Line Unfolding Newsletter • no. 01
ft. the best pastel pens, ikigai, and trying to be productive right now
Welcome to the first issue of the Line Unfolding Newsletter! I use bullet journaling and planning techniques to inspire productivity, creativity, and reflection. This newsletter is my little space to connect with you directly in your inbox for more intimate chats, musings, and favorite things of mine that don’t quite fit in other places.
In this inaugural issue, I’ve got links aplenty, stationery obsessions, spotlights, my Unfolding the Year series, behind the scenes content, and more. In fact, it might be too long, whoops! I’d love to know what you like and don’t like - so send me a DM on Instagram and let me know what you think!
★ Stationery Obsession ★
♡ Pilot Juice Up 04 Pastel Set (fyi: affiliate link)
I am obsessed with the Pilot Juice Up Pastel Set! I got mine in Japan last year and they’ve been in constant use ever since. I’ve been feeling super creative with my spreads during quarantine, and so I’ve been digging these out more than usual. What I love is that they are super fine point BUT STILL OPAQUE. Literally have not found anything else like them!
Here are the pens in action! As you can see, they show up incredibly on black paper (and white too!). The only con is that they show up on black paper but you can’t use them over black marker, like if you make a block of black with a Tombow dual brush pen. Other than that: if you like pastels and tiny pen tips, these are for you!
★ Three Good Reads ★
⁎ Ikigai: How to Find Your Life’s Purpose by Samantha Lim, Mossery
I love Mossery and their beautiful products so much, and they’ve been posting wonderful stay-at-home content lately. Ikigai is a really cool concept that is an easy way to help you find how to do the things you love in life, and this is a great walkthrough to try in your journaling practice! (Plus, the illustrations are soo cute!)
⁑ Americans feel pressured to work under the best of times. What happens during a pandemic? by Constance Grady, Vox
If you’re feeling up for pandemic-related content, this is a great read thinking about productivity during these strange times. I haven’t been up for consuming a lot of content like this, but Vox’s well-researched articles are always great and thoughtful, and I really identify with going back-and-forth about using this time for productivity (and side hustles: hi, this very newsletter!)—or not. (I often land on different sides each day, which is 100% fine!) Plus, there are some wild link rabbit holes to dig into in this article: Mary Shelley and how weather affected the writing of Frankenstein, anyone?
⁂ Too Much Cross Talk. Too Little Creativity. How to Fix the Worst Parts of a Virtual Meeting by Robyn L. Scott and Leigh Thompson, Kellogg Insight
If, like me, you are living in a lot of Zoom calls lately (hello, day job teaching online!), this article has a bunch of actually-actionable suggestions for making your virtual meetings more creative and fun! Some are a little cheesy, but there’s some fun stuff in there for sure.
★ Currently Reading IRL ★
Hi, my name is Chelsea, and I am obsessed with YA and YA-adjacent fantasy novels. I hope you’ll like this little corner of the newsletter where I tell you what books I’m reading (translation: which escapist young adult fantasy I’m into) at the time of writing!
I recently finished the first two books in the Queen of the Tearling series (Queen of the Tearling and Invasion of the Tearling - fyi, affiliate links) and I loved them. Fair warning: I thought they were YA, but there is definitely some non-YA content in there. They’ve got great, complex characters, manage to make the politics of ruling a kingdom seem interesting and dramatic, and just the right about of mystery and magic. I just found out there’s going to be a fourth book (I thought it was a trilogy and it was complete! argh!), but it’s too late to stop reading now!
★ Shout Out: The Grayter Good ★
I am obsessed with Elizabeth’s phenomenal content! If you haven’t gotten into The Grayter Good yet, you are in for a treat. From her lovely stories on Instagram (hi, coffee pours) to her irresistible lettering videos, to her generous and useful free resources on her website, it’s not surprising that her posts are currently the ones Instagram always shows me first!
★ Unfolding the Year: May ★
I recently posted May’s Unfolding the Year theme, Perseverance! Unfolding the Year is my monthly series of thematic content and gentle challenges, where we’ll inspire each other to be reflective and creative as we get things done this year. Here’s an excerpt from this month’s theme:
When I first came up with the idea of a month of perseverance, I was thinking about how the past few months’ themes have been cognitively challenging: from reflecting on your inner self to grappling with the concept of holding two conflicting things in your mind at one time. Internally, those are massive steps to take towards beginning to understand yourself better and I definitely think perseverance is the last step in that process: to keep going and keep practicing reflection, sitting in the grey area, and being present. That’s when it becomes a way of life rather than a habit you’re trying to stick to. When you know yourself and are honest with yourself, you can be more productive and creative all at the same time.
At least… that’s how I envisioned it, back in November…
★ Small Shop Spotlight: Nico Neco Zakkaya ★
Right now it’s more important than ever to support small businesses, so I want to use this section of the newsletter to highlight some small shops I love! I just received my first order from Nico Neco Zakkaya and was so impressed. Their packaging is supremely beautiful and they have the most unique products. I got a “paper tasting pack” of gray papers to use for collaging in my journal as well as some beautifully illustrated washi tapes. They just restocked a bunch more things and now I want to place another order (someone hide my wallet, okay!?). If you can, I highly recommend making a purchase from them: it’s a great treat to yourself because it really feels like a thoughtful gift from a friend coming your way—and it’s a wonderful way to support a small business right now!
★ One Last Thing… ★
If you’d like to support me right now and inspire yourself during this extended time at home, please consider signing up for 2 free months of Skillshare Premium through my affiliate link! I love Skillshare for all its trove of high-quality content (currently I’m teaching myself some Procreate tricks!). If you’re at home and want to get into some new creative pursuits, or level up at something you already love, it is an awesome resource to have on hand.
Of course, as always, no pressure at all to sign up, but if you do it helps me keep all this content coming your way! ♡
☆ That’s it for now—thank you so much for reading! Please let me know any feedback by sending me a DM on Instagram, commenting below, or emailing me. I’d love to make this newsletter something you love and look forward to, so please share your thoughts!
ⓘ FYI, a little bit more about affiliate links! This email contains affiliate links, which are always clearly marked. The small amount of ‘kickback’ I get from you purchasing something or signing up for a service I recommend using one of my affiliate links goes straight into making Line Unfolding content even better. I never recommend anything I don’t use myself, and I turn down sponsorships/affiliates if it’s not my thing, or if I wouldn’t use it without the collaboration ask. Please read more about my ethics policy right here.