#11 My Life In 5: Sketching Snapshots
'Done is better than perfect’, Junk Journalling and Winged Wonders
Welcome to My Life in 5: A Biweekly (ish) Peek at My Sketches
Hello everyone!
I hope you’ve all been enjoying the festive season. My husband and I, unfortunately, haven’t been feeling our best—boo! So, it’s been a very different Christmas for us this year. I’m so grateful we weren’t hosting because we usually do, and honestly, I don’t think we would’ve coped very well. We have had very slow days and a very quiet house which although isn’t usually what happens has been welcome.
Keeping Up: The Beauty of 'Done is better than perfect’
Despite not feeling 100%, I’ve managed to keep up with my daily sketch journal. The entries are quite minimal and not my best, but I’m reminding myself that done is better than perfect.
Creating a Christmas Junk Journal
This year, I’ve decided to try something a little different and create a Christmas junk journal to capture all the memories of the season. I’ve been collecting little bits and pieces—wrapping paper I’ve used, receipts from purchases, bits of twine, chocolate wrappers—those odds and ends that would usually get tossed away—and turning them into a messy, beautiful, and meaningful record of Christmas.
It’s been so much fun combining these elements, each with its own story, along with some writing (something I want to do more of) and sketches. I’ve added little notes, quotes, and moments that wouldn’t fit into my daily sketch journal but feel important to remember.
The best part is that I’m not setting any rules for myself. I can create however I want, letting my creativity flow in whatever direction feels right. It’s such a lovely way to preserve memories in a way that feels personal and unique.
I’m really pleased with how it’s come together so far, and it’s evolving as the days go by.
I think it’ll do a dedicated post on this when I have finished it, but for now here is a sneak peak -
Do any of you keep a junk journal? I’d love to hear if you do.
Garden Corners and Winter’s Winged Stars
In my garden sketches, (This is the 19th and 20th installment of my Revolve Project, a series where I capture snippets of my garden each week) I’ve captured two more “corners” of my garden. I’m enjoying breaking down the garden into more bitesize chunks. I hope to build up a real picture of my garden and the structure of it by doing these sketches, I’ll put them together at some point to show you, but you can see them all from the start here.
Week 19 - My pond, view from the back doors. 
Week 20 - View of the garden from the potting shed. House on the right, Cabin to the left I’ve also sketched a few birds—they really are the stars of the garden right now, with so little else happening. Who else misses the bees? I certainly do!
Did you know? A group of robins is called 'a worm of robins'!
Kindle Convert: My Reading Journey This Year
I just finished reading Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney (brilliant debut book) and had a look at my Kindle insights—turns out I’ve read 29 books this year! Considering I usually average about a book a month, I’ve more than doubled my reading.
I got my Kindle last Christmas, and while I know it polarises opinions and it’s not quite the same as holding a physical book, it has completely transformed how much I read. Before, I’d often read on my iPhone, but it was too easy to get distracted by all the apps and notifications (not to mention it was quite small!). Switching to a Kindle has been wonderfully liberating. I leave my phone elsewhere and get completely immersed in the book.
Here’s my list of Kindle reads from this year (this is another page in my Christmas Junk Journal). I’ve also listened to quite a few audiobooks during my walks with Honey, and I’ve enjoyed several physical books—mostly art books and other visually rich titles that don’t work on the kindle.
What Makes me Happy
This week’s happiness snippets
This is my last post for the year on Substack, and I just want to take a moment to thank you all for your support and encouragement throughout 2024. I wish each of you a very Happy New Year—may it be filled with inspiration, joy, and creativity. I look forward to reconnecting with you all in the new year, refreshed and ready to share even more.
See you on the other side! x
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Well done for keeping up the creative habot even when you were ill! I love the book list, I will be keeping a lost for 2025! I love my kindle too, and have read so much more since having it! Hope you're feeling a bit better now xx
I keep a junk box, and a commonplace journal which to me, is also a junk journal. 😊 I also keep sketch books and a nature journal.