Top 20 New Projects of 2020

At the end of every year I do a top posts of the year post. Since this year is 2020 I decided to do a top 20. It is always kind of fun to go back and look at the projects I have made over the past year. This year I didn't feel like I was able to get as many projects done thanks to everything that happened this year so it was neat to go back through the year and see what I was able to do. One thing that I found really interesting is that most years almost all of my top posts are crochet projects. This year there was much more of a mix, still lots of crochet but also some sewing, Cricut, and kids crafts thrown in. 

Easy Twisted Headband

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Twisted headbands, or ear warmers, have been all over lately and I have been wanting to make some for a while. They are really easy to make and super customizable. 

Crochet Iced Gingerbread Ornaments

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 The other day I was scrolling through Facebook and one of my friends had shared a picture of some gingerbread cookies they had made. They were decorated with lines of white icing and when I saw them I immediately had the idea to try to crochet something similar. 

Merry Christmas Ornament Sign

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I'm sure everyone has seen the circle signs that are everywhere this year, especially for Christmas. Sometimes they are made with wood rounds, sometimes dollar store pizza pans, but whatever they are made with, they have been super popular lately.

Crocheted Snowballs

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*Purchase an ad-free version of this pattern on Etsy or Ravelry*

I have spent pretty much my whole life, minus a few years in California when I was a little kid, living in places that get snow in the winter, and now I even live in a state that has the slogan "Greatest Snow on Earth", but I still do not really love the snow. 

Metal Mandalorian Sign (and Baby Yoda Themed Christmas Tree)

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One of my favorite parts of Christmas is setting up and decorating the Christmas tree. Our big tree that goes in our front room is full of all sorts of mismatched ornaments that have been collected over the years. It isn't the most Instagram worthy, beautiful tree, but I absolutely love it. It is full of memories and it is the kind of tree we always had when I was a kid. But there is also a part of me that always wants to make a themed tree too so when we decided to set up our small tree in the basement I decided I wanted to do a theme. 

Crocheted Cone Christmas Trees

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Cone Christmas Trees are all over and have been for a long time. Sometimes they are made of styrofoam, cardstock, wrapping paper, or paper mâché, or covered with glitter, ribbon or string. This version is crocheted and they are really quick and easy to make. 

Quick and Cozy Crocheted Beanie

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Life has been a little crazy for me lately, and sometimes when that happens I stop working on creative projects. Things just get busy and I have other things that I need to take care of and craft time kind of gets pushed to the back burner. The problem is that when I stop taking that time for myself I feel it, I miss it, it is something I need. 

Double Pane Scarf

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 Lately I have been trying to make an effort to use up some of the yarn in my stash. I love having a yarn stash on hand but it was starting to get a little out of control and I felt like I needed to use some of it up before getting more yarn. 

Trio of Christmas Signs

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It is Creative Crafts time again and this week is the Christmas Edition. A bunch of craft bloggers will be sharing Christmas crafts this week, with a fun giveaway at the end of the week so be sure to follow along. 

Los Colores Circle Scarf

-Yarn for this project provided by Fairmount Fibers. This post may contain affiliate links-

I have very mixed feelings about variegated yarns, especially those with really short color changes. They can be so pretty on the skein, but they can be hard to make look good in a project. I think they are better when knitting but the nature of crochet stitches can make them look like a bunch of colors just threw up on your project. It can be hard to see the stitches or the stitch pattern and just kind of look like a mess. 

Criss Cross Crochet Hat

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Today I am excited to be part of the Holiday Stashdown Crochet Along put together by CAL Central. Each week there is a new free crochet pattern from different designers each week (26 total), projects that can be used as holiday gifts, decor, and more. And to help you use up the yarn that you have each of the projects is either a one skein project, or a scrappy, stash buster project. Be sure to follow along so you can check out all of the projects and enter to win lots of fun prizes.

