new ways to love (craft)

10 Nov, 2026

it is November so here are some updates from blog admin (sam). i am writing something about cycles and growth for the blog that I'll put out sometime this week but i think some lighter updates were needed before i approached you with intense mid-20s autumn self-reflection.

written mostly in a journal and then typed-up. october/november 2026

I went to my first real film festival this week and saw Ryusuke Hamaguchi's All of a Sudden and there's a line in it that I will bastardize about how creating art only needs to be for you and one other person and it doesn't have to be anything bigger than that. The creative blockage of my life has always been that I have been trying to create things that feel meaningful and true to me while simultaneously making them as palatable as possible (even subconsciously). The questions that form in this process of creation are often: "Will this be positively received? Will anyone feel offended or upset? Is this language accessible to a wide audience?" It is only as I age that I realize the detrimental impact of this utterly and completely unhelpful line of thinking. No film or book that I have ever enjoyed has ever appealed to everyone, many 'inoffensive' things lack any substance at all. How can I possibly feel that I am creating something true when I am catering it to needs that are not mine?

So if making art for "myself" is too hard for me to do without thinking of "the universal" (an abstract and impossible audience), then what if I made things with just one person in mind?

Since seeing the movie I've been doing a wide variety of creative activities that have, for the most part, been for me and someone else, or done while thinking of someone else. None of these creative activities have been public, but more on that later. I plotted a bunch of them on this graph and honestly just really realized how many random things I've been making. I have impressed myself:

Axes explanation: tedious does not = bad, it's just often a harder task that's less enjoyable to me than the 'exciting' category. useless does not = bad, it's just not something that is super required of the moment. necessary = needed for an event, to fulfill a purpose, etc. exciting = exciting

Now how much of this actually qualifies as being part of my 'artistic practice'?? Don't ask me that. I think at the end of day it's all getting something that exists in my head out into the world in a tangible way. Infodump about some of these:

Clown Crochet Leg Piece: I was a clown for Halloween so I made my hat and also made these crochet leg things. Essentially I made two of: ch35 (enough to go rest above calf/below knee), ss in last ch, ch 1, sc into each ch, ss into last ch, ch 2, 4 hdc into first ch, ch 2, skip 2, 5 hdc, continue all the way around. You get this scrunchie looking thing. I sewed on a few strings of varying length (about 6 per leg cuff), and then glue gunned little cut out felt stars to the strings for a very dynamic looking leg piece that I was very proud of making. Kind of high effort for just a costume but certainly worth it. I love accessories that bounce when you move.

Paper Marigolds/Frames/Papel Picado: It was Dia de Muertos so all of this was necessary for altar building but I must admit it is a little tedious.

Unsent letter: I wrote a love letter after watching Hamaguchi's film. It's scattered and trying to hard to be poetic but it is an honest and vulnerable work - more vulnerable than anything I've made in a while.

Zines: I broke my 18 month zine-making hiatus by putting something together for a friend's birthday and for a trip (still working on that one). Very happy to now be making things again.

Creating for people (or while thinking of people), is easier for me because the audience becomes tangible. I can put something together that is honest and true while also appealing to the recipient. Art in the name of others feels more worthwhile, and that purpose drives me to complete the project, even if it is never shared.

Making these private projects, even the ones that are just silly crafts, are good for my heart. I do however have this urge to share some things with the public eventually. I'm thinking of this era of my practice as being a way to warm up for larger things that will be shared with the world. I have a zine series idea that I'd like to make public soon. I have more writing coming to the blog. I think the key is that I need to forget that you are there (you being YOU, reader). Or at least I need to just make something for one person and then let them know their ultra-private gift is now being given to the world (I'll ask first). More to follow, let's see if this strategy works.

This flurry of creative introspection was partially triggered by watching Hamaguchi's film, but it also was because I got back on Instagram for bit (bearblog users are gonna cancel me i just know it. #cancelled #samisOverParty)¹. Almost everything is easily identifiable AI now and as awful as that is, it's kind of made it easier to find human-made creative content. You can scroll forever seeing the same things so now the humans are really eye-catching. I've been loving seeing the handmade creative renaissance as people are trying to remind themselves about the beautiful and irreplaceable parts of being human, tinkering and making and putting things into the world out of love or for no productive reason at all. I found some nice craft tutorials and now I am returning to the world without big social media. My foray was actually a bit inspirational, but I am reminded of why I love the small web so much and it's because all of you are real people (probably) and all of you are very interesting. There were many bad reasons for being back on big tent social media but I write about that too much anyway and you can find that elsewhere on this blog.

Please send me things you have created <3 I am available over email. I would also love if you've seen a craft or crochet pattern that's brought you joy lately, please let me know about it and I may try to make it as well. I hope the world has treated you well since I last wrote to you.

love n hugs,

sam

reply or comment here or tell me about a thing you like to make