EmilyStyle

Inspired: New Chairs

2012-02-01T21:05:00.001-08:00

It's one for the baby book! Nine years after my first apartment, I finally have a matching set of dining room chairs.

Rob and I picked out a set of eight French tolix-style chairs online. We're still getting used to them, but I'm so inspired by all the online styling.

With our mismatched old chairs in the storage room, we now have seating for 14 at the giant dining table. No more borrowing folding chairs or BYOC for our big dinner parties!

What to Wear: To Lose an Award to Twitter

2012-01-31T22:33:00.000-08:00

Out hobnobbing tonight with the Silicon Valley elites. Didn't bring home a trophy, but it was a good excuse to get dressed up.

Not pictured: nude fishnet tights, beige suede and gold pumps, smart phone. Do you recognize the earrings from this 2009 What to Wear post?

What to Wear: NY Wedding

2012-01-30T20:52:00.000-08:00

Sarah wrote in asking for a $200 or under dress that would work at a NY wedding and back in her normal life in Oregon:

I have an upcoming event that made me think of you. I'm traveling to NY for a wedding on March 10 at 1 pm and I desperately need help on what to wear. I'm from Portland, OR and I have a feeling that my idea of dressing up for an afternoon wedding isn't going to cut it there. I'm 5'3'' and 130 lbs with a pixi hair cut. My skin in more olive tone and I have dark brown hair so I don't wear most yellows or oranges. I would love some inspiration or thoughts on a killer outfit to wear!

Dress - A bright colored wrap dress, or in this case faux wrap, is always flattering. I think this plum selection will be a perfect match for Sarah's pixie style.
Boots - New Yorkers do love their shoes, so if Sarah is comfortable wearing heels this is a great time to splurge on a pair of booties for the rest of winter.
Earrings - Gold and green beads are so festive.
Clutch - From Etsy in light green faux snakeskin.

Cardigan - When it's time to wear this dress at work, top it with a basic cardigan from Target.
Belt - And add a cute belt from Zara in comfy elastic.
Boots - For Portland, a pair of Hunter boots in olive green are right for almost any situation.

Weekend Roundup: North and South

2012-01-29T21:00:00.000-08:00

This weekend reminded me so much of when Rob and I used to live in San Luis Obispo (aka: SLO). Even though we're in Northern California now, this weekend felt like Southern. A relaxing time, sunny weather and lots of casual hanging out with friends!

On Friday, Rob, Margaret and I went on a small roadtrip to see a friend perform in the band of a local theater group. In SLO, our routine was to take a 40 minute drive south to see PCPA. For this show, we drove over an hour to Newark and stopped for delicious Taiwanese noodles before.

Stage 1 put on an amazing production of Hair Spray at the local high school auditorium. I honestly didn't expect much from the show. But everything was so well done! The main characters were perfectly cast, the choreography and singing were very professional, and of course the live band was our favorite part. It was the best production of Hair Spray I've ever seen - you should definitely go if you have a chance! I've had You Can't Stop the Beat in my head ever since.

On Saturday morning, Rob went off on a bike ride and I did some gardening. Margaret came over and we went to lunch at Epicenter and then walked over to TJ Maxx. It was supposed to be a short visit, but we found so many great things. I came home with a sequined French Connection dress, duck boots, throw pillows, cupcake toppers and eye cream! In SLO, Margaret and I would have similarly epic shopping trips at Ross all the time.

After dropping off our bags, we met up with Rob at home. It was such a warm nice day, that we walked downtown to get pints on the sidewalk patio at The Grove (a lot like our old routine at Spike's in SLO). Cream puffs from Beard Papa in the park. Margaret headed home and we met up with Nicole to see The Artist at the independent movie theater (equivalent to the Palm Theater in SLO).

Lazy Sunday morning. Rob and I had coffee and oatmeal with the paper. At 11:00, we met up with Seth & Amy and their baby for a day at the beach (very SLO). We drove over together to Muir Beach and stopped in at the Pelican Inn for a classic pub lunch.

From there, we set up camp on the beach with chairs, blankets, the dog and the baby. Rob, Seth and I hiked to the overlook.

And we played rounds of bocce ball on the sand.

We only packed up to go home when it started getting overcast.

Quick stop at Trader Joe's on the way home and then a quiet pizza dinner.

Hold On

2012-01-27T07:44:00.000-08:00

Because, sometimes, you just need to take a break to hike the sierras in a blazer or go to the beach in a velvet gown. Either way there should be red lipstick, hoop earrings and taking yourself too seriously. Happy Friday!

To Do: Spring Social Calendar

2012-01-24T21:08:00.000-08:00

So many of my favorite San Francisco events come in the spring and early summer each year! Start marking your calendars now for:

Chinese New Year - February 11 - It's year of the dragon, an auspicious time to celebrate with the city. The flower market fair that takes over Chinatown the weekend after is almost more fun than seeing all the local school kids dressed up in costumes during the parade.

Bouquets to Art - March 13-17 - A wonderful event where local florists create hundreds of arrangements inspired by the art at the Legion of Honor. Past members-only events have been a zoo, so I may take a day off work to visit when it's quieter this year.

Big Bang Gala - April 19 - Rob and I went to this for the first time last April thanks to the invitation of a friend whose wife works at the museum. By arriving right on time, we had total run of the place for a while. Plenty of delicious food, strong drinks, clever decorations and fun entertainment.

Black & White Ball - June 2 - Moved from May to June for 2012, this is one of my all time favorite events. It's so big, that they only hold it every other year. I've been reminding friends since October! Get your tuxedo and gown ready and fundraiser for the symphony in their centennial year.

Party Recipe: Thunderbolt

2012-01-23T21:47:00.000-08:00

I don't usually post about work parties, but they really are some of my favorites! It's one of the best things about being a boss. This time, the occasion was celebrating the 2-year anniversaries of the first two people we hired on the marketing team. My co-director came up with the idea of a lightning bolt theme - I just love a weird party idea!

The final result was an awesome transformation of a startup conference room into a sort of "disco Olympus" bash worthy of just how wonderful these two people are.

For decorations, we replaced all the lamps in the room with blue lightbulbs, projected a looping video of a thunderstorm on the wall and made two thunderclouds over each door using tinsel curtains, tissue paper and construction paper. The whole thing was a surprise, concealed as a mandatory late-Friday HR meeting.

Pita chips, hummus, olives and other Greek snacks along with ouzo and vodka. Plenty of music. Everyone got a blue or yellow glowstick bracelet. The guests of honor also had gold leaf wreaths. And the most fun part of all? Facepaint in metallic blue and gold! Guests had their choice of thunderbolts over the eye - Lady Gaga-style - or on their arms. We got a surprising amount of people to go for the eye!

I'm so lucky to work with a group of people who appreciate oddly-themed, construction-paper-based parties as much as I do!

Weekend Roundup: I Love the Nightlife

2012-01-22T21:26:00.000-08:00

This was a strange, fun weekend! On Friday night, I helped throw a party at work to celebrate anniversaries on my team. I'll share more details soon, but it was a lot of fun. I looked like this at 6:30pm...

...and caught a ride home soon after. So, the rest of the night rainy night was pretty quiet after that.

On Saturday morning, I left early for a long overdue hair appointment in Dogpatch. I hadn't been since before Japan. Great time catching up with my hairdresser and the latest fashion magazines. A couple errands while I had the car out and then home for lunch. Pretty soon, it was time to get ready for the Edwardian Ball.

Margaret invited us to this famous local event. It's not the kind of Edwardian you're thinking of. The ball is inspired by Edward Gorey, with a mix of Victorian, French court fashion, flapper, steampunk and - well - all sorts of styles. Very San Francisco. Rob and I fortunately had enough materials on hand to create our outfits. I wore a floor-length gray ball gown skirt with hidden pockets that I've had forever, with a black button up shirt, wide belt and gloves. Lots of jewelry, makeup and accessories to complete the look:

Bus across town to have dinner with Margaret and Sean before the party. Delicious sushi at Wasabi & Ginger, and not too many strange looks at our attire. From there, we walked to the Regency Ballroom. I had never been to this 100 year old venue before and just loved it! It's so easy to imagine elegant galas at the space so long ago, although it's mostly used for rock concerts these days:

Different musical and acrobatic acts were appearing on the main stage. Downstairs, there was a vendor fair with all sorts of hats and elaborate costumes for sale. Upstairs, a "museum" of curiosities was on display including a man who played a shovel, an elaborate machine made of wood and a faux stuffed bear staged for photos:

For all the extensive detail going in to the event, the planners didn't seem to spend much time finding ways to make it fun. Much of the entertainment was intentionally morose-themed and extras, like the photobooth, all seemed to come with steep extra costs. Other balls such as the Academy of Sciences Big Bang have all sorts of little hidden freebies that make the night special. To be fair, this wasn't exactly my scene, so maybe my perspective was skewed. It was certainly impressive seeing everyone so dressed up, though!

