Nice Things: November Edition
A gift guide to art, handmade goods, and creative supplies.
Hello friends,
“Where did the month go?” is usually the refrain this time of year. Roz Chast’s pie chart with all the months of the year feels incredibly on point right now.
I know exactly where this month went. It was swept up in a haze of rage, frustration, anger, sadness. The kind of energy that can leave you blocked, stuck, uncertain, unclear. But I think we all know that we have to find ways to move forward—that’s the only way we’ll stay in this game for the long-run. The only way we’ll be able to fight for what we believe in, support the people we care about, advocate for the world we want to exist. The only way we fuel our creative response.
Since we’re at the end of the month it means that it’s time for a new edition of Nice Things. This month, the regular round up of visual inspiration is devoted to celebrating art and goods from some of my favorite artists and makers.
But before we get to that, a reminder to sign up for the Advent calendar, which starts TOMORROW.
If you haven’t signed up for the Advent calendar yet I would love to have you join us. It’s available for all paid subscribers, so if you want to receive it, just be sure to upgrade your subscription.
Now, go eat a festive snack, read a book, go on a walk, support your local artist/bookstore/small business/cafe/bakery/ceramicist/writer/explorer/activist/dreamer, and enjoy some Nice Things.
-Anna
The Creative Fuel Gift Guide
I have resisted doing a gift guide for several years in a row, for all kinds of reasons. But, I mean… I do like looking at them.
Tove Danovich managed to put words to my love/hate relationship with gift guides this week—while we might feel a little complicated about them (particularly for those of us who work at consuming less), there’s just something to them that keeps us clicking. As she wrote, “I’m delighted by beautiful things.” Same for me.
So let’s look at some beautiful things shall we? After all, artists, makers, and small businesses need a little extra love this season.
A lot of the people featured here are friends, and even if you don’t buy anything, I hope this introduces you to some new artists and creatives.
—Beeswax Candles: Opening a package from candlemaker Alysia Mazzella is like receiving a little sunshine in the mail. She even runs a beeswax exchange, so you can save all the assorted drippings and send them back in exchange for new candles.
—Cup Club Membership: You’ve seen Julie Cloutier pop up in this newsletter a few times this year, and for good reason: her ceramics are stunning. She does a quarterly Cup Club, where you get four cups in a year, all exclusive designs that aren’t sold or recreated anywhere else.
—Handmade Watercolor Blends: Case for Making makes beautiful custom watercolor blends. My personal favorite is Squid Ink and while I haven’t bought it yet, the new Riverbed is dreamy. They also have a collaboration with my other favorite woman-owned art business brand Art Toolkit, a travel-friendly palette with colors inspired by a winter hike in San Francisco’s Lands End Park.
—10 Ways to Make You Feel Like a More Hopeful Human Letterpress Print: If you’re into visible mending, then chances are you already know Katrina Rodabaugh’s work. She makes gorgeous mending kits and teaches workshops, but even those of you who aren’t remotely interested in a needle and thread will appreciate the power of this print.
—Anti-Capitalist Love Notes Postcards: These cards from Radical Emprints are excellent to have on hand or to give out as a reminder that work is not everything.
—The Future Ancestor Tarot: This artwork in this deck by Lexa Luna Studio was made using sumi ink, water color paper, scissors, and fallen leaves and flowers around her home. The result is a deck that feels gentle and welcoming.
—Rockhound 2025 Calendar: Every year, Roshni Robert makes a calendar. This year, she painted all kinds of beautiful rock collections, and for anyone who has a love of rocks, then this one is for you. I’ve had Roshni’s calendar for years, and her watercolor illustrations bring a little more joy to every month, I promise.
—Scottish Shiant Isles giclée print: Christine Innes creates wonderful prints, and I happen to have this one myself. I also love this one inspired by a sailing trip in the Outer Hebrides.
—Searchlights Print: This summer when Hannah Viano and I were leading our creative retreat, she started using some birch bark as a brush with blue ink. One of the results of that experimentation is this print (there are cards too) and I’m including it here because it’s oh so stunning in person, and yes of course I already have one.
—Terra Mini Print: Combining art and science, Maria Jost’s work is inspiring for anyone who is fascinated by the environment. She worked on a cool project of “brain amulets” and if you really felt like going all out, you can get this print hand-gilded with copper leaf.
—Croissant Print: Molly Reeder turns all kinds of food and ingredients into intricate and jaw-dropping watercolor illustrations. If croissants aren’t up your alley, they maybe oysters, chanterelles, or heirloom beans are.
