Everyday, I embroider an icon that represents my day. Whether that be a stack of pancakes because of what I had for breakfast, bunny ears because I planned an Easter Egg hunt at work, or even a frowny face because I had a rough day. At the end of the year, I accumulate 365 (or 366) icons on my 12 inch embroidery hoop. While 2024 started out quite slow, it steadily picked up as the pieces fell into place for my future.
This year was my fifth year creating an embroidery journal. At this point, I’ve embroidered over 1,800 icons across my journals. I’m so proud of the fact that I’ve managed to stick with something for such a long period of time. It’s been wonderful watching as my embroidery skills have increased and my life has progressed.
January
In January, the weather was miserable, so I spent most of my time indoors eating sweet treats, reading book, and watching TV shows. Later in the month Sam, my partner, and I attended my work Holiday party at a local hotel. We had a lovely night out.
Throughout the entire month though, per my doctor, I was gluten free. It was a bit of a struggle, but we were doing this to see if removing gluten from my diet would make any changes to my health. All I found is that the diet made me miserable and didn’t change my health!
Icons of note:
- Sleep mask – After an exhausting day of work, I fell asleep at 8:30 PM.
- Snowflake – We had our first snow in Glasgow of the year.
- Stack of pancakes – Went out for pancakes with friends.
February
Every Wednesday evening, Sam and I started attending a local pub quiz. We had one night where we got every answer correct! However, most of the time we did terribly but still enjoyed ourselves.
February was a busy month, I launched another new Embroidery Journaling freebie on my website and I set up my 2024 reading tracker. I also had a glowing annual review at work and started learning new tasks.
Icons of note:
- Wind – It was so windy outside that I nearly fell.
- Tissue – Woke up with a terrible cold and slept for most of the day.
- Whisk – I baked some breakfast oat bars.
March
In March, Glasgow finally started to wake back up. I started taking walks through the Glasgow southside, admiring the blooming flowers. I also picked myself up some fresh bouquets to liven up the flat. In my work, I found a lot of enjoyment from taking on additional special projects.
I also entered a new Stardew Valley phase with the release of the 1.6 update on computers. I couldn’t get enough of it! All I was doing in my free time was playing this game.
Icons of note:
- Golden wheat – After feeling no different after being gluten-free for 3 months, my doctor gave me the go ahead to go back to eating gluten.
- Hot cross bun – One of my favourite Spring pastries became available at the local bakeries as Easter approached.
- Bunny ears – I planned a successful easter egg hunt at work! All my coworkers got heavily involved.
April
April was spent celebrating Sam’s new job, reading tons of books, and still playing Stardew Valley.
A highlight of the month was exploring areas near Glasgow that we could see ourselves living. We even picked out an area that seemed quiet, but had a good sense of community. We started actively viewing houses together.
Icons of note:
- Gazebo – Sam and I visited the area that we decided to house hunt in.
- Ice cream – After a picnic at Queen’s Park in Glasgow, I got myself an ice cream.
- Party popper – Sam was offered a new job in a better area.
May
May was a big month in my personal life! I celebrated my 29th birthday by going to Edinburgh with my flatmate for afternoon tea and a trip to the National Galleries of Scotland. With the weather being so nice, I spent a lot of time at the local gelato shop and having picnics in Queen’s Park.
Lastly, Sam and I found a house that needed a bit of work but had potential. We put in an offer and after a bit of negotiating back and forth – our offer was accepted!
Icons of note:
- Afternoon tea stand – My flatmate and I celebrated my birthday in Edinburgh over afternoon tea.
- Bloody teeth – I read Dracula for the first time.
- House with pound sign – We put in an offer on a house that we viewed. It was accepted the very next day!
June
In June Sam and I started discussing our plans for the house; paint swatches, garden upkeep, and furniture layouts. However, I had no idea how long the closing process would actually take in the UK. By the end of the month though, I had finally secured my mortgage.
In my full time job, we celebrated team member appreciation week with Top Golf and a dinner out in Glasgow City Centre.
Icons of note:
- Golf clubs – An afternoon at Top Golf with my coworkers.
- Spinning wheel – I won two prizes from our prize wheel at work, one of which was an early finish.
- Sausage – I made a veggie toad in the hole for the first time – it turned out fantastic!
July
In July I was feeling let down by how long the closing process was taking on the house. The stress was really getting to me and I was struggling to sleep. In order to cheer me up, Sam planned a surprise night away to the shores of Loch Lomond. We went out for dinner, visited some local waterfalls, and even rented a paddle boat to enjoy the sun. Sam is honestly a perfect partner and knew exactly what I needed.
One morning when I was walking into work, I was horrifically pooped on by a bird. It got everywhere – my coat, shoes, backpack, shirt, and even my hair! The worst part is that this is actually a normal occurrence for me. After struggling to clean myself up as much as I could in the office bathroom, I got back to work.
Icons of note:
- Beetle – Sam and I saw a 20th anniversary showing of The Mummy at a local cinema.
- Seagull – from the day I was pooped on while I walked into work 🙁
- Frowny computer – I was unfortunately affected by the Microsoft computer outage which left me without work for a day.
August
August was a big month! I had my mid-year review with my manager which went well, she only had kind things to say. My parents came out to visit from California – Sam and I took them out to dinner at our favourite restaurants, we went to Dumbarton Castle, and on their last day in Glasgow, we finally received the keys to the house! We spent a few hours cleaning the house before we went out to a celebratory dinner.