Rob and I watched the performance of an Edward Gorey tale on stage and danced a final waltz before catching a cab home at 12:30.

Lazy morning on Sunday. The rain returned overnight and we had a quiet breakfast with the paper. I spent a good amount of time cleaning house and we walked downtown briefly to pick up my cell phone at work and visit a couple shops. We braved the cold rain in the evening for dinner at Fondue Cowboy with Joel and Alison! A fantastic meal with two different cheese fondues and a chili chocolate for dessert:

To Do: Kettlebells

2012-01-18T21:09:00.000-08:00

This is my third week of kettlebell training at my office. It is crushing hard, but so fun! I feel stronger than I have in years already. And I think it's going to be really good for my back.

If you want to try it, be sure to find a serious instructor. It could be so easy to injure yourself without good form.

Recipe: Kiwi Sorbet

2012-01-17T20:55:00.000-08:00

Having an ice cream maker is such a cheat! You can throw almost anything in there and make an amazing gourmet dessert.

Over the weekend, Jackie's parents gave us each about 5 lbs of kiwis fresh off their trees. Last night I made a simple kiwi sorbet with the spoils, served after a spicy curry dinner. The light green color with black seeds looks almost like mint chip ice cream, but so much healthier.

It's hardly a recipe, but here you go:

5 cups of ripe kiwis, peeled and minced
1 cup of sugar

Mix the fruit and sugar into a smooth-ish blend. Don't fret about any chunks. Put in the ice cream maker and wait for the magic to happen! It would be fun to experiment with adding a bit of orange flower water or fresh ginger to the mix.

Gorgeous photo from Cannelle et Vanille.

Weekend Roundup: The SLO Life

2012-01-16T20:53:00.000-08:00

Rob and I usually like to volunteer for MLK Day of Service, but this year we had different plans. Instead of working at a national park, I volunteered with my office at a community center on Friday and then we drove Sean and Margaret to San Luis Obispo for the weekend. She was introducing him to her folks for the first time!

We left on Saturday morning and arrived in SLO just in time for lunch. After dropping off Sean and Margaret, Rob and I got delicious subs at Ben Franklin's. Authentic Mexican food and classic oil & vinegar subs are the two things that you just can't get in San Francisco. We spent a quiet afternoon with my parents, lots of tea and dog training. In the evening, Rob's sister and her kids came over for a pizza dinner. We had a great time playing legos with the gang.

On Sunday, we had a lazy morning and then went out to Morro Bay. The area was packed with birders at the Winter Bird Festival. Early lunch at the Bayside Cafe - amazing fish & chips - and then around the bay on the sailboat. Lovely warm day with still waters. Classic California in January:

Quick switch at home and we grabbed Sean and Margaret to visit wedding venues for Jackie, who is living in Atlanta for a couple years. We toured two fancy barn venues in Nipomo and then stopped off at her parent's home for snacks and tea. On the way home, we caught a bright sunset at the octagon barn.

Massive dinner of dungeness crab, sourdough bread and artichokes with my parents that night. We had picked up four freshly cooked crabs in Morro bay earlier in the day.

After dinner Margaret, Sean and I went to our friend Shane's house for some drinks. We planned a group trip to the Grand Canyon for the fall this year!

On Monday, Rob and I went for a run in the morning and then met up with Sean and Margaret at Gus's for one last classic SLO sandwich experience before hitting the road.

Back home in time for Rob to make his class at Tech Shop. All in all, it was a very mild weekend. It's hard to adjust to how relaxed life is in San Luis Obispo compared to the city!

Party Recipe: Mixer

2012-01-12T19:17:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, Nicole, Elizabeth and I got tickets to one of Yelp's Holiday Hangover parties! This is the second year Yelp held fun free events for five nights. Our night had a 1950's theme, with a lot of people dressed to the nines. The venue was a cool antiques warehouse (so many places to rest your drinks!) packed full of all sorts of weird things to discover:

Food: Meatball sandwiches, rice pudding, buffalo mac n' cheese, korean tacos, mini cupcakes and really tasty organic caramels
Drinks: 1950's cocktails including white russians, moscow mules and old fashions plus wine tasting and beer. Apparently, interesting ice is the new cocktail trend. Every cocktail had it's own unique ice including shaved and giant cubes
Activities: Photobooth, thai massages, 1950's hair & makeup, DJ playing LP record' and a one man band who covered 90's rock songs

Such a great party. Free food and drinks are my favorite thing!

Book Report: Billy & Lizzie

2012-01-11T07:52:00.000-08:00

Did you get a Kindle (or Nook, or...) for Christmas? I've been devouring oddball old books on mine for a year now. ManyBooks.net has such an extensive library of free books to download.

I've found some gems, including the Sherlock Holmes series and Mary Roberts Rinehart. Lately, I seem to be on a very silly track. First up, the Billy series by Eleanor Porter, the author of Pollyanna. They're decently written, although the main character is something of a flibbertigibbet. Its still charming to read about high society artists and musicians in the northeast at the start of the 20th century.

Moving on to even better writing and sillier women, mom got me started on Trollope with the Eustace Diamonds. Its great fun to think of him writing chapters while crossing Ireland by train.

What to Wear: Back to Work

2012-01-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

The first day at work after the holidays is back-to-school for grownups. It's a great chance to start the fresh year with some fresh duds. I've been hitting up the online sales at Bloomingdales, Nordstrom and Barneys - all easy to do local returns when things don't work out...as capes are apt to do.

Cape - This is either awesome or a terrible idea. We'll see when it arrives. Thank heaven for free returns!
Sweater - White cashmere turtleneck on sale from Bloomingdales.
Shorts - High waisted shorts with tights is the new pencil skirt?
Tights - The super opaque line from Hue is the best.
Boots - I'm wearing flats for my walk to work, but these suede boots are adorable.
Handbag - Vintage french handbag in black.
Gloves - In olive green leather.
Headband - An easy way to dress up a loose bun.

Weekend Roundup: Steps

2012-01-08T21:12:00.000-08:00

I've been wearing a FitBit for a work project. It counted that I hit over 50,000 steps this weekend! Whew, this was a good one.

On Friday, Rob and I dressed up to the nines for the birthday of Bike Party, complete with bow tie and faux fur coat. We met up with a big group of festive riders at Civic Center and rode over to the Palace of Fine Arts for a fun party under the arches.

Lazy morning on Saturday. Rob and I had cereal and coffee for breakfast. He left for a class at TechShop and I did some chores around the house. Walked downtown to return some things I purchased online in the after-holiday sales. In the afternoon, Rob and I walked to Gott's Roadside for burgers and sweet potato fries and then ambled home through the city.

In the evening, we went to see the latest Mission Impossible at the IMAX theater. Fun movie, with lots of scary scenes if you're afraid of heights (like me!).

On Sunday, we got up early to drive over the bridge to Muir Woods.

I'd never been before and it was a gorgeous warm day for hiking through the giant redwoods. It's almost impossible to not get a little lost when hiking in Marin - and this was no exception:

From there, we drove to Stinson Beach to enjoy the nice January day. Fish and chips for lunch, followed by a long walk on the beach. Sunny and clear, we could almost see our house from the shore. The beach was packed with kids and dogs. I'm so tempted to rent a beach cottage out here for sometime this spring:

Home at 3:00 in time for some tea and rest. Margaret came over at 5:00 and we walked over to the Embarcadero for the last night of holiday ice skating along the bay. It was a bright full moon and still quite warm:

Giant Indian food dinner after skating. I was starving from all the day's activities!

To Do: Spicy Crab

2012-01-05T07:10:00.000-08:00

Hands down one of my all-time favorite dinners in San Francisco. When Jackie and Pierre were here last week, we drove across town for a crab pilgrimage.

