Northern California Style

Northern California Style

San Francisco

A San Francisco Brunch Spot & Walk, Chocolate Hearts to Make, and New Books

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On this weekend’s post a San Francisco brunch spot and hike, some new books, cute khaki pants, my new porch flowers and more..

This month is flying by! Can spring be around the corner? I spotted these big ranunculus at my local Ace Hardware and grabbed them to fill my empty baskets on the front porch. I have never seen ranuculus in such big pots. They are one of my favorite flowers, so I hope I can keep them alive for a while! They are making it feel springlike.

While doing a little research for the red style post this week ( linked below), I noticed my khaki pants needed a replacement. Way too tight. I saw this pair at Anthropologie and have been loving them. They are slightly long on my 5’4 self, but I think they will work. These pants come in petite, tall and plus as well. I like that they are mid rise (though they say low).

I also have been wearing this Rails top (on sale ) with them. It’s perfect for layering and has ruffles… It’s giving me the Princess Di vibe and will be a great spring top.

I look forward to wearing these pants with sandals and pretty white blouses soon!

Easy and Healthy Raspberry Chocolate Hearts

I tried Diane Morrisey’s Chocolate Raspberry Chia Bites a week ago and they are so good and easy I made them again this week with a heart cookie cutter. They take no time as it is just two cups of raspberries mashed with four tablespoons of chia. You let the mixture sit for ten and then put them into blobs or as I did heart shapes and freeze.

After about 20 minutes, you dip them in two cups of chocolate chips and a tablespoon of veg oil done over a double boiler, and refrigerate. They are divine, but do need to be kept refrigerated. Full recipe here. Warning these are addictive! I used Guittard Super Cookie Chips to melt, which are the best chocolate ever.

And if you need more decadent sweets both Juliet and Elizabeth did wonderful chocolate desserts this week to try on your Valentine!

My Valentine’s traditions

This little month is packed with fun isn’t it? I love Valentines and my mother did too. When we were small she always made my brother Peter and I feel special by leaving a treat on our breakfast plate. It was usually a mini box of candy, some cash , and a pair of cute socks or something fun like that.

When my sons were small I did the same breakfast Valentines gifts. That night, we would have a Valentine’s picnic at night in front of the fireplace on the floor, and they would help me make a special dinner and chocolate dipped strawberries to surprise Max with. They loved this tradition!

Be Your Own Valentine

This Valentine’s Day Max and I don’t have any particular plans, but I signed us up for a cooking class this week which was really fun and I will share more next week. I thought that would be a fun way to do something different together.

I think I will ask him to take me to the new exhibition with John Singer Sergent in Spain at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco and have lunch there!

This week someone shared on social media their husband didn’t really believe in Valentines, so they didn’t do anything special.. I think a lot of us expect or hope our partners will come through with flowers, jewels.. or a special dinner. I have been there. Now I tell Max what I want to do and often make the plans. I don’t feel disappointed because I let him know what I would like, and it works out better I think!

Sometimes I will cook us dinner on Valentines, and we will go out later in the week to a special place I choose.

I think one message women don’t get it that we need to be our own Valentine. We should be buying ourselves flowers occasionally, treating ourselves to nice things when we can, and generally being our own bestie… and asking for what we actually want instead of hoping. I try to work on doing this more more myself.

I also noticed this week one of my favorite podcasts, life coach Kym Showers coincidentally talked about, ‘The Secret Romance of Self-Love,’ a fresh perspective and what we need to hear.

I have to thank Juliet, who first shared Kym. Kym puts out a lot of positive ways to live your life each week on Instagram and her Thursday podcasts. I like to listen to them on my walks or while cooking..Link to the Valentine podcast here.

A San Francisco hike and brunch spot

Last weekend we hung out with our oldest Jackson and his girlfriend Kristin. They want to do a walk in San Francisco and brunch. Max found the perfect place to start, Crepes on Cole for brunch. I had the fancy French toast stuffed with mascarpone. Everything here was so good …

It fortified us for our walk which started in Cole Valley and took us up the Farnsworth Steps (above) to Parnassus Heights and a darling historic brick road neighborhood on Edgewood Avenue that has plum trees blooming. From the top of that take you go to the Sutro Forest, which then goes to Clarendon Heights and around to Tank Hill which has panoramic city views and back down to Cole…. I think that’s a run on sentence, but that is what we did!

I tried to have Max map it out.. This is the path we took starting at the arrow. I would say it took us an hour. We dawdled a bit too. At the top of Sutro Forest there is a UCSF outpost with a public bathroom and drinking fountain.

We had a great time taking in the views and even stopped in to a fantastic Open House. I love exploring SF on foot, and there are no end to the different neighborhoods. This is a particularly pretty time to go with the trees starting to blossom. You can see our walk on this Reel I made on Instagram.

While I was googling the kind of trees that were in bloom, I came across the blog and Instagram of SFTree Guy -aka Mike Sullivan, a venture capitalist who is also a tree nerd. He has a wonderful blog documenting the unique trees of the city and more great SF walks here.

I don’t have a house of the week, but I noticed at the top of the Farnsworth Steps, there is the French Consulate General’s home. It literally has an eagle’s nest view and a when I looked for the street trees, this recent listing of the home popped up. This is a multi-story gem and you can see all the photos here before it was sold to the consulate. A pretty home in a dream location.. Of course the French chose it!

I love this new cookbook

I follow Nicole Medic’s Kale Junkie account on Instagram, and she’s one of the most inventive and creative people sharing healthy and delicious food made simple. I was very excited to see she has her first cookbook out, Love to Eat. She’s a Bay Area gal and was a lawyer who turned recipe developer..

I spotted her book at our local bakery, Icing on the Cake and bought all the copies plus some cute orange kitchen towels for birthday gifts this week.

