(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)
Towards the end of 2023, I had the brain space to think about the goals and milestones for 2024, and did monthly checkins and retrospectives to keep myself accountable for making progress - this article talks a bit about that process, which came to a halt towards the end of 2024. Due to family medical/health problems, I had zero energy and brain cells to think about anything other than staying on top of urgent tasks and only getting the absolute, most important things done. Side note: we should all feel comfortable giving ourselves permission to do what’s best for our mental/physical health, but especially during this resolution-laden time of year. Thankfully, things settled down enough so that I’m able to regroup for 2026. Don’t worry, I won’t burden you with talks of exercise goals, my possibly-too-ambitious house cleaning schedule, or the ongoing dream of cleaning the garage. Instead, I thought I’d talk about my writing/pen hobby goals and intentions for 2026.
Some of what I have in store for 2026.
Starting new projects.
I love starting new projects! And since I review lots of notebooks which have only had a few pages used (so glad I test them in the back of the notebook so most of it is still usable), I am always tempted to start another project after testing them. While I don’t have any writing projects in mind (since I started The Princess Bride and Winnie The Pooh fairly recently), I wanted to push myself to start something new. I plan to FINALLY start on the Spencerian notebooks I bought shortly after my first pen show…yeah, back in August 2017. I’m excited but also slightly terrified of getting started - what if it’s hard (I’m sure it will be), or I’m not good at it (I’m sure I won’t be, but that’s why there’s practice!) - but I’ve procrastinated way too long, so 2026 will be the year I start!
Spencerian notebooks - not gonna lie, I’m a little intimidated!
Finishing projects.
I am the queen of starting projects and abandoning them not long after starting (don’t even get me started on my unfinished knitting projects). I was so happy to finish The Little Prince, and last year I also finished a children’s Italian book too. It feels so good to wrap up projects, especially if it’s something that I’ve been plugging away at for what feels like an eternity. This year, Hamilton and another Italian book are on deck to be finished before mid year!
I started copying Hamilton in July of 2017!
And now! Just a half a dozen songs or so to go!
Chugging away.
Of course, once you start something, you’ll never finish if you don’t put in the work to get it done. Some projects, like copying Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations in typewriter font, won’t get done in a year (I’ve already put in 5+ years). Part of that is the multitude of other projects (and life) that occupy my time. And part of that is that it’s a project that just takes a very long time. I’ve often said that I am not a patient person, but the Mediations project, in particular, really helps me practice what little patience I have. Even though I’m “only” 64% done, every time I finish a 2-page spread, or even a 20 minute session, it’s so rewarding to see the progress. I have a fairly ambitious goal of getting to 75% by the end of the year.
64% and counting…
The other project is ink swatching, which is a constant battle for me. I’ve been pretty good about trying not to acquire faster than I swatch, but both Inkvent and Colorvent have slowed my progress. I’m working towards 75% swatched by the end of the year.
Just some of the swatches I’ve done in the past few months.
I also want to finish my, gulp, 2024 Book Journal, and hopefully start and finish one for 2025 too. I could do this faster but I’m enjoying the decorating as well as writing out favorite quotes, and my thoughts on the book.
I like looking back at the books I’ve read, favorite quotes, and remembering why I enjoyed them (or not). I really enjoyed the Thursday Murder Club series.
Use what I own.
- Inks - Use the good ink (especially if it’s a good matchy match, lol). Check on them periodically (I just discovered some bottles that were heavily evaporated, thankfully no mold). An unobtanium ink is (mostly) useless if you never use them.
- Washi tape - I have a small drawer of washi tape that sits on my desk. In 2024, every month, I would look through the tapes on my desk and pick the ones I’m tired of and swap in some new ones. This kept me from being bored of the same ol’ washi tape and also forced me to use stuff instead of hoarding them. I’m going to start that up again. Pro tip: “swatching” your washi in a notebook will (1) help you remember details about the washi (brand, design, location purchased), and (2) help you use them - once it’s swatched, it feels less precious.
Going to swap some from the clear drawer (foreground) with some from the other washi drawers.
- Stickers - Not new for this year, but I will continue to put new sticker purchases into a sticker release binder as soon as I reasonably can. This helps me get over their “preciousness” because they are “used” once I peel them off and it makes it easier to actually use them.
This is the sticker release insert that I keep with my Book Journal. As you can see, the stickers are primarily book-themed.
- Pens - This sounds like an obvious one but I often pick new acquisitions or favorites to ink up over something that isn’t as “exciting” or new. This year, I’ll try to pick pens I haven’t inked up in a long time over reinking something immediately. Or I will swap favorite nibs into different bodies to give them new life.
Not sparking joy, move on!
Like many hobbies, this one can be full of acquisitions, often fueled by FOMO, retail therapy (dumpster fire, anyone?), or overdoing it at a pen show (SF, cough cough). There’s nothing wrong with any of those things, but for me, it’s gotten a little out of hand. So for 2026, I will take a hard look at my pens (and duplicate inks, etc.) and start selling at least a couple pens per month (hopefully more). It probably won’t slow my buying, but at least there’ll be slots in the drawers/binders when I do 🙂
Already picked some for the chopping block!
Decluttering, aka no more hoarding! Aside from buying stuff (pens/inks/whatever) and hanging onto them longer than I should, I keep a lot of stuff I know I shouldn’t. I need to do another purge of pen boxes, but more importantly, my main project for this year is to go through my 10 finished Bullet Journals, cut out pages I want to keep, put them in a new notebook, and toss the rest. It probably will only save me maybe 8-9 notebooks’ worth of space, but I’d rather reclaim that space than have the “badge of honor” of 10 completed BuJos.
Hey Bossman, I’ll have room for more notebooks to review, lol!
This rotary cutter will come in handy.
It makes perforations so you can tear pages out easily.
This was the first page in my first Bullet Journal. It seems fitting that it should be something I cut out and keep as a reminder.
I’m sure I’ll think of more things to work on as the year progresses (like no dirty pens at the end of every month, lol) but I’m excited to get started and make progress on these goals and intentions! Happy 2026 and may your pens and inks bring you joy!
Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.
Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!
