A friend the other day asked me, What are the best Twin Cities blogs? And who is truly capturing the marvelous food, arts, design and fashion culture in Minneapolis-St. Paul right now?

The first thought that came to mind was that initially discovering these websites and people was really difficult. Over the years, though, I’ve found interesting blogs on a range of topics. What is really exciting is that the blogs are just as interesting and diverse as the people who are behind them.

After I told my friend a few people and blogs I thought she should be reading or checking out on Instagram, I began delving into this topic to discover other people and magazines that are capturing what life is like in Minnesota. Below you will find just a small list of the many people and blogs I have found.

Some blogs cover a narrow range of topics while others cover a broader area. Some are relatively established magazines, while others are just the personalities behind major brands and media outlets. They are designers, bloggers, urban enthusiasts, academics, fashion enthusiasts and foodies. While the areas they cover may be different, they are collectively capturing the essence of life here in the Twin Cities today. I hope that you will check them out online and follow them on Twitter, Instagram or whatever social media platform they have found success on.

Wit and Delight

If there is a queen of the Twin Cities’ blogosphere, it undoubtedly is Kate Arends. Formerly the Creative Director at North Corp., the company behind The Bachelor Farmer, Askov Finlayson and Marvel Bar, Kate Arends acted as a major influence in the development of each place’s concept and brand. While these places were gaining fame, her own Pinterest page was too.

A combination of her marketing prowess and impeccable taste helped grow her following on Pinterest to over 2.6 million followers. Her blog, Wit and Delight, acts almost as an extension of her Pinterest page, with insightful stories about fashion, interior design, her life and her own struggles.

Wit and Delight also hosts many other bloggers that cover other fun, interesting topics in food, baking and floral from around the country. Her success has been noticed by major lifestyle magazines as well as Target, who recently commissioned her to launch a line of Wit and Delight inspired home/decorative pieces that you can now find in stores. She also regularly reviews products from different companies around the world.

Like her Pinterest page, her Instagram is a beautiful collection of photos from around her home as well as the trendy stores and places she visits. Each photo is inspiring and may cause some Insta-envy.

Website: witanddelight.com

Streets.mn

If you are interested in urban development, transportation policy, bike lanes and light rail trains, then Streets.mn is a must read for you. Launched by Bill Lindeke, an urban enthusiast and University of Minnesota Geography Ph.D. candidate, along with other urban enthusiasts in 2012, Streets.mn has become an online hub for people to discuss urban issues in the Twin Cities.

Lindeke, who recently gave a tour of Downtown St. Paul to this semester’s Urban Studies Colloqium, also runs Twin City Sidewalks blog, where he discusses sidewalks and pedestrian issues in the Twin Cities.

Streets.mn is great at publishing a lot of content on a variety of topics. The backgrounds of the contributors vary—some are just enthusiasts, others are professors of urban planning and some are just undergraduate students just learning about this field.

The blog is also great at reporting more analytical and critical pieces on topics in the context of their impact on urban issues in the Twin Cities.

Website: streets.mn

Minneapolis Eater

Attention foodies! If you love going out to eat and keeping track of the local food scene, then Minneapolis Eater is a must read.

Minneapolis Eater is part of a family of sites, known more broady as Eater, around the country that report on the local food scene in their respective cities. The entire family of sites has just been redesigned this past week, and they are promising even more exciting content in the coming weeks.

Eater is a great read not only if you are looking to keep tabs on what’s happening in the food scene but also to discover new and exciting restaurants to visit. If you are looking for a fun new place, check out their “Eater 38” as well as “Eater Heatmap” for a list of restaurants that are popular right now.

Traveling to another city soon? Be sure to check out some of the Eater sites in other cities for more information on their food scenes.

Website: minneapolis.eater.com

Minneapolis Egotist

For the creative types and those interested in social entrepreneurship, check out Minneapolis Egotist for news and fun blog posts about different companies, advertisements and creative projects. Catered to the advertising and creative design community, the Minneapolis Egotist is the perfect intersection of art and business.

Art majors as well as those with appreciation for design will especially appreciate this blog as it is littered with short videos and fun advertisements—all made here in Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Similar to Eater, several other cities across the country—with a big advertising communities—also have Egotist sites.

Website: themplsegotist.com

Thirty Two Magazine

Thirty Two Magazine is a newer quarterly magazine in Minnesota, with less than 10 issues published so far. Yet despite its infancy, Thirty Two Magazine has made a big splash in the local media scene.

The editorial vision on their website beautifully explains how they plan to be different than the crowded media market today:

“Whoever came up with the term consumer magazine put a death nail to the joy of reading. But we won’t stand for that. The only service magazines should offer is good journalism and entertainment. Not a feature on top doctors. Or on top ten bagel joints. So here’s to the revival of the readers magazine.”

What I especially like about this magazine is that the articles are substantive in nature and have a strong connection to place and, most importantly, Minnesota.

Learn more about their magazine online where you can buy the latest copy or check out Common Good Books, who is one of their many retailers.

Website: thirtytwomag.com

These are just a small sample of the many blogs in the Twin Cities that I think capture life here well. I’ll be tweeting out more about them this week (@josephahuber) and writing about more people online at josephahuber.com, where you can read all of my articles that are published here as well as additional LoveThyNeighborhood content.