The next morning, my parents, Sam, and I flew down to London to see some family in London then attend a small family reunion in Surrey. We had a wonderful time, but I couldn’t help but feel anxious about getting back to Glasgow to move into the house.
By the end of the month, we had all of Sam’s furniture and my boxes moved into the house and were semi-unpacked. It was an incredibly hectic week and a half, but the amount of relief I felt was immense.
Icons of note:
- Three houses with arrows – Our move in day was shifted for roughly the 4th time. It was pretty disappointing.
- Chocolate cake – Sam and I went out to dinner in the Glasgow southside and had a fantastic slice of cake for dessert.
- Moving truck – Our movers tried to drive off without completing the moving job. It made a stressful day even worse. In the end, we got all of our belongings delivered and our bed set up by 10PM.
September
Having finally moved into the house, Sam and I got to work on getting it up to our standards. The house had been left unoccupied for months, so there was quite a lot to do. The oven was in an absolute state, so I spent a couple of hours cleaning it. We also tried to have the owner’s old fridge collected by the local charity shop, but unfortunately it turns out the previous owners built the kitchen around the fridge (no joke!!). So we now have two fridges, one in the living room and another in the kitchen.
Once settled in the house, I started prepping my 2025 Embroidery Journal & Reading Tracker kits. In my full time job, I signed up to join a team member council which seemed more demanding than I expected, but allowed me to have some creativity in my day to day job.
In September, Sam and I celebrated our third anniversary with a night out at a horse themed Italian restaurant. We also attended a local farmers market and picked up some freshly baked goods.
Icons of note:
- Tipped over trash can – the previous owners of the house left the bins outside partially full with the lids off for a few months. I had to spend a morning getting rid of the stinky water.
- Small booklet – I revamped my Create Your Own Embroidery Journal Guide to include new tips & tricks and even icons!
- Apron – I deep cleaned the kitchen and bathroom.
October
In October, my full time job began to pick up more as we entered our peak season. At the same time, the leaves began to change colours as we entered Autumn. It turns out that our new neighborhood is stunning this time of year.
Sam and I fed some Koi fish in a garden supply store, attended even more local markets, and treated ourselves to a spa night at home with hot baths, face masks, and sweet treats. I met up with some friends in City Centre for decadent hot chocolates.
Towards the end of the month, I was lucky enough to be invited to visit Stitched: Scotland’s Embroidered Art which showcased embroidered artwork by women and girls between 1720 and 1920. It was such a wonderful exhibit and a great reason to visit Edinburgh for the day.
October was such a wonderful month, after feeling so much stress for the first chunk of the year, I could finally feel myself begin to relax.
Icons of note:
- Bathtub – I took a bath in our new home for the first time. It was so much bigger than I expected!
- Broken TV – Suddenly, our TV broke. It wasn’t the newest TV, so replacing it was one more thing to add to the list.
- Shark fin – I read Sharkheart and found it to be so heartbreaking, I had to add an icon to my journal to represent it.
November
Sam and I took a week off from work to enjoy our new home and do some work around the house. We also drove up to Perth for bonfire night and to see Sam’s family. We enjoyed our much needed week away from work.
A few weeks later, I came down with a nasty cold. Sam had been fighting it for a couple of weeks, but I eventually succumbed to the illness myself.
By the end of the month, we had stripped the wallpaper from two rooms and painted them fun and colourful shades of blue and green. The house was really starting to feel like our own.
Icons of note –
- Butterfly – Sam and I went to an evening craft market and picked up a print of a butterfly.
- Red cup with marshmallow – a friend and I went to a Glasgow gelato shop to try their hot chocolate with marshmallow fluff. It was absolutely fantastic.
- Firepit – Sam and I enjoyed a warm fire pit during bonfire night.
December
In December, our new dishwasher was delivered, I went out to dinner to celebrate a friend’s birthday. On one of my trips through Glasgow City Centre, I stopped to admire the George Street Christmas Market.
Work picked up steadily and in the midst of all of this, I had to complete my written year end review. However, I found out that my stats for the year had been quite good. That same week, our management team treated us to hot chocolates.
On Christmas Eve, I hosted a couple of friends for dinner. I made dinner and dessert for them, it was a lovely evening. Sam and I celebrated Christmas together. I introduced him to Christmas stockings – something he had never had previously. We had also said no other gifts, but he surprised me with a soup maker! After having a fry up and croissants at home, we made our way to Dundee to spend the evening with his family and a few hours at the local pub.
Icons of note:
- Santa hat – We exchanged Secret Santa gifts at our office Christmas Party. I received a cat themed puzzle.
- Microphone – I was interviewed by BBC Scotland!
- Blender – Sam bought a blender & soup maker for Christmas and created a great Potato & Cauliflower Cheese soup for dinner.
2024 has been quite a year, but such an improvement compared to 2023. I spent quality time with Sam, I bought a house which we’ve been doing up together, and I was able to see my friends and family readily.
When my stress levels heightened during the home buying process, my health declined. A few months later, I realised that my health was correlating to my emotions. Now that I’ve eased into my housing situation, my health has leveled back out. For the first time in ages, I actually feel happy and healthy.
I can’t wait to see what’s in store for me in 2025. While I plan on creating an embroidery journal, I think I’m going to do something a little bit different… Follow along on Instagram and join the Embroidery Journaling Facebook Group to see what I have planned.
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