10 ideas to prepare for the New Year

A few more days, a few more sleeps and 2021 will be left in the rear view mirror. It will be time to look forward to 2022. Whether you are one for lists and New Year’s Resolutions or not, sometimes it is a good idea to look back, take stock, consider, ponder and prepare for a New Year with a fresh mind.

With that in mind, I asked some of my friends, colleagues and experts in their own fields, to tell me one thing they do to prepare for the New Year. Here’s what they had to say:

Kit Vincent

One of the things I like to do at the beginning of a new year, is to purchase a new sketch book, which  I sign, date and treat like a Bullet journal.  Everything goes into it, from recipes to thumbnail sketches…nothing is unworthy, lol. 

When I look back on a year’s worth of entries I have at hand a wonderful record of all my activities, travels, ideas, sketches, inspiration, books I’ve read, movies I wanted to see etc.  It’s all in there!  

Kit VIncent is a studio artist, based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Learn more at www.kitvincent.com

Sue Bleiweiss

Every December I start thinking about the upcoming new year and what I’d like to focus on. I find that having a short list of goals and a plan helps keep me focused and allows me to carefully evaluate new opportunities that come along with a more discriminating eye so that I don’t end up falling into the “why did I let myself say yes to this because now I regret it” trap! But before I think about what my goals or intentions for the new year will be, I take a good look at what I accomplished in the year that’s coming to a close and how it all fits with the goals that I had set for that year. Then I decide whether or not the goals I didn’t reach are ones that I want to carry into the new year and which ones to let go of and it helps me re-evaluate my studio priorities.

Sue Bleiweiss is a fibre artist and wildlife photographer.  When I’m not in the studio creating whimsical art quilts you’ll find her outside capturing the beauty of wildlife and nature with her camera.  You can find her at www.suebleiweiss.com

Lyric Montgomery Kinard

I often spend the first week of January thinking about what I accomplished the last year. Sometimes I even go through the past year’s calendar and write down all the things I’ve done as if they were goals and check them off. It never fails that I feel like I haven’t accomplished as much as I wanted to, but then seeing the list makes me realize I accomplished a LOT more than I thought. I love these reverse resolutions! I love the business end of being an artist and teacher so all year long I keep ideas and lists in my yearly planning binder (digital download available here) whenever the inspiration strikes. Looking back always inspires so many new ideas for looking forward.

Lyric Montgomery Kinard is an Artist, Author, and Educator with a passion for sparking the creativity that she knows each of her students posses. You can see her work at https://lyrickinard.com.

Coreen Zerr

One of the things I will be doing to prepare for the New Year is to I clean my studio, and organize my threads and bobbins to get ready to thread paint!

I am working on a very large commission for the City of LaCombe Alberta so my goal in the New Year is to get on with it so I can complete it by the Deadline! 

I also work on Charity quilts that we hold a sale for each summer; all proceeds for the Nanaimo Hospital Auxiliary. Last year I machine quilted approx 100 quilts for this event- my goal is to do at least 50 this year!

Coreen Zerr is a fibre artist living in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island . She has taught extensively in Vancouver Island and across Canada. These days she is concentrating on commission work, work for galleries, charity work and mentoring other fibre artists.  You can see her work at www.coreenzerr.com .

Victoria Findlay Wolfe

Every year since 2009 I’ve chosen a “word”  at New Years, that I use as my “guide” for the year. It’s a way to inspire me moving into a new year instead of being blue about another year has flown by! Over the years, words such as “tiME”… ( me time) ,

Move, Review, PLAY, Enough, Share and SEE have been some fo the chosen words in the past. This year I’ve made NOTICE  That I notice what I have, What I see, What I want, what I need, and make sure it’s a good fit.What will your word be?

Victoria Findlay Wolfe had fine art training and is a painter at heart who has sculpted, still does photography and basically isn’t happy unless she is making something. She’s always known she’d become some kind of artist but to her surprise QUILTS became her greatest passion… You can learn more about Victoria https://vfwquilts.com

Vivika Hansen DeNegre

Preparing for a fresh start is invigorating. One of my traditions is to set intentions and choose a word of the year. For 2021 that word was “bridge”, and it helped guide my vision and practice as the year progressed.

I also love going to the stationary store and choosing a new calendar. Simple, I know, but having a blank slate is an incredible gift. Every day of every year represents a new opportunity.

Vivika Hansen DeNegre is the Editor of Quilting Arts Magazine and Director of Content for Golden Peak Media’s quilting brands. Learn more at www.quiltingdaily.com.

Susan Brubaker Knapp

At the end of the year, or the start of the new year, I straighten and re-organize my studio. It’s more than just a clean-up. It’s a way of straightening up my mind, too, because it gives me time to analyze bits of projects that have been languishing and decide if I should pitch them, or pick them up again and take them in a different direction.

Another habit that I’ve been doing for some years now is to brainstorm my goals and ideas for the upcoming year. It’s not a formal system, but more of a brain dump. Projects, ideas for exhibitions, financial goals, and rough ideas for new work – they all get written down in a document that I go back to throughout the year. 

Susan Brubaker Knapp is a Fiber Artist, Teacher, Host of Quilting Arts TV, Bernina Ambassador and Co-host of the Quilting Arts Podcast. You can found out more about her and her art at www.susanbrubakerknapp,com

Carla Canonico

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are two happy days of the year. These are two consecutive days of doing as little as possible and enjoying the presence of my beautiful family!

On New Year’s Eve, I find some time to meditate on the year and forgive whatever didn’t quite turn out the way I planned and accept the outcomes gratefully. The slate is now clean, I set new intentions for the new year ahead.

Carla is the Publisher and Editor in Chief of A Needle Pulling Thread Magazine, QUILTsocial and KNITmuch magazines and blogs. You can find more information at www.aneedlepullingthread.com

As for me …

Priority no. 1 is to clean and reorganize my Studio before I start teaching again. Clean studio, clear mind. It will mean reorganizing my teaching space, clearing my design wall, etc., as a way of also organizing my thoughts and priorities for 2022.

No 2 , is to compile a list of goals, projects and programs for 2022. Looking back at 2021 and at all that was done makes me realize I accomplished and learned more than I thought and prepares me for the year ahead.

I already have my 2022 Agenda where all my teaching engagements and deadlines go. It also gathers thoughts, daily activities and bits and bobs of my life. I couldn’t live without it.

So … to summarize:

How do you prepare for the New Year? Do you set intentions? Do you make lists? Clean? Take a break? Watch movies? Let me know in the comments if you have any rituals to get ready. Whatever you do, however you prepare, my wish is that 2022 will bring you joy and will be filled with creative moments.

Stay safe, and keep creating!

Ana