inner excavate-along begins tomorrow!

A quick reminder: The Inner Excavate-along begins tomorrow! You can find out all the details here.

In case you missd it, Effy Wild has put a call out to have others join her for a read along of Inner Excavation. Last year, I led a free seven-week read-along of my book, and the content has been available on my website ever since, but this will be your opportunity to join in and go through it with a group again. Effy's created an information page all about it on her site. And I've actually created a special blog for it here.

I'll be part of Effy's Facebook group and will be peeking in throughout the summer and can't wait to connect with you as you get into your Inner Excavation dig site.

You can buy an autographed copy of my book, complete with special note to you, in my shop here and I will get it out to you right away so you can join in!

trust this truth

In this moment,

close your eyes, 

take a deep breath.

Now another. 

Then when you are ready,

open your eyes, 

and say these words aloud:

I am Whole.

I am Worthy.

I am Loved.

Yes.

(You really can trust this truth. I believe it with my whole heart.)

xoxo,

Liz

PS To receive little reminders and love notes like this one in your inbox, sign up to receive my (almost) weekly newsletter here.

summer reading ideas

A couple of weeks ago, I asked you to share a few of your recommended books for summer reading in the comments of this post. What a list!! I've added almost all of them below and grouped them by general "categories." Hope you find a few you enjoy!

Fiction

All That Is by James Salter

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

The Babylon Rite by Tom Knox

Beauty by Robin McKinley

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Calling Me Home by Julie Kibler

Child of the Morning by Pauline Grege

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

The Cruelest Month: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury

Defending Jacob by William Landay

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Divergent by Veronica Roth

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

The Drifters by James Michener

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Fall on Your Knees by Anne Marie MacDonald

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver

For One More Day by Mitch Albom

The Garden of the Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Schaffer

Half a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Homemade Love by J. California Cooper

Hotel On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Inferno by Dan Brown

The Island by Victoria Hislop

J D Salinger Boxed Set by J D Salinger

The J M Barrie Ladies' Swimming Society by Barbara J. Zitwer

Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins

Joy for Beginners by Erica Bauermeister

Kindred by Octavia Butler

Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey  

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Light Between Oceans by  M L Stedman

The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman

The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

Moonlight and Vines by Charles De Lint

Mistress of Rome by Kate Quinn

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Nearer the Sky by T. Greenwood

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The One Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

The Outlander  by Diana Gabaldon

The Peculiar Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

The Proper Order of Things by Tara Benwell

Pull of the Moon by Elizabeth Berg

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguo

The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party: The New No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Novel by Alexander McCall Smith

The Seamstress by Maria Dueñas

Secrets Over Sweet Tea by Denise Hildreth Jones

She Got Up Off the Couch and Other Heroic Acts from Moreland Indiana by Havel Kimmel

She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb

The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

Size 12 is Not Fat by Meg Cabot

Small Island by Andrea Levy

The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

Unnatural Habits a Phryne Fisher Mystery by Kerry Greenwood

Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

Written in Red by Anne Bishop

Self-Help

Anatomy of the Spirit by Caroline Myss

The Age of Miracles  by Karen Thompson Walker

Daring Greatly by Brene Brown

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

Help Thanks Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott

Magical Journey by Katrina Kenison

Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne

The Toa of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff

Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Women Food and God by Geneen Roth

Non-Fiction

The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller

Bread and Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes by Shauna Niequist

Clean Food by Terry Walters

Grow Cook Eat: A Food Lover's Guide to Vegetable Gardening, Including 50 Recipes, Plus Harvesting and Storage Tips by Will Galloway

Many Lives Many Masters by Brian Weiss

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

Mended by Angie Smith

Mosiac of Thought by Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmerman

A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold

Saturday Night Widows by Becky Aikman

Use Your Words by Kate Hopper

Memoirs/biographies/autobiographies

Dancing with Max by Emily Colson

End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

Fire Season by Philip Connors

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Grace of Silence by Michele Norris

Hannah's Gift by Maria Housden

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Just Kids by Patti Smith

Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis

Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jennifer Lawson

The Potty Mouth at the Table by Laurie Notaro

Running with Scissors a Memoir by Augusten Burroughs

Satuday Night Widows by Becky Aikman

The Tao of Martha: My Year of LIVING; Or, Why I'm Never Getting All That Glitter Off of the Dog by Jen Lancaster

This I Know: Notes on Unraveling the Heart by Susannah Conway

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? By Jeanette Winterson

Wild Comfort by Kathleen Dean Moore

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Coast Highway by Cheryl Strayed

Young Adult

Angelfall by Susan Ee

Beautiful Creatures Series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

The Edge of Nowhere  by Elizabeth George

The Ender Quartet Box Set by Orson Scott Card

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The FitzOsbornes in Exile:  The Montmaray Journals by Michelle Cooper

The Heart is Not a Size by Beth Kephart

The Immortal Instrument by Cassandra Clare

The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini

The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Mrs. Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Book One by Ann Brashares

Son by Lois Lowry

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Poetry

Norton Anthology of Poetry by Ferguson et al.

