What I've been creating

Welcome to 2026?

I didn’t feel particularly ready for it, given that I felt very behind on writing, reading, and my DIY projects at the end of 2025. I have barely done any knitting or crocheting in months. The chapter I was scheduled to finish, wasn’t. And I still have lots of curtains to make….

But, I still took a solid two weeks off over the Christmas break, which I really needed as it turns out. I hosted friends I hadn’t seen in months (sometimes years), ate a lot of sugar (and other food), took a break from the gym, spent time with my kid, and hibernated at home.

Which led to the first couple of weeks of January being super productive.

One of things I did, dear reader, is revamp the look of the newsletter. I spent some time thinking about what I really want to write about and what it should look and feel like. I decided that what I like doing is creating things. Whether that’s large engineering projects, knitted jumpers, or books. So I will test this format out for a bit, and would love your feedback.

So let’s talk curtains. I bought some luxurious fabric to make curtains for my living room (you may have seen the before and after pictures in my last newsletter). For better or worse, I chose eyelets on a rod. To make sure the top of the curtains stand clean and proud, I added in what’s called buckram — a stiff iron-on fabric — into the top hem. It’s not unlike the steel plates structural engineers add to columns or beams along areas which are carrying a lot of weight and need openings.

But, the buckram has made cutting out the holes to put the eyelets in, let’s say, $%£&* excruciating. (I will be taking these to a local tailor to sort out.)

On the other hand, for my office, which I’ve painted a deep bluey purple, I wanted an informal look. Enter my owls. Mustard contrasts nicely with the walls, and the owls make me smile. The buckram has been left out.

Which leads to my point about perfection.

The curtains I’ve made to replace my wardrobe doors touch the floor on one side, and sit above it at the other. The fabric is holding up well at the top, but the rod I purchased based on measurements didn’t say that the finials (brackets that connect to the wall / ceiling) weren’t included in that measurement…. so the rod is much wider than the wardrobe. I now have a second one to make, and forgot to note the measurements for hems and such like. Installing the brackets led to a shower of dust from my aged ceiling, and doubts about the robustness of the connection.

Oh well.

They do the job I want them to. As I keep telling my daughter, it’s good enough.

And maybe someday I’ll chuckle about the extra long curtain rod, but this month, it’s still too soon…

I’d love to know what you’ve been creating in your worlds? Where are the areas of your life where you’re letting go of perfection?

Please do share in the comments, I look forward to hearing.

And I’ll leave you with a spread from my last children’s book, Seven Small Inventions that Changed the World. I have a new one out very soon, more next month!