The book is chock full of her inventive food and good ideas and I just ordered one for myself as well. Just what we need to eat well this year and get out of the dinner rut. Buy her book here.

Another good book..

I just ordered Carrie Soto is Back the latest by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This is about a tennis pro who comes out of retirement when her record is in jeopardy of being broken…Sounds so good. Reviews say it is inspiring!

I’m hoping to read it when I go to the BNP Tennis tournament next month. I have a friends that we go with, but we haven’t been back since the 2019 due to the pandemic. I’m excited to be there again.

If you know anyone who is going to this desert classic, or you are, I wrote a post about what to pack for it and how to navigate it to have the most fun. My post, with all the details here.

In other news…

Thanks to all who read this week’s Signature Style about wearing red with Cindy. Check it out here if you are in the wardrobe doldrums and need some styling ideas.

I had my Galentine get together for friend’s birthdays his week and if you still want to do an easy gathering with friends, the idea and recipes are here. Being with friends can be one of the best part of Valentines!

If you missed last weekend’s post, I shared a little Valentine decor, inspiration from Princess Diana for transitional dressing, Jennifer Aniston’s favorite salad, books, a show and more..

Wishing you all a little Valentine love this week!

Kim

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

MAKE MINE A SPRITZER

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Oscar de la Renta at the de Young

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I was up at the deYoung Museum in San Francisco today to catch the Oscar de la Renta exhibit. I have loved pretty clothing my whole life and Oscar was the maestro of all things beautiful. I’ve dreamed of wearing his dresses. This show is big and beautiful and wonderfully curated by Andre Leon Talley of Vogue. The 130 ensembles are stunning. Many come from the archives of Oscar’s fashion house and others are lent by his longtime friends and devotees like Lynn Wyatt and Anna Wintour. There are dresses worn by First Ladies Nancy Regan, Laura Bush and Hilary Clinton as well as celebrities like Sarah Jessica Parker and Amy Adams.
This exhibit is grouped by Oscar’s many different influences- Dr Zhivago, the Far East, Spain, and the garden. You’ll see his Red Carpet creations, along with video. The garden room is my particular favorite with images of the garden of his Connecticut home along with some of the most wearable and beautiful striped confections. There are dresses that transcend time -looking as wearable today as they were in the 1960’s. I loved his slinky dresses from the famous ‘Battle of Versailles,’ fashion showdown in 1970’s as I did a Marie Antoinette inspired frock crafted for Kristen Dunst to wear in Vogue. There was so much to take in. The beauty was in the fantastic details. Oscar knew what all women wanted was to look beautiful and how could one not wearing any of these works of art?
Some of my favorites from this show…

The museum shop is selling a terrific book on the exhibit. I bought this huge and beautiful book on the exhibit and a postcard. More from the special Oscar shop here.
The shop had some fun bags, books and even a coloring book I wish I bought now!

 Oscar’s homeware line is quite nice.

Look at this fab wallpaper!
With my friends who made this possible Jeanne and Barb and Oscar…
A true gentleman and a brilliant artist.

More info about the de Young and this show here.

San Francisco on Foot-The Filbert Steps to Chinatown

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A few weeks back we took the family to San Francisco for the day to explore, wander and get outside and enjoy the unusually warm winter weather. We do this kind of day trip fairly frequently. We research a few restaurants or neighborhoods to check out before and then make a day of it.
We made a plan to do the famous Filbert Steps to Telegraph Hill and North Beach. When you drive into the wharf and Embarcadero Area you are greeted by amazing view of the Bay Bridge!
If you park by Levi’s plaza where Filbert Street ends you can get to the base, which seems daunting from the ground.

It’s around 400-500 steps and once you get past this first part, it rises straight up through gardens and neighborhoods and literally right to people’s front doors. The steps are lined with quirky homes with amazing views of the bay. The steps were originally built for fishermen to be able to walk from their jobs on the docks to their homes in North Beach.

My boys obliged me with a quick photo at this one point, Napier Lane which breaks off and you can see more gardens and homes. The steps are also where the famous parrots of Telegraph Hill live if you can spy a green bird amongst all the fauna here.

Some of the little homes lining the steps…

The steps are a workout, but worth doing for the views and you can make a day of it if you circle back through North Beach to the Embarcadero again. Or you could always call Uber to get back.

Once you reach Telegraph Hill there is Coit Tower right there or you can wander back down to North Beach, San Francisco’s Italian neighborhood. Some might be tempted to grab a skateboard here!

There are steps in the sidewalk in case you need them. An elementary school was right here and my boys were wondering how kids biked up this hill!

Once you hit North Beach you will find a park, and so many restaurants, shops and little cappuccino stops. We decided to make like locals and grab a slice of famous Tony’s Pizza Napletano, complete with crooked table on a very sloped street. Seriously was the best pizza I’ve had maybe ever. I still want to go back. The crust and the sauce were amazing. You can wait for an inside table at the restaurant, but we opted to grab a slice at the kiosk next to it and keep on truckin’.

You may want to take some time and explore the whole of North Beach. Lovely cathedrals, a very large square with a pretty park and so many independent boutiques fill the streets.

One iconic spot is City Lights Bookstore, famous hangout of the Beat generation.

Its’ still perfectly crumbly and grungy and filled with a fabulous collection of books.

How cool is the diverse architecture here with the Transamerica building behind?
Drop in CityLights and browse around the rooms and it’s history.

These are the kind of cool books you can find at City Lights. 

Of course it’s good to take a seat a peruse a few selections.
A few blocks over is Chinatown.

 So much eye candy. This gentleman was playing a guitar of sorts.

