Dear Future!Me: Temperature Blanket 2023

My wise friend Michael Merriam says, “The perfect is the enemy of the done.” I made a temperature blanket in 2023, and boy howdy does it exemplify that truth. 

If you’re not familiar with the concept, a temperature blanket works like this: divide your location’s usual temperature range into segments. Assign each segment a color of yarn, thread, or fabric. Then every day for (usually) a year, crochet/knit/weave/quilt/etc. one row, round, motif, or… whatever in the color that represents that day’s high temperature. Some crafters incorporate secondary colors and/or special stitches for low temperatures, precipitation, or other noteworthy climatological happenings, but the basic concept stays the same.

My 2023 temperature blanket used Heather Love’s Thorofare Temperature Blanket pattern (with minor modification). I finished it on January 3, 2024, which I honestly hadn’t thought I’d do, given the clusterfork the last section was for me. Now that it’s done, I love it (though not as much as our oldest cat does; he’s claimed it as his blanket).

2023 temperature blanket. Thorofare pattern by Heather Love. Blanket and photo by the author.

This blanket taught me so much about both crochet, which I have almost 20 years’ experience with, and myself, which I have over 40 years’ experience with. I share the following reflections (after the cut) to offer future would-be temperature blanket-makers (including Future!Me) food for thought.