| west coast craft, winter 2015 |

This year's West Coast Craft happened, and it was magic. The oh-so-San-Francisco fair hosts hundreds of hipster-approved, homemade and hand stitched goods at the Festival Pavilion at Fort Mason Center. It's like a giant warehouse of perfectly pictured prints, overpriced, kitchen-fancy linens, clay coffee cups, dainty gold, white gold, and rose gold jewelry, turquoise I-have-to-haves, minty-gin cocktails, candles that smell like the a sweet pine forest, and soaps that make me want to bathe four times a day despite the drought. Also, I wasn't sure it was possible to fall in love with a leather fringe keychain until I walked (er, shopped) the festival.

I met Maria Schoettler, pined over her 2016 local produce calendar (pictured below), and added her plant postcards to my holiday wish list. 

(source)

I circled Aleksandra Zee's three-dimensional wood shop wonderland more times than I can count on my hands, marveled at her wooded succulent trays, gold-adorned displayed, and her blue sheen leggings (because who can pull those off?), and seriously contemplated asking her how she makes her hair so perfect. She's the most beautiful woodworker you'll ever lay your lucky eyes on. I have a piece from her indigo collection in my living room that I will never let go of. 

(source)

Then I fell in love with Nicolette Peterson of Beach Bones jewelry. It took me half a second to decide to buy one of her delicate treasures of a necklace. It's long and perfect and made of a bone-colored stone that I will wear with everything, and probably to bed, too. 

proof: soap that smells like the forest.

pictured: the most perfect tulip vases + more adorable-ness

those earings on the bottom? i want them. i want them all.

There's so much talent in this little city of mine. 

| saturday(s) |

His & hers.

On Saturdays I don't have to wash my hair or put on eyeliner. I can exfoliate my face and paint my nails purple. That is weekend beauty, Saturday chic. 

This Saturday I slept in, made a smoothie with pineapple in it and then went on a walk in the sunshine. We had Mediterranean food for lunch and then walked to the most perfect coffee shop in San Francisco. It has big artwork on the walls, bakers in the center of it all baking the freshest bread with sunflower seeds in it, high ceilings, wood furniture and community tables, white walls and baristas with bangs. 

Afterwards I went to the park with a book. Pretty perfect.

| before bed |

Things I've done this week: filed my taxes (bleh), did a face mask, started a new book, walked to dinner instead of drive, and shaved my legs

Things I'm currently craving: a fur vest, a succulent for my desk at work, pink lipstick 

Things I plan to do tonight sometime soon: paint my nails, drink red wine, kiss my boyfriend, pet my cat

Things I want to do this weekend: go on a double date to eat somewhere fancy, clean my closet and sell some serious sh*t, road trip to a nearby coastal town to snack on oysters and saltines, visit Stern Grove in SF, make a smoothie with kale in it

The end. 

One more thing. I'm considering doing a 30 day blog challenge. That means I would write every day for 30 days straight. 
And, some photos. Because what's anything from me without some sort of photo/image/gif/emoji? 

My track.

My backyard.

Pretty print via Design Love Fest

Flowers on Hayes.

Sundays with Gabby.

Ben & book.

Back at the yard.

Go Giants!

Neighborhood walk + selfie

Dinner with Sarah means dinner with books, pants, and beer.

Then came lunch with Gertie, and again, my heart exploded.

| on running |

I'm no marathoner by any means and I'm not quite sure I've experienced a runner's high, pained through shin splints, or ever recorded a six minute mile, but I do love running. It feels good. Really good. I'm not fast and I probably don't look pretty when I'm doing it, but hitting the pavement in my sneakers (that are admittedly at least one size too big) with my headphones is somethin' for the books blog. 

No one ever taught me how to run -- if I should breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth or vice versa, swing my arms or keep my elbows close to my body, look straight ahead or down at the ground. I just do it. Some runs are good, some not so much. [Life, you seem to follow this pattern with most everything else I feel for.] 

I'm attracted to the sport because I can do it by myself, its (mostly) free, and it challenges my sense-of-direction, forcing me to explore the outside world in greater perimeter than my walk from the front door to the bus stop, to work, and back. 

Hopefully running is something I can do for most of my life. My mom was a runner and I vividly remember trailing behind her gracefulness on my bike every weekend. I remember thinking she was 'super-mom' in her periwinkle shorts (they had built-in underwear, too). One day, I will too. 

"Love the air, love the sun, loathe the treadmill." - Francesca Saunders on How To Become A Runner

| weekend rewind |

I fell asleep last night smiling in light of my weekend, which consisted of sour beers at Fat Angel, a sunshine-filled hike through the Presidio/our backyard in San Francisco, a birthday celebration in the green hills of Petaluma, and a brunch turned all-day-barbecue at a favorite couple's new Haight neighborhood apartment. 

Here I am battling through Monday and reminiscing on my weekend past!

Much lusted Kinfolk Table.

Party in the back.

Gertrude.

Flowers + beer. 

Lights on. 

A Sunday well-spent with Buster + Gertie.

Our Presidio backyard.

Inspiration at an antique store.

The world's greatest collection of National Geographic.

Looking for goats. And cows. And deer.

Petaluma, CA.

If you say so.

A little tease-of-summer centerpiece.

Brunch at Sparrow.

| i'm actually a mermaid |

"The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears or the sea." -- Isak Dinesen

Spending four days at the beach makes a high-rise office setting a bit difficult to return to. There are few things that beat lounging ocean-side in a hot tub. And, I did just that. All. Weekend. Long. 

Quick background: since there are so many kids, significant others, babies, etc. in the family, my parents gift us all a weekend get-away to a quaint coastal region of California for Christmas each year. Last year we explored (and fell in love with) Inverness. This year we made an adventure out of Stinson Beach. It really is the most wonderful present. Hopefully, one day, I'll cary on this same tradition with my family. 

I am the happiest at, in, and near the ocean. I even went thigh-high into the water, wearing a bikini, just so I could feel the Pacific in February. 

I'll let my photos do the rest of the talking now. You'll find pictures of the beach, of the house we stayed in, the dining table we feasted at, the famous fog, Mama Bear, the small and sweet town of Stinson, little boy Henry, a big brother, and dad + dog. 

XO,