Zero waste collage tags

Firstly: I’m delighted to report that the biodegradable nitrile gloves have completely solved the problem. I’d expected to lose some dexterity with gloves on, but if you get the correct size they fit really well and you hardly notice them.

So hurrah for that.

If you’ve ever ordered any tangible items from my Big Cartel shop, you’ll probably have received one of my hand-painted thank you tags.

very simple watercolour tags

Stocks of these are running a bit low, as you can see. Instead of cutting into new sheets of watercolour paper I thought I’d use up a collection of cartridge paper/card offcuts that weren’t suitable for taking paint but were fine for collage.

Using the painted paper offcuts from last week’s sketchbook collage fest, plus a few more colourful tiny scraps, I’ve used almost every last bit of everything. It’s very satisfying to create something out of what we might call nothing – though everything is something – and hardly anything going in the bin or recycling.

Collage on this scale is very easy, and a simple process. Mini-landscapes at their most basic are just horizontal strips of colour, and they can look very effective with some straightforward mark-making or stamping. I used a corner rounder punch to shape the tops.

hand-painted/collaged thank you tags

I haven’t counted them but there’s possibly a couple of hundred here, enough to keep us all in thank you tags for a while yet.

And finally, while I had all the collage supplies out on the table: I’m taking part again in the annual Postcard Art Exhibit, held this year in the Netherlands in June and raising money for people affected by Alzheimer’s. There’s still plenty of time if you want to contribute a 5″ x 7″ artwork to be sold for this year’s charity. Go to https://www.postcardartexhibit.com before mid-March to register.

‘When you were there’ – 5″ x 7″ mixed media collage with found poetry

Winter: studio time

So far my plans for smarter working this year are going well, and I’ve found a little time here and there for some creative play. I’m not entirely comfortable calling it ‘studio time’ because I don’t have a studio and also I’m not ‘an artist’ in the establishment sense of the word. Middle-aged woman tearing up paper in the spare bedroom doesn’t really sound all that engaging though.

I guess we are all artists, in our own way.

I’ve been working on (playing with) collaging the pages of an old 6″ x 8″ notebook, using my own painted papers. You learn how to do this in my Painted Collage Paper and Mark-Making course, by the way. A little self-promotion there from my Marketing Manager (that’s me).

painted/printed collage papers

I’m intending a celebration of winter in this sketchbook. If you’ve been with me a while, you’ll know it’s my favourite season, and January is my favourite month. It’s cold, it’s still dark, it’s grey, it’s quiet, and nothing much happens, and all of that suits me perfectly. And we’re half way through it already. It’s ok, I like spring too.

inside front cover

For now all I’ve done is cover the pages with printed/painted papers. I’ll go back in to each page with either more paint, mark-making, more collage, or some text.

winter sketchbook, collaged pages

I’m really enjoying the muted colour palette.

collaged printed/painted papers
sketchbook pages

There is, however, a slightly perplexing problem. I appear to have developed contact dermatitis, but only this week, and only on my right hand. Since I’ve been handling paper with both hands, my prime suspect is the acrylic medium I’ve used to stick the papers down. It seems odd to suddenly develop an allergy to something you’ve been using for years, but I can’t think what else it could be. I’ll try some (biodegradable) gloves and see if that solves the problem.

sketchbook page

Wearing gloves is probably sensible in any case when working with paints and inks.

sketchbook page with coordinating tags

It’s been a good few months since I made time for activities like this, and I realise how important and restorative it is. I’m being very strict about my working hours (no social media at weekends, no working beyond 5pm, and a weekly half-day for creative exploring).

So far so good. Wish me luck with the gloves!

Thread storage

I’ve been posting some daily stitching videos on my YouTube channel since 1st January.

January 2026 in progress

I won’t post a daily stitching video every day, mainly because I can’t be available 365 days a year, but also because sometimes I just want to stitch quietly on my own without explaining anything. There might be a video tutorial maybe once or twice a week. Ish.

But as a result of the videos, a few people were asking where they can buy the spools I store my thread on.

thread on paper spools

You probably could buy them somewhere, or you could use sections of drinking straws, but it’s easier and cheaper to make them yourself as I do.

There’s a video tutorial for that here

make your own thread storage spools

I hope you’re enjoying your daily stitching, if you’re embarking on a new year-long adventure. The whole huge blank canvas can look quite daunting at this time of year, but time flies and the days soon fill up if you just focus on one day at a time. Good advice for life too, I guess.

And so we continue.

Continuing

A new beginning or just continuing, it’s all the same really.

Today is about the Roman god Janus who looks back to the year just gone and forward at what’s to come. Stitches pointing backwards, and stitches pointing ahead.

1st January 2026

There’s a video of this one on my YouTube channel. I might do a video of tomorrow’s stitching too, but there definitely won’t be a video every day.

I’ve never intended the daily stitching to be a challenge or a stitch-along; I don’t provide prompts, themes, or directions for daily stitching. It’s more about being guided by your own intuition, and stitching something that is meaningful for you.

Hope everyone’s new year has got off to a good beginning.