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checking in from studio land

i have been working on my little studio, Studio Jud, for about 7-8 months now — of those months, I’d say 6 of those have been what the industry calls ‘cuckoo bananas’.

It’s been a worthwhile endeavor — in just 2026, we designed almost 400 buzz templates for Figma’s ever expanding library, helped launch their ChatGPT integration, helped bring a brand new email app to market and built a suite of new product pages for Span, taking the work we established in 2025 and building upon it.I also got to play IC once again, contributing to a Smith & Diction project that I am 🤐 on for now.

It’s been a wild amount of output, and i’m deeply grateful that this little studio has managed to sustain me — but the signs feel very clear that it’s time to slow it down a beat.

Studio Jud was always meant to be an exploration of how I could sustainably manage a career with decades in mind, not just a few years. And to do that, i’ve got to spend more time listening to my body and less time burning the candle at both ends.

So for the next little while, i’m taking a pause from new client work to do two things: rest, and build out my portfolio properly. Getting a real functioning site up for the studio has been on my list for eons — and while i’ve been grateful to stay busy, I know i’m creating a ceiling on who I get to work with by not having one.

The transition has been difficult. I find it hard not to work. I twiddle my thumbs on my sofa, go for a walk, guilt myself for not working on my website, begin to work on my website, guilt myself for not resting, so i go on another walk. I’m getting my steps in.

but i’ve been heads-down long enough that i’ve forgotten what it feels like to have margin in a day, and i’d like to remember.

If you’re in New York and want to participate in a bit of that downtime, reach out for a coffee. Back soon!