So, come on — share with us your FRIDAY FINDS! Added to my to be read shelf this week was:

It’s Fairy Tale Friday!

Fairy Godmothers, Inc. by Jenniffer Wardell
Expected publication: April 27th 2013 by Jolly Fish Press

In a world where fairy tale situations are as much a fact of life as death and taxes, everyone knows hiring Fairy Godmothers, Inc. is the best way to assure that your beautiful daughter or enchanted frog of a grandson will get the happily-ever-after he or she deserves. Sure, sometimes a little love potion is required to make sure those quotas stay up, but what Prince Charming doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

Kate, an experienced Fairy Godmother, who’s enough of a romantic to frustrate her rigidly rule-bound boss, has just received a specialty assignment from one of the company’s board of directors. Cinderella—Rellie for short—was placed with an appropriately wicked stepfamily years before, and now needs the dress, ball, and handsome prince to complete her happily-ever-after. The fact that Rellie isn’t sure this is her dream come true—balls are fun, but princes tend to be less interesting than fluffy bunnies—isn’t something management considers a problem.

Complicating things a bit is Jon, the youngest son of the royal family, who meets Kate, and is smitten, but isn’t quite ready yet to reveal his true identity. After all, it’s his older brother Rupert who’s supposed to marry Rellie, which means pretending to be a lowly civil servant will give him the chance to spend more time with Kate. (As long as he can get the ball arranged, and stop Rupert from getting himself into trouble over his “self-actualization” business, he should have the perfect opportunity to explain everything and get started on making a little magic with the Fairy Godmother of his dreams.)

But, of course, things never ever happen as planned.

Toads and Diamonds by Heather Tomlinson
Published March 30th 2010 by Henry Holt and Co.

Diribani has come to the village well to get water for her family’s scant meal of curry and rice. She never expected to meet a goddess there. Yet she is granted a remarkable gift: Flowers and precious jewels drop from her lips whenever she speaks.

It seems only right to Tana that the goddess judged her kind, lovely stepsister worthy of such riches. And when she encounters the goddess, she is not surprised to find herself speaking snakes and toads as a reward.

Blessings and curses are never so clear as they might seem, however. Diribani’s newfound wealth brings her a prince—and an attempt on her life. Tana is chased out of the village because the province’s governor fears snakes, yet thousands are dying of a plague spread by rats. As the sisters’ fates hang in the balance, each struggles to understand her gift. Will it bring her wisdom, good fortune, love . . . or death?

Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
Expected publication: June 11th 2013 by Knopf Books for Young Readers

It says quite a lot about Jeremy Johnson Johnson that the strangest thing about him isn’t even the fact his mother and father both had the same last name. Jeremy once admitted he’s able to hear voices, and the townspeople of Never Better have treated him like an outsider since. After his mother left, his father became a recluse, and it’s been up to Jeremy to support the family. But it hasn’t been up to Jeremy alone. The truth is, Jeremy can hear voices. Or, specifically, one voice: the voice of the ghost of Jacob Grimm, one half of the infamous writing duo, The Brothers Grimm. Jacob watches over Jeremy, protecting him from an unknown dark evil whispered about in the space between this world and the next. But when the provocative local girl Ginger Boultinghouse takes an interest in Jeremy (and his unique abilities), a grim chain of events is put into motion. And as anyone familiar with the Grimm Brothers know, not all fairy tales have happy endings. . .

In the meantime…vintage-y goodness.

Sweetheart pocket mirror/frame circa WWII

Farm table that shows its age in a very lovely way.

And a vintage sari throw. Love.

xoxo, Shannon

This Friday Find is dedicated to the ever essential summer beach bag – the Scout bag. I love the pretty patterns and vivid color of these quality totes. Scouts are the ultimate bag for packing up all of your snacks, that new beach towel, a trashy romance novel, some snacks, and big floppy hat for your day seaside with friends.

I chose this over-sized white and royal blue chevron patterned Original Deano tote. It contains everything and wont get ruined if the waves come up too far. All I need now is my yellow bikini and that clear ocean.

Scout has tons of fun prints and shapes to choose from. Which is your prefect beach comanion?

Dancing Tiger by Cindy Budiono

Check out this incredibly detailed replica of Henry Jones’ Grail diary from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (my favorite of the series). He’s also created a ton of other replicas, well worth checking out on the main page.