Spicy crab at PPQ Dungeness Island is the best thing ever. The fresh (giant) dungeness crab is lightly battered with a salt and pepper mixture and then tossed with chilies, green onion and chili oil. The crab inside is tender and juicy and the seasoning is a perfect complement.

Order it with sides of hot garlic noodles and a cold beer - and nothing else, you're done! One crab can serve three people pretty easily.

What to Wear: New Orleans Wedding

2012-01-04T07:29:00.000-08:00

Catherine wrote in asking for a comfortable, festive dress to wear to a wedding in New Orleans:

My name is Catherine and I have been reading your blog for a couple years now. I love your "what to wear" posts and I was wondering if you could help me with an outfit dilemma. I have a wedding in New Orleans in two weeks. My husband is a groomsman and I am the photographer. I would like something appropriate for the culture of New Orleans French quarter and practical for taking pictures as well as compliment my husbands tux. I am 5'4" tall and a size 10 with long brown curly hair. I would love any ideas!

What a fun trip. I hope she'll eat some oysters for me!

Dress - I love the cut of this BCBG dress with sequins. It looks like it would be so comfortable and the bow on the back is perfect.
Shoes - Me Too pumps are super comfortable and will give Catherine a few extra inches while running around taking pictures.
Earrings - Basic studs in black keep the outfit from going over-the-top.

Weekend Roundup: New Year's

2012-01-02T22:01:00.000-08:00

This was a lovely inside kind of weekend. After a month of parties, dinners, travel, etc. it was grand to spend quiet time inside drinking tea, doing chores and relaxing. Aside from the New Year's Eve party on Saturday night, we barely left the house!

On Saturday morning, we had a bit oatmeal breakfast. Rob went for a bike ride with a friend and I wrote all my thank you notes using paper supplies and stickers from Japan. I just love this tape with little frowny guys and cherry blossoms:

I wrote our holiday journal for the year and also made the quilted fabric balls purchased at a shrine sale in Japan into a garland for the tree:

Rob took me for a tour of Tech Shop, his new favorite place! It has all sorts of sophisticated metal, electronic and wordworking machines for members. Very cool.

In the evening, we dressed up in full New Year's regalia and took the bus (free all night, thank you SFMTA!) to a party at Sean's house. Lots of fun with magnums of beer, jello shots, 90's hip hop and noisemakers. Bus back home, through the crowds in SOMA and to bed.

Lazy morning on Sunday. We had cereal and coffee for breakfast while reading the paper and watching a movie. Took a walk along the waterfront and had pizza for lunch. And then spent some time in the basement storage unit getting organized. Lots of laundry. Took down the tree and packed up Christmas.

In the evening, I made a big batch of artichokes and spent some time hitting up the after Christmas sales online. Such great deals!

Monday morning was much of the same. Rob and I motivated to go for a long run along the Embarcadero and had breakfast burritos at the Ferry Building on the way home. At home, I did even more laundry (seven loads this weekend, nuts), oiled the teak furniture and baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies:

In the evening, we dressed up and went to dinner with Yvette, Tom and friends at Oola. Way too much tasty food, including a charcuterie spread, truffle parmesan fries, mussels, filet minion, soy glazed ribs, kale with bacon, brioche bread pudding and caramel chocolate lava cakes!

Party Recipe: Oatmeal Bar

2011-12-30T07:50:00.000-08:00

So much for a little between-holiday downtime. We seem to be racing toward 2012 at the speed of light. Lots of friends have been in town visiting - so there have been big crab dinners, rock concerts and late nights drinking champagne.

On Friday, I helped put together a birthday breakfast for a member of my team at work. It was such an easy success that I thought I would recommend it here in case anyone needs a New Year's party idea.

Get a large tin of steel cut oats and cook according to directions. You can soak it overnight or use a slow-cooker to make preparation even easier. I added cinnamon, brown sugar and orange zest to the oatmeal once it was close to serving.

Have each guest bring a topping to add to your bar. We had bananas, blueberries, strawberries, shredded coconut, pecans, dried cranberries, dates, brown sugar, maple sugar, cinnamon and delicious orange ginger honey my cousin made. Serve up your oatmeal in giant bowls and cozy up around the tree.

To Do: Return to Cranford

2011-12-28T08:09:00.000-08:00

I had soup to make on Tuesday night and needed something long to watch while picking apart the Christmas turkey. Luckily, Masterpiece Theater had two episodes of Return to Cranford. Anything with Judi Dench is, of course, wonderful and this was so good!

You must watch both parts before the series come down on 1/10. They're each about 90-minutes and I'm tempted to watch them again (wearing a turban) tomorrow, but we have a rock concert to attend across town. And I'm going to have to find the original series for 2007 too.

Christmas Dinner Redux

2011-12-27T21:23:00.000-08:00

This may be a favorite new tradition for the holidays!

With Rob missing Christmas on account of his cold, I made a big dinner of leftovers for us on Monday night. The two of us sat by candlelight with the bright tree...it was the nicest dinner imaginable!

Weekend Roundup: The Christmas that Nearly Wasn't

2011-12-26T21:19:00.000-08:00

I don't know how it was in your neck of the woods, but here in California - Christmas was almost cancelled by what seemed to be a massive outbreak of cold and flu. All told, we missed out on seeing 9 different people this weekend due to illness - not our finest holiday. It hit me in mid-December and nearly forced us to call off our holiday brunch. Then, the morning we were headed to Fresno, Rob work up with a fresh cold too.

So, at the last minute, we changed plans. I stocked the house with food for Rob and drove to San Luis Obispo to spend Christmas with my parent's and Rob's sister's family. I woke up on Christmas Eve to see the central coast was just as sunny and pretty as ever:

That morning, we did the regular routine of farmer's market and breakfast in town. Rob's sister called to say that her whole family was sick too - we agreed that the healthiest three kids would come for Christmas dinner along with her. Back at home, I played with my parent's new dog, Peggy, worked on a puzzle and finished the last 40 Christmas cards on my list. Margaret came over for a visit in the afternoon. After her visit, we prepped some food for the next day's party. In the evening, we had a quiet fondue dinner:

Christmas morning was a lot smaller than our usual spread. Only three stockings instead of a big row, but plenty festive:

Rob smartly set up a live Google+ Hangout so that he, and my sister and brother-in-law visiting in New Orleans, could follow along live through my cell phone. Peggy got in on the action and it was starting to feel like a regular holiday after all!

We even had the traditional Holiday Battle of the Electronics. With Rob troubleshooting over the phone, I fixed the wifi and the Roku. With a dash of customer support help, I also got my mom set up on her new Nook:

All the electronics were sorted out and we shifted our attention to cooking for our holiday dinner. We set the table with my family collection of Aantas, including this little Swedish guy my mom purchased in Africa:

Gorgeous turkey came out of the oven right on time:

Rob's sister and her three healthiest kids arrived at 5:00. Rob teleconferenced in again to see them open their gifts and we sat down to a festive holiday meal:

Of course, your own mother's Christmas dinner is always the best in the universe - but this year's was particularly great. Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, white wine gravy, roasted brussels sprouts and creamed pearl onions:

Pumpkin and apple pie for dessert. We said goodbye to our guests and did the dishes before turning in.

On Monday morning, the final sick-call came in at 7:30 am. Flu changed my breakfast plans with two friends from high school was down to just one. I had a great time with Sarah at Big Sky, drinking plenty of their good coffee. After breakfast, it was time to drive home to my poor, sick husband.

Quick drive and uneventful. Once home, I made Rob big bowls of chicken & rice soup for a late lunch. In the evening, we walked around downtown doing a few errands - the first time Rob had been outside the apartment since Friday morning. The city was packed with sale-hunters and not yet removed of Christmas decorations. So pretty!

Party Recipe: Holiday Brunch

2011-12-19T20:28:00.000-08:00

This is such an easy annual party. Even when sick, it's a breeze to put together a menu for 20+ guests. Even cute, tiny guests in velvet party dresses:

The menu this year consisted of our favorite local ham roasted in the oven for 5 hours, and served with truffle mustard, a giant smoked salmon from Trader Joe's with rye toast and cream cheese, savory bread pudding with mushrooms and arugula, pear and pomegranate salad and hot pain epi rolls from Acme bakery:

Guests arrived at 11:00, just as the food was coming out of the oven. Most everything was prepared the night before or only required a little bit of prep in the morning, so we had plenty of time to gussy up the house. Along with all the food, we served cranberry hibiscus mimosas, hot spiced cider and coffee. Rob and I dressed in our red and green finest!