Writing Poetry from the Inside Out: finding your voice through the craft of poetry by Sandford Lyne

A little note from Liz: I'm excited to dive into a few of these books this summer, and I hope you will join me. Please note that I haven't read most of them and am in no way recommending each of them. Rather, this is a list of books from my blog readers and Pinterest followers that I hope will give you a variety of possible books to choose from. You can read more about the books if you follow the links to Amazon. Some people wrote a bit about why they recommended their books, and you can read that in the comments of the original post here. If the recommended book seemed to fall far outside the realm of "summer reading" or was out of print/difficult to find, I didn't include them, but I did try to add as many as I could. You can find all the recommendations in the original post.

Thanks so much for playing along and happy summer reading!!!

your weekend homework

 

print available on Society6 

A couple of weekends ago, we got outside to shake out the cobwebs and the grumps and to look at the world through the eyes of a three year old. 

We explored a new park. Got our feet a little too wet. Found creatures we'd never seen before.

And then just when we thought we were heading home, Ellie led us on an unexpected hike through trails and over little bridges and we followed as she told us stories (and to "hurry up!") the entire time.

It was awesome.

Your weekend homework

Close your laptop. Put down the phone. Walk away from the iPad. Go outside. Take a deep breath. And then another one. And live.

You just might be able to feel your heart expand with all the goodness of connecting with the world outside your doors. (Even if you just walk to your front step and take five deep breaths.)

If you want to share your photos on Instagram/Twitter/FB, use the hashtag #gooutsidehomework and we will find you there.

(Extra points for taking photos + getting yourself in the photo + using your timer to get the people you take with you in the photo too. Seriously. Get in the photo honey. It is time.)

pinned it. did it. {with meg}

Another Pinned It. Did It. guest post with Meg! These happy glasses make me smile. Would love to have some friends over for an evening of snacks + summer drinks (from the recipes Meg shares below) + some DIY fun! Read on for Meg's column.

***

I pinned this DIY quite some time ago. It’s been in the back of my mind for months as a project I’d really like to try. So this weekend I stopped by the local dollar store and picked up some glasses to use and decided to give it a try. I used acrylic paints and an old paintbrush I had on hand. However after the fact, I discovered this paint that is specially designed for painting on glass and can be cured in the oven for a more permanent creation. 

I’ve seen confetti glasses at places like Anthropologie and Crate & Barrel, and I am always drawn to the way they look like summer - the type of glass best for drinking iced tea or margaritas out of. Something that should be in-hand at a barbecue or on the back porch as the sun sets. June seemed like the perfect month to pull out the paints and give this project a whirl.

The DIY itself is quite simple. It really is as easy as dotting paint onto the side of a clean glass using a slightly heavier hand towards the bottom of the glass and lightening the touch as you work your way up.  I started with the darkest blue first and worked my way towards lighter colors. From what I’ve read, it’s important to seal the glasses after completing the painting in order to help prolong it’s life. However, even with a sealing, they are delicate and should always be gently washed with warm water and a soft sponge. 

As I was dotting paint on my glasses, I was thinking about what a fun gift this would make for a teacher at the end of the year or a new neighbor welcome gift or a wedding shower gift for a couple. It’s a great handmade gift, yet it is forgiving on a tight budget. 

Drink Recipe Suggestions for Your New Glasses:

• Toasted Coconut Vanilla Limeade 
• Summer Sangria
• Cherry Limeade
• Sparkling White Peach Sangria
• Blueberry Lemonade
• Maple Iced Tea 

I added this pin to my “I Pinned It and Then Did It” board on Pinterest over the weekend and enjoyed looking back over all of the fun I’ve had since discovering Pinterest. What have you made from Pinterest lately? Tell us about it in the comments section or link to it for us to explore. 