Double Double Dishcloth

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It has been a while since I posted a dishcloth pattern. Life has been a little crazy lately and I haven't been able to spend as much time crocheting as I would have liked over the last few weeks. I was starting to really crave time to do something creative, I was missing spending time working on projects. 

Make Your Own Card Inserts for Cricut Joy

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One of my favorite things about my Cricut Joy is how easy it is to make cards. I was never a big card maker before, or a paper crafter of any kind. I hated trying to glue little pieces on an not having it look messy. So when I first saw the Cricut Joy Insert Cards I thought they were great. 

Pick Your Own Pumpkin Bucket

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This summer my mom picked up a couple of these square galvanized buckets for me on clearance thinking they would work well for a project. They are actually ice buckets/beverage dispenser stands, but really any similar sized pocket would work for this project, even a wooden box. Anyway, when she gave them to me I immediately knew what I wanted to do with one of them and I have been waiting for the right season to make it. 

Mini Canvas Halloween Magnets

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The last couple of weeks I feel like I have posted a lot of crochet projects, so the next few days will be some other types of crafts. I really love crocheting but it tends to take a while to finish a project and sometimes I just want a nice quick project, or even just something different to switch it up a little. Todays project was a really quick, easy project and one that would even be fun to do with kids. And be sure to keep scrolling to the end of this post to enter to win a giveaway for a gift card to your favorite craft store.

Fall Triangle Scarf

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 Day 2 of my birthday week projects and giveaways is here, and it is a fall crochet project and a fall crochet giveaway as well. I love fall, it is my favorite season, and not just because my birthday is in the fall. I love the cooler temperatures, the holidays, the decorations, the smells, and I love the colors of fall. 

Anne of Green Gables Doll

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This week is my birthday so I thought it would be fun to celebrate a little. I usually am not a birthday person, I don't like to make a big deal about it or really draw attention to it, but I have been wanting to come up with a reason to do a few giveaways and figured this would be the perfect excuse. I have reached out to a few of my favorite brands and will have different giveaways happening each day leading up to my birthday on Thursday. They will all be happening over on Instagram but I will share all the details on my blog and other social media accounts as well. 

Favorite Crocheted Hats for Fall and Winter

 Fall is finally here and I am so ready for the cooler weather. One of my favorite things to make and wear in the fall and winter is crocheted hats, and I have some favorite patterns that I love to use.

Textured Crochet Pumpkins

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 One of my favorite things about crochet is all of the different textures you can create with the stitches. I have made a few different types of crocheted or other yarn pumpkins over the time I have had my blog, in fact one of my first patterns was a crocheted pumpkin. For a while now I have been wanting to combine those two things, crocheted pumpkins, and textured stitches to create some more pumpkins and I finally did it. 

Picot Edged Scarf

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 Today I am really excited to be joining 15 other crochet bloggers in the Perfect Picot Blog Hop hosted and organized by Michelle from Stitch and Hustle. All of us made projects using the picot stitch in some way, and all 16 patterns are free on our blogs. 

Fall Moss Cowl

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Now that September is here and my kids have gone back to school I am ready for fall to be here. Although, I guess if I am being honest I am always ready for fall to be here. It is my favorite season and always has been. I think part of that is because my birthday is in the fall, also it starts the holiday season. But I also just love the cooler weather, the crispness in the air, the changing leaves, the smells of pumpkin spice and apple. I just love all of it. 

Loom Knit Pumpkins

 I have made a few different kinds of crocheted and yarn pumpkins over the years but this one doesn't require any knit or crochet skills and you still end up with a cute little knit-look pumpkin. These pumpkins are made on a hat loom. 

Reading Tracker Bookmarks

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I loved to read as a kid, I would spend hours every day with my nose in a book. I remember getting in trouble for staying up too late reading. I have always felt like that love of reading is something that I want to share with my kids, but sometimes it seems like they would rather be sitting in front of a screen. 

