Building a Temperature Blanket

New year, new me and all that. But this year, I didn't want another vague resolution. I wanted something tangible; something I could hold in my hands, watch grow, and see reflected in concrete progress. So I picked up my crochet hook.

The Challenge: One Row Per Day

My commitment was simple and specific: crochet one row every single day. No exceptions. The medium? A temperature blanket - a project where each day’s temperature determines the colour of that day’s row. By the end of the year, it becomes a visual record of the weather, and hopefully a blanket that’s tied to memories from different points throughout the year.

I was new to the concept myself, so I didn’t follow it perfectly. I chose pastel colours that looked pretty to me, then made up my own temperature ranges based on each day’s highest temperature. Accuracy definitely wasn’t the priority here.

I ended up making a spreadsheet that records each day’s highest temperature, automatically assigns the colour based on my completely arbitrary ranges, and lets me tick off completed rows so I wouldn’t lose track (especially as I’d started a little later than January 1st). It was probably over-engineered for a crochet project, but watching the progress build up was surprisingly satisfying (see below screenshot for reference... and yes, ignore the confusing “merge 2 days column for now - we’ll get to that later!).

The Craft: Almond Stitch & Colour Changes

I chose the almond stitch purely because I randomly came across it online and thought it looked beautiful. It creates raised, three-dimensional bumps across each row that give the blanket a lot more depth and visual interest than a standard stitch.

The almond stitch does however require more focus and intention than something simpler, which actually became part of why I enjoyed it. It wasn't something I could rush through while half paying attention. It forced me to slow down, focus on what I was doing and be present for a couple of hours each day.

If you're curious about the almond stitch, this YouTube tutorial has an excellent step-by-step breakdown that helped me learn the technique.

The blanket also meant constantly changing colour, depending on the day's temperature. Each transition involves:

• Cutting and weaving in yarn tails (easily the worst part)
• Switching between multiple colours seamlessly
• Realising that my completely arbitrary temperature ranges and Britain’s unpredictably predictable weather meant some sections looked... a bit repetitive. I originally wanted lots of colour variation, but eventually accepted that was part of the project, even if that meant days of the same pastel.

Whilst sometimes tedious, the whole process has become very meditative and calming. It gave me a reason to avoid mindless scrolling, slow down, and spend time making something with my hands.

Beyond the Yarn

This project was never really about ending up with a blanket (although that's obviously a nice bonus). It's about proving to myself that I could stick to something consistently.

Every completed row is proof that I'd shown up that day. Some days I enjoyed it, some days I really couldn't be bothered, but either way it was something I'd committed to. That mattered more to me than whether the row was perfect.

By the end of the project, I'll have crocheted hundreds of rows - roughly 15,000 stitches. Each one stitched intentionally. Looking at that number makes it much easier to appreciate how much consistency adds up over time.

That's the real purpose of this project. The blanket is just the evidence.

Updates & Learnings: When Reality Meets Planning

A couple months into the project, I hit some unexpected challenges that taught me far more than I'd expected - both about crochet and about sticking to habits.

The Yarn Reality Check

First came the almond stitch discovery.

What I hadn't realised was that one almond stitch row effectively counts as two crochet rows in terms of yarn consumption and height. Clearly a crochet noob, I hadn't factored that into my planning at all.

Suddenly my calculations were off.

At the rate I was going, 365 rows would result in a blanket well over 4 metres long. Not ideal if I wanted an actual throw blanket.

That's where the 'merge 2 days' spreadsheet column came from.

Rather than abandon the project or frogging 2 months worth of work (!) - I started combining two days into a single row (using whichever day had the higher temperature). It halved the size, whilst keeping the overall idea in tact. At that point it definitely stopped being an accurate representation of 2026 London weather, but I'd already accepted this project was more about the process than scientific accuracy.

The second issue was yarn.

Because I'd underestimated how much the almond stitch uses, I burned through certain colours far quicker than expected. Some of those shades then went out of stock, leaving me unable to continue until they were eventually restocked.

It was incredibly frustrating. I'd finally built a daily routine that I genuinely looked forward to, only for something outside my control to interrupt it.

Pivoting Without Losing the Thread

That interruption ended up teaching me the biggest lesson from this whole project.

Rather than waiting around and slowly losing the habit, I immediately started a different crochet project instead. It was smaller, but that wasn't really the point. The goal was to maintain the momentum and continue crocheting every day.

The real lesson: discipline isn't about following the original plan perfectly. It's about adapting when the plan inevitably changes, and finding a way to keep the habit alive anyway.

The temperature blanket will eventually be completed. It'll just happen on a different timeline, with different expectations, and probably after a few more spreadsheet adjustments.

I'll post another update once it's finally complete (fingers crossed).

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Resources

• Almond Stitch Crochet Tutorials
• Crochet Community
• Color Temperature Guide for Seasonal Blankets