Close Up of 2024 Stitching Journal

For now, I think I have my 2024 stitching journal set up and ready for sharing.

The Journal and Accessories:

I started out using the Happy Planner journals and have stuck with them. There are so many journals available – all different sizes, formats/layouts and themes. Some are easily expandable and easy to customize and some are not. Check them out and find what’s right for you. The journal I’m using for 2024 is by Happy Planner and it’s the Miss Maker Big Checklist Layout. I am not affiliated with them in any way.

The lined paper I used is printed from Madison’s Paper Templates and there are some very good paper templates available on that site but there are many sites. For the lined sheets, I used 110 pound bright white.

The project pages are from The Naptime Stitcher on Etsy. There are quite a few useful pages for cross stitching there.

The little printer I use for small photos is a Kodak (affiliate link). I’ve had it several years and love it. There may be newer and better versions available.

The label printer I use is a Dymo Blue Tooth label maker (affiliate link). I’ve had it for almost a year and use it for a ton of projects because I’m big into label making.

I use the Tombow Auto Correct Tape (affiliate link) for whiting out headings (or mistake) that I want to put my own clear label over.

You can see that my book has become rather thick with everything I’ve added. I’ve ordered the expander rings and will swap those out when they arrive.

Favorite Features:

The Happy Planners with the disks are so easy to insert pages into. I always buy the planners with the disks and I always buy the big (8.5″ x 11″). Happy Planner has several sizes but I want to be able to cram as much on a sheet as possible. Some days I may write nothing but when I do want to write more, I want that space available.

The first thing I do in the mornings when I come downstairs is check my junk journal again. I’ve already checked it the night before to make sure there were no appointments early or anything I needed to do right off the bat. Before I start stitching or watching flosstube, I again look in my junk journal to make sure the plans for the day are firmly in my head. There are no appointments in my cross stitch journal. I suppose if I were going to a retreat or meeting a friend at a shop, that might be in there but nothing like haircut appointments, doctor visits, spray for bugs, etc.

There are several calendar type pages and I do look at those each day.

I doubt I ever write anything on these pages but I may write which project I’ve worked on each day – just to be able to glance and see how many days I did at least some stitching. I think knowing I had to write what I worked on might make me at least get a few stitches in and, once I get started, I usually don’t want to stop.

These pages are at the beginning of each month’s section. Not sure what I’ll write on this calendar but I’m betting something will come to me.

Customizing the Journal:

The journal can be customized in unlimited ways. I will share some of the ways I plan to use the journal and some of the pages I’ve added. Oops . . already figured something out. Keep reading! 🙂

This is the area I will use the most. This is similar to a week at a glance. This is just a copy of the first week of January and already, I see something I had planned but am changing. Instead of writing the projects for the month on the weekly page, I’ll put those on the month at a glance page. No Need printing 52 “Projects” labels when I can print 12. I think in that section I will instead write any notes about the projects I’ve been stitching for the week. We’ll see . . nothing is written in stone yet.

At the bottom, you’ll see I have a label that says “A Closer Look”. When I watch flosstubes, I want most every chart I see someone else working on. For the longest time, I got right online and ordered the chart while still watching the flosstube. More recently, I’ve kept a notebook by my chair and have written the interesting charts in the notebook and I’d go back in a few days and take a closer look at the charts I thought I wanted. Sometimes I did still want them and sometimes I didn’t. Then, at the bottom, I like to list the flosstubes I’ve watched because sometimes I want to go back and look at something again. If anything jumps out at me while watching, I can write down the location on the video where it is so I can go back and watch it.

These weekly pages will be the pages I refer to over and over again. I use the Tombow Auto Correct Tape for whiting out the tabs/labels that are pre-printed on the pages when I want to put one of my clear printed labels over their print. I also use it when I make a mistake! 🙂

At the end of each month’s section, I have blank Project pages that I purchase from Naptime Stitcher on Etsy (link listed above). I added 5 pages at the end of each month and have extras in the very back of the journal.

I’ve added lined sheets for a listing of starts, even though there are new project pages for each start, pages for finishes (one would probably be more than enough), Floss Ordered, Linen Ordered and Charts Ordered.

One issue I have is that I get online to order floss. I have the chart right in front of me but by the time the floss arrives and I get around to opening the package, I’ve forgotten what chart the floss goes with so I’ve started writing in my notebook “Floss ordered from Colorado Cross Stitcher for Sarah Garrard 1825, Inv. No. 1234”. When the package gets opened, I can take that floss and put it in the project bag with Sarah Garrard’s chart and not stick the floss in a drawer and never remember what it’s for. In 2024, all that info will be in the cross stitch journal. I will also put a check mark by that entry so I know it has been received.

Finally, I have blank cardstock sheets in the back of the book where I will stick the small photos of finished projects.

Long post I know but I think I’ve included everything. If you have questions or need more info, please let me know.