A few things to inspire: Fall Edition

We all spend endless amounts of time online, and the things that most often grab our attention are the photos we flip through. Whether you like Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook or simply Yahoo, photos drive so much of our creativity and inspire us to take even more photos. I decided to bring some of the photos I've seen together into one little board that I can re-reference when I need a bit of inspiration. Of course I'm not the first to do this, but I felt doing so may help streamline some of my ideas and further them into becoming reality. If you'd like to make one of your own, or see where I created mine, check out Polyvore.com, and amazingly simple and free website where you can begin collecting all sorts of images to inspire you. 

This board is an obvious showcase of how much I love ornate and intricately designed things. From henna, to beadwork, I just can't get enough detail. The headpiece, lace shoes and art deco diamond ring will inspire me while I'm shopping for some fall pieces to add to my wardrobe. The eiffel tower and beautiful purple stained glass church remind me to travel and see somewhere new, while the McQueen clutch and Silvery grey Essie nail polish (in Cashmere Bathrobe) encourage me to dress up for the holidays. What inspires you? Where do you want to go? Keep searching for the things that inspire you most and let them do their work! :)

Merry Christmas

May your Holiday and home be filled with love and happiness!

Get this....

Cutting Board! 

I've never really liked wood cutting boards since you cannot easily sanitize them in the dishwasher and they often show wear quickly. For the past few years I've been using a standard white plastic boring same ole, same ole board that would stain whenever I cut carrots or red peppers and showed every mark of the knife. 

Until now! A few weekends ago, while shopping at Sur La Table, my wonderful husband found what is now my ALL time favorite cutting board and....bonus....it's only $19.99! and.....bonus #2.....it's good for the environment!

It's called the Architec Eco Smart Poly Flax Cutting Board and is actually made using the husk of the flax seed. As the label says, it's like having nature in your cutting board! It's made in a zero waste facility and is 100% recyclable. Plus, it is dishwasher safe, made in the U.S.A. and free of any harmful chemicals often found in other plastic materials...which means you won't be getting any hidden radicals rubbing off onto your chopped onions. I really love the way this board looks in my kitchen and I have yet to see any stains or knife marks. Yay!

Sur La Table had three colors to choose from, a rusty red, a very spinachy green and the color I chose, brown, which looked most like a flax seed to me :).

As I said, I got mine at Sur La Table, but I also found them on Amazon right here. I highly recommend you check this board out for you or even as a super great gift for someone who loves to chop.

Visiting the City by the Bay

This last weekend, my husband and I went on a little road trip 8 hours up the coast to one of my favorite places in the world, San Francisco, California.  

Visiting S.F. doesn't mean you actually have to stay in the city. There are countless surrounding towns that are interesting and so much fun to visit. We actually ended up staying right at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge on the Sausalito side of the Bay in a hotel called Cavallo Point. The hotel sits inside of Fort Baker, where rooms are adorably refurbished military barracks. The morning fog rolls away to reveal a serene scene where birds are all you hear and dear are visible munching away at the grassy meadow that the rooms encircle. 

We spent a day across the bridge walking, eating and enjoying the beauty of the city. This amazing dessert of creme filled donuts with vanilla bean ice cream was a foodie highlight that we enjoyed at the Four Seasons Hotel restaurant on Market Street in S.F.  Can you tell I like donuts?

If you're in Sausalito, eat at the Lighthouse Diner. This breakfast was so delicious and kept me full for hours, as if thats hard to believe! The huge raspberry filled, chewy, bubbly pancake was one of the best I've ever eaten. Somehow I will figure out a way to duplicate this treat. 

On our last day in the city, we headed over to the de Young museum in Golden Gate Park to view the Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit, which was fantastic. Afterwards, we visited the Japanese Tea Garden, a tranquil collection of trees, flowers, koi ponds and pagodas. You can also have an authentic cup of tea inside a traditional tea house within the gardens. 

After a busy weekend in the city, we decided to stop off in Monterey on the drive down south. We had just enough time left on Sunday evening to make our way to the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium. My favorite part was the Jellyfish exhibit, with multiple species to gawk at. I highly suggest going to the Aquarium late on a Sunday like we did, when there is hardly anyone left and you have most of the exhibits to yourself. 

The nighttime view from Cavallo Point. Could it get any better?? 

Happy Fourth of July

What will you be doing on this holiday? I'll be spending mine eating, lounging and visiting family. Come back next week to see What I Ate. :) I hope you have a fun, safe and happy Fourth!