Today on weekend meanderings, a local lifestyle tour, a peek inside a favorite bloggers home, and three reasons I love California.
Happy Saturday friends!
It’s time for the weekend post with Kim and Elizabeth.
Our weekly roundup of inspiration and goings on.
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It’s going to be a sunny, warm weekend here in Northern California.
No rain on our Mother’s Day parades.
Unlike last weekend … but we’ll get to that.
Today it’s all about my love for California.
Let’s jump in …
Cute Summer Sandals
Kim and I teamed up to share our favorite summer sandal styles. As you can see, we’re both a fan of the Birkenstock. Which means we’re right on trend. A salesperson at Nordstrom told me it’s they’re the second most popular sandal by sales.
We’re sharing a lot more than Birkenstocks, so if you haven’t read our sandal inspirations you’ll find them here and here.
These are a few more favorite sandals that didn’t make it into my post. If I have time I’ll add them to the post later today.
I Love California
This time of year brings some of California’s most ideal weather. Truth be told most times of the year are ideal, except maybe a couple of winter months. But late spring and early summer are a sweet spot and we can throw open the doors and let the sunshine and light breezes in.
Designer Nathan Turner was a recent guest on the Business of Home podcast. He has a new line of fabrics to promote. You might remember Nathan from Million Dollar Decorators. He also wrote a book about six years ago called I Love California: Live, Eat, and Entertain the West Coast Way, one of my all time favorite lifestyle books. It’s a great book to reread as the al fresco season approaches.
I’m glad I was familiar with Nathan from his books (his first book, American Style, is also a classic) before watching Million Dollar Decorators where he comes off as kind of silly. He’s not the only one. The show features some fabulous interior designers, but it’s reality TV and, in my opinion, everyone comes off as full of themselves, arrogant and just plain ridiculous. I’m not sure if the producers push false and inflammatory narratives or edit their stars in a way that makes them seem awful. Maybe both. The same designers behaving badly on the reality TV are completely different people when seen and heard on talk shows and podcasts … they’re actually smart, funny and interesting and bear no resemblance to their reality TV personas. They’re people you might actually hire (if you had the million dollar budget … wouldn’t that be nice). Ok, so getting off of my soapbox …
Nathan grew up in Northern California and later moved South. His love for our state … north, south and central … knows no bounds and I enjoy reading about his enthusiasm for all things California and his casual, seasonal cooking and entertaining style. He shares a lot of wonderful places and things to see and do in our state. So many of them are nearby it’s a gentle reminder to get out there and enjoy all the wonderful things about living in California. And you don’t need to live in California to be inspired by Nathan’s love of enthusiasm for seasonal menus and entertaining.
Flipping through the pages of I Love California got me thinking about a couple of other California-centric books that I adore. Lush Life by Valerie Rice, a Santa Barbara native who truly embraces the seasons with her delicious recipes and cocktails. The book has a permanent position on my cookbook stand, open to whatever season we’re in.
And then there’s Southern California Cooking from The Cottage. I mentioned it last week and shared a quiche recipe and Mother’s Day gift idea. The Cottage is a restaurant in La Jolla that’s so Southern California in all the best ways.
All three books showcase the beauty – and bounty – of our California lifestyle.
Lafayette Juniors Lifestyle Tour Recap
Now that I’ve bragged about our good weather, last Saturday we had a blip. By blip I mean rain. A major downpour. The Lafayette Juniors Lifestyle Tour, that I look forward to all year, was nearly rained out. But we don’t let torrential rain stop us from touring beautiful homes, and we donned our rain coats, boots and umbrellas and went boldly forth.
I thought I was so smart monitoring the hour-by hour-weather forecast and delayed setting out for the tour thinking the rain would let up. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Between the late start, and early finish (we had another engagement early afternoon) and a quick stop for lunch … we only made it to two homes. Jim says a lot of the problem was me stopping to chat with friends, blog readers, and interior designers … well, everyone. He tried to move me along to no avail. While I may have miscalculated (understatement) on timing, the homes we did see were stunning and inspiring inside and out.
But back to the rain, imagine the disappointment of the homeowners who graciously opened their beautiful homes to raise money for wonderful causes. Not to mention all the volunteers who work tirelessly to make this annual event a success. Not to be deterred, the tour went ahead as planned. There were lots of raincoats and umbrellas, and taking on and off of wet shoes before entering the amazing houses. Everyone laughed it off and had a great time.
