29 January,2023 12:58 PM IST | Mumbai | Team SMD
Representation pic
If poetry, bright coloured art and going the old-school way to check upon dates is your criteria for a calendar, then this Seagull Wall Calendar (Rs 7,99) should cover all your needs. Featuring a selection of poems from Rabindranath Tagore's Gitanjali, which have been visually celebrated by illustrator Sunandini Banerjee, this calendar ends the search for that dash of art and practicality you are looking to adorn your wall with, or to gift a dear one. Sized 12 x 12 inches, the calendar is available for sale.
seagullbooks.org
If you needed a push before the end of the year to start writing that book, or script, then Haruki Murakami's new book will be the ideal read. It came to this writer, just as she had been procrastinating and sitting on an idea. Novelist as a Vocation (Rs 1,793) is a collection of essays, about the craft of writing, how to get over the writer's block, how to go through memories in your head and how to eventually choose the right ones to put down on a piece of paper. Murakami's biggest piece of advice, and it's clear in the way he lives his life (getting up at 4 am and writing first thing in the morning for a few hours), is that writing needs daily discipline. He explains how setting a routine, and a daily practice, will more often than not, lead in a finished product. We found the clear and simple ways he breaks down his process, very helpful.
Available at all bookstores
It's that time of the year, when resolutions are made, and in plenty. It's also a moment of reckoning of how quickly a year has gone by, and so little has happened or perhaps so much, that you couldn't savour the experience fully. That's perhaps why we need a planner, as opposed to "reminders" and "notes" on your smartphone. This writer recently gifted herself illustrator Alicia Souza's 2023 planner (Rs 2,000 onwards), and must we say how excited we have been for the New Year to begin, so that we can write in little notes to ourselves. What looks like a pretty planner from the outside with Souza's trademark cute girl, cupcakes, flowers and birds making it to the cover, is a happy discovery as you flip through the pages. It doesn't just help you keep a tab of day-to-day activities, but also your mental, emotional and physical state, serving as a gratitude journal, while keeping a check on your period flow, exercise routine, or anything else you want to record. Basically, a habit tracker. You can also use it as a diary for your thoughts. What's not there to like? Except that it's so gorgeous, you don't want to really mess this diary, especially if you have poor handwriting.
aliciasouza.com
Ben Mornin hones many caps. Based in Budapest, Hungary, Mornin is a music producer, guitarist and a visual artist. As a visual artist, he is known for his 2D illustrations and as a graphic designer. His recent toddler series on Instagram is what caught our eye where he recreates popular fictional characters as toddlers. He has taken popular movies and TV series such as The Office, Game Of Thrones, Harry Potter, House of Dragons, Stranger Things, Avengers and many more. We loved how adorable baby Hedwig, Harry Potter's pet owl looks and that in the Toddlers of Hogwarts post, the phoenix also makes a cameo in its miniature version, full of furry cuteness. The series is engaging and we can now imagine how these characters would have looked as kids. It's almost like taking a time machine to the past.
@benmornin, Instagram
If you are searching for the OG Emily in Paris, look no further than Jenny Walton. The artist, and muse to every street fashion photographer ever (she was once a favourite subject of The Sartorialist - Scott Schuman's fashion blog), is as stylish as they come. The Brooklyn girl recently moved to Milan, and her life is one full of art, food and fashion, of course. We love her effortless style, that is vintage, and full of old school glamour, with all the flirtiness that comes with living the single life in a European country. What makes it better? Walton's cool girl aesthetic reflects in every picture she puts up, even if it's of the food in her fridge. Her favourite brands are Prada, Miu Miu, and Loewe - but it's not the brands we love, it's the way she puts all the pieces together. Chic, classy and aspirational!
@jennymwalton, Instagram
Compiled by Aastha Atray Banan, Jane Borges and Nidhi Lodaya
