spreading the b'love

better late than never, eh?

The fabulous Sal over at Already Pretty showed me some blove about two weeks ago, and I had been meaning and meaning to do my part and pass it on, but you know - back pain and now a cold/fluish something-er-other have really cramped my style of late. However, a recent visit from an old friend prompted the pop quiz, "five blogs you check every day, go!" and I answered without hesitation, fully conscious that I was, at that moment, composing this post.

I've linked Sal above, as a sneaky way to get an extra blog in there. I'll avoid redundancy here, but trust me, she makes the short list. If you haven't checked her out, you should.

and now to share s'more b'love (too many apostrophes?) The rules state that I have to pass this gold card of joy along to 5 blogging buddies, including one new one. Here are my picks, with some rhapsodizing, because these women are just so cool!:

Posie Gets Cozy - this is a no-brainer. Alicia Paulson is magic. She got me hooked on blogs, actually. Two years ago, I had a sinus infection and was bed-ridden for days with a high fever, feeling miserable for myself. That is, until I stumbled upon Posie somehow. It was wintertime and Posie was all candy-coloured Christmas. I spent hours alternately sleeping and poring through her archives. It was delightful, and oh-so-comforting. Alicia's voice is always warm, human, immediate, connected. She'll make you laugh and cry. She's loads of talent, and a healthy dose of reality, and it's no wonder she's hundreds of loyal readers. She's my daily dose of cheer, and on those hard days that we all have, I sometimes ration my Posie reading, saving it 'til lunchtime of afternoon, where it's that boost that puts a smile back on my face and carries me through the rest of the day.

Inside a Black Apple - I'm afraid these will all be of the "no-brainer" category. The charming Emily Martin is an incredibly talented and popular artist who runs an Etsy shop of the same title. She posts almost every day with new art, new crafts, new images of her beautiful home, and I absolutely love her aesthetic. She's currently working on a new series, called "Ordinary Forest."

Wiksten - Jenny Gordy's that effortlessly chic and cool girl that I always (still!) wanted to be. In addition to being a striking beauty herself (she was kind enough to let me paint her this summer from one of her self-portraits), her blog reveals a deeply sensitive and thoughtful nature that is disarmingly sweet. Her aesthetic is clean, but beautiful - very Scandinavian, to my eyes. She's busy cranking out her breathtaking collections (*sigh* unfortunately, a few years from affordable for my grad-student-budget), so she's not a daily poster, but I always check - just in case.

{frolic!} - Chelsea's blog is one of two I frequent for a treasure trove of inspiration. She generates a wealth of enchanting articles, photos, and ideas every week. I always tell myself I have to ration, only look at one a day, but I can't help it. When her new round of posts are up, I gorge myself on delight and then am left waiting until next time. Everything is light, and beautiful, and wonderful here - her blog is aptly titled. I particularly love all her links to Cookie Magazine's incredible ideas for (stunningly photographed) children's birthday parties. Late-20s, Schmate-20s, I want one of those fairy birthday parties, dang it.

and finally, a newbie: I was jonesin' for some more blog-reading while coughing and miserable on Friday, so I was surfing other people's blogrolls (is there an etiquette on this?). I went from wiksten to A History of Architecture (another favorite. I almost put Erica in as my "newbie" but I knew that would be cheating, because I've been reading her blog and drooling enviously over her wardrobe for months), and from there to Copycat. Fashion inspiration abounds, and the minute I publish this (oh, okay, and notify everyone that I've nominated them), I'm going back to her page to read about this darling braided hairstyle. I have a very Heidi-esque dress that is screaming for some braids like that. =)