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Learning Log, Jan 2025

I can’t even begin to state how rough January was for my mental health due to Political Circumstances; you may be feeling the same. Let’s be excellent to each other these next 4 years. We can’t control how our politicians show up, but we can nudge the course of things in tiny, positive ways. Every bit of joy or good you create means something, no matter how small or insignificant it may feel to you.

DOING & MAKING are acts of HOPE. CORITA KENT

Letterpress print by 9inhandpress

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Variable Modes & Collections

I’m ramping down my individual contributor work at Webflow (as of recently, I’m a manager of product managers). I was thrilled to launch variable modes and collections with the rest of the Styles team in January! With variable modes, designers can create sets of variable values that can be easily switched and applied throughout a site—unlocking responsive design across devices, efficient theming, and a more scalable design system.

Backlog Readathon stats

I hosted my first readathon at the end of the year, and put together some stats for those who recorded their reading. I’m planning to do another one of these in August, at the end of the summer (for those of us north of the Equator). Fun fact, the per-page theming—winter vs summer palette—uses Webflow’s variable modes!

🧶 Crafting

  • 🧵 I sewed a Closet Core T-Shirt, my first knit garment!
  • 🧶 I started knitting a Seattle Kraken-themed beanie, with a colorwork design I cobbled together.
  • 🖍️ I joined Sophie McPike’s Patreon and drew a spread of sketchbook pages alongside one of her Scribble Brigade videos. I’m so inspired by Sophie’s colorful, carefree approach to art-making.

🧙🏻‍♀️ Side quests

I’m trying to do two “side quests” a month in order to keep novelty in my life. In January:

  • 🌵 I went to Arizona for a work trip. Admittedly I didn’t get to see much beyond work stuff, but it was my first time in the state, so side quest it is!
  • 🎵 Went to a Bright Eyes show with my husband, and my inner emo teen was so pleased. My younger self would be so jealous of the shows I’ve attended over the past couple years. That feels pretty neat to me: a reassurance that there are good things and happiness in the future.
A packed concert hall bathed in red light, with the words 'You are now at a Bright Eyes concert' projected to the back of the stage, while the band plays. The ceiling overhead has a lot ornate, circular crown molding.
You are now at a Bright Eyes concert (and still masking, BTW)

🛜 On the internet

🔖 Reading

Books

I’ve had a very slow start to the year in terms of reading. I finished only 2 books in January, putting me 3 books behind my goal of 52 for the year. I’m reading consistently, but I am tending to pick up bigger books right now, which may account for slow reading…

Some of the articles and blog posts below I read during December.

Accessibility

Web

Personal growth

Journaling & stationery

Art

Other interesting articles

Responses

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  • Reply from Bradley Stowers on

    @melanie stumbling over one of Don & Christine’s kids in my Trending feed was not on my Fediverse Bingo card, but these are strange times we’re living through, I guess.

  • Reply from Charlie ⚡️ on

    @melanie your teenage emo kid and my college nihilist would've gotten along.