Bringing the isles to Illinois

Prior to going on our Hawaiian vacation earlier this year, which you can start reading about here, I daydreamed about the souvenirs I was going to bring home. Like the photos I took while we were in Italy on our honeymoon that are now matted, framed, and hanging in our family room, I wanted items I could scatter around our house as daily reminders of this trip. So, as we soaked up the sun, shopped, and did other vacation-related activities, I picked up some inexpensive (and free) curios to bring the island-flavor back to Illinois.

These $2-a-piece dried starfish were the first things I snagged from a nearby shop. I love their white, simple shapes, and every time I spritz myself with my chosen fragrance of the day, I admire their beautiful forms.

Oh, you saw that I threw in the word free did you? Well, that's no mistake. As we visited beaches around the islands, I gathered some large and small pieces of dried corral that had washed ashore and stowed them in my luggage. They didn't make my suitcase smell so hot, but once home, I rinsed the salt water and sand off and distributed them around our house.

Our souvenirs aren't large (like a carved wood mask that many vendors were peddling), but when I catch a glimpse of them, they make me smile and remind me of the wonderful time we had on the beautiful isles of Hawaii.