Features

Working in Permanent Ink

What drives local tattoo artists

By Art Bukowski | Nov. 23, 2024

There are a lot of feelings to feel when you sit down to make lines that will (probably) stay on a person’s body until they die. Even veteran tattoo artists have a bit of nerves as the needle goes in, they say, as that ink is pretty unforgiving. And there’s a colossal sense of responsibility when someone trusts you to make permanent marks on their arms, legs, or (gasp!) face. But with … Read More >>

Let’s Get Cozy: A Local Shopping Guide

10 finds for gray days, cold temps, and winter nights

By Jillian Manning | Nov. 23, 2024

Farewell, daylight! We’ll miss you until the clocks switch back on March 9, 2025. For those of us who feel sad (or literally SAD, thanks to seasonal affective disorder) when winter rolls around, the next few months may feel like they’re better spent in hibernation than trudging through the increasingly cold, dark days. So you know what? Let’s hibernate! Or embrace the Danish theory of hygge, or whatever you want to call … Read More >>

Merry Music: 20+ Concerts, Shows, and Performances to Celebrate the Holidays

Experience The Nutcracker, a Celtic Christmas, the Science of Santa, and more

By Ross Boissoneau | Nov. 23, 2024

Ready or not, here come the holidays! And with the yuletide season come special shows and performances, both classic (hello there, Mouse King!) and newer (candlelight concerts anyone?). From churches to theaters and beyond, the magic of December brings people together. “When I search for holiday programming I’m looking for something a little different,” says Chad Lindsay, executive director of the City Opera House (COH). “Not everyone enjoys the same thing.” City … Read More >>

Fighting Words, Healing Conversations

Author Kimberly Brubaker Bradley and Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center bring light to the darkness of child abuse

By Anna Faller | Nov. 23, 2024

Content Warning: Both the featured book and this article contain references to topics like sexual assault, attempted suicide, drug addiction, and child abuse. Please consider this when choosing when and how to read. Award-winning children’s author Kimberly Brubaker Bradley wants you to talk about the hard stuff. In particular, she wants to amplify awareness surrounding child sexual abuse, because it’s happening in our communities, whether we’d like to acknowledge it or not. … Read More >>

Your Holiday Book-Buying Guide

17 book recommendations from NoMi booksellers

By Jillian Manning | Nov. 23, 2024

When in doubt, buy a book. (A lesson that applies to all situations, but particularly the holidays.) We asked booksellers across northern Michigan for new titles that have won their hearts, opened their minds, and broadened their horizons. Below, find their top picks for readers of all ages and genres. Horizon Books 243 E Front St., Traverse City & 115 S Mitchell St., Cadillac | horizonbooks.com Intermezzo by Sally Rooney“A beautifully complicated book … Read More >>

A Bra for Every Body

TC boutique Intimi is all about making lingerie feel (and look) good

By Brighid Driscoll | Nov. 23, 2024

Recently, the Victoria’s Secret fashion show returned to television. After a six-year hiatus, the oft-controversial runway show came back, trying to display reform from the old ways with models beyond size zero and a specific body type. Audiences felt lukewarm about the show when polled afterward, citing that it felt too little too late. Carolyn Greenman, on the other hand, is the owner of downtown Traverse City boutique Intimi and is dedicated … Read More >>

Gifting the Great Outdoors

12 ideas for the outdoorsy person in your life

By Drew VanDrie | Nov. 23, 2024

If you live in northern Michigan, there’s a good chance that someone (or multiple someones) on your gift recipient roster just wants to build a cabin in the woods, wear a bunch of flannel, and be one with the great outdoors. Or, at the very least, they want to take a hike on a sunny winter day. Whether you’re shopping for a nature novitiate, an intermediate weekender, or an old-hand in the … Read More >>

Art, Traditions, and Heritage

Eva Oldman brings graphic design and Anishinaabe culture together

By Rachel Pasche | Nov. 23, 2024

Eva Oldman has been working in graphic design for 16 years, but her passion for art began much sooner than that. “I was always an artsy child growing up,” Oldman tells us. “I was really into crafts as a kid and was always making things with my hands. When I was 13 years old, I made my own Native American dance regalia with the help of my aunt and cousin.” (Anyone who’s … Read More >>

Ready, Set, Christmas!

Local tree lightings and Santa visits

Nov. 23, 2024

You know the drill, folks: This weekend is all about the holiday lights, evergreen trees, Santa visits, and shopping sprees! (We’re feeling very Seussian for that rhyme!) Here is just a short selection of spots full of holiday spirit: Nov. 29 at 9am, Bed Parade in Glen Arbor, followed by the tree lighting and holiday market opening 6:30-8pm. Nov. 29 at 5pm, First Light Celebration and arrival of Santa at Crystal Mountain; … Read More >>

Pageant Material

Nov. 23, 2024

Want to shake up your holiday performances this year? The Best Christmas Pageant Ever hits the stage with the Mills Community House Association and the Benzie County Players on Nov. 30 at 6pm and Dec. 1 at 2pm. Based on Barbara Robinson’s bestselling 1972 novel (also the inspiration for the film of the same name playing in theaters now), the show follows a church putting on their annual Christmas pageant with the … Read More >>