Meera Lee Patel

Charming & Inspirational Note Cards for a Variety of Occasions

(Full disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review through Blogging for Books.)

If I had to describe this set of note cards in one word, it would be "lovely."





Each 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card features a quote from a historical figure - from Harper Lee and Oscar Wilde to Antoine de Saint-Exupery and Ovid - accompanied by a fun and whimsical illustration by Patel. The cards are suitable for a variety of occasions, though many show more skew towards messages of encouragement, inspiration, and empowerment. (If the quotes aren't inspiration enough, consider this: Patel is a self-taught artist!) Each card is blank inside, leaving you plenty of room to write, sketch, and scribble, making it your own.



The set comes with simple white envelopes (natch) and is housed in an elegant box, which you can reuse for jewelry, ephemera, or more cards!

Patel has also published similarly themed journals and diaries/day planners, both of which you can now find on my ever-expanding wishlist.

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This collection of “365 tangle creations for inspiration, relaxation, and mindfulness” stands out from other interactive art books by virtue of the thought-provoking and often uplifting quotations that accompany each picture.

So what are zentangles? An “official” Zentangle is an abstract drawing created on 3.5 inch square tiles, done in black ink on white paper.

Zentangling has become a widespread practice: you can find instructional videos about it, newsletters, blogs, pinterest show more pages showing completed zentangles, pattern pages, and so on. Like doodling, one is encouraged to let lines and shapes emerge without planning ahead. [Unlike doodling, however, Zentangling has “theory” and “approach.” Nevertheless, it can be adapted as the more flexible “Zendoodling.”] All you need is a sharpie or marker of some kind, and you’re good to go. Or you can use colored pencils, these being perfectly acceptable for zendoodling rather than zentangling…. The practice is supposed to be efficacious for meditation and stress reduction, as well as increasing inner focus.

The pictures in this book are actually just “starting off points” - you fill them in, expanding them or enhancing them or whatever appeals to you. As the author and illustrator explains: “Each page is an invitation to sketch, relax, focus, and reach toward inner peace.”

Evaluation: For those who want more than just a doodle book, and more than just a collection of inspirational sayings, this compendium gives you both. It would make an excellent gift, especially for the many people who doodle while on the phone! show less

I get extremely picky when it comes to buying a new planner; it's always my first battle during a new year. I realize that my personal taste may be totally different than others, and I have rarely found another person who is as particular down to the tiny details. So, it means a lot to me saying that I was overall satisfied with Meera Patel's "Start Where You are - Week-at-a-Glance Diary."

The first thing I noticed (and I know this sounds weird) was the "hand feel" of this planner. It's show more almost like a rubberized surface for the front/back covers, but extremely smooth rubber (not sticky rubber). The cover itself is beautiful (a little on the girly side for me, but regardless, still beautiful). The BIGGEST con for me was that the planner does not open flat. If it were a book, I would not bring this up, but as something that I am planning on writing in a lot, it is annoying to have to keep the thing open constantly.

For people who do not use a planner every single day/month, this is VERY useful! Have you ever bought a yearly planner and only ended up using a few months and wasting the rest of the space? Patel's planner allows you to utilize as much space as possible depending on your needs.

Other cons: 8 wasted pages on "contacts" (which are much less relevant these days), paperback and not something more durable, monthly quotes are a little on the cliche side, the cursive font doesn't stand out.

Considering all of my personal (extremely) nit-picky tastes with planners, I am still overall happy with this product! It really is a very innovative usage of space for a week-at-a-glance, given how customizable it is.

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I liked this book. The beautiful painting like illustrations were beautiful. While, I liked this book, I was not in love with it. I only agreed with about half of what was written in this book about fear. Maybe this is because I am not as fearful as I thought I was. As I was reading this book, I realized that I have grown throughout the years and not let my "fear" hold me back as much. However, this is not just a book. It is kind of like a self help book. It should kind of be read a little show more by little as it will make you think and act. This book would make a nice gift for someone. Overall, this book had a good message. show less