I don’t have a ton of great photos. In my defense there were so many people taking the tour that getting a clean shot of any room was next to impossible. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Here goes …
The first house we visited in the modern farmhouse style and we watched it being built while we were renovation Snowberry. We had to drive by it to get here. And that made it even more fun to get a peek inside.
The house has soaring ceilings in the great room and the biggest kitchen island I’ve ever seen.
Jim is fascinated by details.
Loved this art piece. Pun intended.
My fascination with powder rooms continues. I think it’s that they so often get a bold paint or fabulous wallpaper. Small rooms with big impact.
A closer look at the wallpaper.
I’m here for a good drop zone.
It’s really fun running into readers of the blog!
I would’ve loved to have a closer look at this beautiful, spacious backyard.
The next house was a recently renovated ranch home with a more traditional style … and it’s on one of my favorite streets very near where I grew up.
Look at the beautiful throw pillows … I think the floral print is a Schumacher fabric.
Everyone was buzzing around the eat-in kitchen table set by White Barn Home … a darling home decor store in Lafayette.
Here’s a better look from White Barn Home’s Instagram. All the pieces that make up the table setting can be found in their shop.
And finally the kitchen. I wish I had a wider, better shot.
The quartzite countertops are stunning.
I’m taking notes on this appliance garage situation.
On the far side of the kitchen is a full-size second sink. The built-in furniture-like cabinet is so pretty and I bet there’s a lot of storage in there.
Can I offer you a cocktail?
This house sits on a 1/2 acre lot with stunning – STUNNING – gardens. Rain or not we couldn’t resist walking through them.
The gardens took my breath away and Jim had to drag me away.
A final snap from the front yard as we reluctantly departed.
A Peek Inside a Favorite Blogger’s Home
The home tour I most wanted to see belongs to Ashley of Modern Glam Home. That’s right … major lifestyle blogger AND owner of everyone’s favorite Bay Area boutique, Flaunt. Everything Ashley does is beautiful … from what she wears, to how she styles her home and her chic shop. Last year, Ashley and her family took on a couple of big home renovation projects. They renovated their kitchen AND built a darling backyard studio/cabana. Both projects were showcased on the tour and since I (stupidly) missed it, Ashley graciously shared some photos with me. So we can take the tour now!
Let’s start in the great room where puppy Duke (yes, he’s a puppy) welcomes us into his beautiful abode.
Aren’t the boucle dining chairs are fabulous? Look closely … Duke’s big brother Romeo is peeking out to say hi.
The newly renovated kitchen is stunning.
I like the u-shaped design. So functional. But who cares about function, look at all the spectacular details. And the sconces and pendants … swoon.
It just keeps getting better. Ta da … the backyard.
Before we look into the new studio / cabana, let’s appreciate this amazing outdoor seating area. Can you imagine all the magical summer nights around the firepit?
I spot an outdoor kitchen to the far left. It might be new too.
Let’s go inside the studio / cabana. Again … the details!
Oh my gosh, the chevron pattern floors.
In addition to being one of the chicest people ever, Ashley is also one of the sweetest. Thank you, Ashley, for sharing your beautiful home!
Raised Bed Garden Update
The amazing edible gardeners from Homestead Design Collective were here yesterday to plant our summer garden. But first they did a little clean up and harvesting. I came home from the dentist and found this on the back step. The last of the greens, scallions, snap peas, flowers and greenery.
Three varieties of tomatoes were planted, all small cherry and teardrops. We have to ask Kim if her dad has sanctioned the planting of tomatoes yet this season. He usually says I’m too early. But this year the decision was made for me so it’s all good.
It was pretty hot yesterday … never great thing for planting. Our beds get tons of morning sun, and plenty of afternoon shade. I’ll be watching closely and giving them extra water.
Odds & Socks ~
All the 70’s Ladies … this article (gift link) in our local paper is about 70/80’s band Pablo Cruise, the original yacht rockers and one of my favorites. They did several shows in the Bay Area this week. And they’ll be in Grass Valley tonight. See their tour schedule here. They’ll be back to California in August.
Current Favorites ~
And that’s what I have for you today.
Let’s visit Kim and Elizabeth to see what’s inspiring them.
If you missed last week’s post, I visited The Barlow in Sebastopol.
And shared a Mother’s Day gift idea and quiche recipe … in case you need a last minute idea.
Jim and I are off on a garden tour.
I’ll share the pretty gardens on Instagram stories.
Wishing you a very happy Mother’s Day weekend!
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