Lake Tahoe

Make a Basic Wreath Look Upscale, Trader’s Pink Poinsettias, a Tahoe Outfit & Last Minute Gifts

December 16, 2022 By kimwheeler 44 Comments

On this weekend meander.. last minute gifts for friends and neighbors from the grocery store, make a basic wreath cool with cuttings from your yard, and an outfit for Tahoe.

Trader Joe’s Pink Poinsettias..

Right now the cutest gift for a neighbor or friend – or just for your holiday table is the pink poinsettias in these nice pots that you can use later for $8! The pots alone are worth the price. I loved the two different pinks and they work with the green of my runner. I moved my wooden bowl to my island and kept the plants here. Hopefully these won’t sell out. It’s rare to see such pretty pinks and who wouldn’t love one of these for a gift?

The world needs more pink poinsettias, if you ask me!

More Last Minute Gift Ideas- from the grocery store..

Sometimes finding a gift is as easy as dropping by your local grocery. Some of the things I like to give from the grocery are tea, candy, and baked goods. Our local stores like Lunardis and Whole foods have piles of Italian cakes, and gourmet chocolates from Seattle Chocolate Company and Lake Champlain. They also carry special hot chocolate mix in glass bottles, high end teas from places like Tea Pigs, and others in pretty tins. I like to tuck tea into a bag with some home made cookies or scones or just bottle of local wine, or preserves.

Food is a very appreciated gift and I would say greener as it its more likely locally made, and actually consumed. Older folks really appreciate these little goodies at the holidays. Nice for neighbors too.

At Homegoods and TJMaxx, you can find bunches of cute tea towels inexpensively. Buy a few and wrap them around loaf of banana or cranberry bread, scones or cookies with a pretty bow. Not a baker? Then pair them with a nice box of tea from the grocery or World Market! ( World Market is a fantastic place to get nice teas in pretty tins, German stollen, and chocolates.)

Some of my favorites from WM below. All their teas can be found here online.

Get a custom look with a grocery store wreath and yard cuttings..

This year I decided to save some money and get a basic grocery store wreath for $19 and zhuzh it up with succulents and cuttings from the yard.. I’m hoping it lasts for a while.

I started with the basic noble fir wreath with a few pinecones and juniper already on it…

I was lucky to have a plant with dried hydrangea balls that was perfect to tuck in here. I went around the yard a snipped bits of succulents, then wired or worked them in.

I ordered this ribbon from Amazon and I am surprised how much I like it. Took me about 15 minutes total.

On my French doors, I always buy two small advent candle ring wreath from Trader Joes to hang on the doors. Love the small size and kept it simple with orange ribbon that was leftover from a Hudson Grace gift. I use command hooks and black string to hang which sort of camouflages against the black trimmed doors.

A Tahoe/ Ski Holiday Look

I am excited to get up to our small cabin during the break and we just got 48 inches of snow! A lot of you get to the mountains or Tahoe at this holiday break and I thought I’d do a ski/winter look with some of the darling pieces I have noticed lately..

Madewell had me at this beautiful sage green parka made by Halfdays. If you want a longer jacket, there is also this adorable jacket and this even longer one.

These booties have a toasty lining and water and snow proof suede upper, but are cute enough to wear here in California in the cooler months (so are these.) The cold weather fleece tights will work for hikes and days out and even some skiing with a second layer( these with Stirrups are also cool.) Love the Barbour Sweater, also here, which nearly sold out as soon as I made this collage, but there are more fair isle options here and here . I’m kind of crazy for them now. I also love this cozy one for Tahoe and it’s a good price, as is this one. The shearling tote is now 40% off and this one is also cute.

Lastly, the new Mega Wayfarers are on my wish list and this green is especially pretty.

People are often asking what to pack and wear for Tahoe, so I did add clothing options for colder months and ski trips on my Lake Tahoe Cabin Style page, which is on the drop-down under Home & Decor at the top of the blog. I’ll keep adding to it.