It’s a great stroll down this very long street. Kids will especially enjoy all the tiny stores filled with candy from Japan, small tokens, and toys. Beautiful silks are all over as well.

 I love the colors and the beautiful lampposts of Grant Street. The Dragon gates are at the other end which then leads you to Union Square.

Later we circled back toward the Embarcadero business district, which is deserted on weekends and grabbed a coffee before walking back along the waterfront, another fun path to where we began.
My oldest was trying out a new camera on his phone so we snapped a pic.
One of the most fun things to do is spend a day exploring a city without too much plan. San Francisco is perfect for such an adventure. There are so many neighborhoods and fun landmarks you could never see them all. Next time you have a free day try being a tourist in nearby city or even your own. Wishing you all a good weekend.
Kim

Our Holiday at Home #Latergram

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Cannot believe Christmas and the holidays have passed already. Is it me or did the end of last year fly by crazy fast? There were a lot of things on my to-do list that just never happened. Gee kind of like this post..

 I still wanted to show some of the fun here in Northern Cal during winter break…So what the heck! Better late than never! (Okay if your done with holiday posts feel free to click over to something more relevant and exciting. I won’t be offended. 🙂

Though we did not leave for the Christmas break, we did get to squeeze in some lovely walks as the weather has been very mild here, compared to the rest of the country. I love the rough and brambly gray of much of the plants and trees mixed with the buds that are already showing on so many plants. I think it’s been too warm actually.

It’s still warm! We are loving it, but feeling bit guilty about it.

 Chilling with the neighbors’ cat in my yard.

We Californians are probably all going to hell! (Hope not!)

Love this old ivy wall surrounding an historic house I pass on my walk.

 I did get out for a day with my favorite guy.  My husband patiently shopped with me and we shared a lunch outside on of my favorite days of our break. He and I did quite a few walks and little dinner dates and coffee runs. One of the perks of staying home was more downtime together for all of us.

We also drove to Half Moon Bay to walk the beach a little and grab clam chowder and lobster rolls at Sam’s Chowder House.

It was an amazingly gorgeous day for December. 

The boys built the Lonely Mountain from the Hobbit.

We saw that and the Mr Banks movie on  our break. I loved Mr Banks!! Highly recommend that one.

Also got to stop at my favorite nursery and get a few ivy plants to perk up the house.

The other highlight of the holiday break was getting up to San Francisco for a night with the kids. We were a bit hampered by Griffin twisting his ankle right before we left. : [  It wasn’t ideal, as San Francisco is such a walking city and a tough one at that with all the hills. His crutches were exhausting and so we couldn’t cover much.

We walked to Macy’s to see the pets up for adoption in the windows. The boys love that.

Also so many gorgeous holiday windows!

Burberry

I loved Gumps! Their windows were chic and original..

Our motley crew.
And cute!

Inside the mechanical toys and Santa’s from all over the world charmed us. We were all fascinated!

Gumps is a must do on a shopping trip here! Unique and fab items from all over.

Loved the windows at Ghurka…

How about those Cartier panthers?

We got to another of our favorite spots, Fiona’s Sweet Shoppe.

Griffin and I first discovered this tiny treasure on our summer trip to SF. They specialize in Scottish and U.K. candies. They have things that you’ve never heard of or tasted and they do samples. Don’t miss Fiona’s which is on Sutter Street. My favorites are the brown sugar cubes that have black licorice in them!

Picked up a darling modern Christmas tray and more at Crate & Barrel. Always love everything there.

C&B is wonderful spot to find fresh ideas. I always want to re-do my home after a visit.

Neiman Marcus’s huge tree reflected from the windows.

Dinner was just Max and I as the kids preferred to stay in the room and watch their own movie. Griffin couldn’t really walk anywhere far. We got them a room service pizza and they were thrilled.
We stayed at my favorite, The Hotel Monaco, and they give kids a complimentary movie card, which was so nice. We also got some passes to, “Raid the Bar,” which was credit for your honor bar, so the boys got sodas and goodies from it. 
It’s those little things that make The Hotel Monaco and Kimpton Hotels worth choosing. This was all on out own dollar and it was nice that so many perks come along with an overnight stay.
Griffin and I chilled out in the animal print robes a bit too. Fun!

Dinner in the downstairs bar was delicious and fun and it was nice being in the hotel while the guys were upstairs.
Things were going okay until the next morning when our neighbors texted to tell us our Guinea Pig had his head caught in his wire ball. 🙁

Can you believe it? That’s our sweet neighbor Abby, who rescued him.

Luckily one of her brothers got our wire cutters and pried him out. We were so thankful to them! The pig was unharmed…However at that point we threw in the towel and came home. 
Still it was lovely to be in San Francisco during Christmas even if it was 18 hours!
We did New Years at the home of my friend Aimee and her brood who are like family to us. They also enjoy lots of crazy nutty teens and make it fun for them as well with obnoxious hats and exploding items! I don’t think my kids would enjoy New Years if we weren’t there.
We had time to spend with my 96 year old grandma Jody too. The boys helped her grocery shop. It was a perfect day except in my excitement I locked us all out of the car with my grandmother’s groceries and ice cream inside!  That was fun. Didn’t bother my grandma at all of course! She rolls with the punches and that’s why she has probably lived so long!

We spent a fair amount of time just chilling like my neighbor cat does here in my yard…Is that cat yoga or what??

And now we are off…Another year and all that. January is flying by too fast.

 Here’s to 2014!

If you’re still reading, happy weekend!

Kim
All images property of NorthernCalStyle

Getting Crafty at Brit+ Co & More SF Holiday Fun

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Do you love crafty stuff and DIY projects? Well so did Brit Morin and she turned her little side hobby of how-tos into a start-up that has amassed some serious funding. She’s living the ultimate crafter girl’s dream with a big beautiful building right in the heart of San Francisco. Her headquarters house a gorgeous test kitchen, living rooms and cozy spots to hang with her young team that are bringing her vision to the masses.