And finally, I give you the Laws of Physics: Cartoon version, laid out with scientific precision.

A dose of inspiration to get you through the weekend.

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Spring fever is in full force in our household, and for me that means COLOR! I’m laboring under the theory that some bright, summery neons will chase away what’s left of the chill New England weather. And if that doesn’t work, at least I’ll have some pretty things to look at while my teeth are chattering.

Here’s to warm and colorful days ahead!

P.S. I PROMISE I’m working on some projects of my own to show you all! It was hard to do “normal” things the past two weeks, but I’m ready to dive back in to some great DIYs and will be sharing them with you soon!

Another personalized item that I found this week is this gorgeous pearl necklace. Every woman should have a pearl necklace in her jewelry case, right? Well, how about personalizing it so it’s not quite the same pearl necklace. It’s so unique! Kimberly Tidwell in Spartanburg, South Carolina, creates each necklace. She sells them at her online Etsy shop. I love that this is such a classic necklace yet I can put my “fingerprint” on it with the color of my choice and my initials. The pendant also adds a modern touch. Since I have three children, I could even choose to have each child’s first initial on the pendant. What a great Mother’s Day gift! Does it inspire you to have a classic item with your personal stamp on it?

Click on the appropriate photo for purchasing information.

Typography Print by Empire Silkscreen on Folksy

The funny thing, is I have had need for this more often in my Pilates teaching than in my embroidery.

1. Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz

I found this book on the NEW YA display at my local library. I am a fan of all stories related to World War II and/or the Holocaust. When I read the book jacket for this novel I knew it was a must read! It is based on the real story of prisoner B-3087, however, some characters and events were added to the story. I can’t wait to get to this book!

2. Double Digit by Annabel Monaghan

Okay, so this book isn’t even out yet, but I was so, so excited when I saw it on Goodreads! I read A Girl Named Digit by Annabel Monaghan last year and I LOVED it. It was one of the books where I actually felt kind of sad when it was over. Well, I didn’t know there was going to be a sequel so when I saw this I was thrilled!

3. The Lions of Little Rock by Kristin Levine

This book is on the Texas Lone Star list this year. As I was browsing the titles on the list this one really caught my eye. I honestly don’t know much about this book, but I’m still ready to sit down and read this own based on the summary alone.

4. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss is a book I was finally convinced to add to my TBR list after I saw it on many, many blogs. The title sounds a little cheesy and the cover looks really cheesy so  I have my doubts. However, I have heard nothing bad about this book. Actually, quite the opposite…every one seems to love it and because of the rave reviews I feel that I have to give this book a chance.

5. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

I am currently reading (actually listening to) my first Sarah Dessen book and I really, really like it. Dessen’s characters are so easy to relate to and they are just fun. Since I am enjoying it so much I looked some of her other titles up on Goodreads and this is one that caught my eye. Hopefully, it will be as good as Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen which I am currently reading.

FRIDAY FINDS showcases the books you ‘found’ and added to your To Be Read (TBR) list… whether you found them online, or in a bookstore, or in the library — wherever! (they aren’t necessarily books you purchased).

So, come on — share with us your FRIDAY FINDS!





My Finds:

“Five Days” by Douglas Kennedy
“Learning to Stay” by Erin Celello
“Yesterday’s Sun” by Amanda Brooke
“The Lola Quartet” by Emily St. John Mandel
“Weird Things Customers Say In Bookshops” by Jen Campbell
“Maya’s Notebook” by Isabel Allende
“The Conditions of Love” by Dale M. Kushner
“One Minus One” by Ruth Doan MacDougall
“The Comfort of Lies” by Randy Susan Meyers
“Amity & Sorrow” by Peggy Riley

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own Friday Finds post, or share your ‘finds’ in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog). Thanks!

Why not invite the kids to draw on their present before they unwrap it???…..

Everyone loves a little Pom Pom decoration….

If you have time….

The wrapping itself is a present…

This one is my favourite….print off a simple photo and add it to the gift…

How ever you wrap a present, I love the idea of making the whole experience a little more personal and special. For more wrapping ideas, you can visit my Pinterest board here. Ella’s little boyfriend Josh is next in our group of friends…will have to get our thinking caps on!

