"Mint Coffee" by Karolina Dziewa

OK, confession time. Cooking is not my cup of tea. I don’t enjoy it. I’d rather not do it. And I pull out all the tricks to avoid it. It’s only very occasionally that I get inspired enough to whip up something new.

Art, on the other hand, I love. Can’t get enough. Drawing, illustration, design, charts. Gimme, gimme, gimme.

Enter They Draw and Cook – a blog that blends one of my least favorite pastimes with one of my favorite  in the form of illustrated recipes. Talk about serving up a heaping helping of inspiration. These artistically rendered recipes make cooking look downright fun and, in many cases, easy. And even if I never find myself actually making one of these recipes, at least I can still feast my eyes on this scrumptious recipe art.  (I may not love cooking, but I definitely love me some cooking metaphors.)

Bon Appetit, peeps!

"Quiche Lorraine" by Gaetan Heuze

"Red Pepper Soup" by Emilia Szewczyk

"Salsa Verde" by Geninne Zlatkis

So, I’m a bit of a word nerd.

OK, OK. I’m a HUGE word nerd because my heart had all kinds of palpitations when I unexpectedly came across dictionary.com’s new The Hot Word Blog.

I like learning new words and I’m fascinated with the who, what, where and why behind their origins. I also really enjoy how the words featured on this blog are inspired by current events like Chelsea Clinton’s wedding, Comic-Con, tropical storms and top web searches. You might not be as into words as I am, but The Hot Word Blog is also a good source of trivia fodder you can use to impress your friends.

Here are just of few of the things I’ve learned since I started reading this blog:

1. A zedonk is a zebra-donkey hybrid and yes, they do exist.

 2. That weird spasmodic leg twitch you get at night–the one that happens right after you get that sensation of falling? — it actually has a name. It’s called a hypnic jerk. Makes perfect sense, right?

3. How “pot” and Mary Jane became  nicknames for marijuana. Find out here.

I love I Love Charts. Charts boil things down to the nitty gritty. They get right to the point while being visually entertaining at the same time.  And when they’re funny charts that make you laugh out loud, well that’s even better. The charts featured on I Love Charts run the game from quirky and clever to silly and insanely informative. Topics are just as  all-inclusive, spanning pop culture, current events, personal opinion … there’s even a chart about charts! Love that one… and these:

(Larger versions of charts are available at I Love Charts by clicking on the images.)

A few others that caught my eye: Who Can Wear Pigtails?, The Elements of a Superhero and TV University.

And if you’re really into infographics, check out Visualize and GraphJam, too.

I loved New Dress a Day   from the moment I set eyes on it. Marisa, the blog’s creator, has limited herself to a clothing budget of $1 per day for one year. Which means she’s bargain bin hunting for used clothes and repurposing them for her daily life. With each and every post, I’m amazed at how she transforms the old, outdated item into something so unique and quite trendy. Makes me want to learn how to sew even more.

It’s also a lot of fun to see what she starts with. I think the most hilarious item I’ve seen is the yellow floral pants below. I mean, who wore those? And why?!

I think one of the most appealing things about what Marisa is doing is the simplicity of it. Granted I’m no sewer and I have no idea what kind of technical skills this requires. But most of her looks don’t require a complete disassembly or restructuring of the garment. She makes small, clever tweaks and uses her own ingenuity to make it work. And it works well. 

Here are a few of my favorites:

Day 33

Day 185

Day 179

Day 169

 Thanks for a great blog, Marisa! Can’t wait to see what you have in store for the next six months!

My apologies for taking a little unannounced hiatus from posting. Believe me, it was unintentional and, for the most part, very far from a vacation.

That being said, I thought this was a very appropriate blog to mark my return with. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed poking around on The Daily Postcard, looking at all the old postcards. Boy, they sure don’t make them like they used to.  I just love the artistry and color of old postcards. They seem so much more ethereal and imaginative than today’s versions.

But the two things I like the best about this blog is the inclusion of any historical significance and blog’s creator Christine M.’s very insightful–and at times, silly–observations. When possible, she also includes transcripts of the messages written on the postcards.  

A German postcard

American League Baseball Park

Promotional postcard for GE Fans

Happy Halloween

Jillian, this blog’s for you.

I just love looking at all the clever, crafty things people come up with. One of my favorite things to do is stop by Etsy, type in a random word — like “acorn” or “happy” or “chartreuse” – and see what gets pulled up. People are so talented in so many different ways, and no two people see “acorn” or “happy” or “chartreuse” in quite the same way.

Which brings me to Today’s Creative Blog. Because if there is one thing in this world that lends itself to infinite interpretation, it’s creativity. 

Today’s Creative Blog is just that– a blog that features a different creative blog almost daily. My favorite thing to do is to click on the “Previously Featured” tab at the top right and start randomly selecting blogs to look at. Hey, it’s worked so far.

Right now, I’m really focused on decorating my home, and I’ve found some splendid home decor blogs via Today’s Creative Blog. Some of my favorites so far are:

But there’s much more than home decor to be found on this blog. There’s sewing and crafting and cooking and scrapbooking and refurbishing and art projects and blog design and… you get the idea. Now bounce on over there, check it out  and get those creative juices flowing!

Artist Lisa Congdon’s photograph of her collection of vintage math flash cards, which is featured on her blog, A Collection a Day.

A Collection a Day is artist and illustrator Lisa Congdon’s year-long daily effort to chronicle her collections, both real and imagined. Each day features a photograph of one of Congdon’s collections or a drawing or painting of an conceived collection.

She has some wonderful stuff, and it’s very neat to look at. It’s  simply amazing how many collections she has … and she doesn’t even intend to include all of them on the blog. Anything deemed too large or awkward will not be featured.

small ceramic owls

pine cones

clothespins

Need a daily dose of happy? The kind that doesn’t stick to your hips? Check out Hipster Puppies. If this blog doesn’t brighten your day, then … well… you need help.

"Huge Green Guy" by Wayne

I catch myself smiling every time I look at Monsters in Real Places. It’s just so fun. I mean, how awesome would it be to come across one of these monsters in one of these real-life locales? …Well, as long as they aren’t the chew-you-up, spit-you-out-and-leave-you-for-dead sort of monster. My favorite has to be the “Huge Green Guy” above. I love how he looks like he’s totally been caught out, like he’s been hiding in this valley for years and, until now, has escaped being noticed.  

 I could see this monster coming to life if you let your cottage cheese curdle just a little tooooo long.

"Cottage Cheese!" by Chris Elippoulos

The very best part is that if you’re feeling  inspired, you can submit your very own monster creation. The directions are simple: Use a photo of some setting. Create a monster to go in it. Write a little blurb and e-mail. According to this big guy’s ditty, he was a “Cloverfield” hopeful. Ha!

"Rumpus" by Joe & Seb

 I get “Star Wars” every time I look at this one.

"Beach!" by Chris Walker

There’s currently a call for submissions featuring the 2010 Olympic mascots. Hence, the furry guy with the earmuffs.

"Quatchi" by Caleb Sawyer

 Happy monster sighting!

Who doesn’t? I’m loving Distracted by Star Wars, a blog of anything and everything Star Wars-related. It seems as though nothing is off limits, from cute kids in Halloween costumes…

… to fun with action figures…

… to art of all kinds…

… and, of couse, there’s a little weirdness as well.

Be sure to check this one out when you do have time to get good and distracted because it’s sure to take you to a galaxy that’s … well, you know.