Last Thursday I was invited up to San Francisco to visit Brit + Co. with my buddy Adrienne of The Rich Life (on a budget) and we checked out their digs. During the holiday season Brit+co. is running a pop-up Make Shop  at their darling offices on Sutter Street, near Union Square. The front garden entry ( I told you it was cute), is decorated with faux snow and benches piled with sweaters pillows and the like.

 Inside, hip employees wearing knit hats and cozy scarves are there to help you choose one of the $19 Brit Kits they sell. They were also selling cool handmade jewelry, scarves, towels and more like you might see  at Whole Foods. The atmosphere was festive with movie Elf playing on the wall, as they led us back to their bright kitchen.

Brit came from Texas, as a student intern at Apple and worked her way over to Google. Through her connections, she has gotten the support to for this venture, which is pretty huge for a 28 year old. Some are even calling her the Martha Stewart of the younger generation.

 Her website is filled with DIY projects and home and wardrobe fixes that are fun and quick. Some are her own, some from other sites. She even has an app available for your phone as well. It’s very Martha,  with ideas for better living.

Brit and her team invited the Wilton company in to give a cookie decorating class. Hey, I actually learned a few things! Adrienne and I struggled a bit at first with the piping tubes, but got the hang of it after a bit. ( At no time did the free wine from the hotel social hour figure into this, I swear!) I didn’t know you need to hold your fingers in an “okay” shape as you are bearing down on the cookie, to prevent the frosting from squeezing out the top.

We also learned to use their thicker frosting that comes in Wilton’s Elmer glue-like bottles to line a cookie, then flood the center.. To make this pretty look you draw a circle in the center with green and then four teardrop shapes around it, then drag down with a toothpick to the edges until you get this effect.  It was actually easy and even my boys said they were cool before they snarfed them…

Brit herself got up to thank us for coming and then sat next to Adrienne and I. She seems nice and had issues with decorating her own cookies! We chatted with a few other folks and were sent home with a box of goodies from Wilton. I am definitely trying some of these techniques at home when my kids and I make our annual sugar cookies for the neighbors and family.

I have to say I am impressed with the offices and the concept this young woman has. I do think there is something about learning to make things on your own, not buy them. It builds a confidence and gives you a sense of accomplishment. You also appreciate when someone spent some time creating an item specially made for you. For me Pinterest and Etsy has been a treasure trove of these kind of ideas. Perhaps Brit+co. will be something of the same for those who want to create at home, but don’t have the time or energy to find ideas and source materials.

 It definitely aimed at a younger professional crowd. They seem to have a need for it. We really don’t have the same lives our grandmothers, but we can still preserve a little of the past traditions by taking pride in projects done by hand, even if they are small!

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Adrienne and I decided to stay in the city another night since the Brit+Co. party was in the evening and we both have long drives home. This time we tried another Kimpton Hotel, The Sir Francis Drake. I hadn’t been there in years and it has been totally overhauled and is classically pretty. We paid for our room, but were lucky to get a lovely one with a corner window on the 15th floor. Talk about a view! Wow. They absolutely have one of the best looking at one side toward the bay and the other over festive Union Square.

I also love their location on Powell Street where the cable car stop right in front of the hotel! You can also see then go up and down the hills from your hotel window. It’s a pretty fab local and like the Hotel Monaco which is just 2 blocks away, it’s close to everything you want to do in San Francisco.

When we got there, Adrienne suggested lunch at one of her favorite spots, Le Central. This French Bistro is a San Francisco institution. It’s charming and filled with SF peeps. Willie Brown has lunch there daily and we caught him while we sipped champagne at the bar.

I love the asparagus soup and their goat cheese salad is to die for!! It’s a very fun stop if you are near the Drake or in the Union Square vicinity. It’s right across from the China Town gates. You can also just pop in for a cappuccino and people watch!

Of course we shopped! The holiday windows are wonderful right now. Union Square has ice-skating rink open. All the Kimpton hotels have a complimentary wine hour with hand-picked selections so we popped in the Drake’s mezzanine and had some wine.

I loved the decor’s nod to Sir Francis Drake and the Elizabethan age.

 After our Brit + Co. adventure, hit Scala’s bistro in the hotel, for a late night bite. It’s really quite fun and had a buzz about it.

In the morning, we walked back towards the square and The Daily Grill for breakfast. We did lunch here before. I highly recommend this restaurant if you are near the theatre and shopping area. The food is delicious and unique, and I love the cozy here. It’s like a 1940’s diner. The Greyhounds are very good  here-( but not for breakfast! 😀 )

I wanted to include these little tips on the off chance you get up to San Francisco during this holiday time. I think it’s worth a trip with the family or as a couple.  Do not miss Macy’s windows with their SPCA adoption animals, Gumps and also the Wilkes-Bashford’s!

Macy’s Tout Sweet Patisserie on the 3rd floor-  overlooking the Union Square.
A nice little spot to have a  cup of tea and rest your feet.

We bought gloves! It was sooo cold in San Francisco.
 I’m loving these leopard print with touch screen enabled finger tips from Macy’s.

Hope you are getting to enjoy the holidays a little!

Stay warm if you are in the states. It’s cold everywhere right now!

 I’m off to tackle more cards, shopping and life. . .

Kim

Buche de Noel cakes at Le Boulange, another stop I love on Sutter Street.
 (I stop there before I grab my car at the Sutter St garage usually. They have great ice tea and breads too.)

Getaways- San Francisco’s Hotel Monaco- or Bloggers in the City!

