Defects in protein homeostasis (also known as proteostasis) are intrinsically linked to age-related decline of cardiac function and likely contribute to cardiomyopathies. Protein-folding chaperones and protein quality control systems work overtime in the high stress cardiac environment, responding to wear and tear. Tight regulation of the pathway components is often controlled by post-translational modifications (PTMs). In addition to compact PTMs such as phosphorylation, bulkier PTMs involve ubiquitin (Ub) and other small ubiquitin-like (UbL) proteins, which are covalently conjugated to target proteins. These modifications can modify stability, localization, and function of the target protein. Ufm1 (ubiquitin-fold modifier 1) is a less-studied UbL, but modification by Ufm1 (ufmylation 1) is emerging as an important mediator of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response, which is activated in cardiomyocytes during heart failure. Focusing on Ufl1 (Ufm1-ligase 1), one of the enzymes that mediate ufmylation, the report from Huabo Su and colleagues 2 provides strong evidence that Ufl1 has a cardioprotective role and points to the ufmylation pathway as a potential target for pharmacological intervention for some cardiomyopathies.