And our guests were perfectly decked out, too. How cute are Rebecca and Derek with those polka dots and that bow tie?! I love a couple that knows how to dress for an occasion.

Weekend Roundup: Holiday Brunch

2011-12-19T08:22:00.000-08:00

I'm still recovering from this weekend. As seems to be holiday tradition, I come down with a fresh cold on Friday before the season's biggest social weekend. I blew off two really fun sounding Christmas parties and barely recovered in time for our big brunch on Sunday.

Despite the cold making me pretty useless and the fact I lost (misplaced, hopefully) the car key and we had to do all our errands on foot, everything came together. Major thanks to Rob and Margaret for their help! I'll share more details of the party soon. Here's a peek at the pretty asian pear salad:

In the meantime, all the presents are wrapped and I'm at "O" in the holiday card address book. We might make it to Christmas in one piece after all!

Japanese Fashion: Ponchos

2011-12-16T08:49:00.000-08:00

I stocked up on fashion magazines in Japan. The amount of inspirational outfits, hairstyles and nail polish designs they put together in these things is amazing, so it doesn't really matter if you can't read Japanese at all.

I snapped pictures from More magazine to share with you over the next few weeks. For today, seven cute ways to wear ponchos! The trick is apparently short skirts or shorts with boots.

The plaid scarf I wore at the zoo last weekend is from Japan and has wood buttons so that it can switch from a pashmina to a poncho. Super cute. If I were better at sewing, I'd add buttons to all my scarves!

What to Wear: Winter White

2011-12-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

My office moved to a new building last week and my 30-second commute grew to a 20 minute walk across SOMA and Union Square. It's been fun to have a bigger transition in the morning and see all the holiday storefronts, but I've needed to bundle up like never before!

This outfit was inspired by my new search for warm walking outfits, an ensemble I spotted in Osaka and the elegant ladies in winter white that I saw while having tea at The Palace Hotel today.

Sweater: A white cableknit pullover from Urban Outfitters.
Skirt: A white tulle skirt with subtle sequins. Tulle skirts like these were everywhere, dressed up and down, in Japan.
Boots: A cute alternative to Uggs. These suede boots have a tiny wedge and shearling lining. Unfortunately, they're $500 on sale...pretty steep!
Jacket: This loose 1980's/1930's style jackets were popular in Japan. The light tweed camel makes me drool a bit. At $1100 on sale, I'll stick to coveting.
Gloves: Elbow length cashmere gloves.
Headband: A pretty beaded headband tops off the snowflake look.

Ladies Activity Club: Sock Snowmen

2011-12-14T08:27:00.000-08:00

Last night's LAC party was a fun and easy holiday craft. Lindsay hosted us for making sock snowmen, a project she remembered fondly as a kid and wanted to recreate.

Along with the project, she served wine, hot cider, hummus, jalapeno jam with cheese and a homemade chocolate cream pie.

Making the snowmen is super easy and the results are surprisingly adorable. All you need is a tube sock, rice, rubber bands, a glue gun and fabric/buttons/felt for the trim. Instructions online here.

Could be a great project for the kids table at your holiday party this year!

Coveted: Homestar Aqua Planetarium

2011-12-12T21:48:00.000-08:00

There's one thing I really wanted to bring home from Japan but didn't: the Homestar Aqua Planetarium.

You see, in Japan, there's a whole category of gadgets designed around relaxation. From glowing humidifiers to floating fountains for the tub - it's serious business. I fell in love with the idea of this little planetarium for the bath but didn't want to carry it around in my luggage when I found it at the very start of the trip. Luckily, you can find them online here for just a little bit more. It's at the top of my Christmas wish list!

The video for the planetarium is perfectly Japanese, especially with the ubiquitous soothing samba playing in the background.

Weekend Roundup: Holiday Kick-Off

2011-12-11T22:35:00.000-08:00

The holiday season arrived in full force this weekend, whether we were ready for it or not!

On Friday, I spent the day at the amazing Nob Hill Spa with the women from my office. A full six hours of lounging in a bathrobe, sitting on the terrace, hot tubs, saunas and facials. That night, we had our annual company holiday party and I wore my new white vintage shift.

Late start the next morning. Very lazy, we watched Street Thief on Netflix and ate pancakes. At 12:30, Rob and I took the car out to get Christmas card supplies and ran smack into terrible SantaCon traffic. It took forever! Back at the house, I made a big batch of glazed "ginger bees" based on the Tartine gingerbread recipe and wrote cards.

That evening, we packed up the cookies, bundled up and hit the holiday party circuit. Quick stop at a party in the building and then over to the Haight by train for a cookie exchange. Back home around midnight.

The next morning, we got up early to drive to the zoo. We met up with Seth, Amy, their baby and another friend with a baby to look at the animals. It was pretty warm when we first started out. We walked around at toddler speed, so had plenty of time to take photos with the scary, enormous owl:

...and get to know the moody mini donks.

We had lunch at the zoo and the weather took a turn for the absolute freezing as we walked around with the lions and giraffes. At 3:00, we were popsicles. On the way home, Rob and I stopped to buy a Christmas tree from our usual waterfront Delancey Street lot. Our tradition is to always get a tree still wrapped up and keep our fingers-crossed that it turns out to be a winner.

That tree turned out to be HUGE. We could barely carry it and had to run out to buy a new stand just to fit the trunk. It was supposed to be a six-footer, but I think it's nearly eight and about five feet across.

So we called in reinforcements. Margaret and Sean came over in the evening to help decorate and have dinner. It really feels like Christmas now!

Opera: Carmen

2011-12-07T22:34:00.000-08:00

Margaret and I went to see Carmen at the opera last Friday. We met up with our friends Greg and Kevin at the show - which officially doubled my usual social scene in the lobby!

Carmen is fun because the music is so familiar, you can practically sing along. There's a love triangle, a bravado bullfighter and it's got plenty of stabbings. And the staging did not disappoint: a full cast of 157 (a new record?) with a 30-member children's choir and a two story set with flowing fountains.

At the time, I was pretty convinced I had a terminal case of jet lag. It was horrible! Except that my complete inability to sleep at night made it very easy to stay alert during the 3+ hour opera.

Travel: Japan Wrap-Up

2011-12-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

So that's it! Our ten day trip to Japan covered in four blog posts. A few final thoughts:

Japan is awesome! There is no street crime, everything is super organized, people seem so relaxed. Almost every sign is in Japanese and English. Most restaurants have one person who speaks English or will be happy to help you figure it out with some pointing and smiling.

The trains are wild. I would say more "thorough" than "easy." But the larger stations will have a helpful uniformed guide who speaks English if you're confused. When in doubt, just keep staring at the map until it starts to make sense. I was the fastest ticket-slinger in the East by the time we left.

Cash is still king in Japan, so don't plan on using your credit cards in most places outside of large shopping malls and hotels. And when you need an ATM, don't panic when they don't work. You just need to go to any post office to get cash from their machines.

It's amazingly kid-friend, too. Many public restrooms have baby seats built in to the stalls, the buses have stroller straps and children as young as six happily take the train by themselves in adorable uniforms with bright hats.

There are some downsides, of course. It's expensive and most of the fun things (eating, shopping, visiting temples) have a $10 minimum price tag per person. It adds up if you want busy days with lots of sights. A shorter trip was definitely the right match for us. And, they smoke - at lot! - and inside restaurants, which surprised me.

So, if you're thinking of going: Go! You'll have an amazing time.

You can see all the photos from our trip online, or just my favorites.

Travel: Osaka

2011-12-04T19:27:00.000-08:00

We came down the mountain from Koyasan and spent our last few days in Osaka. We were back at the same hotel as our first night but exploring the city for the first time. It was a bit of an adjustment to the hugeness and bustle of Osaka after staying at the temple! The service at the Hotel New Otani Osaka is excellent and we liked the location a bit outside the main city and right across from a major park.

