While you’re here, read some freshly blogged posts…
After blogging since 2010, Janice MacLeod reflects on why blogging still matters for artists and writers: it encourages us to make, finish, and share creative work—and connect with readers along the way.
A cheesecake festival is great summer fun. Also created a visual diary to play with art supplies. The first tentative page is complete.
I’ve been volleying between doing young lady things and old lady things. Is this what it means to be middle aged? I mean, I can still rock the ponytail, but also I’m a sucker for making jam.
The lilacs are in bloom. I inherited two in my yard: a rare white beauty and a light pinky purple. It is a sweet pleasure to take in the familiar but fleeting scent.
Is there anything more giving, more generous, than a tree full of BLOSSOMS?!?!? Behold… eye candy!
And it’s only the Saturday night before.
What you don’t realize is that she expects a Mother’s Day weekend. A husband sneaking off to the grocery store on Sunday morning to buy some last minute wilted chrysanthemums dyed in blue, yellow, and neon pink is not her definition of Cherished or Seeing What She Does For This Family.
Oh the poetic brooding of a rainy day. I am trying out my new fountain pen with the new ink. The kind of situation where there is old ink left in the ink and the new ink has yet to flow through. If my writing changes colour, will the mood change, too? Like a sort of mood ring? Going from calm blue ink to a confused purple and finally an angsty red?
Let’s celebrate by going to a few stationery stores and running a contest. We are visiting Wonder Pens and Phidon Pens.
This has always been my favourite holiday photo. To me it is everything beautiful about the life I lived in LA. To the side is Catherine O’Hara. In my world she wasn’t centre stage. She was just part of the same friend group.
This letter was sent out last January 2025. If you’d like to get fun letters in the mail, subscribe at the Etsy shop. Each letter comes with an art print.
Oh my stars they have arrived! My brand spankin’ new set of notecards and journals have been published. They are BEAUTIFULLLLLL.
A friend died too young. Snuffed out in his prime. I still can’t believe I won’t see him again. So of course, now he is everywhere.
I explore the quiet joy of making art by hand in an age when AI can mimic almost anything — except the human heart behind it. Discover why a simple “quiet hello” in the mail still matters, offering comfort, connection, and a small treat in a digital world. It’s a reflection on the value of handmade work and why our human impulses are more worth celebrating than ever.
Real letters are more than mail — they’re keepsakes, pauses, and tiny hugs in a fast-paced digital life. Rediscover the joy of real letters with Cottage Letters — each one a personal story, poem, and art print mailed just for you.
What do you do when there is a strike? Well there are some practices that need practicing. Let’s navigate this one together.
“And all at once, summer collapsed into fall.”
Oh Oscar Wilde sure could whip up a nice quote.
If I were to coach someone on STARTING a creative practice, it would be this 5 step process.
Sometimes the best adventures are just down the road. In this post, I share the quiet joys of exploring familiar places with fresh eyes.
Why is the lap blanket an image reserved for the elderly? For one, the elderly have lived long enough to know a good thing. A warm set of legs keeps the whole body feeling cozy out there on the cool patio.
Gingham dresses are back with the warm weather. Plus, I’ve whipped up a new set of notecards in the shop… featuring, you guessed it, gingham dresses.
A shift is unfolding, a quiet rebellion against the pixelated world. We’re craving something real again. Something we can hold in our hands.
This thought started with letters. I should have known.
Beautiful people everywhere.
We had local elections this week. I’ve worked at these elections before. Let me explain why it’s one of my favourite jobs ever. Enlightenment galore!
“Cottage Letters” by Janice MacLeod is a delightful monthly mail subscription that brings the charm of handwritten letters to your doorstep. Each month, receive an exquisitely crafted letter accompanied by unique ephemera, such as postcards, holiday cards, or bookmarks, all beautifully packaged to brighten your day. Themes explore life, the changing seasons, and gardening, cottagecore, and hygge.
A good place to start…
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BOOKS
A memoir about becoming an artist in Paris. An illustrated journal. An anthology. Wow. Loads of books, plus A New York Times best seller, a Top 20 of all books on Amazon, and one studied at Oxford University. Pas mal, as they say.
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WRITING COURSES
Take a course with Janice to strengthen your creativity, improve writing, and dare we say, have FUN. These are all self-guided tours, so you can start right away. These are especially good for when you want to write but don’t know where to start.
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2024 PARIS PLANNER
NEW! Immerse yourself in the charm of Parisian streets, cafés, and storefronts as you plan your year. This planner is adorned with captivating paintings of street scenes of Paris, evoking the artistic style found in Janice MacLeod's other books.
I’m a writer, artist, and course creator. I teach artists like you how to fulfill their creative dreams… and make money doing it.
I would love to help you make it, whether it be writing a book, creating a thriving business, or living a more artistic life with glorious artsy skills. Aren’t you clever!
Are you ready for a creative breakthrough?
What do you do when you are gifted a crochet magazine? Make note cards obviously.