It is 2026 - time for lists!
I wanted to get this post out before February 1st so that it still seems like its early enough in the New Year. It’s a new year with new ideas, new hopes, new dreams and I seem to have a lot of energy for all of that to take place.
My new year did in fact start off with a bang.
I spent a week in Costa Rica (Jan 11-18).
When I got back, I updated my shop with many beautiful, handmade items (and I am still making more!)
And I am busy compiling all of my 2026 lists and I thought I would share some of them below:
My creative to do list for 2026
learn to crochet (I’m going to try this)
start tatting again - not with shuttles but by hand (if you don’t know tatting look here - but the main “tatter” I learned from is RustiKate here on youtube
make whimsical dolls (I’ve purchased the supplies already) look here and here for what I’m thinking of and yes I still love using my pinterest boards
continue my practice sketchbooks to improve my drawing skills - I’ve posted quite a bit on instagram on this like here and here
take some art classes (I always learn something new even when I take classes in mediums I already work with)
finally make this rug which I have collected supplies for over many years and now finally have time to get to it
List of great books I read in 2025 (and will continue with these authors in 2026)
I am not going to list all the books I read in 2025 since I read about 1 book every 2 weeks and not all have been great. The few I list here are the ones that were really, really great. There is nothing like finding someone who has the same taste as you in books which is why I am sharing these here. If these work for you - do share any you think I may like too since this means we have the same taste in books. ; )
The Correspondent, Virginia Evans
The Spoon Stealer, Lesley Crewe
Let the Great World Spin, Colum McCann
I know this much is true, The River is Waiting, Wally Lamb
Other Random Lists
Substack for 2026?
I mentioned in a previous post that I may move to substack. For a while in 2025 I read substack posts obsessively. I was so hungry for new and good information not just on art but on all kinds of things that I just ate up the great authors I found there. I actually provided links to some of my favorite authors on substack in this post
I stopped for a bit because then of course I became inundated with emails on who I should follow on substack and I became overwhelmed.
I will let my newsletter subscribers know when I do move over there to talk about art and many other things.
What I will not be doing in 2026
Making handmade books for sale. I’m giving up on book binding mostly because I love doing it but I make so many and then they are difficult to sell - Oh Liz @BookArtStudio how do you do it!
Stressing over the number of days in a week I post/sell/market/push my work into the world. I believe as long as we stay togther here - that time will come.
That’s it for now - onwards and upwards for 2026! Have you made lists for 2026? - do share!