Osaka is all about food and seems to really come alive at night - sort of a New Orleans vibe, but in a sprawling Japanese metropolis. Rob and I took the train down to the Dontonbori neighborhood our first night for some of the famous Osaka food: octopus balls called takoyaki and a sort-of vegetable omelet covered in fish flakes served on a hot grill at your table called okonomiyaki. The area is positively packed with animated restaurant signs, neon and lots of people. When we were there, politicians were making loud speeches from the tops of vans to the huge crowds.

Rob and I spent a couple hours down in the neighborhood after dinner - shopping at a 12-story sports store and discovering my favorite bookstore yet. Standard Bookstore had an incredible selection of things made by local artists, stationery, magazines, books, art supplies and jewelry. I bought half of my Christmas presents in this one shop:

Rob and I decided to walk back to our hotel from the neighborhood and discovered just how massive Osaka really is! Since everyone rides trains everywhere, it's pretty quiet once you're outside the main train stations. It took us a couple hours and a few moments of feeling lost, but we got a better sense of the city. A few blocks from our hotel, we passed this little cafe with bikes out front and a festive wedding reception upstairs:

It was Sunday the next morning and we had our first real "sleep in" of the trip. We read the international paper delivered by the hotel and watched a gardening show in Japanese on TV. At 10, we headed out by train to an event billed as a "large antique fair" at Tsurumiryokuchi. Classically Japanese, the fair consisted of about a dozen perfectly organized and neat little tables inside an auditorium pumping bossa nova. I picked up a tortoise shell comb and a few stamps. Next to the fair, we visited Sakuya Konohana Kan - a huge conservatory of flowers built for an international expo in 1990. Very impressive, with a huge lily pond garden, tropical hibiscus and even an arctic exhibition with tiny, refrigerated plants.

In the late afternoon, we met Alex in the Umeda neighborhood, the city's main shopping area. There are trains everywhere here with almost a million people a day going to the two main stations. It was surprisingly pretty. Most shopping in Osaka takes place in 10 or 12 story indoor malls with restaurants on top, but there are little cafes and outdoor shopping streets here too.

We had a shabu-shabu dinner at a nice place on top of one of the big malls. After dinner, the three of us walked over to the famous "Floating Garden." The base of the massive skyscraper had an incongruous Bavarian Christmas fair running - complete with those ugly German troll souvenirs and steins of beer. At the 39th floor, you have to take a suspended escalator to the to which is designed to appear "perched" on the top of two towers. My fear of heights had a field day! For our $8 admission, we got stars to write our wishes on, an interactive love fortune-telling lounge and photos in this awesome set-up:

Plus, of course, the crazy views of Osaka from the dark open-air deck at the top:

Rob, Alex and I spent a few hours with cocktails at the Sky Bar a couple floors below before calling it a night. The next day, we packed for home and checked out of our hotel. With a few hours and a little cash to burn, we left our luggage in a locker at the Tennoji station and shopped for gifts in a giant mall called Mio. Amazing stores! The exchange rate was the only thing preventing me from bringing absolutely everything home.

Travel: Koyasan

2011-12-01T21:00:00.000-08:00

Another set of great reader suggestions led us to spend two nights at the Shojoshin Temple. Bobbi recommended Japanese Guest Houses as a source for booking traditional Ryokan hotels online and two anonymous readers recommended Koyasan.

It was quite the trek from Kyoto to the sleepy mountain town. Seven different transit lines from subways to trains to trams that are nearly vertical to go up steep hills and buses, with lunch at a stand-up ramen counter and lots of beautiful scenery along the way.

We arrived with light snow coming down on the town and found Shojoshin-in quickly. Our temple lodgings were super adorable. A small room with futon beds on the tatami mat floors, a living area with a low table equipped with a built in heater and blanket overlooking a balcony and koi pond, a sink, shrine and closet. The sliding doors don't lock and there's wifi - very Japan. The monks come to put giant hot water bottles in the beds in the afternoon and leave you fresh green tea along with small sweets.

It was definitely cold, even though we were only about 2,500 feet up and a few hours from warm Osaka. We pretty much wore all the clothes we brought when out exploring:

The temples were lovely and an interesting contrast to those in Kyoto. Matching the scenery, the paintings included lots of pine and winter scenes. Kongobuji Temple had a huge rock garden and the loveliest screens.

Dinner is served by the monks in your own private dinning room at 5:30. More about the food in a minute. After dinner, you can go to the bath until 9:00. Scrub clean first sitting on a small wood stool and then soak in a deep cedar tub filled with hot water. The hotel provides clean yukata robes and jackets for bath time.

To bed early because mandatory prayer service starts at 6:30. Waking up in the dark, we bundled up and went to the frost-covered temple across the grounds. It was so cold during the 45 minute service you could see the monk's breath as they chanted in the dark, incense-scented room - an image I'll never forget!

Breakfast is served immediately after the prayers, which brings us back to the food. The vegan, tofu-based shōjin-ryōri cuisine was outstanding. Tradition dictates that the monks can't waste any ingredients, must use five colors and five cooking styles, can't even use onions or root vegetables - anything that would kill a plant - but the end result is anything but plain. Dinner was about 16 different small dishes each night, the first night with a lemon theme and the second with mushrooms. Breakfast was miso soup, a fried tofu "omelet" in broth, pickles, cold cooked greens, sweet beans, rice, nori strips, soy sauce and tea. Maybe my favorite breakfast ever:

We also explored the cemetery and temple at Okunoin, nestled in a deep forest with serious moss, and checked off most of the rest of the town's temples and gardens. Koyosan was nearly deserted when we visited, very relaxing.

I definitely recommend a stay at Shojoshin-in for anyone going to Japan! The monks are so friendly, the setting is unbelievable and you'll never forget the food.

Travel: Arashiyama

2011-12-01T07:43:00.000-08:00

Our friends who live in Japan, Alex and Mayumi, invited us to meet them in Arashiyama, a wooded neighborhood outside of Kyoto, for the Labor Day holiday during our visit.

Our first stop in the early morning was a monkey park. I wasn't sure what to expect but it was really great. The monkeys roam free on top of a mountain and, like everyone else in Japan, are extremely very well behaved. To feed them, you go inside a screened hut and pass apples and chestnuts through the grates. The rest of the time, you just wander around together by the koi pond and amazing view of Kyoto.

Down the hill, we went to the Tenryu Temple to wander the buildings, view painted screens and scoot through garden paths in our socks (is it just me or is wearing socks outside a childhood thrill?).

Local tree-spotters were out in force to catch the red maples on the holiday and I also took a million photos of leaves! The bamboo groves were pretty too. With our friends to help, we got a lot of potential Christmas card shots:

Mayumi used to have a restaurant and is serious about Japanese food, so we left the lunch choice up to her. She took us to an incredible place. I have no idea what it's called but through the magic of Google Maps, you can see the location and even street view here. We sat in a traditional tatami room with a view of a manicured garden, right behind that tree:

Lunch had about a dozen plates: pickled vegetables, cold soup with a poached egg, hot soup, tofu skin with lemon sauce, tofu "omelet" dumplings, dried fish the size of grains of rice, tiny portion of sweet ground pork, a special kind of tofu made with sesame, tempura vegetables, rice...and the main course: tofu cooked in a seaweed broth at the table, fished out into tiny dishes with soy sauce, fresh ginger and green onions. It was the simplest, best, dish:

After lunch, we took the train back to to the other side of Kyoto for a stop at Kiyomizu and walked through the historic streets around the site until the late night. It seemed like all of Japan was out for the holiday, exploring and dressed up in finery. I especially like the diversity of kimonos, these two young ladies had quite modern patterns and styling:

Travel: Kyoto

2011-11-30T20:34:00.000-08:00

Our 10 day trip to Japan included three distinct cities in Kansai: Osaka (huge), Kyoto (medium, like San Francisco) and Koyasan (tiny). After arriving in Japan, we spent the night in Osaka - but let's come back it at the end.

Kyoto was super lovely. Just big enough to be a real city but perfectly walkable/bikeable and with a lot of personality. Thanks to a reader suggestion from Andrea, we stayed at the Palace Side Hotel, a cute and affordable place in a neighborhood-y part of town.

