Hey Crafter!
Fall has almost arrived which means the holidays are around the corner! (I know it's tough to hear but in all reality it's true.) It’s the best time of the year to dig into crafting projects, cozy up, and make! Around this time of year, I always start thinking about gift projects and what I want to make for who. It’s always a struggle and a battle between the current projects that I want to make and what I should be making for others for the holidays and birthdays. The best tools I use to plan out and keep organized are Google Calendar and the new Knit&Note app.
First and foremost, I use Google Calendar to stay on top of my business and personal life. If you have a Gmail account (which is free as you may know) the calendar is such a great included tool. For me, it is a lifesaver as it can combine calendars from other accounts you may have, create separate and specific calendars, and give you a current running list of tasks or reminders that you may want to complete. Everything about Google Calendar is customizable to you and has a handy app that syncs on all of your devices and right to your phone so you can check it wherever you are.
*Note: I am not sponsored by Google.
In the screenshot included I have a view of my current calendars for TGHC. To create a new calendar, you just need to select the plus button next to “Other Calendars” (shown at the bottom of the screenshot.) The best part is you can color code each calendar you create by hovering over the name and selecting the three dots to the right, boom you get an awesome array of colors to pick from. I like to leave my color coding per each calendar but you can also color code inside of each calendar which I find hard to keep track of but you may find it helpful.
One of the best features is you can have all or a few of your calendars selected to view at once or you can focus on just one at a time by using the check marks on the left side of each calendar name.
What I like to do is create a calendar for “Gift Knits” or projects, and then I can put in people's birthdays or events where I want to have a project ready so I see it and then I can select a project that I think I will be able to accomplish in the time I have. If you have multiple people you need to make a gift for all due at once for example, Christmas I would recommend finding a project you want to make for each person and then determine how much time you will need for each project then put that into your calendar.
For example, for Christmas gift projects, I create a Word Document and write down all the people I want to create a gift for, what I want to make for them, and how much estimated time each project will take (screenshot below).
Then I plan backward from the due date. Typically for Christmas, I don’t like to be making right up to my due date (Dec. 25th) and I like to give myself a week gap that way in case I need to make something quick for an added relative for the holidays or give myself some “me” knitting/project time. (See screenshots of months below.)
I also take into consideration if I am going to see my friends before or after the holiday, I will rearrange the dates when I make their projects.
I have found using Google Calendar the most helpful for planning projects. I do love to have multiple projects going on at the same time like personal and business so I like to keep track of them by using multiple Google Calendars and the Knit&Note app. Now I only recommend using this app for Knit projects, but I use it for both. You can kind of use it for crochet, but the added features will not be able to have use for a crochet project. What I love about this app pretty much comes down to being able to add a picture of your project, the duration of the project, notes, keeping track of needle sizes used, and the row counter. I do use this app for my crochet projects just to help me have a frame of reference on what I have in progress at a moment in time. I fill out all my crochet details like hook size, etc., in the notes section instead of being able to use their “tools.”
There you have it, my best method so far for keeping organized and planning out projects.
I hope you enjoyed this read and learned something that will help you in your crafting journey!
