diff --git a/src-async/BitLoggerAsync_test.mbt b/src-async/BitLoggerAsync_test.mbt
index 9ede1f8..024a06e 100644
--- a/src-async/BitLoggerAsync_test.mbt
+++ b/src-async/BitLoggerAsync_test.mbt
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 async test "shutdown drains pending records" {
   inspect(async_runtime_mode_label(async_runtime_mode()) == "native_worker" || async_runtime_mode_label(async_runtime_mode()) == "compatibility", content="true")
-  let written : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
-  let flushes : Ref[Int] = Ref::new(0)
+  let written : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
+  let flushes : Ref[Int] = Ref(0)
   let logger = async_logger(
     @bitlogger.callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       written.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -212,7 +212,7 @@ test "async logger state snapshot reflects current counters and runtime" {
 }
 
 async test "run drains queued records in compatibility backends too" {
-  let written : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let written : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = async_logger(
     @bitlogger.callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       written.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -244,9 +244,9 @@ async test "run drains queued records in compatibility backends too" {
 }
 
 async test "library async logger keeps a smaller async facade" {
-  let written_targets : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
-  let written_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
-  let written_field_counts : Ref[Array[Int]] = Ref::new([])
+  let written_targets : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
+  let written_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
+  let written_field_counts : Ref[Array[Int]] = Ref([])
   let logger = LibraryAsyncLogger::new(
     @bitlogger.callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       written_targets.val.push(rec.target)
diff --git a/src-async/async_logger_shared.mbt b/src-async/async_logger_shared.mbt
index b93bd0d..5572fd2 100644
--- a/src-async/async_logger_shared.mbt
+++ b/src-async/async_logger_shared.mbt
@@ -323,12 +323,12 @@ pub fn[S] async_logger(
     filter: fn(_) { true },
     patch: @bitlogger.identity_patch(),
     queue: @async.Queue(kind=queue_kind_of(config)),
-    pending_count: Ref::new(0),
-    dropped_count: Ref::new(0),
-    is_closed: Ref::new(false),
-    is_running: Ref::new(false),
-    has_failed: Ref::new(false),
-    last_error: Ref::new(""),
+    pending_count: Ref(0),
+    dropped_count: Ref(0),
+    is_closed: Ref(false),
+    is_running: Ref(false),
+    has_failed: Ref(false),
+    last_error: Ref(""),
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/src/BitLogger_test.mbt b/src/BitLogger_test.mbt
index 325b91b..da26ded 100644
--- a/src/BitLogger_test.mbt
+++ b/src/BitLogger_test.mbt
@@ -772,9 +772,9 @@ test "configured queued file logger flushes queue through file helper" {
 }
 
 test "library logger keeps a smaller stable facade" {
-  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref::new([])
+  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref([])
   let logger = LibraryLogger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_target.val = rec.target
diff --git a/src/BitLogger_wbtest.mbt b/src/BitLogger_wbtest.mbt
index f4a69ad..2542df0 100644
--- a/src/BitLogger_wbtest.mbt
+++ b/src/BitLogger_wbtest.mbt
@@ -351,7 +351,7 @@ test "text formatter template respects disabled fields" {
 }
 
 test "formatted callback sink receives rendered text" {
-  let rendered : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
+  let rendered : Ref[String] = Ref("")
   let sink = text_callback_sink(
     text_formatter(show_timestamp=false, separator=" | "),
     fn(text) {
@@ -620,8 +620,8 @@ test "json formatter keeps structured shape" {
 }
 
 test "callback sink receives record" {
-  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
+  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref("")
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_target.val = rec.target
@@ -636,8 +636,8 @@ test "callback sink receives record" {
 }
 
 test "split sink routes records by predicate" {
-  let left_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
-  let right_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let left_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
+  let right_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     split_sink(
       callback_sink(fn(rec) {
@@ -662,8 +662,8 @@ test "split sink routes records by predicate" {
 }
 
 test "split_by_level routes warn and error separately" {
-  let high_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
-  let low_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let high_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
+  let low_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     split_by_level(
       callback_sink(fn(rec) {
@@ -688,10 +688,10 @@ test "split_by_level routes warn and error separately" {
 }
 
 test "callback sink sees child target and context logger shape" {
-  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_field_count : Ref[Int] = Ref::new(0)
-  let captured_timestamp : Ref[UInt64] = Ref::new(0UL)
+  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_field_count : Ref[Int] = Ref(0)
+  let captured_timestamp : Ref[UInt64] = Ref(0UL)
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_target.val = rec.target
@@ -713,9 +713,9 @@ test "callback sink sees child target and context logger shape" {
 }
 
 test "bind aliases context fields ergonomically" {
-  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref::new([])
+  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_target.val = rec.target
@@ -738,7 +738,7 @@ test "bind aliases context fields ergonomically" {
 }
 
 test "buffered sink flushes manually" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = buffered_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -758,7 +758,7 @@ test "buffered sink flushes manually" {
 }
 
 test "buffered sink flushes automatically at limit" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = buffered_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -776,7 +776,7 @@ test "buffered sink flushes automatically at limit" {
 }
 
