Books

I am looking forward to the release of....

 Origins by Jessa Gilbert

Summary:
Red pain, Red desire, Red need, Red hunger…


I have been plagued by the same dream for months now. A nightmare filled with red, dripping with death, where I am the hunter. There is no escape, no end in sight…. The nightmare has become a reality and I am forced with a choice – I can become one with the darkness that lives within that is clamoring, clawing to escape, or I can bury the demon, and the nightmares, once and for all.


It may seem like an easy choice, but not when I also have to choose between the father who has raised me or a mother whom I have thought was dead. Not when the choice is my humanity or Immortality….


Aided by a dark mysterious stranger, a hidden world is opened up to Adelin - a world full of bloodlust and death - the Black world of Immortals. Torn between the two, she faces the hardest decision she's ever had to make. Will she choose the safe, familiar life she has always known? Or will she let the darkness consume her?




This is Gilbert's Debut Novel. Jessa lives in southeastern Iowa and has aspired to write a novel since the age of nine. Now she is a mother of 3 and I think she is incredibly talented and am looking forward to not only reading this novel but also many more!
The book will be released in August on Amazon in Kindle Format, but she has published teasers and the entire first chapter on her blog.

Finding time for my art

inside my moleskin

These days I am trying to sketch daily. I am exploring Wisterias at the moment. I am just sketching as it comes, will see where these sketches will take me. The last sketch is today's, its not finished yet, I am not sure where I want to go with it, so will finish it tomorrow. Even if I just glue photo mosaics into my moleskin or visit the Clay Cafe - I managed to fit a little time for my 'art' in every day for the last week. Journaling in someway is a great way to get one going. Being in the swing of it, makes it easier for me to simply get going the next day again.
On days when I think I won't have time or I am not really inspired I visit Aimee. She is doing Art Every Day Month. Each day she amazes me, makes me laugh and think. But most importantly I get myself to find time for my art - her take on this... Inspiring isn't it? Someone around blogland said, she thinks that, Aimee is a secret super hero - I think maybe, it ain't so secret anymore....

So find time for your art- you never know what you will discover!
xo

Inspirations

When ever I feel like travelling - and but in reality won't be able to travel other than round here - I visit my favourite blogs and flickrstreams. And I always make sure I visit Chris, her photostream makes me feel like I visited her dwellings and makes me forget that I am just sitting in my armchair.

Where is your choice of destination?

Inspirations

Nuray posted this beautiful photo today on flickr. It made me feel like spring! Adore all the details.

What inspired you today? Any great links? Please let me know!
Enjoy Tuesday!

Dream of Summer

my new favorite flower
Originally uploaded by mrs. french

A wonderful photo from ever talented Tracy from Blissfull images.
Made me dream of summer.
Will be back tomorrow with a ravelry update....

Inspiring Blogs: Quaint Handmade

Quaint Handmade

If you don't know this blog you have to go and check it out! I love the beautiful photos, the my favorites features, and mostly every time Cindy writes about her home city, I besides thinking how I really want to visit, I make mental notes about what I could do, when I manage to go.
I feel in love with Quaint end of last year when Cindy posted photos of the Christmas Windows all over New York. I really loved doing this interview, because it gave me another aspect about this talented creative Gal.  A very inspiring blog indeed!

Tell us who you are and what do you do outside the blogging world?

I'm Cindy and work in marketing in NYC. In my prior careers, I worked in professional services and had my own handmade stationery business based on my watercolor illustrations.

How did you start blogging?

I had been reading blogs for years and never really thought I could sustain one creatively. I'm still not sure ;). In early 2008, Erin from Design for Mankind included inspiration boards from my husband Scott and me in her e-zine and people seemed to like them, which was neat. I had also been worrying that we didn't have a lot of photo albums or scrapbooks over the years and thought it was a nice way to record some of our activities. I really never dreamed we would meet so many amazing people like yourself through our blog. It's been incredibly encouraging creatively and I'm quite sure I wouldn't have discovered photography as an art form without it.

What do you blog about?

I write about life with my dear husband Scott and I also love to make things and take photographs. According to Malcolm Gladwell in his book The Tipping Point, I'm a bit of an 'information maven', so I mention things I find that might be interesting to others, too. Our blog is definitely evolving and it is one of the few activities I've done without a lot of pre-planning and I'd like to keep it that way. After all, it is a personal blog, so it would be kind of weird to create an editorial calendar for our lives.

What inspires you?

I find a lot of inspiration just living in NYC and in anything from Top Gear to the Museum of Modern Art. Most of my inspiration comes from my very talented blogging friends, the incredible handmade community and Flickr. As you can tell from the photos, I also really love flowers, so that's a pretty standard inspiration, almost like air.

Thank you, Cindy!!

