Spark Joy

I absolutely love this book! It's the companion guide to the author's best seller (The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up), and this book gives illustrations for many of the folding and organizing techniques for some of her tips.

I have heard about this author, and I have seen many of the inspiring things people have had to say about her technique, but I have not read any of her previous materials.  This book certainly inspires me to read her other book, but I also appreciated that I could still utilize this book regardless.  She sums up various points that helps to explain the concepts that she believes when it comes to tidying and organizing.  I am not sure if this would be redundant (if you had previously read her other book), but for me, it was a nice way to catch up and feel like I was on track.

As with any topic like this, the results really are in whether or not the person reading is willing to actually apply the knowledge in their life, or if they will just leave the knowledge in their head.  I am not in a place in my life where I feel that I can purposefully dedicate time to tidying up, and so I am tempted to just keep this knowledge 'in my head'.  But, surprisingly, even though I am not trying to actively tidy up, I am finding that I AM beginning to apply several of her suggestions and techniques.  I am beginning to build awareness for myself concerning the items in my home. I am beginning to ask myself if these items spark joy, and I have been able to eliminate several items just by asking myself this question.

I have been inspired enough by this companion guide to actually buy her other book, and I am making plans now to set apart a season this year to really tidy up.  No more clutter. No more constant organizing and re-organizing all the clutter.  

As a side note, I really appreciate the author's grateful and positive attitude.  You won't find any condemnation or judgement in this book! She has so much grace, compassion, and patience to help us learn what we do not know.  

One thing is for sure:  this book sparked joy for me. 

Note:  I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Doodletopia for you?

I was super excited to have the opportunity to check out this book. I am currently wanting to grab some quick sketching skills for some webinar presentations I am preparing for.  I was wanting this book to show me how to create different shapes of heads, add in various facial expressions, different ways to pose the bodies, how to sketch various hairstyles, etc.

I walked away NOT achieving those things.

This book begins by taking a penguin and showing the reader how to draw it.  Then it moves on to a single boy.  The book continues to show you how to copy/draw what the artist has already drawn.  I grabbed a pencil and notebook and sketched the first few drawings from the beginning book, and this is what I came up with below:

And for me, this will not teach me how to put together original sketches and designs.  BUT, my kids love this book. I have heard several times this past week alone, how much they love attempting to copy the drawings in the book.  They are thrilled with their sketching accomplishments.

While this book didn't meet my needs or expectations, this book was a winner with my kids (ages ranging 6-13 yrs old).

Please note, I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.