The best way to get around Kyoto is bike. Even if you're not a great rider (me), the city is flat and the style of riding is slow, safe, on a bike low to the ground and on the sidewalks. Since there's virtually no street crime, you just leave your bike anywhere protected only by a tiny built-in lock. We rented bikes with baskets cheaply from the hotel.

One of our favorite days started by exploring the Daitoku-ji area which is packed with temples, shrines and zen gardens. There was an event happening while we there and hundreds of women were dressed up in kimonos. Easily felt like we had traveled back in time 100 years.

That same day, we visited the Temple of the Gold Pavilion. The travel books tell you to avoid this famous landmark during rush hour but we found the enthusiasm of groups of Japanese tourists and school kids totally infectious. The gold really doesn't disappoint!

We also saw Nijo Castle and To-ji Temple in Kyoto. Toji was having a big shrine sale which was fun to explore and unexpectedly delivered amazing photos. We spent a busy day out at Arashiyama, but I'll cover that in a separate post.

The temples and historic sites were fascinating, but my favorite part of Kyoto was just seeing how people live in the city. Riding the train, biking along the river, eating in all kinds of restaurants, shopping, finding the post office and wandering around. Did you know that the Japanese have incredible bakeries and bookstores? I didn't expect that at all!

We're back!

2011-11-28T19:51:00.000-08:00

What an amazing trip! 10 days in Japan now seems more like a few months of vacation. So many temples, restaurants, shops, trees, monkeys....all of it amazing.

I'm still sifting through the photos and recovering from jetlag. Stay tuned for all the details!

Away we go!

2011-11-17T21:38:00.000-08:00

I've figured out how to say "yes" but not "no" in Japanese. And I think I know how to get to the first hotel from the airport. That's about it. Time for an adventure!

Happy Thanksgiving. See you in December.

To Do: Xerxes

2011-11-17T08:06:00.000-08:00

Rob and I went to the opera last night to see Xerxes. I considered cancelling altogether in favor of packing for Japan, but I'm so glad I didn't. This was my favorite show of the season so far!

Weighing in at a whopping 3 hours and 40 minutes, with Handel's famously repetitive "second verse same as the first" phrasing - this opera could be a beast. But the clever sets, a sense of humor and amazing vocal acrobatics of the singers made it a breeze.

I loved the staging especially. The action was set in a 1730's pleasure garden complete with wandering tourists, cactus conservatory, sculptures, ruins and bocce ball. If we were still living in our Victorian apartment with ample molding I would have been tempted to immediate paint a mural of trees on the walls like they had on stage.

There's one more show this Saturday - I highly recommend going if you have the chance!

Packing for Japan in November

2011-11-15T20:11:00.000-08:00

Packing for the trip is nearly done! I decided on a muted jewel-tone theme, inspired by a favorite mustard-yellow Japanese scarf. With a lot of layers that can be mixed and matched. So far:

1 pair of dark, straight leg jeans
4 skirts (tweed, corduroy, denim and chambray, mini in the J.Crew fashion)
1 pair of heavy canvas shorts
4 sweaters
4 long sleeve shirts
1 blue and yellow jacquard scarf
Trusty coral velvet blazer
Trusty black puffer jacket
Many pairs of tights and leggings in black, blue and gray
Many pairs of socks
Beanie, gloves and arm-warmers
Pajamas
1 pair of tall flat boots and/or (still deciding) 1 pair of short flat boots
1 pair of sneakers
1 pair of flats

I think that should be enough for 10 days. It doesn't seem to be all that cold in Osaka or Kyoto. Only Mt. Koya-san will be colder than San Francisco, even with a bit of snow, and I plan to just layer it all on for our two days there.

Am I forgetting something key? What is your favorite thing to wear traveling?

To Do: Japanese Flea Markets

2011-11-14T21:51:00.000-08:00

I'm imagining all-Japanese holiday decor this year. With paper and fabric supplies from our trip to Japan, there's all kind of wrapping and ornaments to be made.

These quilted fabric balls are apparently sold at a big monthly flea market in Kyoto. Wouldn't they be pretty strung up on a ribbon around the mantelpiece?

How is it possible that Martha Stewart hasn't already done a Japanese Christmas theme?

Weekend Round-Up: Decompressing

2011-11-13T19:40:00.000-08:00

Very mellow weekend after working like mad on Friday. I helped organize a user conference for 1,000+ attendees. It was a lot of fun, but tremendously stressful. On Friday night, I came home an exhausted heap and Rob cooked me dinner.

Saturday morning, we had a lazy breakfast and then went to return the u-Haul my team had rented the day before. Walked over to Sports Basement on Bryant where I bought a new duffle for Japan, grabbed a slice at DNA Pizza and walked back home.

Rested for a bit (still kind of stressed out! I have an amazing capacity to focus on the three things that didn't go perfectly out of the 500 that did.) and then Rob and I headed back out to enjoy the crisp fall weather in the city. Just a perfect fall afternoon to grab ice cream cones and window shop the new holiday displays downtown.

Margaret came over in the evening and we worked on baby shower crafts for a party at work this week. We made a delicious dinner of roasted cod, truffled lentils and butternut squash. A bit of work on turning roast chickens into chicken soup and some fancy nailpolish. Margaret went home around 9 and I turned into to bed not too much later.

Sunday morning, Rob left for a bike ride and I stayed in bed with the paper. I hopped on the bike trainer for an hour and did some pilates until he returned. After lunch, we walked downtown to meet up with Nicole. We walked around to a few shops, picking up last minute supplies for the trip to Japan. Early dinner garlic with fries on the patio at Gott's.

The three of us walked around the Ferry Building for a bit. Rob caught Nicole a cab and we walked home. Gorgeous sunset over the city, a rare sight. We met up with our neighbor along with baby and dog for part of the walk home.

Quiet evening at home, I watched some old episodes of Mary Tyler Moore and cleaned house.

It's hard to believe we leave for Japan this Friday! Can't wait!

Sale Alert: Anthropologie

2011-11-09T21:51:00.000-08:00

Lingerie and sleepwear are 30% off at Anthropologie right now. Pretty tempting!

Book Report: Fall Edition

2011-11-08T21:03:00.000-08:00

I've been reading a lot now that winter is here and it's colder outside. Here are a couple books I've run through lately:

Tenting To-night - A fun book about a massive camping trip around 1915 in the cascade mountains complete with guides, pack horses and adventures. I'd read many of Mary Roberts Rinehart's mysteries and this quick non-fiction book was a nice compliment to her writing style. Free on your Kindle!

Alice, Let's Eat - Calvin Trillin is just the best. The danger with this book is that it gives you a massive appetite, and also it makes you want to read his touching New Yorker tribute to Alice five years after her death and get weepy.

Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel - One of the readers here got me started on this series. I'm fairly addicted. Love the details about life in 1930's England.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me - Mindy's book is simultaneously silly and insightful. Especially good on the topics of friendship. Her parents sound pretty lovely too. It makes a great pair for working, creative-career women with Tina Fey's book.

Weekend Roundup: Illustrated Edition

2011-11-06T21:40:00.000-08:00

This was a very mellow weekend thanks to the freezing cold weather and just generally feeling burnt out. We took it pretty easy. I'm working on learning to use the Bamboo Pen Rob bought me for my birthday, so I went for sketches instead of photos for this post. Bear with me, I have no idea what I'm doing.

On Friday, we went to a friend's housewarming party over by Fort Mason. It was great to see her place and meet some new friends! Saturday morning, I did my best to sleep in after a long week at the office. I spent the morning doing laundry and reading Mindy's book on Kindle while Rob worked on his class online. We drank a lot of tea.

We watched so many episodes of Louie in between loads of laundry and I switched out all my summer clothes for the winter tweeds kept down in storage. The minute it was time to finally motivate and walk to the store, it started raining. Oh well, still made the quick trip with Wellies on. Back at home, I cooked up a batch of butternut squash & chicken enchiladas for dinner.

To bed pretty early after our lazy day at home. The next morning, Rob had to get up at 5:30 to go volunteer with the Bike Coalition at a half marathon. I got up not too much later to prepare for staffing a booth at the Bay Area Science Festival. So cute to spend the morning geeking out with adorable nerdy kids. We had a photobooth for the kids. Nothing cuter than a 3 year old girl dressed as a doctor in a comically large lab coat.

