Author: The Little Squid Press Team

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Welcome to Winter. The Design Edition

Welcome to Winter! The year is winding down, and this can be a busy season. I know I’m always looking for anything that helps make planning and creating easier.

👉 [Jump to prompt list]

I put together this social media prompt list to spark design and creative ideas all month long. I’m especially excited about the palette and swatch days—color therapy is so soothing this time of year!

Below the graphic, you’ll find a simple text-only list if you prefer that format. Feel free to save, use or share the graphic with a nod to Little Squid Press.🦑

An illustrated December challenge calendar titled ‘Welcome to Winter-Design Edition,’ featuring 31 daily social media prompts for artists and designers. The graphic has a frosty grey background with soft white snowflakes and two red cardinals perched on green branches. Each date is shown in a rounded white square with a prompt inside. The bottom corner displays the Little Squid Press website and a note to follow the brand for more creative challenges.

Tag me on Instagram—I’d love to see your interpretations and ideas.

How to use these prompts

There are no rules!

Use these prompts however you like. Do them all, choose just a few, follow them in order, or hop around the list. They’re meant to give you structure when you want it, and room to play when you don’t. 🙂

Prompt list

Week 1

1. It’s December! What are your art and design plans?
2. What’s your opinion on handmade gifts?
3. When do you put up your decorations?
4. Cookie Day! For the love of cookies, post a cookie photo!
5. Do you still do holiday cards?
6. What’s your holiday aesthetic?
7. Outdoor time. Share a picture of any winter adventure.

Week 2

8. Your favorite winter design trend is…
9. Mitten mayhem? Or golden gloves?
10. Favorite winter palette or Grinch version — which one are you done with?
11. Truth time: the holiday trend you don’t love.
12. Hot cocoa day! Are you in?
13. Candy cane: delicious or diabolical?
14. Soup season. Share a picture or recipe of your favorite cozy soup.

Week 3

15. Pets: winter mode! Share a pic of your pet in winter mode.
(No pet? Show your winter “comfort companion”: plushies, books, blankets.)
16. What is your favorite local (or online) December event?
17. Winter essentials: what are the items that make December complete?
18. Holiday swatch time! Any colors, any media.
19. Your go-to holiday beverage is…
20. Holiday hunter — share 5 photos & explain why you picked them.
21. The longest night of the year… draw a picture.

Week 4

22. Holiday playlist: movie score? Jazz, classical, or campy?
23. Art supplies wishlist: a) Money’s no object, b) Your budget
24. So bad it’s good: what holiday movie or TV show is so bad it’s good?
25. Ghosts of designs past… what piece did you learn the most from?
26. Holiday disaster: share your holiday disaster story.
27. Which design style do you want to try next year?
28. Warm drink & cozy blanket or long walk in fresh snow?

Week 5

29. Planner time! Gearing up for 2026? Show off your planner gear!
30. Five favorite creations in 2025.
31. What are your top 5 moments for 2025?

More prompts please!

If you found this content useful, sign up for my newsletter Inklings for more prompts, design talk, and glimpses into my creative world.

Yay! Inklings Newsletter!

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Creating the Cardinal of Resistance Series

Compact sticker version of "Creativity is My Resistance" from the Cardinal of Resistance series. A red cardinal is working on a sage laptop with a cup of coffee sitting nearby. The background is navy blue. Text on the sticker: top "Creativity" (in script font, electric yellow with green drop shadow) Middle: "is" (letters formed by the coffee steam); "My" (on the cup) Bottom: "RESISTANCE" (bold black letters on a rectangle of the same yellow as the letters above. Text added to stickers describes tropes of sticker with red arrows pointing towards parts it describes. Towards the bird: "hard-working bird". Towards the coffee cup: "Muse fuel". Towards resistance: "glorious purpose"

The essence of the Cardinal of Resistance

The Cardinal of Resistance shows a cardinal using acts of creativity as quiet defiance in a world that tries to suppress it—even as it needs it most..

Before we go further: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my creative work!

When the world feels like a dumpster fire…

Some days the news reads like a bleak dystopian novel and the planet looks like it’s stuck on “dumpster‑fire” mode. In those moments, breaking out the sketchbook or opening a blank document can feel, well… frivolous. But here’s the thing: choosing to create anyway is a quiet, stubborn act of resistance. Art doesn’t erase the problems—it keeps them from erasing you. Creativity recharges the soul so you can come back to the fight with fresh batteries and a sharper sword (or pen, or glue gun).

Some day I’ll post a cartoon of the Cardinal of Resistance riding the dumpster fire, but I gotta get the blog post out before I get buried in time-consuming possibilities.

Enter the Cardinal

The Cardinal of Resistance wasn’t born in some grand strategy meeting. It hatched out of:

  • Draw‑a‑Bird Day (April 8): I tried to channel Charley Harper’s mid‑century “minimalist realism” style and sketched a cardinal. Spoiler: my first attempt flopped (proof below—enjoy the comic relief!).
  • A friend in a funk: One afternoon my friend and proofreader extraordinaire, Sharon Muha, confessed she felt guilty making art while “real” issues raged on. I wanted to cheer her up, so I promised a mini poster just for her.
  • A curious coincidence: Cardinals don’t live where I grew up (Alberta) so Cardinals seem so cheery, bright and a little exotic. That same friend’s state bird happens to be a cardinal. Clearly the universe was nudging. Synchronicity!
Rough pen and ink cartoon o of three birds. The bird in the foreground is excited about a worm. The two birds in the background are gossiping about the first bird. In a purple circle with lime green text: Work place drama. Which bird type are you?
Cross-posted from my Lori Ravenford Instagram account for Draw A Bird Day. It was supposed to be an homage to Charley Harper birds but I veered off into comic-land..