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Living here in Northern California, one of the holiday rituals I look forward to is getting up to San Francisco to shop, see the Christmas windows and lights, and grab a great show or dinner. It’s a festive and fun time to be in the city. You can turn it into a little getaway for two, or a girl’s trip, or even a family weekend. Well, I now have the primo spot for such an escape, the Hotel Monaco! I got to join two wonderful blogess gals, Adrienne of The Rich Life on a Budget and Heather of StyleMindChic.
As Northern California bloggers from three different corners, we wanted to find a central spot to meet up and also create a holiday getaway that might inspire readers, and the Hotel Monaco generously sponsored our stay. We couldn’t have been more thrilled. Hotel Monaco is all that a boutique hotel should be. It’s quaint, charming and housed in a gorgeous, early 1900’s Beaux Arts building, which is pretty fabulous and lovingly restored.
It’s things like this marble staircase and it’s railing that wow you there.
The newly redone rooms are comfy and cozy, bright and pretty. I loved the chair and desk in my double room as well as large almost window seat to take in the city….
 I felt spoiled even more with the sweet note they left to welcome me as well as wine and wonderful cheese plate with a key to the city! Now I always have a little souvenir from them…
My view…Gotta love a pretty sky.
The Hotel Monaco isn’t just a pretty face though. She has an amazing staff that is so good, I would venture to say it’s one of the best hotels I have ever stayed in. I’m serious. The folks here are like a big family. They looked out for us ladies in the city. I felt safe and taken care of! 
After checking in we met up, shared some wonderful Veuve champagne courtesy of Adrienne, and we relaxed downstairs in the pretty main lobby. I love a good fireplace and a spot to chat, read or work. This room with it’s pretty fireplace and palm trees, seemed to have an old Hollywood vibe.
The ceilings are fabulous too…
Hotel Monaco’s other room houses their afternoon wine reception and a generous coffee bar in the morning. Lovely to sneak down and grab a fresh cup and favorite newspaper before the city is awake! In the afternoon a wine reception is laid out for guests – so nice after a day out exploring the city. The wines are chosen by a Kimpton sommelier and are “responsibly sourced.”  Pretty cool. Hotel Monaco is all kinds of progressive and you can read more on their website.

Hotel Monaco is pet friendly, (they do petcations!) as well as welcoming to kids and babies. ( I love this on the website – “Traveling with kids? You have our sympathy.”)!  Seriously though, they have red-carpet treatment for pets and kids of all ages. ( Okay I know they aren’t in the same category, but sometimes…) Check their site for the deets. Bikes, hula-hoops and goldfish in your room, all figure in the fun they offer.

When we finally tore ourselves away from the lovely Monaco, we made our way down to shopping nirvana, Union Square for some retail therapy. First stop was the Neiman-Marcus Rotunda for lunch and fantastic views overlooking the square…I think you can see they had the Christmas tree and ice rink up already.

Lunch here means champagne,  popovers, and the daily fashion show that comes by your table. I ask you is this not the perfect old-school ladies who lunch spot? Very few of these places left.

The Rotunda is gorgeous. Look at this view below. Their huge holiday tree is coming soon.
After our lunch, we made our way downstairs to visit our gal beauty maven,Tiffany Johnson. Heather and I had some quick make-up tips from Tiffany and Adrienne had the Giorgio Armani rep, the dashing Fernando, do hers.
We all bought some gorgeous Armani colors and foundation. Tif sent us home with samples of some more Tom Ford fragrances…We couldn’t decide. I think we wanted them all!
We love Tiffany. She knows about everything on the beauty floor, and not just one brand. We also got stocked up on some Armani skincare, which I am enjoying, especially the Youth Serum! Did you know Neimans now has free shipping and returns now? That’s pretty sweet, so if you couldn’t get in to see our girl Tiffany personally, you could email or call her over the phone and she can ship it free of charge. Ms Tiffany knows her stuff, so should you be in the city, stop by and see her and Fernando.

Later that evening we walked a few blocks up and had dinner at Farallon, a San Francisco institution. The restaurant is named for the Farallon Islands, which sit off the coast of San Francisco and are a marine sanctuary. The restaurant is almost an undersea experience. As someone who has gone scuba diving under the bay, it’s pretty close!

 Can you spot the kelp and jellyfish? Food and service were top notch here.

Back in our rooms, the bedding and bed was exceptional too. A really nice touch were the cute animal print robes provided. I loved my room! It was like a small sanctuary. In the morning I curled up with my pillows, coffee, fluffy zebra robe and NY Times -bed  heaven! As a mom, who hits the ground running most days, it was a real treat.
Another very important piece of what makes Monaco such a perfect place is their Grand Cafe. Housed in the only ballroom still standing after the 1906 earthquake, this brasserie is warm and stylish. In the front is their charming and snug bar, which is ideal for a cocktail before heading out for a night on the town, or just a cozy nightcap!
This sculpture was in the brasserie, one of many unique pieces in the hotel! 
The next morning, we had brunch there and what a treat. Even my ordinary order of oatmeal was lavished with browned butter, raisins on the vine, and pecans. We got to meet Chef Dirk and his assistant chef Lisa who were so welcoming. They are obviously very proud of their unique menu, and this gorgeous space! 
Many locals eat at The Grand Cafe and that speaks volumes for a hotel restaurant! It’s full service with breakfast, lunch and dinner and they do the hotel’s room service menu too. They are one block away from the theatre district, so it’s an ideal pre-show dinner and drinks stop too.

Our favorite waiter, the charming Jose!


