#mothersdaygifts Archives - Northern California Style

Some May inspiration from Bunny Mellon, a special On My Radar with Mother’s Day Gift Ideas, and a Mother’s Day Event at Palo Alto Rails!

Bunny Mellon Style

Do you want to live like Bunny Mellon? She was a famous tastemaker and garden genius who helped design the White House Rose Garden for Jackie and JFK. She had her own gorgeous gardens and beautiful homes. She lived a life of exacting specifications, but with a certain kind of nonchalance, if that’s not too much of an oxymoron.. She collected wonderful antique garden pieces, baskets, and amassed a library of books- some very historic, dedicated to gardens and horticulture. Her home and garden style has been idolized and emulated by Tory Burch and so many others.

If you want the Bunny look, without billions, you need a dedicated spot for potting things, preferably filled with a collection of baskets hung from the ceiling and everywhere you can cram them in. She even had a basket house! You need stone pots, the older the better, geraniums and antique statuary bits here and there. Bunny loved topiary, terracotta potted flowers, trelliage ( lattice work), and toile. If you’re a fan of any or all of these things, look no further than the Tuckernuck website this month where they photographed lovely clothes in her home in Upperville, Virginia. In the layout they talk about her rooms and more and there is a lot of inspiration..

I love this garden themed dress with the fringe hem and the braided shift.. Both linked on pics..

For all the particulars she had about the way she lived, she also liked things natural, like lemons left on the ground where they fell… Perhaps we are soul sisters as my yard is littered with them currently!

Bunny also collected lettuce ware china and Tory Burch has a collection and Anthro has this new one here called Lilypad. So pretty!

Bunny also liked entrances to have a vantage point and rooms to feel comfortable and relaxed.. Fun Bunny fact- she served Lay’s Potato Chips (the unbroken ones), in pretty vessels for her guests.. She had me at Lay’s. More about this fascinating woman in the books- Bunny Mellon Style and Bunny Mellon Garden Secrets.

You can shop the whole Bunny Mellon inspired Tuckernuck collection here.

Maybe I need to start turning my laundry room into a basket room! Hmm..

I love a market basket with flowers in it! That would be a cute Mother’s Day idea…

On My Radar- Mother’s Day Edition

I love the idea of a market tote for a gift. For an extra pretty gift, add a bunch of flowers. The basic $58 one above is perfection, as are the long strap market version, a tote with floral embroidery, and the fun white accents… All linked on photos.

A cashmere wrap is the nicest luxury, but also something to use for years and years. It’s perfect for travel as your own personal blanket and then for cool nights out, and just as an everyday wrap over a shirt or as a scarf, as the French wear them. J Crew’s are very nice on sale now, and I personally love the camel and grey choices..

If you want a little color, these cashmere Luxy Wraps are beautiful and have a pretty edge to them. I just love this pink color..

For $29 these candles are beautiful and love the Summer Day candle with the little bag.

Another nice gift is the diffuser in Summer Day..I like these in the baths and laundry.

In the same summer theme, two lovely books to gift are- A Summer Place ,and Entertaining By the Sea...

I adore Lela Rose and her new book Fresh Air Affairs on themed parties is inspiring and fun.

How adorable is this Vietri Bud Vase for bedside garden roses?

Other luxuries…the modern version of Tory Burch flip flops, and the new fragrances by Tory. I love Electric Sky the best which is soft and sporty..

I am a fan of sterling silver pieces from Ippolita, which are all hand made. The all feel beautiful to touch. I have a few and they are my favorite jewelry. These drop earrings are beauties..

Lunch out or breakfast in bed..

The last few years for Mother’s Day, I’ve been asking to have a nice lunch out with my family at a pretty spot. I like to go on any day before or after -not the actual day, if possible. One of my favorites that is a treat is the charming Village Bakery in Woodside! Make sure you ask for an outside table if it’s nice, and go shop at Emily Joubert’s beautiful garden and home shop which is adjacent afterwards. Sometimes I’ll pick out a pretty plant or book there for my present…

When my boys were small they would all make me breakfast and bring it in bed. I still treasure their homemade cards more than any gifts in the world and have all of them! Those years went too fast.

Meet me at the Rails Mother’s Day Event at the Stanford Store next Saturday!

I love the California clothier Rails and I am excited they asked me to join them and share their special Mother’s Day Event at their gorgeous new store in Palo Alto. The store has much more of their beautiful California clothes and I will be there in the morning for a few hours if you want help putting together an outfit, buying a gift- or just find a Mother’s Day gift for yourself?

You will get 20% off your purchases that day.

This event runs all day with refreshments, light bites, and succulents as a Gift with Purchase.

I hope to see some of you there! I’ll be in store 11-12:30! Please come by if you are in the area to say hi and see the new store. It’s near Bloomingdales and Lululemon near the east entrance of lovely Stanford Shopping Center. Check out the Rails collection here.

The Coronation

Will you be watching this weekend? I have mixed feelings. The NYTimes has a coronation recipe section for this event with excellent versions all my favorite English foods – Coronation Chicken Sandwiches, crumpets, Strawberry Pavlova, Eton Mess, and Victoria Sponge, and many more- all by famous British chefs.

I’m also interested to see what Mrs. Biden will be wearing and so far she looks chic in pink meeting the Prime Minister’s wife Akshata Murty, who also has a lovely dress..I’m all about the fashion this weekend and who is attending.

My dad still remembers watching Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953. They were one of the few families on the block that had a television and he was in grammar school and remembers friends and neighbors coming to watch it!

