In my journaling and creative play, pens are less about refinement and more about curiosity. These are five pens I reach for again and again because they’re reliable companions while I play.
If you make a mini zine after reading this, I’d love for you to just…notice how it feels. Just whether it feels like something you’d want to return to.
The best ideas are the ones that you discover in the middle of the doing something else.
Tutorials are absolutely helpful when you’re brand new; they help you familiarize yourself. But eventually, you reach a point where what you make starts to look different than what you followed.
This week, I’ve been revisiting The Artist’s Way, and I’m reminded why it’s so often recommended as more of a lifestyle practice than a book you simply finish and shelve.
Every piece in this printable sticker set was hand drawn using Tombow water-based markers, then scanned and cleaned just enough to keep the texture intact.
The prismatic creatures started appearing without planning. Started with a zen sloth, two cute kitties I had painted in oil earlier in the week and silly jumping furit. After this, I decided I'm gonna fill up this journal with all sorts little beings.
Journal #12 was a reminder that creativity builds itself over time. With every page, patterns emerged, blocks softened, and the process became easier to trust.
These hand drawn heart elements began the way some of my work does sometimes: 1 AM, a rolling cart full of supplies, and no real plan beyond wanting to make marks.
Built from packaging, scraps, and whatever’s nearby, mini junk journaling is where I create without planning or pressure. The pages are quick, intuitive, and become small records of ordinary days.
This fun + verdant set began the same way most of my work does: experimenting, making marks, and letting the materials lead. Rather than designing a “perfect” collection, I wanted these pages to feel flexible and open, papers you could layer, tear, cut down, or use as quiet backgrounds without thinking
A yearlong creative journaling flipthrough exploring collage, tactile play, and showing up without perfection in a noisy, overwhelming world.