*All images are linked to their original source

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After all the sad events that went down in the U.S. last week, I am ready to find some peace by taking pleasure in the little things. And since it is Earth Day today, I can’t think of any better way to do this than by celebrating our planet and reconnecting with nature.

If you find time today, take a walk, look at the trees, and maybe even make one of these sweet projects involving natural and/or upcycled materials.

Here’s to a better week ahead!

Hirshfield’s has been out at Junk Bonanza these past two days and loving every minute of it. Junkers are loving Cottage Paint, the 50+ colors, and loving the on-going Cottage Paint demos being held in our booth and in the Cottage Paint classroom. There’s a lotta love at Junk Bonanza!

Tomorrow is the last day of the Spring Junk Bonanza; the show opens at 9:00am and runs until 5:00pm. Vendors restock every evening; rearranging their booths with new pieces pulled out of trucks and trailers…some of the vendors have living quarters in their trailers. Crazy creative are the junking crowd.

From start to finish on this small table…using Cottage Paint and Cottage Paint Waxes

Benjamin Moore’s Molten Metallics on a cardboard “H”

Showcasing the different products at the H’s booth

Enough about us… here’s Junk Bonanza.

I met people from all over the country who come to shop at Junk Bonanza…Colorado, Arkansas, Thunder Bay, Iowa, North Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois, Toronto, and the list goes on.  I can’t say enough good things about the whole Junk Bonanza experience.

I apologize for the lateness of this post. Hopefully, you’re able to experience Junk Bonanza tomorrow. One last thing, I thought “the junk” was priced to sell.

P.S. I almost forgot to mention the Weddings Lab. This is where brides-to-be can gather inspiration for their own weddings from four different themed vignettes, featuring vintage and repurposed ideas.

]]> http://justcherished.com/2013/04/19/friday-finds-april-19th/ Sat, 20 Apr 2013 01:27:51 +0000 Stephanie http://justcherished.com/2013/04/19/friday-finds-april-19th/

1. The only street art I’ve seen is in San Francisco. It gives such character to the city, just like the art district in Beijing. I hope to see the Street Art in Berlin someday.

 
2. Budget travel does not always mean the cheapest travel. They break out the costs of their travel and a budget that works for them. It could be helpful for my own trips.

3. These stunning Karst Bridges in Wulong, China are part of the South China Karst, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Also in the region are limestone caves, which I had hoped to see while in China. I first found this post as a highlight on AFAR.

4. If I went to salt flats in Northern Argentina, I would take lots of silly pictures too.

5. Beer tasting is a communal experience in this Cape Town township.

FRIDAY FINDS

As usual MizB asks the question:

What great books did you hear about/discover this past week? Share with us your FRIDAY FINDS!

My finds for this week, pictured above, are:

• Seraphina - Rachel Hartman
• Meridon - Philippa Gregory
• The Other Boleyn Girl - Philippa Gregory
• Mary Queen of Scots and the Isles – Margaret George

Dreaming about summer and outdoor adventures…

[smittenstudioonline.com]

[http://lucid--dream-s.tumblr.com]

[via pinterest, source unknown]

[http://bluemooncandles.tumblr.com]

[christinanarese.tumblr.com]

[100layercake.com]

[via pinterest, source unknown]

I’m not a fitness blogger. I love fitness but there’s no way in hell I could write about it every week. This is an official post describing the demise of the Fitness Friday feature. There will be no more weekly posts {even though it only lasted two} about my goals, exercise or eating. I found it simply too hard to do. I want to do it but the difference between wanting to do something and actually doing it is availability. I simply don’t have that. I do not have a lot of free time these days – simple as that. However, I do like having a feature on Friday. So, you know what that means?

I’m bringing back Friday Finds!

I have said that blogging is a lot of ‘hit and miss’ and ‘trial and error’ until you find what you’re comfortable with. Almost two years down the track and I’m still finding this to be true. Looking back, I actually enjoyed finding photos and images to share with y’all. I really did. It was like a little scavenger hunt on the internet and I couldn’t wait to share what I had found. Plus, there are photos of good-looking guys on the internet.

So here I am, cutting my losses and I’m bringing back an old feature! Keep a look out for it next week!

Adios mis amigos!

