Hey Reader,
I’ve been staring at this blank email for way longer than I should admit.
Because this one’s different. It’s not my usual “here-are-a-few-new-tutorials” style of Friday email.
It’s more of a brutally honest word vomit.
So if that’s okay with you, let’s start with this…
I’ve been feeling gross about social media, “content creation”, and the lack of actual community in online spaces for a while. I’ve also been listening to some great podcasts lately, specifically this one, that made me feel even grosser about it.
And yes, many of you already know this… and it’s exactly why I started my Patreon last year.
So it probably doesn’t come as too much of a shock that I’ve spent the first 9 days of the year not creating, not posting, and not actually trying to do much at all.
Instead, I’ve just been thinking.
Thinking about what I actually want to create vs. what the algorithms want me to create.
Thinking about what you might actually want this crafty community to look like.
Thinking about how I can still carry on in this world of constant “content”, without feeling like I’m contributing to the noise and the dopamine addiction we have from scrolling.
So yeah… that’s where my head’s been.
Here’s the thing though…
I’ve always promised that when I send you an email, it will contain something helpful. But I’ve also promised myself (and quietly, to you) that I’ll always be honest and always be me. I’m not going to show up and pretend.
So maybe it’s just that “new year, new me” feeling that most of us get at the start of a new year, forcing me to confront some things, but I couldn’t just send out our usual Friday newsletter format and pretend that I’m not over here battling with what’s coming next.
There’s a lot I don’t know yet.
But here’s what I do know:
- I can’t wait to figure it out. I feel like I’m juuuust on the other side of some wall between what I’ve been doing out of comfort, and what I should be doing out of passion.
- I’m gonna keep you posted. You’re on this journey with me now, whether you like it or not. (Well, not actually, cuz you can hit unsubscribe at any time. But I hope you stay. ❤️)
- Whatever is coming, it’ll be crafty AF.
And don’t worry… I’m not over here burning it all down.
There are just some shifts happening in me. And since The Happy Ever Crafter IS me, there are some shifts coming there too.
I’m hoping at the end of the year, I will be able to look back at this first email of 2026 and laugh at myself, because it will all have felt so DUH. Like once I’m on the other side, it will all have felt so obvious.
There’s just a bunch more thinking to do before I get there. And now that you know I’m over here doing that, you might start to notice some subtle shifts in the way I show up.
(And look, I know some of you are probably like ‘cool story Becca, but where’s this week’s tutorial?’. I GET THAT, and I’m still always gonna be the person who wants to provide all the good stuff for you. So here’s this week’s!)
I’ll wrap it up now, but if you’re still reading, I have a question for you. (Seriously, please hit reply… I will read every single response ❤️).
What is it that you really want from this space? (And by “this space”, I mean… me. My newsletter, my tutorials, my courses, my social accounts, all of it.)
Your answer to this could be as simple as ‘tell me more about your favourite pens’, or it could be as deep as ‘help me find myself again by leaning into easy creativity’.
Whatever it is… I want to know. Because as I’m figuring out what comes next, I need to make sure I’m protecting the things that matter most not just to me, but to you.
Whew, this feels really hard to hit send on. But it feels real. And that’s my commitment for this year.
Happy 2026, my friends.
-Becca
PS: this email might be serious, but there’s never a bad time for our weekly Dad joke!
What do you call a factory that makes okay products?
A satisfactory