Why a cardinal, not a raven? (much as I love corvids)

Given I write paranormal romance under the name Lori Ravenford, the opportunity to cross-pollinate was tempting. But the vibe didn’t fit. Ravens and crows scream “rebel,” but it also screams obvious. A cardinal, though? Bright, splashy, impossible to ignore—yet usually singing its own tune from the sidelines. That felt perfect: resistance that’s bold but not belligerent. Plus, “cardinal rules” was too delightful a pun to pass up.

 “Is it a canary in a coal mine?”

Someone asked if I meant the cardinal to be a canary‑in‑the‑coal‑mine metaphor. Honestly, I hadn’t planned it—but it fits. When our creative energy dries up, it’s a warning signal for society, too. If the makers stop making, something’s off in the collective air.

Mid‑century vibes & minimalist realism

I’m obsessed with retro palettes, abstract shapes, and Charley Harper’s knack for stripping forms down to their joyful essence. He called this Minimalist Realism. I love that concept—though I suspect my version leans more toward minimalist comic with a secretly maximalist heart. My work has more of a cartoon style than Harper’s, but the Cardinal of Resistance borrows that vibe: clean lines, bold color blocks, and a wink of vintage optimism.

Little Squid Press presents The Cardinal of Resistance Series. These 5 illustrated posters feature a character named the Cardinal of Resistance. In each poster, a red bird (cardinal) is engaging in a type of creative resistance: Creativity, Handmade, Reading, Resting, Writing. The color palette and design has a retro mid-century modern vibe.
Cardinal of Resistance Poster series available at Zazzle shop.

Link to my Cardinal of Resistance collection at Zazzle (affiliate link)

Does it work?

Creativity Is My Resistance hangs on the wall of my office. I notice that I often look at it when my brain feels tired, or I’m overwhelmed. It makes me smile and encourages me to keep going. One of my friends purchased the set and tells me they experience the same effect. Super happy it’s helping others! But does it work? I think if you want it to, it will.

Where the series is headed

Compact sticker versions!

The next step is to make compact stickers versions for the other four posters. Stripping back the palettes and elements. I’ve completed the set for Creativity. I’m excited to take on Writing is My Resistance, though Resting is My Resistance resonates right now.

Compact sticker version of "Creativity is My Resistance" from the Cardinal of Resistance series. A red cardinal is working on a sage laptop with a cup of coffee sitting nearby. The background is navy blue. Text on the sticker: top "Creativity" (in script font, electric yellow with green drop shadow) Middle: "is" (letters formed by the coffee steam); "My" (on the cup) Bottom: "RESISTANCE" (bold black letters on a rectangle of the same yellow as the letters above. Text added to stickers describes tropes of sticker with red arrows pointing towards parts it describes. Towards the bird: "hard-working bird". Towards the coffee cup: "Muse fuel". Towards resistance: "glorious purpose"

More posters?

I’m toying with the idea of making more in the series. One idea is about gardening inspired by Grant Wood’s painting American Gothic. A Rosie the Riveter “We Can Do It!” pose might be fun.

Sequential Art?

My storyteller brain is keen to create some sequential art stories for the Cardinal. What’s the backstory? I don’t really see a web comic but maybe some cards?

What resonates for you?

Which of the designs resonates with you the most? Is it the message or the color palette that calls to you? Leave a comment below and let me know. I’d love to hear your ideas!

Heed the Cardinal of Resistance

Next time the world feels too heavy, remember the Cardinal: perch somewhere cozy and create something. Whatever you do, create. You, and the world, need your resistance. They matter because they keep hope loud and color bright.

Want Your Own Cardinal of Resistance?

You can grab a print (or sticker!) in my Zazzle shop (affiliate link). Or sign up for my newsletter—subscribers get a free printable PDF of the compact Creativity Is My Resistance sticker.

Happy creating!

Lori/Little Squid Pres

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World Backup Day

Today is World Backup Day. This is a friendly reminder to backup your important files.

Do you have a backup plan or do you play backup chicken?

Do You Play Backup Chicken?

Which of these emojis best represents you and how you feel about your data? 

Do you play backup chicken by telling yourself that you’ll back it up NEXT TIME and hoping that nothing goes wrong until then? 

When did you last save and backup your important documents? Do you have a back up plan?

I know from experience how hard a data loss can be. The good news: it’s never too late to take care of important documents and data and start good backup habits.

Backup Habits I’ve Started

  • autosave to iCloud and OneDrive depending on the type of data
  • send important documents to myself through email when I make major changes to a document
  • keep final copies in cloud storage
  • keep a copy on an external hard drive

Useful Resources to Fight the Overwhelm

Sometimes the problem with backing up data is the overwhelm from sheer clutter. Two things have made a big difference for me. The first is  Digital Declutter: The BIG Checklist to Obtain Digital Minimalism by D.M. Elliot.  She breaks the tasks down to manageable chunks.

The second is MacPaw’s Clean My Mac to keep my hard drive organized. I resisted Clean My Mac for so long and I wish I hadn’t. It helped me clear up 80GB of wasted space on my hard drive.

Digital Declutter Habits I’ve Started

  • Setting up a file naming procedure
  • Drew a chart of how I want to organize my file tree
  • Keep the same file tree on hard drives, external hard drives and cloud storage
  • Have a set day for checking backups
  • Have a set day for running Clean My Mac
  • Have a set day for digital declutter
  • Delete photos off my phone while I’m commuting on the train
  • MULTIPLE REMINDERS

Perfection or Tenacity?

But the battle for space vs my data is never ending. I’ve started some good habits but I’m not perfect. Setting up as many automations and reminders to do these things help immensely. The key is continuing to do them. Late is better than never. You don’t have to be perfect, just as consistent as you can.

How do you manage your data backups?