As if being there wasn’t fun enough, something marvelous happened on Friday. The whole city was gathered in Union Square to make one little boy’s wish come true.  Bat kid, aka, Miles Scott, took the city by storm and everyone got into the act. A little boy who had been battling leukemia, he had a dream of being Batman. The Make a Wish Foundation and countless others made his wish of fighting evil in the city happen! If you missed this, Adrienne wrote more about it on her  Skimbaco page.    
 All the employees of Hotel Monaco wore bat wings and got us even more excited to see it. Once we got down to Union Square, we couldn’t believe the crowds, signs and the cheering for this little guy. It was so moving, I couldn’t help crying. It reminded me of the inherent goodness in people. I think we felt lucky to experience such an inspiring event.


After all the excitement  we did a bit more shopping. We hit Macy’s and all three of us bought some pretty blouses. We also had lunch at another darling cafe, and then we parted ways. We all had multi- hour drives ahead of us. Heather gave us both cute travel bags from her online StyleMindChic shop. I loved my bag and her pretty packaging too! Check out her lovely shop if you have not. She has a great eye for what is glam and some goodies that are perfect for holiday gifts!

It seemed like our girl’s trip was over way too fast. I really had fun with these funny, smart and kind women. It was great to see Adrienne again and get to know Heather better! I also feel lucky to have connected with them through blogging. It’s something I never expected when I began this journey and it has been the nicest part of all.

Thank you to the delightful Hotel Monaco, especially Nancy and Daniel and all their staff for making this getaway such a pleasure. I felt like royalty staying there and if you choose to visit you will understand what I mean. If you are near Union Square, stop by and have a look. It’s a wonderful time of the year to get to San Francisco and the hotel is in the best possible location for shopping, shows and restaurants. I loved it so much I am planning on taking my family back with me during Christmas break.
It’s a gem in the heart of the most loveliest of cities!
Kim
Disclosure: Kimpton sponsored our stay including our three individual rooms, breakfast and incidentals. All opinions of Kimpton’s Hotel Monaco and Grand Cafe are my own, as always. 

What to Pack for a Getaway to San Francisco

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How adorable is this? I love this from the 2009 J Crew campaign. Just epitomizes the perfect San Francisco getaway! I’m going too..That’s right homies, I’m headed up to the fairest of cities, except with  girl pals! Maybe even better than with a sweetheart…Especially if there is shopping and cocktails involved?!
My last SF adventure was in August. I got to finally meet in person with my dear blogger pal Adrienne from The Rich Life on a Budget. We had the so much fun, our lunch lasted almost 3 hours, and we didn’t even know it. Needless to say, we had much to chat about and wanted to make another plan to to get together for longer and enjoy more of San Francisco and all it’s charms too.
Cute Adrienne. We were so excited with our makeup goodies from Neimans.

The day is finally here and tomorrow I’m off on a little adventure to spend a night in the city with Adrienne and we are bringing the darling Heather from StyleMindChic along to join in the fun! I’m so excited to meet Heather finally in person as well. Shopping, cocktails, and all that are on the agenda. Best part though will be the girl time with these two sweet ladies.

I thought a lot about what I am packing, mais bien sûr! I am taking a small Tumi weekend bag that I am stealing from my husband. I thought it might be nice to make a list in case you are getting away to this unique and beautiful spot!

This is basics for a weekend in San Francisco:

That is
-skinny legging jean

-J Crew khaki skinnies

–boyfriend jeans (wearing)

-silk Equipment print blouse

-leopard print sweater (wearing)

-Free People long V-neck sweater

–sleeveless silk shell for layering or evening

–2 scarves a two-tone blue one for day and a filmy raw silk cream one for night

-Free People long fluffy sweater coat for night

-camel wool coat

-black moto jacket

-black and light tan (I got them!) ankle booties

-Tom’s chevron print wedge sandals for evening if we take cabs. (You don’t even want to try to navigate the hills in SF with heels! Serious about that. You will walk barefoot!)

-a pair of black peep-toe wedges

-House of Harlow star necklace. (Just bought it at Nordstrom’s sale here for $34 and it makes everything look good.)

– two leather cuff bracelets in black/silver and tan/gold

-one pair of fab big earrings for night that are tan/gold chandelier style (Thanks Jen!)

On the casual side, I am also including:

-J Crew wool track pants (for lounging around the hotel and possibly breakfast.)

-cotton grey v-neck slouchy sweater

-a soft long-sleeve T for sleep or layering or lounging

– a lovely necklace that’s silver, gold and rose gold a recent gift from girlfriends

–sunglasses. I’m bringing my tortoiseshell  Ray-Bans this time.

– sequin converse for kicking around

– a cross body bag. This one is a few season’s old Tory Burch that I use a ton on trips.

-Don’t forget warm PJs (Target had the softest toile ones I just got here. You have to click on the color Polar Bear to see them…Apparently Target folks don’t know what toile is…Love them though!)

–warm socks and the usual toiletries, underpinnings

–hair spray (I do not use hair spray regularly, but because of the fog layer there any hair style can be gone in about 10 minutes in the outdoors! Bring it.)

– a great book or magazine! 

I am bringing my hobo style leather bag from Italy. It’s teal and it holds a ton and stays on my shoulder all day without bothering me. A must for shopping! A tote is another great alternative. I love a bag I can throw things into and not use a lot of shopping bags.

Wondering now if this is all going to get into the Tumi bag. I’m guessing not!

I cannot believe I’m going to have a room all to myself! I may even chill a bit. I think we have a lot on our agenda though..

To be honest I’m just beyond thrilled because, well it’s been ages since I did a girl’s getaway.  I don’t even want to admit how long. If that wasn’t enough the glamorous Hotel Monaco is sponsoring our stay in their newly remodeled hotel! I pretty excited to check it out. Always have loved their lovely eclectic decor…

Follow our little adventure on our Instagram accounts to come along with us using #bloggersinthecity.  Click on Adrienne, Heather, and me to follow our Instagram accounts.