It’s a busy weekend with the Kentucky Derby and Cinco de Mayo too. It sure doesn’t feel like May here with more dark and rain. Let’s hope we get sun by next weekend! I am ready to put in my tomato garden and wear some springlike clothes and I bet you are too.

Cindy and I had May’s Signature Style this week, and the theme was ‘Summer Wish Lists.’ See what we are thinking of for summer days here if you missed it.

On last weekend’s post, I shared a book all about finding French Joie, a chic woven tote, rattan hurricanes and the cutest inexpensive sandals you need for summer.

Have a lovely weekend,

Kim

Please visit my pals Elizabeth and Juliet’s blogs..

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Hello I wanted to check in with you all and see how you faring. We made it through April and it looks like May could mean some loosening slowly of restrictions here in California. There is a little feeling of hope in everyone it seems and even tennis could be back in my future ! We’ve done well with our numbers and people here in Northern Cal have been mostly good about trying to do the right thing. Masks have become protocol and I am proud of us for all getting on that so fast and adapting it to our lives.

My family has gotten out more than some. My guys have done some hikes and bike rides with the family and I have been shopping for my dad and delivering to him. How about you all? Today I talked to a friend whose family has not left the house in the seven weeks and they have three kids.

The bright spot this week was putting in our garden! Dad brought us tomatoes he had grown from seed as he does every year. Jackson my oldest, did most of the work and my dad just gave a few social distanced directions before leaving us with the plants. I’m so grateful to have my dad nearby and helping us.

Jack and I are pretty excited to change up the garden this year by adding some larger containers of herbs and lettuce as well and flowers to hide the air conditioning unit. The walls have Bower Vines which replaced an invasive Potato Vine that was driving my neighbor nuts.

Carla, my landscape designer said these will spread out and cover the fence, but not take over. I will share our progress as the garden grows. If you are thinking of getting a victory garden in, now is the time, as the frosts have passed and the days are getting warm, so plants can take root and thrive in the hot months.

Max snapped this photo by the garden gate when we were back there the other day and you can see a bigger view of the rest of our yard. I shared more pictures this week on my Instagram stories, and how we came to own this very large and winding pool and a yard with a massive amount of brick!! We’ll never afford to replace it all so we’ve come to love its old school charm.

I am slowly working on each area and I have to say gardening has been good for me. There is something about being out there even if I am just pulling weeds and trimming, feels like I am working towards something and it’s calming. I am upping my garden game and even ordered some pots and supplies. You can still get supplies by delivery or curbside pickup at local nurseries during our shut down, so I am trying to support them.

On Instagram people asked about my camo shorts and they are my go-to for gardening and pretty much everyday when it is warm. They are from Sundry, one of my favorite companies with a cool California vibe and made in Los Angeles.

They have some adorable things marked to nearly half like this cool Mama sweater just in time for Mother’s Day.

And I know these shorts would be chic worn a million ways this summer.

This heart sweatshirt is also fun. I seem to be living in my shorts and sweatshirts lately. I love the softness of Sundry tops. If you appreciate comfy and cute weekend clothes, they are the place and right now that is everyday for most of us!

One other Mother’s Day thing I highly recommend and I literally live in now, is my linen Serena & Lily pajamas. I have the pink and I would one day love to get another pair in white or this cute striped set.

S&L pajamas are beautifully made in Portugal and easy to care for. I just pull them out of the wash, tumble for a few minutes and smooth them and air dry in the sun. Serena & Lily is having 20% off everything now with code ATHOME so it is a good time to pop over there if you have been considering any of their beautiful home goods.

My flip flops I also was asked about and they are Tory Burch red toile and they are on sale now for $39!

My yellow top above is a Liberty fabric blouse from J.Crew. Right now J. Crew has all shorts and swim on sale at 60% off. That never happens. I love these swimsuits with matching coverups! Maybe a early summer gift for yourself..

SO cute.

People love to give flowers for Mother’s Day so I wanted to call out a wonderful Farmgirl Flowers. If you aren’t already familiar, they are a SF company that delivers flowers by bike in the city, and also ship over the country. They use only farms that are pesticide free and pay fair wages to their employees. Many of their bouquets are benefitting charities too. I like that they use upcycled burlap to wrap bouquets. Keep them in mind when asking for or ordering flowers this year. Men always appreciate hints too.

I think their selections of bouquets are lovely…

Another local company Tancredi & Morgen in Carmel has sweet Mother’s Day kits. I love the packages they pulled together with their lovely curated things and some of those packages are on sale. I think it’s good to support local businesses now so they stay in business. I have loved their shop forever and have many things I treasure from them. They have free shipping and local delivery!

Some very lovely things and cool cards with them.

I hope you have a good weekend. There’s no beach is in our immediate future, but we are getting to know our neighborhood pretty darn good with all the walks! The New York Times had a great read for your weekend on how we are connecting again with our neighborhoods, one of the unexpected benefits of being stuck at home. You know we were all rushing about so much going here and there before this pandemic, many of us never had the chance to know our neighbors well, and a whole lot of us are now taking the time to do that which is so good for our communities!

One more thing, on my Instagram this week, I am asking people to post a photo of that brings back memories of travel to a special place. It can be a treasured souvenir, like my bowl from Positano I shared (below), or a place you want to get back to someday when we can all travel again. Tag your photos #dreamingofmytravels and I’ll pick a random winner at the end of the week to win a travel book, soap from Hawaii and a few other fun things.