This week, an international team of scientists announced that they had sequenced the DNA of the African coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae). The genome of this ‘living fossil’ reinforced what scientists had long suspected: the genome of the coelacanth was evolving at a slower rate than that of other species. However, ‘living fossil’ is a misnomer. Species don’t live in a vacuum; the coelacanth has been living and evolving just as long as any other species on Earth. The only difference is the rate at which changes occur. According to Dr. Jessica Alföldi, co-lead author of the paper published in Nature this week, the genes of the coelacanth appear to change at a significantly slower rate than other vertebrates. One possible reason for this slow rate of change could be because coelacanths don’t need to change. These fish live in the deep waters off the eastern coast of Africa. Their habitat has not changed much over the past few million years and neither has the coelacanth.

Coelacanth at the Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Nantes (by sybarite48)

Sequencing the coelacanth genome has also allowed scientists to answer other nagging questions. For decades scientists have debated whether the coelacanth or the lungfish–another lobe-finned fish with ancient roots–is the basal tetrapodal ancestor. By comparing the DNA and RNA from coelacanth and lungfish to modern tetrapods, scientists concluded that the lungfish is more closely to related to terrestrial tetrapods than the coelacanth. That by no means lessens the coelacanth’s contributions to science. The unwieldy size of the lungfish genome (approximately 100 billion base pairs) makes it too long for scientists to effectively analyze. On the other hand, the genome of the coelacanth is a much more manageable length (similar to our own). That’s not to say that sequencing the coelacanth genome was easy. The African coelacanth is critically endangered, which means there were limited opportunities to do research. Any sample was a precious commodity that could not be wasted; there may not be another chance to sequence the genetic material.

Differences between the genome of the coelacanth and terrestrial tetrapods help to illuminate the changes that occurred with the transition to life on the land. Scientists made four key discoveries. First, they found differences in the regulatory genes involved with the sense of smell. Detecting odors in the air differs from detecting odors underwater and these changes reflect these differences. Secondly, there are key differences in regulatory genes involved with immunity. The transition to land exposed organisms to new pathogens and the genome had to adapt. Thirdly, scientists found regions of the genome had been ‘evolutionarily recruited’ to form the limbs of tetrapods, including arms, legs, fingers and toes. Specifically, ‘HoxD’ genes were likely used by tetrapods to makes those fleshy fins into limbs. Finally, scientists found that an essential gene in waste excretion differed between the coelacanth and tetrapods. This could be a clue to the genetics of the differences in methods of homeostasis: fish release ammonia directly into the water, while tetrapods convert ammonia into urea using the urea cycle. These insights are just the tip of the iceberg: the coelacanth genome likely still holds more keys to terrestrial evolution.

To learn more about the coelacanth genome, check out the link below.

Coelacanth genome surfaces

Charlie, acrylic on canvas, 16″ X 40″. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Sid, acrylic on canvas, 18″ X 18″. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Muscle Man, illustration. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Hummingbird, illustration. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Double Narwhal, water decal on vintage ceramic plate, 15 3/4″ x 11 1/2″. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Promoting animal rights awareness is another passion for Metzler, and she often donates a percentage of her proceeds to local animal shelters and organizations, like Pinups for Pitbulls. This Saturday, April 20, Pit Bull PSA style posters by Metzler will be available for purchase at the Smithville Arts Walk in Smithville, NJ, where she and her pit bull mix, Stella, will make an appearance.

Racism, 14″ X 20″ Pit bull PSA poster. image courtesy of Tara Metzler

Always available for commission and licensing work, Metzler will also showcase her work at the Annual Hoboken Arts & Music Festival in NJ on Sunday, May 5. Brand new Pig Dog branded notepads with her original characters will be available for purchase among other works. For more info and to see more of Metzler’s work, visit her website PigDogOnline.com and Pig Dog Online Etsy shop.

An indoor flea market in walking distance from my apartment?!  Nice to meet you flame, you can call me moth.

Kate

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I know, I know. I’ve already talked about the Vanilla Almond Puffins, but you guys! Not only did I find the FULL LINE (WHATTTT!) of Puffins in one of Boulder’s smaller, more awesome grocery stores–BUT they were also almost $1 cheaper than at Safeway/King Soopers/Whole Foods/Sprouts! Win. Also, couldn’t resist sharing my love of Puffins (again) to hopefully convince you all to try them–healthy, delicious, fantastic.

XOXO, Chantelle