind-off in a smaller sized knitting needle to try to keep the collar from being floppy. (It was still a bit floppy because of the size of the sweater.) 10/10 – would make again, but would probably start sooner than September.
October 2023
I know not a single iota about Pokemon. But my oldest is obsessed with Pokemon and really, really wanted to be Ghost Typhlosion. And, surprise! That’s not a common Pokemon. But, every childhood calls for at least one Halloween where your mom makes you a (questionable?) costume.
You guys, I winged this one so hard. I went with all flannel fabric. I used this generic Halloween costume pattern to make a onesie with a hood. Then, I eyed Ghost Typhlosion from every angle I could to try to get it right. According to Josh and my oldest, I nailed it. Thank God. But that was so stressful! I don’t think I’ll do that again. (Sorry future kiddos.)
November 2023
Last make for 2023! I had been eyeing this Santa Countdown Pillow pattern for a couple years. Any sort of amigurumi patterns scare me a bit because it really does require a certain skill level and knowledge to get everything to lay right. This pillow came out okay. Definitely harder than it looked. You can see I didn’t put the numbers on, but I triiiied. I literally ran out of cream yarn from fucking up so much before I just said “screw it” and put the pockets on without just to finish the thing.
I don’t know how the pattern creator makes her numbers look so beautiful in the pattern because when I used that exact paint, it looked like I drop kicked my IQ off a cliff. I even tried to use my Cricut to cut out stencils. Mess. Huge mess. Very bad. Tried embroidering it with red yarn. Most fuggo thing I ever saw. So, no numbers it is!
What I’m making in 2024….
That was the whole round-up for 2023! As I mentioned in the intro, I’m probably not going to go crazy this year like last year. I’m feeling a bit burnt. I want to finish my projects on the table, which is currently a lot!
Here are the projects that are currently in progress that I will finish in 2024:
- A fully embroidered image of The Burrow from Harry Potter
- A Secret Santa stitching project
- The Burrow Blanket from Coco Crochet Lee for Josh
- This colorwork sweater in neon colors for my oldest (again, he picked the colors)
- This cross stitch stocking for Josh
- This cross stitch stocking for Rory
- This cross stitch stocking for me
- This cross stitch birth announcement for all 3 kids
- Possibly more paintings, but with quality oil paints this time
- Probably some more knits/crochets for family, but I want those to be a surprise 🙂
Happy crafting and Happy New Year! I hope it’s good for you!