August's Wonder-Adventure Plan

Once upon a time, when we were children, all the world was magical. And while fairy worlds are not as easily found in adulthood, they can be rediscovered. This month, we explore the enchanted places, real or imagined, that linger on from our youth, letting them entangle and color our personal stories and journeys.

Get August's Adventure Plan

How will our everyday change when we believe in the faërie again?

Pay attention to the suggested walks and adventures and let the fairy dust and your imagination lead the way!

How To Adventure with Your Guardians:

Curious Rabbits: Head out into the wild and let your imagination and curiosity run free. Fairies hide in plain sight so poke your noses into flowers, look under leaves, peek into tree holes.
Wonder-Walkers: Challenge yourself to explore outside your comfort zone - a different terrain, at a different time, etc. Take the canoe out for a morning paddle in the mist. Climb a hill at sunrise when dewdrops lead straight to Fairy Land. Watch the magic world that emerges with the new.
Magic-Makers: Seek out the Wonderland hiding in your everyday to prepare for our Week 2 creative project. Paint or photograph places that Alice might have encountered.
Truth-Finders: What are places and experiences that often lead straight to Fairy Land for you? Identify them and seek them out.
Secret Gardeners: Revisit the fairy stories that enthralled you as a child and let them shape your Fairy World walks.
Myth-Weavers & Enchanted Explorers: Embark on Fairy World walks and let them guide you intuitively on the next stages in your current creative journey. What lessons are you meant to learn?

Low-Hanging Fruit for this Week:

Choose one Fairy World walk (randomly, or one that you are most drawn to) from the list of 3 suggested wonder-walks. Take 10-15 minutes to find a bit of magic this week.

PART 1: PREPARING FOR WONDERLAND

Revisit Wonderland and dream up your vision of this magical, whimsical world to prepare for this photography project. Instructions and creative brief in the Project Booklet below:

DOWNLOAD THE PROJECT BOOKLET

Magic-making with your Labyrinth Guardians:

Curious Rabbits : Dive into Wonderland and look out for scenes, places and words that tickle your inner child! Let your imagination go where it wants to.
Wonder-Walkers : Where is Wonderland for you in your everyday? Take a wonder-walk (around your house, garden or neighborhood) and re-imagine your favorite scenes from the book in the wild using the list in the Project Booklet.
Magic-Maker: Storyboard or sketch your own vision of Wonderland. Select a photography theme from the Booklet that delights you the most (or come up with your own).
Truth-Finder: There are layers of ideas and symbols hidden behind the nonsensical prose and settings of Alice in Wonderland. Which of its fantastical motifs resonate the most to your journey right now?
Secret Gardener: Many creative works have been inspired by this timeless children's book, from movies to fashion to music. Where will the rabbit hole of inspiration lead you if you followed it? Start with the Enchanted Explorers' Pinterest Board in the Project Booklet.
Myth-Weaver & Enchanted Explorer: Is there a theme or idea from this book that is relevant to what you're currently working on? How can you weave in this photography project so that inspires or re-invigorates your project(s)?

PART 2: STEPPING INTO WONDERLAND

Low-Hanging Fruit for the Week

Referring to suggestions for activities by your Labyrinth Guardian above, choose ONE adventure for this week. It can be just sitting down and writing your favorite scenes or prose from Lewis Carroll's book, or going on a wonder-walk to scout out your Wonderland location, or even just gathering props. Finding what excites you is key here. Let the rest of the journey unfold organically from there! Have fun!

A Conversation on Fairies, Wonder & Creativity

I've always been enchanted by the way Cristina Colli weaves together nature and the everyday in her photography and l was eager to peek into how she sees the world around her, to discover how she nurtures her sense of wonder and creativity. And I found in her a kindred explorer spirit! Cristina and I discuss finding the Faerie in the everyday, and how to spark magic and stay creatively inspired during the Pandemic.

Conversation Highlights:

The one element that is important about the story of Alice in Wonderland.
Cristina's seeds of wonder and magic in childhood.
A simple fairy ritual and why it's meaningful.
Why it's important to honor our creative cycles and seasons.
How to spark wonder and creativity during the pandemic.
What really helps her be more creative in her photography.

Guest Wonder-Seeker: Christina C0lli

"I’m an artist, photographer, writer, introvert and Highly Sensitive Person, in love with creativity, flowers, and the seasons. I believe that creativity heals, and so does being in nature, seeking beauty, looking at the world with eyes full of wonder, living a heart-led life in harmony with our wonderful Earth, and finding magic in the ordinary. When I’m not creating or pottering around in the garden, you can usually find me curled up on the sofa reading a fantasy novel, or walking in the woods. I’m Italian but I left Italy to move to Ireland, then England, and now France, where I live with my husband and two cats. I write a monthly newsletter from the heart, Creative Notes, and share photography and styling tips on my blog. I help people create beautiful images with my photography and visual storytelling e-courses, and also offer online 1:1 mentoring sessions.

You can see my work on my website, and on Instagram."

LINKS:

Low-Hanging Fruit For the Week

Watch the video chat with Cristina and ponder one takeaway that you'd like to implement in your own everyday.

A delightfully thought-provoking Wonderland-esque conversation with forays into conceptual and philosophical rabbit holes around nature, belonging, fairy worlds and Wonderland lessons.

Highlights:

How to be a local - on belonging and cultivating a relationship with the land and laying down roots
The difference between wonder-walking the land as a local and as a tourist/visitor.
A college lecture on Alice in Wonderland and children's literature!
The hidden symbolism in Wonderland - liminal spaces, animal characters.
Wonderland lessons on being human