Temperature Tracking, Cross-Stitch Style

Recently I mentioned a temperature cross-stitch pattern in a post about Teeny Weeny XStitch, but if the concept is new to you I wanted to give you a little more information and another fun pattern option.

Temperature blankets and other related projects are popular among knitters and crocheters. The idea is that you make a blanket (or a scarf, snake, or something else), stitching a row, round or square for each day of the year, with the color representing the high temperature for each day.

You can do this for the current year as it happens, or use historical data to document a previous year (maybe your or your child’s birth year, or your wedding year, etc.). There are lots of variations that include high and low temperatures, or use mood or the genre of books you’re reading instead of the temperature, but you get the idea.

Doing a temperature cross-stitch project won’t give you a blanket, of course, but it will make a colorful project to hang on the wall and a fun and easy daily stitching practice. It’s also easy to catch up if you’re behind, or start stitching after the year has begun.

This sampler pattern from Zahra Design Studio has 30 different color options listed for the temperature range, but you can assign your own colors to suit your decor if you’d rather. Mini motifs that look like little quilt blocks are used to designate each day.

There’s extra space at the bottom to accommodate leap years, and to give you a place to document the year and location of the temperature readings (an alphabet is included for this purpose).

Each row is 19 days long. You could add a little backstitching to mark where the month changes, or use metallic thread for special days like birthdays if you want. So many fun options!

You can get this pattern from Zahra Design Studio on Etsy.

Have you ever made a temperature project? I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Zahra Design Studio]

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Designer Spotlight: Teeny Weeny XStitch

Pigeon Coop Designs is a Canada-based Etsy shop that bills itself as having nature inspired cross stitch patterns and kits. I get a little of a folk art, retro feel from their designs, which emphasize natural landscapes and animals.

In fact, I just shared one of their patterns the other day in the fox cross stitch collection, not realizing I also had them on the schedule to feature.

Because they are based in Canada, a lot of the landscapes and landmarks featured are found in that country. Though of course you could stitch up a raccoon in a trash bin with any city’s name on the side, and the four seasons of Quebec could be any place with mountains, trees and a river if you don’t happen to have a connection to Canada.

You’ll also find more general nature designs like shells and ocean animals, lots of birds, some desert creatures and landscapes, trees and mountains and more.

One design that caught my eye was this flower farm design, which reminds me a little of quilting, I guess because of the bands of flowers. It uses 11 colors and the design is 100 by 91 stitches. As charted the project is square, but you can put it in a 7 inch round hoop and it just covers a bit at the edges.

While the emphasis here is on nature and landscape designs, there are a few urban designs (as mentioned above) and a handful of patterns marked as holiday. As of this writing they are all Christmas/winter themed, and there are birds and other animals here as well as cozy looking log cabins, a quilt block inspired design and more.

Check out Pigeon Coop Designs on Etsy if these look like projects you would like to do. I’d love to hear if you make something of theirs!

[Photo: Pigeon Coop Designs]

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