Dashed from the festival (with my bag full of science schwag to send to Jean) to change at home and load into the car with Margaret and Rob. We drove to Woodside to see South Pacific at 2:00. It's one of my favorite musicals and our friend Greg was playing trumpet with the band. Pretty good show for community theater, the production value was quite high and all the men singers had amazing voices (but nothing can compare to Reba's version).

On the way home from the show, we stopped in San Mateo for a big dinner from Little Sichuan. Not our usual waiter, so a little less spicy than I like - but still so delicious! Plenty of leftovers to bring home.

Margaret came over after dinner to wait for her boyfriend to finish band practice. She surfed Pinterest while I made these drawings - a wonderful way to browse the internet! I have a crazy epic week of work ahead, so I'll probably drop off after Wednesday. Stay tuned.

What to Wear: December in Japan

2011-11-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

I've been working on what to pack for our trip to Japan. Lots of layers to keep warm and flat shoes for walking all day. Here's one template:

Beanie - In ivory cableknit.
Sweater - A striped gold sweater from J. Crew.
Cardigan - Cozy layer from Topshop.
Puffer - A classic black down jacket.
Skirt - A wool mini paired with thick tights or leggings (or both).
Socks - A California girl, I really only own maybe four or so pairs of socks. I need to stock up on warm pairs.
Shoes - Flat shoes that can be worn with socks and can come on and off easily for all the no-shoe rules - not an easy thing to find!
Bag - A crossover handbag big enough for the guidebook and camera.

What do you think?

What to Wear: Dia de los Muertos

2011-11-03T07:26:00.000-07:00

Is there such a thing as a tissue paper flower fascination that is too large? I don't think so.

I made the DYI decoration to attend a Day of the Dead party in the Mission last night with Rob. Also, check out the fancy nails using the LAC skills Rebecca taught us in October - there's a tiny pink and white skull in there.

Almond Oil

2011-11-02T07:53:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe November is already here! Along with the cozy winter holidays and lots of tweed, colder temperatures mean dry skin for me.

L'Occitane Almond Oil is a favorite splurge and surefire remedy. I use it after every other shower and the bottle lasts for months. Plus, it smells divine!

Old Navy Active

2011-11-01T07:12:00.000-07:00

Have you checked out the new Old Navy workout gear? It's pretty great. Lots of capris and cute tops. I ran in this top Monday night and may never take it off. It has a reflective zipper, high collar and thumb loops at the cuffs.

The stores are low on sizes, but online you can buy everything with a nice discount right now.

Weekend Round-Up: Oysters

2011-10-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

On Friday, I cleaned up dishes from the pumpkin carving party by candlelight during a neighborhood power outage. Rob came home and the lights came on, so we made a poster to virtually-cheer Jean during her Ironman race the next day.

We packed up early next morning to drive to Samuel P. Taylor campground for Denyse's birthday trip. By the time we arrived and set-up the tent under a redwood tree, most everyone was awake and ready to hit the road.

We rode 8 miles to Pt. Reyes Station for lunch supplies and delicious pastries from Bovine Bakery. From there, another 12 miles - mostly uphill - to arrive at Drakes Bay Oyster Farm. Gorgeous warm weather, something you almost never have out along the coast there.

Denyse bought five dozen "medium" oysters that were HUGE. Some of the largest were probably 1/4 lb each. We set to work shucking with various knives and enjoying a great picnic with champagne, beer, cheese, bread, olives and persimmons.

Yum, I love oysters - especially straight out of the bay. I probably had 10 or so, mostly with lemon. This was one of my last, one of the smaller guys:

Fast 20 mile ride back to camp, racing to beat the sunset. We had a nice night around the campfire, with a gourmet dinner cooked in foil packets. Cozy night in our four season tent, it was chilly!

Breakfast the next morning with lots of hot coffee. We packed up the tent and hit the road around 10 am.

Back in the city, it was time to unpack and shower (campfires are so smelly!). I checked my email and saw that Jean finished her huge race in 11 hours and 39 minutes, 20 minutes under her goal time - Whoa! Go Jean!

Rob and I had lunch at home and then walked downtown to shop for comfortable winter shoes to wear in Japan and an outfit for him to wear to an investor presentation on Monday. Lovely day to be out and about. Quiet dinner at home and lots of laundry in the evening. We've got a busy week ahead with Halloween, Dia de los Muertos, a housewarming party and the opera.

Party Recipe: Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-28T08:31:00.000-07:00

My word, yesterday rocked a whole lot. From opening breakfast presents to an all-out Japanese extravaganza from my team at work to a super fun party in the evening - it was a perfect birthday.

We carved pumpkins and drank cocktails all evening. During carving, I roasted sheets of pumpkin seeds with different seasonings for guests. The Thai pumpkin curry order arrived right on time and was delicious (easiest dinner party ever!). Margaret made an amazing chocolate bundt cake to top off the evening.

Thank you everyone! I have a lot of card writing to tackle tonight!

Happy Birthday to Me

2011-10-27T08:19:00.000-07:00

What a lovely day already! I have a tradition of opening birthday presents over breakfast. From a french oyster knife to my favorite See's candy, I was treated quite well this year.

Rob gave me these sweet opal earrings set in rose gold, from around 1910. They're so pretty!

Koyasan

2011-10-26T07:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the expert suggestions of wonderful EmilyStyle readers, Rob and I are booked for two nights at a Buddhist temple on Mt. Koya.

Our room will have traditional tatami mats, gold leaf screens and a private garden. The photos are so incredible, I'm addicted to looking them up online. Since we're going at the end of November, there may even be snow on the mountain!

{Photo from Chris, who visited in 2008}

Party Recipe: Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-25T07:09:00.000-07:00

For my birthday this week, Rob has planned a fun "cocktails, carving, curry and cake" party at the apartment. Here are the details he has lined up so far:

Cocktails - Using the juicer to whip up some "bloody" beet or watermelon juice and make a cocktail along the lines of this recipe.
Carving- We bought 10 pumpkins at the store last night. After the first 10 RSVPs, it's BYOP. I love carving classic faces. Roasting the seeds during the party means we could send them home with guests as favors.
Curry - An easy dinner for a large group. He's getting takeout pumpkin curries from the Thai and Indian places in the neighborhood. Add rice and dish out with small bowls.
Cake - Margaret is taking this on! I love the look of this gorgeous and a bit spooky layer cake.

Add a bunch of tea lights and some newspaper...I can't wait!

Weekend Round-Up: Indian Summer

2011-10-23T20:46:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend! A little bit of everything and perfect, warm weather. San Francisco is a wonderful city for letting everyone live the life they choose. In my case, I get to choose a goofy mix of opera, archery and French bistros on the beach!

We kicked things off on Friday with a night at the opera house. Crepes for dinner in Hayes Valley before the show. I wore my new vintage 1960's sheath dress in white to see Don Giovanni. Modern staging and amazing music!

The next day, we had a lazy morning with loads of laundry and scrambled eggs. Rob and I drove over to Golden Gate Park before lunch to kick-off the archery season. It was so warm. And, yes, I did wear inappropriate shoes (I'm calling them "formal hunting slippers") to the range.

After archery, we headed home to work on our trip to Japan. THANK YOU for all the advice, it has been so helpful as we sort out what to see and where to go. We spent many hours at the dining table booking hotels and zooming in on Google maps.

In the evening, we met Margaret and Sean at the Westfield for an 8:30 showing of 50/50. Great movie, it made us all cry.

Sunday morning, I stayed in bed with the paper and coffee while Rob worked on his class (he's taking a machine learning course online through Stanford). We left at 10:00 to enjoy the warm weather in Sausalito. Look at the sun over the bay!

Rob and I rode along the water in Sausalito. On a quiet side street, we had a bit of a spill when a tourist's car suddenly turned right directly in front of the bike. We fell over when braking to avoid the car, nothing more than a few tiny scrapes thankfully. But a good reminder to drive very carefully and always signal. We spoiled ourselves at lunch after the spill. Le Garage, with cold Stella, eggs benedict and house-cured ham sandwiches.

Lunch was followed by a long nap on the beach at Richardson Bay. The beach was packed with kids, dogs and kayakers. We rode home over the bridge and stopped at Sports Basement along Crissy Field:

Hot showers and a quiet dinner at home. We're gearing up for my birthday on Thursday!