Inspiring Blogs

Princess Pea

The first blog I started reading reagularly was Anna's Princess Pea. I discovered it through Ravelry, she is a fabulous knitter and a great writer. I still remember which post read first- it was so witty and still serious. Every project Anna finishes, makes me want to knit- and I also wish I could knit half as well as her. She is one of the reasons I actually started blogging! And when I did so, she was one of the first to welcome me to this fabulous world.

Tell us who you are and what do you do outside the blogging world?

My name is Anna, and I live just outside London. Outside of the blogging world I work for a museum, and I am also training to be a yoga teacher.

How did you start blogging?

I had been a blog reader for some time, but it was joining Ravelry that prompted me to start my own blog. I came across so many inspirational blogs through people's project pages and I really wanted to be a part of the blogging community.

What do you blog about?

I mostly blog about my knitting. I don't have many 'real life' knitting friends, and I love being able to connect with other knitters through my blog. Apart from that, I blog sometimes about things that are going on in my life, whether it be a bit of decorating or gardening, or something I have been doing with my family, like holidays. Oh, and I have a passion for collecting teapots, and an ambition to make (at least) one tea cosy for each pot, so sometimes my teapots get a mention!

What inspires you?

In terms of other blogs, I am inspired by beautiful photography (like yours!), and by the amazing skills and talents of other knitters. In terms of everyday life, I find that keeping my eyes and my heart open to what goes on around me means that I can get inspiration almost anywhere.

Thank you, Anna!

Inspiring Blogs

Artsyville

Artsyville is the blog of Aimee a very talented artist and mom to a bunch of cute kids,that lives in Kansas. I can't remember how I discovered it, but it has been a delight ever since.
Aimee's Art is gorgeous - she calls it doodling- And since a short while it is also for purchase it at her fabulous shop!
The stories told on Artsyville are amusing to say the least, I often laugh while reading this wonderful blog. Through it i have been discovering snippets of Aimee's adventures life and got a glimpse of her wonderful personality. I also often found good advise reading it. Oh and let me warn you! The world of Aimee is extremly colourful and bubbly, and will draw you into its spell inevedently!

I don't feel that this tiny feature does justice to any of the blogs I recommend, and Aimee's world of Artsyville is so vast that this feels like a teeny tiny space to try and fit it into.
Honestly- go and visit her, is all I can really say!

Tell us who you are and what do you do outside the blogging world?

I'm Aimee, I don't like milk or mushrooms, and in my lifetime I've been a lifeguard, a salesperson, a buyer, a marketing analyst, a software tester, and a management consultant (a fancy term for one who earns a lot of money for creating skyscrapers of paperwork.) Right now I'm an illustrator and a parent. What's next? Who knows?

How did you start blogging?

Spontaneously! One day I just started my blog, and I thought I would be bored with it in a month. Now it's one of my favorite daily activities. It gives me a reason to create every day, and I love connecting with my fellow artists and bloggers.

What do you blog about?

Things that happen in daily life, particularly things I find funny.

What inspires you?

Ironic and bizarre stuff, color, my children, fresh art supplies, traveling, thinking about traveling, reading about traveling, hearing about traveling...pretty much anything to do with movement and change.

Over the last 6months Aimee has become a sort of a online constant companion, always encouraging me and leaving kind and sweet comments- also giving me really good advice, dare is say a friend?

THANK YOU AIMEE!

Inspiring Blogs

As I promised, something little about Shari's fab blog. I discovered it through Abigail's blog and was caught instantly. I love her photos and the way she writes, but the thing that I found most inspiring is that her posts make me smile, amaze me and often make me think, whatever it is they move me. Her blog has been incorporated into my early morning routine, because the posts stays with me often all day.

The Glass Doorknob

link: the glass doorknob

Tell us who you are. What do you do outside the blogging world?

I'm Shari and I work at an independent bookstore. On the side, I write and take photographs and am the co-editor of this joy+ride.

How did you start blogging?

Years ago I was inspired by a few blogs (superhero journal, wish jar journal and port2port) and thought I would give it a try. I found such a great community and have been blogging for three years.

What do you blog about?

Generally, I blog about every day life...things I notice day to day, inspirations, thoughts. sometimes recipes and links to other creative folks.

What inspires you?

Nature is my biggest inspiration...seeing the light hit the snow a certain way, watching doves fly by my window and catching a glimpse of their white bellies, the curl of the grapevine, the bright stars in the winter sky. I love going for walks and finding something I've never seen before.

Thank you Shari!

Most inspiring blogs 2008

I have nominated 15 blogs as my choice of most inspiring blogs 2008

( see on the side bar)

In the next couple of days I will run small features of each of them.

You can join in! Post to your most inspiring blogs in the comments of this post or run a feature about them on your blog and let us know!

Happy Exploring!!!