 test "filter sink only forwards matching records" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = filter_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -796,7 +796,7 @@ test "filter sink only forwards matching records" {
 }
 
 test "logger with_filter composes naturally" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -814,7 +814,7 @@ test "logger with_filter composes naturally" {
 }
 
 test "filter helpers support target level and message composition" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -834,7 +834,7 @@ test "filter helpers support target level and message composition" {
 }
 
 test "field helpers can match and negate records" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -855,7 +855,7 @@ test "field helpers can match and negate records" {
 }
 
 test "any_of helper accepts multiple predicates" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -875,9 +875,9 @@ test "any_of helper accepts multiple predicates" {
 }
 
 test "patch sink can rewrite message target and fields" {
-  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
-  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref::new([])
+  let captured_target : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_message : Ref[String] = Ref("")
+  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_target.val = rec.target
@@ -905,7 +905,7 @@ test "patch sink can rewrite message target and fields" {
 }
 
 test "patch helpers can redact multiple fields" {
-  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref::new([])
+  let captured_fields : Ref[Array[Field]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       captured_fields.val = rec.fields
@@ -924,7 +924,7 @@ test "patch helpers can redact multiple fields" {
 }
 
 test "queued sink drains in order" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = queued_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -947,7 +947,7 @@ test "queued sink drains in order" {
 }
 
 test "queued sink can drop newest when full" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = queued_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -968,7 +968,7 @@ test "queued sink can drop newest when full" {
 }
 
 test "queued sink can drop oldest when full" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let sink = queued_sink(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
@@ -989,7 +989,7 @@ test "queued sink can drop oldest when full" {
 }
 
 test "logger with_queue preserves chaining ergonomics" {
-  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref::new([])
+  let flushed_messages : Ref[Array[String]] = Ref([])
   let logger = Logger::new(
     callback_sink(fn(rec) {
       flushed_messages.val.push(rec.message)
diff --git a/src/formatter.mbt b/src/formatter.mbt
index 48c7442..bfb4c91 100644
--- a/src/formatter.mbt
+++ b/src/formatter.mbt
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ pub fn default_style_tag_registry() -> StyleTagRegistry {
     .set_tag("u", underline=true)
 }
 
-let global_style_tag_registry_ref : Ref[StyleTagRegistry] = Ref::new(style_tag_registry())
+let global_style_tag_registry_ref : Ref[StyleTagRegistry] = Ref(style_tag_registry())
 
 pub fn global_style_tag_registry() -> StyleTagRegistry {
   global_style_tag_registry_ref.val
diff --git a/src/global.mbt b/src/global.mbt
index 8039e81..db01e62 100644
--- a/src/global.mbt
+++ b/src/global.mbt
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 let default_console_sink : ConsoleSink = console_sink()
-let default_min_level_ref : Ref[Level] = Ref::new(Level::Info)
-let default_target_ref : Ref[String] = Ref::new("")
+let default_min_level_ref : Ref[Level] = Ref(Level::Info)
+let default_target_ref : Ref[String] = Ref("")
 
 pub fn set_default_min_level(level : Level) -> Unit {
   default_min_level_ref.val = level
diff --git a/src/sinks.mbt b/src/sinks.mbt
index 657c2cc..5ef9aed 100644
--- a/src/sinks.mbt
+++ b/src/sinks.mbt
@@ -138,18 +138,18 @@ pub fn file_sink(
   let handle = open_file_handle_internal(path, append)
   {
     path,
-    append: Ref::new(append),
+    append: Ref(append),
     default_append: append,
-    handle: Ref::new(handle),
+    handle: Ref(handle),
     formatter,
-    auto_flush: Ref::new(auto_flush),
+    auto_flush: Ref(auto_flush),
     default_auto_flush: auto_flush,
-    rotation: Ref::new(rotation),
+    rotation: Ref(rotation),
     default_rotation: rotation,
-    open_failures: Ref::new(if handle is Some(_) { 0 } else { 1 }),
-    write_failures: Ref::new(0),
-    flush_failures: Ref::new(0),
-    rotation_failures: Ref::new(0),
+    open_failures: Ref(if handle is Some(_) { 0 } else { 1 }),
+    write_failures: Ref(0),
+    flush_failures: Ref(0),
+    rotation_failures: Ref(0),
   }
 }
 
@@ -522,7 +522,7 @@ pub struct BufferedSink[S] {
 
 pub fn[S] buffered_sink(sink : S, flush_limit~ : Int = 1) -> BufferedSink[S] {
   let actual_limit = if flush_limit <= 0 { 1 } else { flush_limit }
-  { sink, buffer: Ref::new([]), flush_limit: actual_limit }
+  { sink, buffer: Ref([]), flush_limit: actual_limit }
 }
 
 pub fn[S] BufferedSink::pending_count(self : BufferedSink[S]) -> Int {
@@ -568,10 +568,10 @@ pub fn[S] queued_sink(
 ) -> QueuedSink[S] {
   {
     sink,
-    queue: @queue.Queue::new(),
+    queue: @queue.Queue([]),
     max_pending,
     overflow,
-    dropped_count: Ref::new(0),
+    dropped_count: Ref(0),
   }
 }