I also will do some small posts via my Facebook Page too, so if you haven’t liked it, this is a good time!

Hope I have some fun to share with you this weekend. I plan on taking a lot of photos. Thanks everyone for the good wishes. You all are so sweet!

xx
Kim

SF Images via my Pinterest Board, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

San Francisco Neimans and a Blogger Girl’s Lunch!

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Yesterday I had the most fun day I have had in a long time.  I trekked up to San Francisco to meet Adrienne from The Rich Life on a Budget. Adrienne, is also a Northern California girl who lives in wine country. San Francisco is the halfway point between our homes. Luckily, it was a gorgeous day in the city! Fall is the best time to visit SF.

There is always a bit of nerves when meeting someone that you really only know online, in person for the first time. However, Adrienne was just as she seems on her blog. She couldn’t be friendlier or nicer. She is also super-model pretty. It was kind of like hanging out with a down-to-earth and sweet brunette Elle Macpherson. That is not an exaggeration!
She is also super fun. We had a wonderful old school girl’s lunch at the Rotunda in Neiman-Marcus. If you haven’t been to this institution, it’s one of the last places left to have a proper ladies’ lunch complete  white table cloths, silver, and a daily fashion show.

Inside the gorgeous Rotunda which is at the top of the store. It’s glass dome is from the original City of Paris store from the early 1900s. You can read more about it here.  It’s lovely to behold at the holidays with it’s huge tree!

If you are shopping in Union Square, this is a fun place for lunch, tea or a cocktail. The view overlooking Union Square is fantastic too. I haven’t mentioned the monster popovers that come with strawberry butter and consume’ with baby puff pastry that everyone is served…That, a friend and a glass of champagne at lunch and I’m in girl heaven. Add to that cute male models popping by the table, giggling and I need nothing else.

The beautiful models that popped by our lunch table wearing Loro Piana.
Anyway, we had so much to chat about that before I knew it we had sat there three hours! 

After we wandered into the new CUSP area of NM. This is the part of the store with all the young and hip designers. The Equipment area was our favorite. Are you familiar with this brand? I knew they had amazing silk blouses. The whole line is adorable, as in, -I want it all! Check out their sweaters and print blouses if you want to see what we are talking about.

We had a ball trying things on…So much to covet! Dropped a little money here. I’m loving my new blouse that Adrienne found.  She’s got a great eye for fashion as you probably know from her fashion photos on her blog. She bought some gorgeous things also and I’m know she’ll share them on her blog soon.

You can’t go through Neimans without a stop in the cosmetic department. We checked out the Tom Ford lipsticks and fragrances. How is it Tom Ford just knows what women want? The colors are amazing not to mention the Portofino Neroli fragrance. In it’s deep teal glass it was our favorite. Wish I could send you the scent! 
Adrienne checking out the Tom Ford area.
In the end, I bought the Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara. It’s $35, so not cheap, but our darling cosmetic maven Tiffany who helped us navigate beauty land swore it was the best in the department. Since we don’t get to do this very often I went for it and so did Adrienne. 
Ms Tiffany at Neimans.
If you’re in San Francisco and get to Neiman’s cosmetic department look for this gal. Tiffany Johnson  is sweet, extremely knowledgeable and fun. She made shopping there relaxing without any pressure. You don’t always get that feeling in the cosmetic department! 
 Though Adrienne and I consider ourselves savvy shoppers, we totally got sucked into the Neiman Marcus world. If you’re going to treat yourself and have a fun girls’ day, there is no better world! I think  it’s nice to splurge once in a while. When you don’t do it all the time, it’s even that more special.
My loot. The beauty department is having a leopard bag as a gift with purchase right now filled with goodies.
Love the Equipment blouse. This is me. I do have a Pinterest board titled Floral & Leopard!

Best part about this day was bonding with Adrienne. I knew we would like similar things because of our blogs, but being able to shop and small talk easily was so nice. Adore this girl and we are already planning our next girl’s day. Yea!

It’s going to be a wet weekend here in Northern Cal! I’m so excited to get some rain. I love it. It’s a good time to cozy up and bake or make soup. I’m thinking board games tonight or a classic Woody Allen movie by the fire. It also could be a good day to shop for those fall items…
What are your plans this weekend? Whatever you do, I hope it’s a good one.
Thanks for stopping by my neck of the woods!
Kim
p.s. I’m linking to all these things so you can find them if you are curious. I’m not promoting anyone here. Just fun.

Girl’s Lunch !

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A quick post, but I have to share some fun news. Tomorrow I’m going to San Francisco to meet the darling Adrienne of The Rich Life on a Budget for lunch! We have been meaning to meet for a long time and are finally doing it. We will be having a girly lunch at Neimans and then do a little shopping! This is a big treat. I rarely get up to the city (what we in the Bay Area call SF) anymore by myself, let alone to meet a girlfriend!

Now pardon me, but I’ve got to run and try on my whole closet. You know the need to look cute when you are with other women? Adrienne is always stylish so the pressures on! Just look at this outfit from her last post above. Funny, two of the things I have considered wearing is my black J. Crew ankle booties and my distressed boyfriend jeans like she is wearing. I have a new camo jacket that I bought at Anthropologie that I’m thinking may be just right for a fall day in San Francisco…

Two photos of the jacket above. What do you think? 
I’m hoping to shop for a pretty fall lipstick and I think we will be checking out the Tom Ford colors while we are there.
Stay tuned. . . I hope I can share my trip with you tomorrow night and more about the chic Adrienne and some of her style secrets!
Kim
 Check out my Instagram and Adrienne’s Instagram where I’m sure we will share a few snaps! 

Summer Jaunts in the Bay Area

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Beach combing in Davenport.

