work in progress I Need a Doraemon Door, Urgently Had to rush somewhere out of the blue and kept thinking, “If only I had Doraemon’s Anywhere Door right now…”
monthly recap Monthly Charlie’s Playground: July 2025 July’s over! Here’s a recap for anyone who missed posts (or doesn’t know where to start).
inspiration Corn Season Is Here and I’m Losing It! Corn season in Illinois = pure happiness. I’m literally going downtown just for corn now.
inspiration The Happy Potato (and Why I Bought It for Myself) Found a super cute kids’ book in Amsterdam—turns out it’s also a masterclass in storytelling.
inspiration Found My Dream Stacking Color Pencils in Amsterdam! I’ve been hunting for stacking color pencils all year… and found them at a museum gift shop in Amsterdam, of all places!?
inspiration Sticker Forage in July at 1821 W Hubbard St Found a guardrail full of weird stickers at Spudnik Press’s building. Couldn’t stop staring. Sharing my faves for July’s sticker forage!
work in progress Another Day at Spudnik Press! Checking colors, fixing tiny details, and double-checking everything right up to the very end.
news Big News: My "Something Long" Is at Quimby’s! Two weeks late but still exciting—my zine “Something Long” is at Quimby’s Bookstore in Chicago!
work in progress Melting Like an Ice Cream in Chicago Chicago is melting. I’m melting. Everyone’s melting. Please put me in the freezer.
inspiration Finally Went Inside That Fancy Burns & Noble Kept staring at it forever… finally went inside and wow, the inside was gorgeous too. I might become a bookstore regular now.
inspiration The Alchemist: Second Read, Big Impact I reread The Alchemist after more than 10 years—and this time, it actually landed. I think I finally have the heart to understand it.
inspiration STUTS’s Orbits Is My Chill Work Playlist Lately, I’ve been floating through work sessions with STUTS’s Orbits—it’s mellow, jazzy sometimes, and full of chill groove magic.
inspiration A Surprise Garden Walk! A random sign led us to Chicago’s Dearborn Garden Walk—and suddenly we were exploring 20 dreamy private gardens!
inspiration My Zine-Soaked Saturday at the Library It was pouring outside, but inside Harold Washington Library, I was swimming in zines, colors, and creativity. I want to be a tabler someday—together with my husband!
inspiration Did That Famous Book Also Come from The Artist’s Way!? Elizabeth Gilbert says Eat, Pray, Love wouldn’t exist without The Artist’s Way. Now I’m wondering if I should go back to it too.
inspiration Murakami meets Midwest! Who knew Cleveland would be the place for Murakami magic? From rainbow flowers to spooky skulls, it was a wild ride!
inspiration Flor og Fjære, A Garden Paradise I took a ferry to a flower-filled island near Stavanger—and somehow left with life inspiration and a craving for fish soup.
inspiration A Bonus Exhibit: Inger Johanne Rasmussen at Stavanger Library We popped into the library by chance—and ended up face-to-face with gorgeous textile art by Inger Johanne Rasmussen. Total lucky find!
inspiration Street Art Forage in Stavanger, vol.2 After exploring Stavanger’s graffiti scene, today I’m sharing all the fun little things I spotted—stickers, cute characters, graphic signs, and one very charming Cake Man.
inspiration Street Art Forage in Stavanger, vol.1 I wasn’t expecting street art in Stavanger, but surprise! The city turned out to be full of charming, clever graffiti that totally made my week.
inspiration A Cute Detour in Utrecht: Miffy Museum Visit A quick detour to Utrecht led us to the most heart-melting destination: the Miffy Museum! From original sketches to nougat theft—yes, really!
inspiration Inside Moco Museum’s Art Playground From cheeky Banksy to round-circle Mickeys and LOL-worthy art, Moco Museum was like an artsy jungle gym for my brain.
inspiration A Sweaty Journey to the Heart of Street Art Street art in a warehouse! Sweaty but inspired, I explored 180+ works at Amsterdam’s STRAAT Museum—my new favorite art stop.
work in progress Riso Print Day at RISO POP I skipped the cheese and printed risos in Amsterdam! Here's how Charlie the noble herring-lover was born.
inspiration Gravenstraat, the Tiny Street Full of Big Art A stroll down a little Amsterdam alley revealed a wild mash-up of stickers, murals, and mystery arms poking from poles. What is this place!?