—Printed Striped Linen Napkins: We love a good stripe, and Moontea in Seattle makes an excellent assortment of different striped napkins. Plenty of other printed goods too for those of you that enjoy graphic prints.
—Hand-Printed Bull Kelp Kitchen Towel: Located on Lopez Island, I am obsessed with everything that Woodsia makes. Sourcing inspiration from the natural world around her, Kristin Twigg handprints all of her designs on linen. Practical and beautiful, so don’t be surprised when you just want to hang it on the wall.
—Handmade Metal Earrings: Shelli Markee makes all kinds of cool things with metal and wire (like wire people bookmarks), and I particularly like her jewelry versions in copper.
—Cocktail Olive Pin: Inciardi Prints’ wide variety of bright and colorful prints of favorite food ingredients are the kind of art that immediately make you smile (get a mystery pack for the full experience), and I am currently eyeing this pin.
—Nerikomi Bowl: Slush Club is run by Shannon Eakins. She uses nerikomi techniques for her work, stacking multiple clay bodies together. The result is graphic, colorful, and full of patterns.
—Moka Pot Naturally Dyed and Hand-Printed Bandana: Who doesn’t love the iconic silhouette of a moka pot? Rare Press’ block prints are always fun, and this one is printed on a cotton bandana dyed with indigo. This season she has also done some extra special collaborations.
—Garden Patchwork Notecard Set: Jennifer Judd-McGee works as an artist and also runs the shop Swallowfield. This is a card set featuring some of her beautiful papercut work.
—30-Day DIY Watercolor Projects: If you’ve been wanting to get into an art practice but just need some encouragement, Sarah Uhl’s watercolor kits are perfect. They feature some sample paints from Greenleaf & Blueberry, and watercolor paper printed with simple line illustrations that you can color in. This one is specifically intended for a 30-day project, basically a month straight of creativity.
—Women Are Not Your Vessels Letterpress Print: Jessica Spring of Springtide Press makes all kinds of fantastic letterpress prints, but this one in particular stands out in this current moment. It was written, handset, and letterpress printed in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
—Fairytale Gold Paint: A little sparkle, a little flair, a little pop… that’s exactly what this gorgeous gold paint from Beam Paints is. All of Beam Paints paintstones come in an array of colors (there’s even a Hilma af Klint palette) and are wrapped in folded wax cloth.
—Ice Pack Cards: For the snow and glacier lovers out there, these are by artist Jill Richie. If you have ever tried to paint or draw ice then you know how incredible these are.
—Fun and playful ceramics: If you ever find yourself on Vashon Island, I highly recommend a stop into Heidi Anderson’s shop H.A. & CO. Her unique ceramic creations, experimenting with a lot of folk art themes.
—Soujourn Print: Working with cyanotypes, Brooke Sauer expresses her love of the natural world. This print is particularly mystical and magical.
—Cultivate Creativity Print: From Jen Bloomer of Radici Studios, a print that celebrates exactly why we need creativity in our lives.
+ a couple of classes/courses
While this is mostly a visual roundup, I wanted to give a special mention to a few classes/courses on offer that also make good gifts for creatives.
—Caroline Donahue has a course devoted to sparking creative inspiration in your writing through tarot.
—Katherine May is doing series devoted to wintering. Perfect for this season.
—If you’re like me and are constantly staring at the sky, then Maria Coryell-Martin has an entire workshop devoted to painting cloudscapes.
—Lindsay Stripling’s “Your Hand is Not a Camera” workshop is ideal if you want to block out an evening to explore watercolors and remind yourself that all art is an abstraction, and there’s really no point in trying to make things look like what they do in real life.
And of course, if you want to support my work, there are some Calendar Friend Bundles in my shop as a special this weekend as well as some new trays which are perfect for festive fika.
You can also gift a subscription to Creative Fuel.
24 Days of Making, Doing, and Being Digital Advent Calendar starts December 1st!
My 8th annual digital Advent calendar kicks off tomorrow. Some of you have been getting this since the beginning, others are here for the first time. If you’re new, this is a little bit of a “just trust me” situation.
From December 1 to December 24, you’ll get a daily email (complete with audio if you want to listen instead). Every day includes some kind of a reflection, prompt, or piece of inspiration. It’s like a breath of fresh air in your inbox. I’ve even been told that the audio version is like having me over for a cup of tea. Well now isn’t that nice?
The Advent calendar goes out to paid subscribers. I’d love to have you join in this year! Upgrade to a paid subscription if you want to take part.
Well, I just bought a bunch of stuff!!🎉🎉Thank you!
Such a wonderful list! 💛