Normally, the books I suggest you read are practical, not necessarily beautiful. Recently though, I was offered an opportunity to review a book that was both practical, beautiful and designed to help you grow a bit spiritually. Life In Season: Celebrate the Moments That Fill Your Heart & Home by Vanessa Hunt and Heather Patterson combines so many things I enjoy about books all in one volume.
I have to admit, I had never seen or read their At the Picket Fence blog, so I am not a fan writing a review. (Although, I did look at their blog while reading the book.) The authors, who are sisters, have taken each of the seasons and written beautiful chapters which are part devotional, part motivational, part how-to.
There are crafts, recipes and other beautiful ideas for you to replicate throughout the book. They usually include detailed, but simple directions for doing it yourself. On the “Martha Stewart Difficulty Scale” (If you are familiar with Martha Stewart, you totally understand what I mean!), the ideas are as beautiful, but usually less difficult. At least one required a drill though, so be warned not all of the ideas can be completed without purchasing a few items.
The devotionals are several pages and include real life stories, scriptures and often quotes from others. They too are beautiful in the style common to many women’s devotional books – a bit flowery and dramatic. Not so over the top that it’s annoying though, if you usually prefer more practical down-to-earth writing. It matches the style of the rest of the book, so here the beautiful devotional writing style fits well.
Unlike many Christian books, this book has been well done artistically. The photography, paper stock, hardback cover, art and more all fit together to create a book with the high quality and aesthetic you would expect from an expensive secular lifestyle book. This one just has the added benefit of encouraging the reader to stretch and grow spiritually as well.
If you are looking for a book for yourself or others that combines devotionals, beauty, crafts, recipes and more, this is a great one. Even if you don’t know anything about them or their blog, you will enjoy this book. I can only imagine their fans are over the rooftop with excitement.
This book was given to me for free in exchange for my honest review. An affiliate link is included for your convenience.