Embroidery Journal 2025 Finally Finished

 

Hello,

I finally finished my 2025 embroidery journal. It feels so good to finally complete this personal projects. I can't wait to start for the 2026 journal. 

I have to admit, I don’t embroider every single day. Some days I simply sketch the idea directly onto the cloth, and other times I jot it down on my iPhone or iPad. Keeping those little notes helps so much—when I finally sit down to stitch, I can look back at them and draw the design with clarity.

Some months feel wonderfully chaotic—especially when I’m traveling and wishing I could stitch every little moment into my embroidery, even though the space never seems quite enough. Other months are quieter, filled with everyday rhythms like house chores and sewing. But no matter the pace, there’s always something small and meaningful worth capturing.

When I first started, I hadn’t done embroidery in ages, so everything felt a little rusty. But stitch by stitch, it slowly came back to me. I’ve noticed my mood shows up in the work too—some months look a bit rough around the edges, while others turn out surprisingly refined, as if I had extra patience to spare. Among them all, the Durian (July) and the Avocado (August) are the ones I’m especially proud of.

I bough the book 365 Days of Stitches by Steph Arnold from Amazon India. It has a lot of pattern that you can refer to. I also use free icon from Flaticon. And sometimes also from my iPhone emoji! 

Project Details: 

• Fabric: Linen 
• Size: 12" x 12"  (you can also do 10 Inch or 8 inch) 
• Thread: Stranded embroidery cotton thread - 2 strands 
• Pattern sources: 365 Days of Stitches, Flaticon, iPhone emoji

 

If you ever feel inspired to start your own, there’s no shortage of ideas out there—YouTube and Pinterest are full of tutorials, patterns, and creative sparks waiting to be explored.

Looking back, this little year‑long embroidery journey has become more than just a craft project. It’s a quiet way of noticing my days, honoring the small things, and stitching a bit of myself into each month. I’m grateful for what it’s taught me—patience, presence, and the joy of creating something slowly, one moment at a time.

Thank you for stopping by! 

Have a nice day,

Elvira

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I Made Boxy Pouches Again

 

Quirky Keychain Mini Boxy Bags

It's already mid of May. How time flies! Since my last post, I've been busy with a couple of things! The most recent ones, I am having fun making quilted boxy pouches. It's been ages since I make one! 

There are so many ways to make boxy pouches or bags! One of them is like in this video. 

Mini Keychain Bags

I made 3 sets so far and all of them are available in my Etsy shops. While making the bigger boxy bags are easier, but I enjoyed making the small ones more, the smaller ones bring a delightful sense of accomplishment!

These boxy bags are very handy. The spacious size is literally great for any storage like make up, crochet or knitting projects, to gym bag. I gifted my sister one a few years ago and she used it to keep spare clothes whenever she went out of town on work. 

The size is pretty generous:

Large: 9" W x 4.5 " H x 5"D
Medium: 7" W x 4" H x 4" D
Small: 5" W x 3.5" H x 3.5" D

Here are the sets that are now available in my Etsy Shop

Strawberry Boxy Pouches

Quirky Moustache Boxy Bags

Pineapple Boxy Bags

And now sneak peek to my personal project! The embroidery journal. I am finishing April right now but here's what January and February look like. My plan is to work on it in the evening before bed time and during weekends, but that's not always happening. So now, the progress is a bit slow! I keep adding icons and when I get time and mood I will sit and embroider. 

Last month I went to Singapore again to help the son with the move. He's completed his international study exchange program in SMU Singapore. During video call, it looked like we could easily fit them into just two suitcases, but it turned out we had to fill in 2 big suitcases, 2 small ones plus backpacks! With the new travel restriction regarding hand luggage or carry on, somehow we manage to "not be caught" carrying more that the allowed weight on Singapore-Kolkata flight, but while boarding from Kolkata, his carry-on was taken to be checked in. But without additional charges! I guess now I have to learn to travel light! 

My fabrics from SMH

The view at Vivo Mall

It was a short trip, but I managed to go to SMH for a few minutes and bought very few fabrics! The rest of the trip was just packing and having fancy lunch and coffee and strolling around Bugis street. This time, my legs and back did not give trouble. I guess, the protein diet and weight exercise that I've been doing helps and of course the glucosamine! Welcome to menopause life!! 

So more or less that what has been going on in my life. Another thing, I try to start journaling on my iPad. I realized my hand writing is so bad! We are so used to tapping on phone/iPad or typing on keyboards. I mean I always send hand written note to my buyers, but it's a short note. When I have to write longer, it's getting worse and worse haha. So now I really enjoyed writing on my iPad Notes. Nothing aesthetic right now, just simple one writing my fave quotes, or song I listened to, or how I feel and stuff.  By the way those aesthetic notes like on YT takes a long time to set up. With digital journal, I can easily copy paste photos or quotes or song. So it's been fun so far!  

That's all for today, thank you for stopping by and read my blog. I hope you enjoy your visit :)

Have a nice day,

Elvira

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