etsy

So Ready for a Beach Weekend!

Large Wall Art Large Scale Photography Coney Island Beach II Archival Art Print 30x30"

Happy Friday! For the first time in ages, it’s the weekend and I have absolutely nothing planned. But since the weather forecast is looking pretty good, Evan and I are thinking maybe two beach days in a row—or sneaking away for a night at a nearby beach town. Ahh, summer weekends…

Hope you have a relaxing few days planned, as well. Until next week, a few of my favorite travel-themed links from around the web:

Gorgeous beach photos, including the one above, of Coney Island, by NYC-based photographer Mina Teslaru.

Books that feature flying. Have you read any of them? I’ve been wanting to check out The Skies Belong to Us .

Photo #28. Talk about the coolest World Cup-viewing party!

Amazing photos of floating markets.

A few of NYC’s coolest park benches.

How powerful is your passport?

A bike pizza slicer!

Where’s my jetpack rental?!

(Image via Minagraphy)

A National Parks Checklist Map

When I was growing up, national parks weren’t really on my radar. I come from a very-NYC family—i.e. not outdoorsy—and our summer vacations usually involved relaxing on an east coast beach, rather than hiking trails.

And as I got older, I preferred to spend my vacation days exploring new countries rather than stateside attractions.

But over the past few years, I’ve found myself wanting to visit more national parks. I’m astounded by the diverse landscapes that exist in this country—everything from beaches to volcanoes, mountains to deserts. I’ve started to make up for lost time by visiting some, like the Grand Canyon, Acadia, Volcanoes National Park.

I’d like to see many more. Which is why I’m loving this National Parks Checklist Map by ElloThere, an awesome, Brooklyn-based, husband-and-wife design team.

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The map shows all the national parks, which are denoted by numbered green trees.

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It comes with numbered gold tree stickers—so after you visit one, you can mark it off.

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A cool whimsical extra: The map also comes with a little explorer’s patch!

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I feel like I may need to plan a national park trip soon…

(Images via Ello There)

DIY Globe Pillows

I’m not a crafty person. My sewing skills are limited to stitching ribbons onto my pointe shoes—and even then, I’ve had to undo and resew every pair. But I love these DIY globe pillows, from saltlabs, so much that the idea of sewing them together seems really fun. (You know I’m a sucker for globes and maps!В ) I can see myself curling up with them on my sofa and thinking about where I want to go next!

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diy globe pillows

Salt labs also has a number of other DIY pillow kits—I especially like theВ Brazil, Australia and summer constellations. Which one is your fave?

(Images via saltlabs’ Etsy shop)

A Special Discount on Illustrated Music Cards

Back in August, I posted about Foreign Spell, an Etsy card shop that I’m a big fan of. It’s run by San Francisco-based artist Niki Baker, who creates gorgeous rubber stamps to illustrate song lyrics—like this one, of Phil Phillip’s “Sea of Love.”

Now, in a very nice offer to my blog readers,В Foreign SpellВ is offering 10% off purchases with the codeВ GC0612!

If you’re the type who plans ahead, check out their holiday options—I especially love the designs for “Baby It’s Cold Outside” and “Mele Kalikimaka.” (The latter has a special place in my heart: Back in elementary school, my class performedВ the song in the annual Christmas pageant, with girls in leis and hula skirts and guys dressed up as palm trees. Gotta love Catholic school traditions!)

baby it's cold outside

mele kalikimaka

(Image via Foreign Spell’s Etsy shop; and thank you, Niki, for the offer!)

I’ll Be Seeing You

This afternoon, I came across the coolest cards:В San Francisco print maker Niki Baker illustrates song lyrics, carves them onto rubber stamps and emblazons them onto paper.

I love the cards depicting Cat PowerPhil Phillip*’s “Sea of Love” В and The Velvet Underground’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror.” В (It doesn’t hurt that I’m big fans of both of those songs!)

But my favorite design is of Billie Holiday’s “I’ll Be Seeing You.” The outside of the card says, “I’ll be looking at the moon” and the inside says, “but I’ll be seeing you.” SoВ forlornВ and sweet!

i'll be looking at the moon

P.S.

(Image via Foreign Spell’s Etsy shop; found via Scoutmob)

Travel Prints

The other day, I was going down the Etsy rabbit hole and came across these travel-themed prints from 3 Lambs Illustrations. I love the sentiment of the quotes–I’m definitely of this mindset, these days.

And, of course, I loved this one. (Non-New Yorkers, no worries–there are similar prints for London, Paris and Boston.)

Check out even more prints at 3 Lambs Graphics’ Etsy shop.

Hemingway’s Words of Wisdom

The other day, I came across these awesome printsВ via Sho & Tell.В I loved all of them, but the one above stood out to me.

I’m not badass like Hemingway. I don’t sit in my cube typing and swirling a cocktail. (Though there are days when I wish that were the truth!) But as someone who makes a living with words, I appreciate the sentiment.

Every writer knows that your best work comes out when you’re uninhibited and honest and not censoring yourself. In fact, years ago, another writer friend and I used to joke that the best way to write was to pretend you’re drunk and don’t care–and then go back and clean it up later.

It also helps if you truly care about your subject…but if you don’t then maybe that’s a case for taking Heminway’s advice and having a drink or two before getting down to business.

Image via Obvious State