January schedule
January unlocked!
Hello to you all and Happy New Year!
I hope you all had a good break and are feeling somewhat rested and restored? I did my back in the week before Christmas, so I was hobbling around somewhat. A sure sign I was at the end of my rope by the end of the year and ready for a break. But despite the hobbling, I do feel rested - I hope you do too!
So I’m coming to you, this first Sunday of January 2026 with the schedule for the month. It’s going to be bigger and better than ever because as well as the usual dates for your calendar, I thought I would run another January Creative Reset1 month. Long time followers will know by now I like to do quite a bit of reflecting, intention setting, and general stock taking whenever I can in the year. This normally happens over the holidays, and so I am going to take January for a big Creative Reset - and I’m inviting you to join me. See below for all the details… And read on for all the dates you need for January here on Gather • Filter • Make.
Ella xx
Upcoming Dates – January 2025
For those of you in a rush, here are all the dates with no blurb:
Accountability Club
Every weekday, 9.30–10.30 am live on Zoom, (UK time) unless crossed out below.
w/c Jan 5: mon, tues,
wed, thurs, friw/c Jan 12th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
w/c Jan 19th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
w/c Jan 26th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
Art Club
Tuesday Jan 6th, live on Zoom, 12.30–1.30pm
Tuesday Jan 13th, live on Zoom, 12.30–1.30pm
Picture Book Club
Thursday 29th Jan, live on Zoom, 8–9pm,
Upcoming Dates with all the details you need to know
Big Creative Reset
Keep your eyes peeled for full details of this, but here is a flavour of what to expect. It will run as a set of weekly posts, with prompts for you to follow along with. Each week is inspired by the title of this very Substack newsletter Gather • Filter • Make
Week 1 - Gather
We’ll begin by gathering an overview of the last year, and reflecting not just on what happened, but how it has impacted where you are right now, and where that leaves you looking into the upcoming year. I will give you a set of questions, prompts and exercises to help you do this.
Week 2 - Filter
This is where you take some time to filter it all, and do some visualising and dreaming. This always feels like a really important thing to do during these times when you’ve had some head-space and feel like you’re able to look at things with a bit less of the mental clutter that dominates during the rest of the year. We’ll take some time to look at your creative practice and consider whether you’re working in a way that feels like it works with you, not against you! Again, I’ll help you do this with a set of questions, prompts and exercises to guide you through it all.
Week 3 - Make
This week I’ll help guide you so you can set some intentions and goals in a way that you’ll be able to come back to throughout the year, using some worksheets that I’ve designed to help you.
Week 4 - Consolidate
A final week to wrap it all up, with worksheets to print and put o your wall for a reminder throughout the year.
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I am a big fan of the power of reflecting, taken from real life experience. It was when I started taking the time to look back over the art I was making, and how I was working that I started to have breakthroughs and leaps forward in my practice - so I know first hand how powerful it can be. I invite you to join me for this month of creative re-set, click below to join me for the price of a posh coffee every month. I think that’s a pretty good bargain!
Join me every1 day (9.30 - 10.30am, UK time) for a live co-working hour on Zoom. A perfect way to get accountability to work on all the negected creative projects you are always meaning to work on, but never find the time. Read more about it here.
Every weekday, 9.30–10.30am (UK time) unless crossed out below. Please check the calendar page for any dates that change.
w/c Jan 5: mon, tues,
wed, thurs, friw/c Jan 12th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
w/c Jan 19th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
w/c Jan 26th: mon, tues, wed, thurs, fri
Twice every month I run these fun, informal and playful art sessions on Zoom. I choose a theme or material I want to play around with and you can either join in, or go off-piste, and do your own thing. I might spend a session playing with wet textures, playing around with how things bleed, mix together and blend. Other times I might grab a handful of random materials and play around with those together. All previous Art Play Dates are available as replays, and each new session adds to the back catalogue to watch and play along with.
Tuesday Jan 6th, 12.30–1.30pm
Tuesday Jan 13th, 12.30–1.30pm
Let’s play it by ear this month. But let’s face it, I will probably be some more Staffordshire figurines! But do some along and bring your own personal work, and hang out while we paint for an hour!
Picture Book Club
Twice every month I run these fun, informal and playful art sessions. I choose a theme or material I want to play around with and you can either join in, or go off-piste, and do your own thing. I might spend a session playing with wet textures, playing around with how things bleed, mix together and blend. Other times I might grab a handful of random materials and play around with those together. All previous Art Play Dates are available as replays, and each new session adds to the back catalogue to watch and play along with.
Thursday 29th Jan, 8–9pm
This month I’ve chosen As Edward Imagined by Matthew Burgess and Marc Majewski. I’ve long been a fan of Marc’s illustrations, and of course, Edward Gorey is one of the great illustrators of the 20th century. I’m excited to spend some time diving into this book to kick January off with creative oomph!
Check out friends of Gather, Filter, Make Helen Hancocks at her bookshop Shelf Editions or Katie Clapham at her bookshop Storytellers Inc. for stock.
See you soon for a creative January!
Ella xx
