Free Printable Holiday Crochet Project Planner
This Holiday Crochet Project Planner and helpful tips will keep you organized and on-track to finish all of your handmade goodies by the big day!
Wow! How are we already into November?! If you’re like me, you’re probably starting to calculate the number of remaining crocheting hours divided by the number of handmade gifts on your list to determine if you’ll meet those holiday shipping deadlines in time. Yikes!
Scarves for the in-laws, hats for my parents, slippers for the niece and nephew, blankets for the kids, teacher gifts, something for the neighbor…the list goes on and on!
I LOVE making handmade gifts for friends and family, it’s one of my favorite things to do! But it can become overwhelming once all the other busyness of the holidays is upon us.
So, I’ve come up with a few tips and tools to help streamline your holiday gift making process! Read on for tricks to being the handmade elf your family and friends know and love but with less stress!
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1. Get Organized with this Crochet Project Planner!
I admit, I am the queen of scribbling messy lists on the backs of envelopes, BUT there is something motivating about writing out your to-do’s on a beautiful, organized planner. It feels good to see all of your tasks laid out neatly in front of you and it feels even better when you get to start checking things off!
So this year, to keep myself accountable, I’ve created this Holiday Crochet Project Tracker and coordinating Crochet Project Notes sheets! The printable PDF is editable so you can keep it on your computer or device and fill it in as you go, or you can print it out and go old school with good old pen and paper.
Whichever method you choose, this crochet project planner will keep you organized. The tracker sheet has spots for the recipient’s name, the name of the Project or Pattern, the “start by” and “send by” dates, AND check boxes for when the gift is finished and when it’s been sent!
The accompanying project notes sheets will help you keep track of the yarn, hook, supplies and notions for each gift and has space for any additional notes (like sizing info).
No need to worry about what supplies you still need to buy or remember when something needs to be shipped – this free printable will be your new master list!
Click here to get the FREE Holiday Crochet Project Planner.
2. Know your Shipping Deadlines
As the pandemic continues, more people will be shipping gifts this year than ever before, resulting in even tighter shipping deadlines. If you don’t want to get stuck paying exorbitant rush shipping fees (who does?!), it’s best to know your deadlines and adjust your project load accordingly.
Don’t forget to note the shipping deadlines on your Crochet Project Planner!
Below are the 2020 shipping deadlines for the three major shipping entities in the US:
USPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| Service | Holiday Ship By Date |
|---|---|
| USPS Retail Ground | December 15, 2020 |
| USPS First Class Mail | December 18, 2020 |
| USPS Priority Mail | December 19, 2020 |
| USPS Priority Mail Express | December 23, 2020 |
Fedex Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| Service | Holiday Ship By Date |
|---|---|
| Fedex Smart Post | December 9, 2020 |
| Fedex Ground Delivery | December 15, 2020 |
| Fedex Home Delivery | December 15, 2020 |
| Fedex Express Saver | December 21, 2020 |
| Fedex 2Day Services | December 22, 2020 |
| Fedex Overnight Services | December 23, 2020 |
UPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| Service | Holiday Ship By Date |
|---|---|
| UPS Ground | December 11, 2020 |
| UPS 3 Day Select | December 21, 2020 |
| UPS 2nd Day Air Service | December 22, 2020 |
| UPS Next Day Air Service | December 23, 2020 |
3. Be Realistic About Your Project Load
As much as I would love to be able to gift everyone on my list with a cozy blanket or custom sweater, that’s just not gonna happen between now and Christmas. Unless you have lightning fingers, or you started gift making back in June, your best bet for spreading the crochet love this holiday season is choosing smaller, faster projects.
As a busy mom, quick projects are my jam! Check out the Patterns section here on the blog for heaps of easy, fast, and gift-worthy ideas.
Some of my personal faves for gifts your family and friends will love are crochet hats (the Color Fade Beanie, Cozy Bean Hat, and Alpine Hygge Beanie are all speedy makes!), shawls (like the Dreaming of Spring Triangle Scarf), homewares (the Farmhouse Dish Towel, Easy Kitchen Towel, or Black Bean Dyed Pot Holders), and crochet accessories (Striped Pom Pom Scarf or Cozy Convertible Mittens make great gifts!).
Or you can scroll through my Fast Crochet Projects board on Pinterest for tons of quick and easy crochet gift ideas!
Whatever you decide to make, just be realistic about what you can get done and still manage to sleep between now and gift giving time!
4. Break It Down
Piggy-backing off of Tip #3, this trick is a method for calculating just how much you can get done by your deadline. I am notorious for biting off more than I can chew when it comes to crochet – I always think I can make more than I actually can!
One easy technique I’ve adopted to be more realistic about my work is to break down each project into what I think I can accomplish in one day.
For example, I might estimate how many rows of a project I can do in a day for a blanket or a scarf and multiply it by total number of rows to determine how long it will take me. Or, for something like a sweater or amigurumi, I would break it down into sections like front panel, back panel, sleeves or head, arms, legs, etc. and estimate how long it will take me to make each section.
I think breaking it down into smaller chunks of work helps you to be a lot more realistic about what you can actually get done.
Happy Making!
My final tip to get you through the holiday gift making season is to ENJOY it! Handmade gifts are a lot of work (and sometimes expense), but there is something so wonderful about sharing your craft with the people you love. They are the gifts that people remember and cherish for years (hopefully!).
I hope you found these tips and tools helpful! Before you go, don’t forget to download the free Holiday Crochet Project Tracker (editable and printable!) to get started organizing your Holiday gift giving!
