Artist Kate Shu | The Authentic Alda Forever Hardcover Journal
Alda Forever is a salute to Alda Mae Zahner Hightshoe — a way to carry her torch, keep her spirit alive, and honor the grandeur and glory of the natural world she loved so deeply. The Hibiscus was one of Alda's all-time summer favorites, and its beauty lives on in every page of this journal. Without the wonder of nature and the gift of meaningful relationships, we risk losing our HeART and our humanity. Think of all the people and places that have shined light on your face on a cloudy day — The Authentic Alda Forever Hardcover Journal is the perfect place to tell the stories that mean the most.
Kate Shu is a Korean-born, Iowa-raised artist, entrepreneur, and creative force whose life has been shaped by music, nature, resilience, and an unshakeable belief in the power of art to transform lives. Abandoned at birth and adopted at seven months old, Kate arrived in Minneapolis into the arms of a family who became her greatest champions — and set her on a path of extraordinary creative discovery.
By thirteen, Kate was performing with professional big bands across the Midwest. By sixteen, she had explored nearly every national park in the United States, often assisting her father — a landscape architecture professor and published author — in cataloging the trees, vines, and shrubs of North America. Over the next three decades, her creative life expanded to encompass theatre, painting, design, calligraphy, pottery, culinary art, textiles, and clothing design, alongside a lifelong love of music.
The heart behind the Kate Shu Collective lives in her grandmother, Alda Mae Zahner Hightshoe, who began every single day by reciting a list of things that were "sooo beautiful" — and who, despite being awarded an art scholarship, gave up her dream during WWII to become Rosie the Riveter. It is in Alda's honor, and in the spirit of every artist who was ever told their dream wasn't practical, that Kate built the Collective — to give talented creative people another way, another chance, and another reason to keep going.
"The hardest work is the HeART work — and it's always worth it."
About this Journal:
• Size: 5.5" × 8.5" — the perfect companion, at home or on the go
• 80 lined pages of cream-colored paper
• UltraHyde hardcover with a rich, luxurious feel
• Cream ribbon page marker and matching elastic closure
• Expandable inner pocket for notes, cards, and keepsakes
• Print quality is exceptional — vivid, true-to-life, and exactly as pictured
Alda Forever is a salute to Alda Mae Zahner Hightshoe — a way to carry her torch, keep her spirit alive, and honor the grandeur and glory of the natural world she loved so deeply. The Hibiscus was one of Alda's all-time summer favorites, and its beauty lives on in every page of this journal. Without the wonder of nature and the gift of meaningful relationships, we risk losing our HeART and our humanity. Think of all the people and places that have shined light on your face on a cloudy day — The Authentic Alda Forever Hardcover Journal is the perfect place to tell the stories that mean the most.
Kate Shu is a Korean-born, Iowa-raised artist, entrepreneur, and creative force whose life has been shaped by music, nature, resilience, and an unshakeable belief in the power of art to transform lives. Abandoned at birth and adopted at seven months old, Kate arrived in Minneapolis into the arms of a family who became her greatest champions — and set her on a path of extraordinary creative discovery.
By thirteen, Kate was performing with professional big bands across the Midwest. By sixteen, she had explored nearly every national park in the United States, often assisting her father — a landscape architecture professor and published author — in cataloging the trees, vines, and shrubs of North America. Over the next three decades, her creative life expanded to encompass theatre, painting, design, calligraphy, pottery, culinary art, textiles, and clothing design, alongside a lifelong love of music.
The heart behind the Kate Shu Collective lives in her grandmother, Alda Mae Zahner Hightshoe, who began every single day by reciting a list of things that were "sooo beautiful" — and who, despite being awarded an art scholarship, gave up her dream during WWII to become Rosie the Riveter. It is in Alda's honor, and in the spirit of every artist who was ever told their dream wasn't practical, that Kate built the Collective — to give talented creative people another way, another chance, and another reason to keep going.
"The hardest work is the HeART work — and it's always worth it."
About this Journal:
• Size: 5.5" × 8.5" — the perfect companion, at home or on the go
• 80 lined pages of cream-colored paper
• UltraHyde hardcover with a rich, luxurious feel
• Cream ribbon page marker and matching elastic closure
• Expandable inner pocket for notes, cards, and keepsakes
• Print quality is exceptional — vivid, true-to-life, and exactly as pictured
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