Paul Nicklen

National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen has some incredibly beautiful and inspiring work. I first learned about him here (take the time to watch that slide show full screen, it's amazing.) He's spent his life documenting the polar regions so that the rest of us living in "cement jungles" can get a glimpse into places on our planet we will probably never see. Can you imagine scuba diving in that?!

the girl effect

This is a video everyone needs to watch. I was going to put the video on my blog, but I'd rather you go here to watch it full screen and check out what they're doing.

These aren't the only people who believe that helping girls can be a powerful force for good in the world. Read this book if you haven't yet.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

If you haven't seen it, go.
The absolute best movie I've seen in theaters in...I don't know how long.
Incredible stop motion animation and wonderfully fun, quirky humor. I was impressed with every frame. This is a glimpse into how much work went into making this film, and this is one of my favorite clips from the movie.

down to the wire.

it's wintertime.
& crunch time.
finals and all.
see you in a week or two.

Krystyna's Mission Book

My dear friend Krystyna leaves on her mission for our church next week and I made her a book to take on her big adventure. Good luck out there Styna, I can't wait to hear about the life changing experiences you have in the next year and a half.

what I love about this book:

the book cloth.

I've been looking for a nice neutral book cloth and finally found some this week. I'm completely smitten with it.

the grommets.

Usually I think that grommets look a bit tacky. I'm not sure why. But they're beginning to grow on me—especially these natural colored ones. I like that they give the book a finished look.

the size.

I adore how this book fits in my pocket. Why have I not made a book this size before? It will definitely not be the last.

the title page.

Instead of printing the title page on a traditional printer, I did an acetone transfer (the ink is rubbed off from a different sheet) and I like the authentic and rough feel that it created.
the inside cover.
Instead of using decorative paper like I usually do for the inside covers, I used the same book cloth. It kept the book simple, and in my humble opinion, quite beautiful. I've been adoring neutral colors much more than usual lately, and the way this book turned out fits my mood just perfect.

I suppose it's time to make one for me.