Give a Gift
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The new year is almost here, and the time has come to start planning out your sewing goals for 2026! We know goal setting of any kind can be intimidating, so our editors are here to walk you through how to plan out your sewing goals for the new year. We hope that you leave this article feeling inspired to start on your first project of the year, confident in your abilities and curious as to what your sewing adventures will bring. Looking for project inspiration? Be sure to check out our collection of all the patterns that our readers loved throughout 2025!
Reflect on the Past Year
Before you begin settings goals, take a few minutes to think back on all of the projects that you created over the past year. Below are some questions to ask yourself:
- What new skills have I learned in the past twelve months?
- What was my favorite project of 2025?
- What project did I struggle with the most?
- How many projects did I complete this year?
- Who did I sew or quilt for this year (if you sewed for someone other than yourself)?
These questions will not only show you how much you accomplished over the past year but will also show you where you could possibly improve and what types of projects you enjoy making. For example, if you hated how time-consuming it was to clean faux fur out of your sewing machine after making a teddy bear, you can give yourself a break from working on similar projects. The main focus of this exercise is to recognize growth opportunities and what types of sewing projects you gravitate towards.
Break Out Your Calendar
One easy task that will help with organizing your sewing plans is to take a few moments planning out your sewing calendar. Think about what events, holidays, and birthdays are coming up for which you are planning on sewing for someone else. This can include going through your physical calendar from the past year for birthdays and holidays, as well as going through any invitations on your fridge or events that you’ve marked as “Will Attend” on Facebook. This will not only help you keep track of what projects you want to make as gifts but will also assist you in planning out sewing goals and projects. Do you plan to make baby quilts for three baby showers this spring? Probably not the best time to take on a new, unrelated skill. Getting organized will help lessen your stress as your year gets busier.
Get Specific
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When setting goals, the more specific you can get, the better your result will be. Saying that you want to sew more is vague enough that it’s difficult to hold yourself accountable. Saying you want to sew one new project a month is an attainable goal that you can attach a specific number to (twelve projects a year). If you want to learn a new sewing skill, try to name what specific skill you want to master. Instead of saying you want to try more hand sewing, say that you want to complete one cross-stitch pattern by mid-year. The more detailed you can get, the easier it will be to envision yourself completing a goal.
Bite-Sized Goals and Steps
Once you’ve set your main goals for the year, it’s time to start breaking them down into actionable steps. After all, getting started is the hardest part! Start thinking about what you’ll need to start your first goal. Do you need to watch tutorials on YouTube before you begin? Should you examine your weekly schedule to see where you can block out time to begin working on your project? The more you can break your goal down into small steps, the easier it will be to accomplish.
This step of goal setting is also where smaller monthly projects can come in handy. For example, if you want to complete your first quilt by the end of the year, joining a block of the month club online (BOM) is a fun and simple way to achieve your larger goal. By creating one block each month, all that’s left at the end of the year is putting your blocks together.
Go Through Your Fabric Stash
One factor that can put us off of achieving our goals is the rising cost of materials, so as this year wraps up, take some time to go through your fabric stash to see what you already have. If you want to make a baby quilt this year, do you have enough fabric in your stash to make a sweet, scrappy version? If you want to learn embroidery basics, do you have a hoop and embroidery floss hiding at the bottom of your sewing box? Using any materials you already have that keeps your money in your wallet and out of the hands of big box stores is a sewing goal in itself!
We hope you’ve enjoyed our tips for setting sewing goals for the coming year. What projects are you planning on making this year? What was your favorite project of 2025? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!