Donate a coat

This has been one of the coldest winters in California, and elsewhere in many years. Many of us have a closet full of coats that we rarely wear. This is one of those years, where shedding a few might really help others. One Warm Coat is one of my favorite charities and such an easy one to help. You can find a local drop-off place where your coat or jackets will be distributed to nearby charity. It’s also easy and simple to hold your own coat drive. Directions how here.I did one with my kids when they were younger. You simply put out a box, either at your home, or it can even be at your kid’s school, or a library or public spot for a stated time, and then pick one of several local charities to deliver them to after.

#Blingit

Our #BLINGIT hashtag is still going strong and so many of you are sharing your lovely family heirlooms and brooches you have collected! Keep sharing them in Instagram, just tag us and we will share on our stories. It’s been a treat every day. More than a few have said getting these pins out really brought back so many special memories of their moms and grandmothers, and holidays past. That is kind of what I was hoping for! It makes me so happy to hear. It’s great to see those special pieces get a little day in the sun and out of the drawer, and remember those who once wore them at this time of year…

Just some of what you all have shared from Dana, Contessa, and Kathy, and so many others. I consolidate them daily on my BlingIt Instagram Story Bubble if you missed it!

Thank You Guys!

This is my last blog for the year and Juliet and I will be taking time off until the 7th of January. It’s been a great for me to do the Weekend Meandering with Elizabeth and Juliet and I can hardly believe we have done it every weekend since beginning in February! I’m hoping taking time off to recharge will be good and we can come back with more fresh ideas for the new year.

I also want to say thank you for being here and the kind comments and feedback! It’s truly the best part of the blog for me and I so appreciate you taking time to stop here. I feel like this is a circle of friends and I am so grateful.

Wishing you all a beautiful holiday season and wonderful New Year. Hugs to you all.

See you in 2023!

Kim

Please stop over at Elizabeth and Juliet’s blogs..

MAKE MINE A SPRITZER

PINECONES AND ACORNS

If your missed last weekend’s post, I shared my neutral Christmas Decor, holiday nights at Santana Row, vintage holiday pins, cute runners and napkins, an easy Christmas cookie to make and more…

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Summer on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore – My Favorite Spots

August 29, 2020 By kimwheeler 22 Comments

Many of you followed along on Instagram our recent four day getaway to Lake Tahoe, and liked the photos, so I thought I’d post about our first real family getaway in the time of COVID. It was wonderful to finally leave the house for a few days after months of staying put. We squeezed it in just before the youngest son left to began his freshman year at University of Utah.

We are living in such unprecedented times, who knows what is safe and what is risky right now? Each family needs to decide for themselves. A road trip to Tahoe and staying in a rental seemed fairly safe to us. The challenge was avoiding the summer crowds of Tahoe, so we did takeout, cooked in our rental and ate at outdoor restaurants with good safety protocols. We wore our masks all the times we were out among others, did an extra cleaning of the rental upon arrival and left the windows wide open for a full day after we arrived.

As a girl, my family took us to Lake Tahoe for vacations and I have the best memories of those simple summers. My parents would rent little cabins or A- frames often at a beach area called Chamber’s Landing. I have a special affinity for the West Shore of Lake Tahoe thanks to those times. It has a lot of history, many charming old cabins and homes and the most beautiful beaches. I love the gorgeous trees and pine smell that hits you as soon as you arrive and the incomparably blue lake never fails to stun me with it’s beauty.

On this trip we started our days with a morning activity and then hung out afternoons at the lake, swimming, reading, paddle boarding and some sunbathing. We cooked some dinners in and also went out two nights. The highlight of this trip was renting a speed boat the last day and letting the guys try waterskiing. It was a slow and relaxing vacation with a lot of downtime, beautiful sunsets and just what we needed before taking the youngest off to college. I even brought my watercolors to work on. I’m just a beginner still, and I need a lot of help, but it was fun to try painting in the open air.

