An Embroidery Journal Is the Prettiest Way to Remember Your Year

New Year's resolutions are hard to keep, and it's likely because our resolutions often involve doing things we don't always enjoy—like eating healthier, exercising more, or saving money. As we head into 2023, we've been on the lookout for New Year's resolutions that will add something positive to our daily routines—and thankfully there's a crafty activity anyone can pick up.

In late 2021, Sophie from The Stir-Crazy Crafter shared a video of what she calls her embroidery journal, and we're not the only ones obsessed with the results. Her viral TikTok video (which has more than 218,000 likes and nearly 10,000 shares) walks readers through a year-long project: A large embroidery project with a small stitched design for every day of the year.

It's similar to the temperature blanket trend we fell in love with in 2020, where knitters and crocheters would add a stitch to a blanket every day based on the weather outside. But instead of documenting the weather, you add a small stitched word, phrase, or icon that represents what happened in your life that day.

"Every day I stitch an icon that represents my day on my embroidery journal," Sophie says in the video. And her almost-finished result is pretty impressive; her hoop is nearly full of stitched icons. If you're looking for inspiration, she posts monthly progress updates on her Instagram page and her TikTok account, and she's even opened an Etsy shop to sell ready-to-go embroidery journal kits (complete with icon ideas and guides).

How to Start an Embroidery Journal

Plan ahead now, and you'll thank yourself later: Take time to prepare for your embroidery journal journey before the start of the year. (And if you don't get started until after January 1, that's OK, too.) Stock up on all the supplies before the end of the year, so that come January 1, you can hit the ground running. In her videos, Sophie gives tips on what has made the project easier for her.

She recommends buying a 12-inch embroidery hoop and 100% cotton fabric, a water-soluble pen to draw your icons, and a paper journal to keep track of your days and icons. While you'll be adding something new each day, you may not remember what each image represents after a year or two. By documenting the images in a notebook each day, you can look back to see what memories each icon corresponds to later.

She also recommends grabbing a selection of embroidery floss, scissors, embroidery needles, a ruler, and a jar to store your leftover floss.

Here are all the supplies you'll need for your embroidery journal, if you don't already have them:

• 12-Inch embroidery hoop
• 100% Cotton fabric
• Water-soluble pen
• Paper journal
• Embroidery floss
• Sewing scissors
• Embroidery needles
• Ruler
• Small jar

While you're waiting to start your 2023 embroidery journal, take a look through posts under #embroideryjournal on Instagram to see what other people have made this year. There are sure to be several inspiring projects posted at the end of the year, and we can't wait to see them.