2026
I think it is fair to say that we had all hoped that this year would be a kinder, gentler year, but less than two weeks in and it is clear that isn’t going to be the case. So how are we going to tackle 2026? I am going to face it on three fronts. First, I am going to stay creative and work on building community through creativity. Second, I am going to pick at least one issue and keep shining a light on it. Third, I am going to take some time out when I need to, to make sure that I don’t burn out. But how does this relate to you?
Well the Banned Book Project is going to continue, so every month expect to see another quilt block based on a banned book. I would really love to get more of the community involved in this project, and the easiest way to get involved is to send me titles of books that you would like to see included (I had a couple of suggestions last year, but I would love to see more this year!) I am also going to do a blog post next month on the project that will be updated regularly with all the books that have been included. I know compared to so many other things book banning may seem like a trivial issue right now, but it is a root cause of so many bigger issues, and reading can help tackle big problems, such as lack of empathy, with simple words, so I am going to keep pushing this one forward.
As for other community building opportunities, we have started this year’s BOM program, the 2026 Row by Row, which is a great opportunity to learn (or practice) new skills and explore different creative options (we are all about options and exploring your own creativity with this one). Later this year I will be running a sew along with one of the new patterns that I have coming out (there are several coming out over the summer), and I would like to set up a community discussion space for that, but really want it to be off of social media so I am still looking into different options (if you have any suggestions let me know). I am also happy to do some in person community building at QuiltCon this year, and potentially other events (stay tuned for updates).
I am also going to try and include a small printable each month that you will find fun and useful. Sometimes it will be a pattern but other times, like this month, it will be something to help with your goals for the year, both sewing and personal. I created a sheet of punch cards (they have been all over social media as the new goal tracking trend), on the sheet there are 8 total, three are sewing related, three are self-care/time out related and two are blank so that you can set them up for your own goals. You can find those printables here. I would love to know what goals you set for yourself and how you plan on tackling 2026.
