Hi friends,

We're back with the 42nd edition of Paragraph Picks, highlighting a few hand-selected pieces from the past couple of weeks.

Check them out & let us know which is your favorite!

Making your own Farcaster mini-app as an artist

@keccers.eth shares a detailed guide on how artists can use AI, Replit, and no-code smart contract platforms like Highlight and Manifold to launch their own custom NFT minting experiences on Farcaster.

At the end of the day, an NFT is just a wrapper. What you wrap — art, access, memories, patronage, gameplay — is up to you.

What Mail Order Catalogs Did Better Than Modern Ecommerce

@sandra_rhee writes that vintage catalogs like Sears’ succeeded because they embraced artistic, human-centered design, in stark contrast to today’s rigid and monotonous digital shopping layouts.

The reason mail-order catalogs were able to flow, be readable, and incentivize Americans to flip through them for hours is simple: People took time to design it.

Stablecoins Are the Trojan Horse of Crypto

@kaloh argues that stablecoins, especially with Stripe’s recent adoption, are rapidly becoming mainstream payment tools and quietly onboarding millions into the crypto ecosystem by reducing entry barriers.

Stablecoins aren’t just good for payments — they’re unlocking new opportunities across the onchain economy.

The Rise of Onchain AI: Agents, Apps, and Commerce

@jonathanking dives into how autonomous AI agents operating on blockchains are creating a new agent-driven digital economy, laying the foundation for an emerging “Agentic Web.”

Commerce could become a machine-speed, always-on affair, with agents negotiating deals, executing contracts, and exchanging value in seconds.

Letting Go of Prfectionism (Just Kidding, This Title Took 40 Minutes)

@monikazajac reflects on her lifelong perfectionism, especially in chaotic work environments like event planning, and shares a personal shift toward embracing imperfection, messiness, and action over control.

Perfection is slow death. Motion is freedom.

The city is the amenity

@brandondonnelly.eth argues that Toronto’s amenity space requirements for small-scale apartment developments are financially unfeasible and counterproductive, discouraging the very density needed to support vibrant urban life.

We mandate amenity spaces because amenities are of course good. But it hurts project feasibility, especially at smaller scales.

That's all we have for this week — what did we miss?

Let us know what you think!