A few snaps of the trip…

Our rental was in a group of houses with a private beach and shared pier.

Our lawn and beach area. I love the Adirondack chairs that everyone has in Tahoe!

Our coffee spot in the morning. The rental was pretty worn, but it did have a great location.

I loved walking down this beach to see all the lovely lakefront homes. The rocks on this side of the lake beautiful, but very deep and hard to walk in!

We enjoyed a few happy hours on the end of our dock and watching the pretty boats go by..

Some of my favorite musts when on Tahoe’s West Shore..

Tahoe House– a combo of a Swiss Bakery, Deli and gourmet food shop, this treasure has been a mandatory stop on a Tahoe trip for years. I always buy a souvenir for the kitchen or one of their wonderful jams or sauces to bring home as gifts for house or pet sitters. Their lattes I dream about!! We were fortunate to get coffee there a few morning on this trip.

Fire Sign Cafe has outstanding breakfast and also lunch on an expansive lawn that has distancing while you eat under the pines. You can get food to go at their window here too.

Chamber’s Landing is an iconic Tahoe institution. Situated on a beautiful beach, the bar here was the first boat house built on Tahoe in 1865. The beach is used by the many who have vacation homes in the adjoining development. There is now a grill to have the most delicious (best of our trip) outside dinner- socially distanced, with a fantastic lake view. Many people like to come before dinner and take photos with boat house and sunset in the background. Save this for your last night and you won’t regret it!

Next to our rental was the SWA Watersports which rents speedboats, jet skis, paddle boards, private charters, fishing boats and lessons. They have a great protocols during cover- everyone wearing masks, sanitizing and keeping groups separate. We felt good about renting there and recommend doing this or chartering a boat if you don’t want to drive one yourself while you stay in Tahoe! There is no better way to see or experience the lake!

My Apolis market bag was perfect for this car trip and boating!

West Shore Sports Carries bikes and SUP or stand up paddle boards to rent right in Homewood, also with locations in Sunnyside and Sugar Pine Point. They are open every day weather permitting.

Jackson paddle boarding. Mornings and evenings are the best time to try as the water is calmer- same with water skiing.

West Shore Cafe & Hotel is located right next to the SWA Watersports and has a great deck to grab dinner or a cocktail over the water, located right across from Homewood Ski Resort. The cute red umbrellas are busy all day with boaters coming in, but they are very good with masks and well spaced tables.

For a hike with a view, Ellis Peak is easily reached from the West Shore and is of moderate difficulty, but has panoramic views. Griffin and Max did this hike and took a few beautiful photos. More on the hike details on the All Trails link.

Sunnyside is another don’t miss Tahoe stop with an enormous deck to have one of their famous drinks or Hula Pie! During winter months there are cozy spots to have a hot drink by the fire inside. Reservations are helpful as it is one of the most popular places.

via Sunnyside https://www.sunnysidelodge.com

Rafting down the Truckee River is a tradition that families have done forever. It’s an easy five mile float down the river where at the end you can have a lunch at River Ranch Lodge on a patio over the river. We chose not to do this as the river was choked with people when we drove in and we thought it wasn’t smart during COVID. Hopefully when the summer crowds thin or this pandemic is over, you can do this more safely. (photo via Truckee River Rafting.)

There is much more to see on the West Shore by driving south on highway 89. There are parks like The Hellman Ehrman Mansion at Sugar Pine Point State Park, (also a fun place to kayak and picnic) and historic Camp Richardson. Vikingsholm is a particular favorite of mine, a Scandinavian style home built in the 1920’s with materials from Tahoe using old world craftsmanship.

