The 100 Day Project - will this be the year?!

Have you heard of the 100 day project and, even better, have you successfully completed it? The 100 Day Project is an annual online art initiative which encourages participants to work on a creative project every day for 100 days and share their progress. The intention is to help develop a consistent art making practice and to develop your skills in your chosen process. This year it starts on 22 February (although, in reality, you could decide to start it on any given day).

I love the idea and have embarked on the project several times....BUT, I have never completed it! I have typically got to around 30 days and then lost my rhythm. Workload, family time, a loss of mojo etc can all disrupt the daily art activity. Looking back though I think the real issues were that I was making the activity too complicated and putting too much pressure on myself.

So, will 2026 be the year? Here are some of the steps I am taking to try and set myself up for success.....

1. A clear focus

   I have been really enjoying making mini abstracts as part of my regular instagram reels. The mini abstracts are helping me to stay loose, enjoy a low pressure art activity and develop my sense of composition.

I have compiled these abstracts in to a concertina journal.

I found working in a limited colour palette really helpful.

So, the focus for my 100 Day Project this year is 100 days of mini mixed media circles.

2. Setting helpful limitations

   Limiting choices while keeping the project playful and creative is going to be important. This year I am going to work with a limited colour palette, small design area and a recurring motif - circles. Making these decisions ahead of time should help reduce procrastination. I won't need to decide on colours, focal points etc every day. When time is limited (and my desk a mess) they can be the decisions that result in me not starting at all. However, I think there is still enough room for play in exploring ways to create mixed media circles to keep the project interesting.

3. Preparation

   Setting limits also gives me the chance to get organised ahead of time. I am exploring a new colour palette for the 100 day project so have been testing that out and gathering together paints, inks, crayons, pastels, threads etc in the right colours. My YouTube video this week shows how I test out my chosen palette and tweak it based on that experience.

You will see how I take some of these colours from my initial swatches to get a clearer sense of the final palette.

Hopefully, by having a palette decided, I can have my core materials out and to hand so that the making process is quicker. It usually takes me twice as long looking for things as it does actually using them!

I have also cut up a range of 10cm square panels ready - I haven't cut 100, that would be tempting fate :) Some of them are plain mixed media paper and others already have some colour or mark making on them for those days when the blank space feels a bit tougher.

I have also started dying some papers and fabric with acrylic inks which is a process that I shared in this YouTube video. I am hoping they will give me a head start when I am looking for collage fodder and coordinating elements :)

4. Managing Expectations

   This could be the most important one of all...I often don't continue as I get impatient or overly self critical. I put too much pressure on myself to make a finished thing every day and, when that doesn't happen, get disheartened. This year I am not expecting to finish 100 completed minis within the duration of the 100 day project. Some days I may just simply scribble a circle or add a bit of stencilling and that is enough! I know if I show up at my table I often keep going for longer than I planned even when I didn't feel like it to start with. However, on hectic days, I am not going to see a few marks rather than a finished abstract as a fail. If I can keep that mindset going, I might just be in with a shot!

I will share my progress with the 100 Days of Mini Mixed Media Circles with you :) Will you be giving the 100 Day Project a go this year? If so, let me know what you are going to focus on in the comments and I will cheer you on :)

Most of the creative output gets shared on instagram and you can see the wealth of art projects that people embark on under the hashtag #The100DayProject and you can follow the project on @dothe100day project. I won't be posting every day of the project as that can be another pressure which can hijack my creativity but I will be posting several times a week and sharing some process reels so, if you are interested, it is definitely worth following my instagram feed: @funkyfossildesigns.

100 days of art making can only be a good thing, right?! I'm as ready as I'll ever be :)

Thanks for reading!