Wow, this week has flown by and I hardly have had time to catch my breath. I’ve had no blogging time or been able visiting my pals in the blogosphere either.  I am trying to catch up!

Hey and what about those Olympics? What a wonderful time suck. I’m crazy for London, so I am loving seeing all of that and of course the sports. Synchro diving? Wow. Even loved dressage and kayaking. I don’t mind suffering through so much men’s swimming. 😉 So fun to watch it all. It would be a blast to be there. I’m like a zombie each night dragging my self to bed after NBC (don’t even get me started on them) strings me along for those medal ceremonies until the bitter end of the broadcast at midnight or later! In the morning I’ve got TV hangover and can’t get up. No wonder nothing is getting done!

My oldest has been away a tennis camp in Carmel Valley. This requires two weekends of trips down to Monterey Bay. Not so horrible actually, but driving and making little stops has taken lots of our week. I never went to Summer camp as a kid and neither did Max, and I was determined my sons might have that special experience of camp.  Carmel Valley Tennis Camp has been around forever has the feel of a real old-fashioned camp with tennis. Jackson went last year at age 12. I was sooo nervous about it. However, when he came back he wrote me a note saying,” Thanks mom for letting me go to camp. It was the coolest thing I’ve ever done.”

Jackson last year at camp.

 I was thrilled he had fun, especially since he went on his own without a friend. He is at the same camp this year and I highly recommend it if you have a child who is into tennis. Love this place!

Anyhow, I am still working on the second installment of my trip behind the redwood curtain, but I wanted to share some fun things we did this week in case you want to head out of town.

Small Griffin at Small Paul.

My younger son Griffin is really good about getting me out to do things and the two of us took a little trip up to San Francisco to get a few new school clothes and have lunch together. We usually don’t get to spend a whole day with just the two of us. One of our first stops was checking out the Small Paul store, and then to Zara for the boy’s section. He has been wanting some colored jeans and I knew Zara, which is Spain’s version of the Gap, would have them and they did. I always love checking out Zara for myself too. I first fell in love with this store in France and England. I was so happy when they finally came to America. One thing I love is their coats and jackets. They always have a fantastic selection that are very current and fashionable without costing a ton. This time I bought a black and white zebra inspired scarf.  I think San Francisco is the only Northern Cal outpost of Zara, so it’s worth a trip.

When we were up there we cruised between Post St and Maiden Lane and the general Union Square area. Love the windows at the new Prada store.  Dreaming of Checking out the latest bags..

And at Kate Spade. What’s not to love in that store? I always have a wish list running in my mind when I visit there. Alas I had a small boy with me so, on to lunch..

We ate lunch at my very favorite new find, La Boulange! This French bakery is just so good.  Have I said that before about bakeries? The quality here is unmatched. The breads are heaven and very affordable. Baguettes are $2.00!  Well, I had a Croque Monsieur that was as good (or better actually, now that I think of it), than any served in France and healthy quinoa as my side. Grif had a hotdog in a croissant. Do not miss their home made potato chips. Yes, I ate those too!

After Grif and I spied a darling little sweet shop that we popped in. Fiona’s Sweet Shoppe is a real discovery and unlike any candy shops around. It was opened by a Scottish doctor who came here and missed the treats from back home. They specialize in candies from the England and Scotland. They generously let us sample all kinds of unusual candies we had never known before. I am now in love with something called brown sugar cubes, which is soft black licorice covered in brown sugar. Griffin found a few new favorites too and we left with a bag for about $4.00! Another wonderful stop if you are up here for the day!

Okay one other fun idea for you this week.. Have you been berry picking lately? I haven’t in many years. My friend Kim and her daughter Abby asked us to go strawberry picking in Davenport, near Santa Cruz. It’s a quick 35 minute trip to Swanton Berry Farm where you can pick your own organic berries. They had a very cute farm with a pie shop, jams and other goodies too. It’s on the honor system, so bring cash. You weigh it yourself, mark it, and leave your money. The kids loved picking their own. The day we went it was only us and two other families. I had forgotten what a blast this is and the strawberries are SO good.

After that we toodled back to Davenport, to check out the tide pools. I had no idea they even had a good beach there. I hate to even share this, but if you go down Davenport Landing Road, you will hit a very small parking spot and a very huge beach with tide pools to the left and right of the beach. Make sure you come at low tide and I recommend bringing a lunch. Not many good food options this way. Great spot for a lunch picnic here on the beach. Fabulous beach! Now, don’t tell anyone…

After, on the way back to highways 1 and 17, you can make a stop in Downtown Santa Cruz for a treat. I am just getting reacquainted with this town again and loving spending time downtown. It’s really become very hip and less hippy, if you get my drift. Kim and I grabbed coffee at the very cool Verve coffee house. We both agreed her cappuccino and my latte were the best coffee we have ever had. Seriously. Oh, and they make those cute hearts and stuff on your foam. Extra points for that!! Love the decor too. The finale to all this was a stop at The Penny Ice Creamery a very special local ice creamery with flavors like Earl of Grey, Strawberry Pink Peppercorn, and Burnt Cinnamon. They use only organic eggs, milk and sugar of course. The Penny Ice Creamery is pretty famous around here as they were invited to be Michelle Obama’s guest at a State of the Union address last year, since they were able to open their business thanks to Obama’s SBA Recovery Act. That act allowed them to get a loan for $250,000, which let them build and open the shop and eventually employ 11. Unbelievably cute shop where you can see them making the ice cream and totally deserving of a special trip. Abby had vanilla bean and Grif has plum sorbet. I am counting the days until I can go back and bring the rest of my family. It was a perfect Summer day trip if you are in these parts!

Here’s to squeezing all you can out of that Summer! Enjoy.
xo
Kim

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