Vikingsholm is built in a medieval style home and if you take the tour you learn more about the style, furnishings and its owner Mrs Knight. It’s set at the bottom of a steep one mile hike on beautiful Emerald Bay. Mrs Knight, built another small house on an island in the middle of Emerald Bay to take her friends for tea. The home fronts a public beach that has a view of this island and is a nice place for a picnic before you do the hike back up to the parking lot. This is something to do very early in the day on warm parts of the year as the hike back up can be strenuous. Tours may be closed during the pandemic, so check the website for Vikingsholm.

One day we went into Tahoe City to shop for souvenirs and get lunch. The Granlibakken Taco Truck has awesome street tacos and authentic Mexican and we took our lunch across the street to Commons Beach. This beach is great for families as it is very shallow for a very long way out. It also has a playground (closed during COVID) but can be crowded. There is a great little local artist co-op fronting the beach there called ARTIsan Shop. It’s a non-profit for local artists and a great place to pick up art, photography, glass woven things, ceramics and so much more – many Tahoe themed.

Also in Tahoe City the Pineapple shop is a go-to for cute Tahoe tote bags, jewelry and home decor things in the Cobblestone Center. I also LOVE Kalifornia Jean Bar which has locations in Truckee, (a charming nearby village if you have time), and in Squaw Valley Village. They sell this sweatshirt with the cool Tahoe spots and many adorable Tahoe shirts.

Where to Stay on Tahoe’s West Shore..

Airbnb in Tahoma/Homewood and the West Shore.

These VRBO rentals are the ten closest to Chamber’s Landing of their listings.

Granlibakken Resort is another place that I hold dear in my heart. I learned to ski on their crazy steep Olympic training hill back in late 70’s and my kids spent many winters sledding here and having hot chocolate at the hut at their sled hill. All the condos here are independently owned and nestled in the prettiest forest locations. There is also a lodge, restaurant and bar as well as a conference center. It has a super location just off 89 in Tahoe City. When renting here ask for an updated condominium. The breakfast buffet cannot be beat before a day of boating or skiing.

West Shore Cafe & Hotel, as mentioned above also has a great lakefront suites and rooms and a hopping restaurant and bar, located just across from Homewood ski resort.

The Cottage Inn is on a fantastic stretch of beach and looks funky and charming. I’ve never been, but their video makes me want to go for a weekend!

Sunnyside is also great lodge with a restaurant right on the lakefront.

On the way into Tahoe you will pass the Olympic Village from the 1960 games. There is a lovely resort- Squaw Creek near the entrance which has all the resort amenities and a huge pool, shops and places to eat and a lot of beautiful hiking as well as proximity to Squaw Valley Village. Plump Jack Inn is also near the village here and is a luxury boutique hotel. (Note: It is currently closed until winter due to the pandemic.)

Please leave any Tahoe favorites of your own in the comments! I’d love to hear what memories you might have of this magical spot.

Thanks for coming along. More on Tahoe in winter on my older posts about Squaw Valley and Plump Jack Inn and also – My Winter Lake Tahoe favorites.

Kim

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Photos property of NorthernCalStyle unless noted.

Road Trips – Squaw Valley and Plump Jack Inn

January 13, 2017 By kimwheeler 13 Comments

We just returned from a 5 day trip to Lake Tahoe last week where we made Plump Jack Inn at Squaw Valley our base. It was the first time I’ve stayed right in the village and it was great not having to drive to ski each day. In fact we didn’t use our car after we arrived, as everything was within walking distance or a quick shuttle ride away.

Plump Jack’s rooms were lovely, well-equipped for skiers and felt roomy enough for my family of four.

They had the brilliant idea of a including a great wicker tower of drawers in the room which was perfect for hats, gloves, scarves, goggles and all that. I’m also a huge fan of hooks in a hotel room which they happily had in a large amount.

The bathroom had a tower for towels and toiletries and was large. Our room felt very spacious and the beds are very good.

Convenient for skiers is the free breakfast buffet each morning which was yummy and included cooked eggs, potatoes and pancakes, fresh fruit and great tea, coffee and juices. I liked their famous homemade granola with yogurt.