Meg Brothers is an artist, photographer, mama, and dreamer. She loves cooking, tattoos, and sporadic dance parties in the kitchen. She prefers dark chocolate, black coffee, and flip flops when weather permits. She is a lover of Pinterest and truly believes in integrating ideas and inspiration - big or small - into normal life. Meg lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, Dustin and son, Julian. Meg writes about photography, family, and creative inspiration at megbrothers.com. Find her on Pinterest here and on Twitter here. 

***

Note from Liz: Over here in my corner, I'm trying to "use Pinterest for good." I really see it as a community of people trying to see the beauty and possibility in their lives. I'm adding a few new features here on my blog inspired by or directly about Pinterest as a way to invite others to look for this beauty within a social media community. I look forward to seeing how it all unfolds. Connect with me on Pinterest here. Read other "Pinned it. Did it." columns here.

seeking shadows

Over here, we've been playing with finding our shadow selves. Toward dinner time, the sun hits the front steps just right and really long, tall shadows appear.

It is awesome. Like "look at those shadow pigtails" awesome.

Ellie is super excited to look for her shadow whenever we are outside, and her physics teacher daddy is thrilled to talk to her about how and why shadows appear.

I just like to play with different poses and then try to capture them with my camera.

An Invitation

In my book Inner Excavation, we spend some time unearthing our shadows and finding our reflections in photography, poetry, and mixed-media self-portraits. Playing with our shadows can gently push us to notice where we are, it can ground us, and it can reveal pieces of ourselves that we've been ignoring or want to know more about.

Spend some time seeking your shadow self this week. Notice how it changes throughout the day depending on where the sun is. Maybe even write a poem about "what your shadow says." 

*****

I'm truly over-the-moon delighted that artist and beautiful soul Effy Wild has put a call out to have others join her for a read along of Inner Excavation through the Inner Excavate-along. Last year, I led a group through a free seven-week read-along of my book, and the content has been available on my website ever since. Now you can join a group in going through it this summer! 

The group is starting June 24 and you can find out all the details here. This would be a beautiful way to open yourself to creative connection this summer. Let me know if you join in! I'll be part of Effy's Facebook group and will be peeking in throughout the summer.

You can buy an autographed copy, complete with special note to you, in my shop here.

the declaration of you :: uniquity

The Declaration of You, by Jessica Swift and Michelle Ward, will be published by North Light Craft Books this summer, with readers getting all the permission they’ve craved to step passionately into their lives, discover how they and their gifts are unique and uncover what they are meant to do! Today, I'm excited to share this post as part of The Declaration of You’s Blog Lovin’ Tour, which I’m participating in alongside over 100 other creative bloggers. Learn more – and join us! – by clicking here. 

Over the last year, I’ve been looking at a few of my old stories from when I was younger. Specifically, I've been thinking about and writing about the ones that include phrases like: 

• You always take things personally.
• You’re so serious all the time.
• Don’t be so dramatic.

As I look at these moments in my past, I’ve begun to see that being able to talk about the serious things, to be in touch with how deeply personal life is, and to even use drama for good are important pieces that have brought me to this place where each day I try to share the true stories so that others will know they are not alone. I'm working on seeing what I thought were "criticisms" at the time as the magic that makes me who I am. 

Some days I even see them as my superhero powers that help me create safe space for women to show up as themselves and tell their stories. 

So to celebrate The Declaration of You and this week's theme of "uniquity," here are just a few of the pieces of me that I want to honor today because they make up this magic that is me.

Today, I say a big yes: 

like it's 1993...

a new collection in the shop

When I was in high school, I listened to Lenny Kravitz sing "Flower Child" on repeat, longing to be that girl "dressed in purple velvet with a flower in her hair" who "speaks of liberation on the land and on the sea" living on the West Coast and standing up for what I believed in. Even when I was wearing my boarding school uniform of plaid kilt and button down white Oxford, I wore layers of beaded necklaces that I made sitting cross-legged by the lake behind my dorm. And then in the summer when at home, I'd add a few more layers on my wrists and ankles.

Recently I unearthed these beads in my studio and decided to play with them again after an almost 20-year break. And as I listen to Lenny and Mumford & Sons and Paul Simon and string bead after bead, I'm spending a little time with my 17-year-old self and remembering her dreams and realizing that she would be very proud of me and where I am as I tell the true stories over here in my corner of the world.

The 1993 Collection is filled with the energy of summer and mixed tapes and afternoons full of hope and secret dreams and the belief that one girl just might make a difference in the world. As you wear your piece from the 1993 collection, I hope you will reconnect and listen to those secret dreams inside you.