Last year we made a DIY calendar for our kitchen with a favorite quote for each month—small, inside-joke style captions that made the whole thing feel personal and homemade. You can view the original concept and photos in our previous project notes.
The first time around we were slow and didn’t finish until February, so this year we set out to complete the project early—before our big move could distract us. We finished the whole set in plenty of time and kept the same simple aesthetic: colorful typography on a clean white background.
For this edition we swapped the monthly quotes for numbers. Each month features a bold numeral tied to something meaningful in our life—think Sesame Street meets personal milestones.
Each numeral corresponds to a small story or fact about our family. For example, there’s one for our baby girl, two for the houses we’ve called home (once this move is complete), and three to represent the New York boroughs Sherry and I have each lived in—Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn—though not simultaneously.
Some months mark little anniversaries we’ll celebrate this year: five years living in Richmond (RVA, as locals call it) and seven years of knowing one another. These small milestones are what make a homemade calendar feel personal and worth displaying.
Design-wise we followed the same layout as our previous calendar: a phrase or large word at the top and the monthly grid on the bottom. Everything was assembled in Photoshop, and we used a free display font called Matilde for the large numerals and headings. Printing on standard 8.5 x 11″ cardstock and trimming the edges gives each page a surprisingly polished, custom look.
We’re sharing a Photoshop template if you want to customize the calendar for yourself. To edit it you’ll need access to Photoshop and the Matilde font installed in your system fonts folder so the typography remains intact. The template opens with December visible by default—the other months are hidden layers—so to edit or print a different month, simply reveal that layer and export or print the page you need. If you don’t have Photoshop, you can recreate a similar look in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or any other layout tool that supports large type and basic grids. For those who prefer a ready-made option with a handmade feel, sites like Etsy offer many affordable printable calendars and custom designs.
We hung our finished pages on the usual hook in the kitchen—the same 3M hook we used years ago for a culinary-themed calendar that commemorated our kitchen renovation. A small detail like a hook can be the perfect finishing touch for a simple, printed calendar.
Have you ever made your own calendar? Do you stick with a particular theme year after year? For a long stretch in school Sherry received an angel-themed calendar every Christmas morning, but many people prefer photo calendars, quote calendars, or clever pop-culture themes. And some folks have gone entirely digital and rely on their smartphones. Whether you print a custom calendar or buy one that fits your style, a tangible monthly planner still makes a cozy, personal statement in a kitchen or home office.