The hotel will store your skis downstairs which makes it very convenient and the ski hill is a four minute walk from the hotel. They also have their own ski rental shop in the hotel.

I liked this rack in the entry for all the wet clothes, helmets and boots, etc. Someone clearly thought about all the details here.

Max and Jackson getting ready to hit the slopes.

From our room you could see the tram and little skiers coming down the mountain. One day I stayed in and ordered lunch from room service.

What a view!

As you can see from the patio, the week we were there they had more snow than they have had in many years. In fact there was so much snow, Squaw Valley closed down the lifts one of the days due to avalanche dangers.

That day we took a shuttle to a neighboring resort, Squaw Creek and had lunch.

The boys tried the sled hill there and and after our lunch we checked out the shops and got hot cocoa.

We had lunch in the pub there with great views. Amazing amount of snow!

There is a free shuttle that goes to Squaw Creek Resort running all day from the bottom of the lifts so it’s easy to get over there in about five minutes.

Later that afternoon we sat in one of the two jacuzzis at Plump Jack under snow covered trees. It was kind of magical!

Out by the jacuzzis. The hotel provides flip-flops and robes, so you can make a dash even in snow.

At night the place gets pretty hopping with a lively bar scene.

If you can’t get a table you can hang by the fire pit where many are drying their gloves and having warm drinks.

We had popcorn and people watched while we waiting for our table in the cafe. Everyone is pretty welcome here from couples to big families and even pets. There was a Saint Bernard and a cat with their owners enjoying the evening, so it’s a diverse crowd!

Dinner at the Plump Jack Cafe restaurant was excellent. We especially liked the cauliflower soup and homemade bread and the wooded expanses out the windows…

The Bar has a great menu as well and is busy all day long with people enjoying a more casual lunch and dinner there. Don’t miss their homemade hummus!

If you’ve never been to Squaw Valley, it’s beautiful and worth a visit. The skiing is probably one of the best in the West with big open mountains as well as long trails. It’s one of the largest ski areas in the U.S. with 30 lifts, an aerial tram and the only funitel in the country. They also host night skiing and a ticket to Squaw also lets you ski at Alpine Meadows next door as well. The views are phenomenal and there is something for everyone. I find the history here fascinating too as it was home to the 1960 Winter Olympics.

A very snowy day!

There are plenty of lodging options at Squaw from condos and townhouses to the large hotel Squaw Creek. If you appreciate a smaller and more charming accommodations, Plump Jack is a great choice with just 56 rooms and suites. We loved the homey feeling you get from staying here and the kindness from the staff as well. Great service all around. I hope to stay there again and highly recommend it.

One day my son Jackson and I took walk around the village to take in all the beauty of the snow storm.

Conveniently, a few steps from the inn, the Village at Squaw has many restaurants, shops and coffee spots.

Right around the corner from Plump Jack is Le Chamois a funky pizza joint and bar.

It’s one of the few original buildings left of the old school Squaw Village and has great history here. Fun pictures of past ski champs, old maps and brochures from the Olympic Games and a chairlift seat make it a favorite apres-ski spot for many.

How about an adirondack chair made of skis?

These were made for a sunny day!

This may be a great year to get some skiing in. So far the powder has been amazing. Squaw Valley just got 7 feet of snow this week!

More info about the history of beautiful Squaw Valley here…

This article tells how much Walt Disney was integral to the success of the 1960 Olympics. I had no idea!

Love this post about how the 1960 Olympics were the first games to ever house athletes, and had facilities built just for the event. Again IBM and others were integral and the first ever instant replay happened here!

Some of the historic buildings still remain…

Like the one behind my son Jackson here. .. May you never be too old to catch snowflakes!

Kim

For more ideas on ski trips..Pop over to my friend April’s blog where she wrote about a fun and easy getaway to Park City/Deer Valley on her blog, Ms B in the Bay Area.