Crocheted Panda

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Today I am excited to celebrate one of my favorite companies. Fairfield World is celebrating its 80th birthday and to celebrate for 80 days different bloggers are sharing projects made with Poly-Fil, and today is my turn. 

Happy Halloween Sign

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Once September hits it always feels to me like the rest of the year flies by. Now that kids are back in school before we know it it will be October and Halloween, then Thanksgiving, and Christmas. I'm not sure what Halloween is going to look like this year, but whether or not there is trick-or-treating and  Halloween parades at school, one thing we can do no matter what is make cute decorations to put up in our houses. 

Stenciled Journals Kid Craft

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My kids love to paint, they are constantly asking me if they can paint something. Sometimes it drives me crazy because  it usually means getting into my stuff, my paints and blanks that I have for specific projects, and making a big mess. But I also love seeing their creativity and the things that they make when I just let them create. 

Rainbow Unicorn Infusible Ink Shirts

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As we were getting ready to send kids back to school a couple of weeks ago I decided kind of last minute to make a couple of new shirts for some of my kids. I had some fun rainbow colored Infusible Ink transfer sheets that I thought would be perfect for my rainbow, unicorn loving 8 year old. 

String of Beads Hat in Baby, Toddler, and Child Sizes

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A couple of weeks ago I shared a new crocheted hat pattern, the String of Beads Hat. I only made the pattern in adult size, but since then I decided I should make it in smaller sizes as well. 

Tie-Dye Baby Onesies with Iron On Decals

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A couple of weeks ago I shared the tie-died onesies that we made with the dye we had leftover after tie-dying face masks, so today I am sharing what we did to them next. 

Easy Crochet Mask Lanyard

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Do you have kids heading back to school this fall, or is everything virtual where you are? We had a choice of in person or virtual school for the first quarter and it was such a hard decision. We went back and forth so many times, feeling like there really was no right answer, but in the end we decided to send them back in person. My kids start next week, but I know some of the schools around us are starting this week. 

How to Use Faux Fur Pom Poms

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Faux fur pom poms are one of my favorite ways to finish a crocheted hat. This past week I made several hats and added faux fur pom poms to them. I used a couple different types of pom poms and as I was attaching the different ones I thought it might be a good idea to do a post all about faux fur pom poms, where to buy them, what the different kinds are and how they work, different ways to attach them, etc.

Tie-Dye Baby Onesies

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 A couple of weeks ago when we tie-dyed masks I had some dye left in the bottles and didn't want it to go to waste so I looked around to see what else I had that I could tie-dye. I happened to have a package of white onesies that I had picked up one time when they were on clearance for really cheap. I thought they would be good to have on hand for iron on projects, and had used a few for that, but I figured they would be fun to dye as well.

String of Beads Hat

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 A couple of years ago I made the pattern for my Bead Stitch Hat and when it comes to wearables it is probably my favorite thing I have crocheted. I have made several since then, including in a few different sizes, and I also have taken that pattern and tweaked it and changed up the stitches to make different variations. 

Infusible Ink Cosmetic Bags

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Cricut recently came out with some new Infusible Ink blanks, products that are specifically made to work well with Infusible Ink. The new blanks include Pillow Covers (in both white and cream), Wine Bags, Toddler Shirts, and Cosmetic Bags. 

Mossy Path Washcloth

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It has been a while since I have shared a new crocheted washcloth pattern. This particular pattern I have had ready to share for a long time but other things kept coming up to push it back, other projects I wanted to share at a specific time, like Harry Potter projects last week, and Christmas in July the week before, or even just projects that were more summery than these. 

Harry Potter Shrinky Dinks

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Like the Perler Beads that I shared at the beginning of the week, Shrinky Dinks are another activity that is always a big hit with my kids. Recently they found an old Shrinky Dink they made at an event we went to almost a year ago and were reminded of the fun that they had. 

Floral Deathly Hallows

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Surprise! It is another Harry Potter project! This one is a design that I drew, uploaded to Design Space and turned into a cute little zipper bag and reverse canvas. It is so fun to take a project from idea to finished product and this one went a totally different direction than I had originally planned. 

