The Z Studio Project - Joy365

If you follow us over on Instagram you'll have seen that I've started the #ZSPJoy365 challenge - to take a photo every day in 2026.

Check out the previous blog for all of the details, the whys and wherefores - and join in with the hashtag or by tagging @TheZStudioProject on Instagram.

Here, though, I've made myself the promise to blog more often, and what better way to do that than by sharing the photos I posted, with maybe a little info or the story behind them, as well as any other photos I took during the week that I'm particularly proud of.

Week One:

Photo One: This was taken on New Years' Day 2026. We have a little family tradition of visiting a National Trust property on January 1st, so we took a drive out towards Manchester to visit one of our favourites; Quarry Bank. It was a drizzly, damp day, but we enjoyed the activities inside the mill, and, of course, picked up a new batch of books at the second-hand bookshop. And it was lovely to get out into some fresh air to blow off the Christmas cobwebs.

Photos Two, Three, and Four:

We had a quiet weekend at home - the weather wasn't great, and we were all getting ourselves re-set to get back into routine. I worked-from-home on the Friday and wound down with a gin-and-tonic in the evening; I was proud of myself on Saturday for sticking to the yoga routine I began a few weeks ago; and on Sunday I started a new crochet project.

Photo Five:

I was working-from-home again on the first Monday back - our daughter had gone back to school, the house was quiet for the first time in more than two weeks, and the sun was streaming through the blinds. Our cat, Mouse, was sleeping in a patch of sunlight, curled up on top of a giant squishmallow, and I just thought; "Oh to be a cat!"

Photo Six: Back in the office today, so I went for a walk on my lunchbreak to take advantage of a break in the rain. I love living in Chester - it's such a pretty city and we have the River Dee running through its heart, which is the perfect place for a lunchtime stroll. I particularly love the Suspension Bridge as my husband and I had some photos taken on here on our wedding day so I always have a smile to myself as I walk over it.

Photo Seven: Another day and another lunchtime walk. A little bit of a later lunch this time, so the sun was lower in the sky and cast a gorgeous golden glow over the river. The Old Dee Bridge joins Lower Bridge Street with Handbridge in Chester, and it's where the tide of the river is the most obvious. It was quite high at this point and the boats tied up on the far bank were beautifully framed and lit in the archway of the Roman bridge.

Photo Eight: Yes, I know that there are only seven days in a week, but I started this creative challenge on New Year's Day, which was a Thursday, so I feel like the first week of the year doesn't count until it's the end of the first full week. Anyway; we went out for tea to the pub down the road from us, because our daughter says they do "the best chicken nuggets in the world" - and the garlic butter smothered chicken schnitzel is pretty damn delicious too.

Photo Nine: I'm ending my weekly challenges on Fridays, as it means I don't have to think about posting on socials over the weekends and I can be in the moment with my family. I work-from-home on Fridays, and took a little time to tidy one of my shelves when I noticed the beautiful spiral and texture on this shell we picked up on one of our beach walks. As 'noticing the little things' is a key component of this creative challenge, I felt like it fit here.

A few other pictures from the week: Family time, micro-adventures, cake, and noticing the little things

Let me know if you're joining in on our Instagram - I'd love you to join in with the challenge!