Cuteness Overload :)

I recently purchased an adorable print from Stephanie Fizer of the cutest hedgehog!  I'm giving it to my mom as a gift because she loves the little prickly creatures even more than I do :)  Then I found Ms. Fizer's blog and found out about a letter writing set give-away she is doing!  Too much cuteness to handle.  Check out the details on her blog at stephaniefizer.com! 

Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

I did it.  I finally sat down and read all of Alice in Wonderland.  B and I went to see the movie a few months ago and I was determined to actually read the book.  I loved it.  It was such a whimsical vacation read.  It was funny and crazy and strange and amazing.  The world that Lewis Carroll created was so believable despite its obvious absurdity.  The characters are interesting despite only brief encounters with some of them.  The crazy poetry and songs were literary works of art in and of themselves.  The best part of the book was the ability to lose yourself in Wonderland and allow your imagination to run along with Alice on this fantastic adventure.  It was a light read with no deep thought required...perfect for summer vacation! 

Inspiration? What Inspiration?

I used to think that I created my best work when I was so-called "inspired."  I've come to realize that is a load of s#^*...Inspiration is an amazing thing when it hits you and the universe explodes and the idea materializes in the dandelion seeds that floated out of nowhere and spell out your incredible thought.  Yea, that happens to me so often.  Now, this is not to say that I create with no inspiration.  I have simply adjusted my thinking to realize that I need to focus on how I lead an inspired life.  I recently made  a list of the little, everyday things that inspire me.  Things like sunflowers and chubby bumblebees and the color pink and waves.  When I sit down to work on my Etsy things and have no idea where to begin, I haul out my inspiration list and let my mind wander.  Its a far less stressful way of creating art rather than stressing over why I haven't been mysteriously and magically "inspired" lately!!

One of My Favorite Times of Year

Ann Arbor Art Fair time!  Yes, town is crazy and traffic is a mess and there are a million tourists crawling all over my city but I still love all of it!  My mom came yesterday and we spent 6 hours wandering around all 4 fairs that make up the whole festival and B and I went again today for about an hour and a half.  I came home with a new crock to hold my cooking utensils on my counter, a ceramic mixing bowl, a glass/ceramic wine bottle stopper, a blue headband, a cute tee-shirt and a bright print from Cady Watson.  All in all, it was a wonderful time! 

Another Book :)

While on vacation, I finished People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.  It was a fabulous summer read.  Absolutely wonderful.  Maybe its because of my nerdy interest in the subject, but I loved it :)  The book is the story of a book, a very rare book to be specific.  The Sarajevo Haggadah is found in Bosnia and leading book conservator, Hanna Heath, is called into restore the volume for display.  Inside its pages, she finds several interesting fragments, such as a white hair and a grain of sea salt.  She begins to investigate the origins of the fragments and the journey the book took through the ages.  In conjunction with Hanna's story, the book flashes back to the book's story of how each object showed up caught in its pages and binding.  Of course, there is family drama and a little love story too but all in all, its a story of history that unfolds beautifully, as the pages of a book, as it were :)  I love the idea of a book or artifact having a story beyond just the historical significance of the text.  Each book comes from somewhere and traveled along its own journey though people's lives.  This book was fascinating and I recommend it as a quick and yet intellectual read. 

Michigan Love

I'm back from vacation!! More about that later but right now I have to gush about the new stadium additions!!!  B and I went to the open house at the Michigan football stadium today and it was incredible.  Beautiful.  Amazing.  Hail to the Victors.  Leaders and Best.  All that.  Seriously, I can't say enough things about the beautiful box seats and suites.  I guess the best way is to show you.  Enjoy the little sneak peak!!!!