Friday Fancies

My favorite internet find of the week has also been my most vexing: this tutorial about how to create latte art. The step-by-step photos and video made it seem so manageable that I immediately tried it myself. It's probably needless to say that the process isn't as easy as it looks. Maybe it's because I used coffee brewed in my Keurig, or because I "steamed" the milk in a measuring cup in the microwave, but my first attempt came out looking like any other cup of coffee I've ever made. As did my second attempt the next day. And my third. I may keep trying, though. The possibility of being an at-home barista is just too tempting to abandon, even if it means a new habit of late night coffee and a wrecked sleep cycle.

(even the birds had to dig out of their houses last weekend)

Some other things to enjoy (no special skills required):

A belated Valentine's fix in the form of vintage cards from the NYPL archive.

A book blogger visits Ann Patchett's bookstore in Memphis.

A video book club recommendation from Persephone.

Author Carlene Bauer creates a playlist to go along with Frances and Bernard.

And over the past few weeks there's been a lot of buzz about both the Pride and Prejudice anniversary and updated book cover designs. Combining the two, here's a slideshow of various Pride and Prejudice covers throughout the years. (Cover #7 was the edition I had when I first read the book!)