Sorting Hat Candy Boxes

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Which Hogwarts House do you belong to? Have you taken quizzes to be sorted or just feel like you belong in a particular house? Or maybe both?

Harry Potter Perler Bead Designs

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I don't always do weekly themes on my blog but every once in a while it is kind of fun and apparently July is the month of weekly themes. Last week I did projects with a Christmas in July theme, and this week I want to do a Harry Potter theme since this week would be Harry's 40th birthday. 

Christmas Chalkboard Sign

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The next Christmas in July project, like yesterday's is another Cricut project, this time using vinyl to make a chalkboard sign. 

Christmas Coasters with Infusible Ink

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Christmas in July project number 2 is a Cricut project, a set of coasters made with Infusible Ink. I used the round ceramic Infusible Ink coaster blanks and buffalo plaid Infusible Ink transfer sheets to make a set of Christmas-y coasters. 

Bead Stitch Christmas Stocking

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It is time for some Christmas in July projects! I can believe that the year is half over and Christmas is only 5 months away. What a crazy first half of the year it has been. I debated whether or not I was going to do a Christmas in July week this year, and after going back and forth on it over the past couple of weeks I finally decided to go ahead with it. I'm not sure I am ready to start thinking about Christmas when I am still trying to figure out whether or not my kids will be going back to school in a month, but I also know it is always nice to get a head start on handmade gifts, as well as items to sell for the holidays whether online or at craft fairs (if they happen this year). 

How to Tie-Dye Face Masks

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I have been seeing a lot of tie-dye projects around this summer, not just DIY stuff, but also things you can buy in stores. I haven't made a tie-dye project in years. In fact a few years ago I had a giant tie dye kit that I got at a blog conference and after using just a couple of colors I donated the rest of it to my kid's school because I didn't really think I would use it again. But, seeing so much tie-dye made me want to give it a try again. 

Personalized Face Masks with Iron On

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Our local school districts and governor have been announcing plans for going back to school this fall, and part of going back to school means masks for kids. Which means we need to make sure we have plenty of masks in the house for the kids to wear everyday and to be able to wash them regularly. 

Crocheted Hedwig with Removable Scarf

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This week I am joining several other bloggers in a Creative Crafts Blog Hop that is Harry Potter themed! I love Harry Potter and have shared Harry Potter projects on my blog before so when I was asked if I wanted to participate there was no hesitation, I absolutely wanted to join in. I had already planned on sharing some Harry Potter crafts this month so it fit perfectly into my schedule. All week long different people will be sharing Harry Potter crafts and today is my turn (along with several others, click the picture below to see more).

Reading Pocket Pillow

Today I am excited to be a part of the Christmas in July Make Along with Underground Crafter. 31 bloggers have teamed up to bring you a month of free crochet, knitting, sewing, and crafting projects to make for the holidays. Get a head start on your handmade holiday gifting this month and join in the fun. 

Ring-Around Crocheted Scrubbies

Today I am excited to be participating in the Scrubbie Crochet Along with CAL Central. Over a period of 10 weeks (I am week number 5) different crochet designers will be sharing different scrubbie patterns, so if you follow along all of them you will have 10 new scrubbie patterns. 

8 Baby Gifts to Sew

When someone I know has a new baby I love making a baby gift to give them. I often like to pair my handmade gift with something super practical, like diapers, but I love adding something handmade by me. 

Bee Kind T-Shirt Design (+4 More Bee Designs)

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One of my favorite shirts that I have ever made for myself was a Be Kind shirt. I really liked the design I created and wore it all the time in the fall and winter (it was a long sleeved t-shirt), and I liked the message too. Lately I have been seeing a lot of "Be Kind" type shirt designs, online, in social media ads, etc. One design that I have seen quite a bit is some version of Be Kind where the "BE" is replaced with a "BEE".