Planning for Japan

2011-10-21T07:54:00.000-07:00

Preparing for our upcoming trip to Kyoto has turned out to be all-consuming. I'm spending hours each night trying to decode maps and book hotels for November. It's going to be awesome...once I figure it out.

We're especially struggling with where to spend some time outside of Kyoto. Nara seems to be booked up. Any other suggestions?

Ladies Activity Club: Fancy Nails

2011-10-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

We had a great Ladies Activity Club party last night! Rebecca hosted us for a night of fancy nail polish exploration. From ombre to stripes to animal prints to polka dots...we learned all the tricks for the trendiest nails of the season. Check out more photos and details in Rebecca's post at Permanently Disco.

I went with a glitter and gray fade and a super fancy ring finger with chevron and stripe (and learned that photographing hands is super awkward):

What to Wear: Indian Summer

2011-10-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

October in the city is the best! It's warm but not too hot. A great time to transition into fall with a couple fun pieces before the bundling up starts. This yellow tartan skirt is too much!

Top - A short-sleeved turtleneck in basic black.

Skirt - The centerpiece is a twisted pencil skirt in a tartan of gold, black and a trace of purple.

Shoes - Comfortable black pumps.

Purse - An envelope clutch in plum.

Bracelet - A leaf-styled cuff in gold.

Sunglasses - Vintage style from Forever 21.

Inspired: Mod White Dress

2011-10-17T07:51:00.000-07:00

I love this look: a simple white day dress with black tights. Great for a fancy meeting at work or a night at the opera.

The Burberry dress pictured is $800, but there are plenty of 1960's versions on the market for much less. I saw least at five wool dresses almost exactly like this on Haight Street Saturday and this version on Etsy is also close.

Weekend Round-Up: Lazy Bones

2011-10-16T21:00:00.000-07:00

This was a very mellow weekend; a much-needed rest after having my family in town and a long offsite meeting for work on Friday. On Saturday, Rob went off on a bike ride at 8:30 and I had a mellow morning at home. Too nice outside to stay in, I walked to TJ Maxx to shop for shoes and over to the wholesale flower market:

To Whole Foods for coffee and cereal and then back home to make a couple giant flower arrangements with green millet and snowberry.

Rob returned from his ride and we had a leisurely lunch at home. Pretty soon, it was time to meet Nicole out at Ocean Beach. Unusually warm and lovely at the coast:

Nicole left her car at the beach for the next day's marathon finish and we drove over to the Haight for vintage shopping. The very first dress I tried on was a win: a white 1960's sheath with a boatneck collar and lace sleeves. We went to 5 or 6 vintage shops and visited a couple modern shops too:

Dessert crepes for a quick snack. The temperature started to drop and we headed home. Strange clouds over the neighborhood on my way back:

Mellow evening. Rob and I had a taco dinner and worked on our passports and hotel arrangements in preparation for our trip to Kyoto.

On Sunday, Rob went off for a bike ride down on the peninsula with a different friend. I had just settled in with the Sunday paper and coffee when Margaret called needing my help with a drive to Monterey to pick up stranded friends. So, my Sunday looked like this mostly:

But, on the bright side, I got to sing along loudly to the radio while driving solo and had plenty of time to brainstorm my upcoming birthday party. Rob picked me up back in the city and we went to farmer's market. Back at home, I made cilantro pesto and prepared for the week ahead. Margaret came over for dinner of quesadillas, guacamole and white corn salad. Coffee.

To Do: Play Hooky

2011-10-12T08:55:00.001-07:00

Having Tuesday off was dangerously fun. The family headed straight for the Academy of Sciences. First stop: a half hour in the digital planetarium zooming around the universe. Then, to the Hall of Africa to see the penguins. Next: a fancy lunch at the Moss Room restaurant downstairs. Around the aquarium and back home to have a nap before a nice early dinner at the restaurant next door.

Although I love my job, I would have very few qualms about living the life of a full-time "lady who lunches."

Weekend: Two Wheels

2011-10-10T20:47:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay, my family is in town and it makes it hard to get writing time. This was a packed weekend, with lots of biking in the city, Fleet Week, a race and a parade.

On Friday, Rob and I joined friends out at Bike Party. We rode around SOMA and Dogpatch with a few hundred others and stopped for a dance party at Pier 35. It was a gorgeous night with the city full of tourists and military on shore leave. This photo may appear like a sea of reflectors and blinky lights...but I swear there's a bear in a tutu and a trombone player:

Saturday, I slept in and Rob went for a bike ride in the morning. After a late breakfast, we rode the tandem over to Golden Gate Park for my company picnic. The Blue Angels zoomed overhead while we BBQ'd and watched dogs run around. A highlight was when a giant Stealth Bomber broke through the clouds on its way to the airshow. Back at home in the evening, Rob and I cleaned house while listening to Radio Lab and prepared for my family's visit.

On Sunday, we slept in, read the paper and had a big egg and sausage breakfast in the morning. At 11:30, we left for Tour de Cupcake registration. This "alley cat" (bike messenger style) race gave us 7 checkpoints to hit and 5 cupcake-eating stations as a fundraiser for Bike Kitchen. That's our friend's folding Strida bike representing "Team Wrong Bike."

Race started at 1:30 and we rode quickly through Portrero Hill to the Financial District and North Beach. The Columbus Day parade combined with Fleet Week traffic made for mayhem as we dashed around Washington Square:

From North Beach we headed through Cow Hollow and over the hills on Steiner St. To Alamo Square and Duboce Triangle before riding way out to Spreckles Lake in the park. Over Corona Heights, down to the Mission and back to the finish line. Our final race time was 26 miles in under 3 hours, fueled by cupcakes alone. A quick drink at the afterparty with our team to celebrate finishing around 70th out of 300.

Back home with just enough time to shower and have a cup of tea before my parents and sister arrived. Jean is in town from North Carolina for postdoc job interviews. No one wanted to go out for dinner, so while she practiced her science speeches, I threw together a dinner of chicken lentil soup and salad.

I'm off work tomorrow to spend time with the family before everyone heads home. With the rainy weather, we're going to the Academy of Sciences for an adventure and lunch.

Japan

2011-10-07T08:28:00.001-07:00

We did it! We booked our plane tickets to Japan for late November.

While I love traveling, I hate the process of actually getting ready to go. My inner hermit makes a big appearance. I always get anxious about the trip (everyone in Japan will be mean to me?) and nearly talk myself out of getting on the plane (we could just stay here!). Especially now, since it has been so many years since we last traveled internationally.

Thankfully, Rob knows to ignore this. As soon as I arrive, the anxiety disappears and I'm so glad we left. This has been the case with our trips to Italy, China and Argentina at least.

Do you get pre-vacation anxiety too?

Recipe: Baked Apples

2011-10-04T20:32:00.000-07:00

The first rainy day of October calls for a batch of warm baked apples. This recipe has all the taste of apple pie without any fuss. And, you can sneak in healthy omega-3 flaxseed:

Baked Apples

Serves 2

1 large apple (I used a farmer's market red delicious)

1 cup rolled oats

1 heaping tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon flaxseed meal

1 tablespoon butter

Ample cinnamon & nutmeg

1 teaspoon amaretto

Split the apple and cut out the core. Pre-heat the oven to 350. Mix your oats, sugar, flax, butter and spices in a small bowl. Mix in the amaretto last. Spoon the topping onto your apples and set in a small baking dish. Add a dash of cinnamon to the top. Bake the apples for about 20 minutes, until you can hear them bubbling.

What to Wear: Napa Wedding in November

2011-10-03T21:47:00.000-07:00

Alex wrote in with a What to Wear request for an upcoming wedding in Northern California:

I'm attending a wedding in November at a Napa Valley Vintage Estate. The attire is Yountville evening. I'm 5'4", slim with black hair. Asian with slight brown skin undertone. 44 years old. I'm looking for comfortable with sleeveless and shorter hemlines. Love drape dresses BUT I love elegant and classic cuts too. I can spend up to $1k. Help please!

Napa is tricky because even the fanciest events have a laid-back feeling. This dress walks the line between cocktail and casual.

Dress - Jacquard dress with a 1960's cut and so much fall flair from J.Crew. Love the exposed zipper on the back.

Belt - A fancy gold belt that can be worn with all kinds of outfits.

Shoes - Nothing too fancy here because most Napa weddings involve lawns, stone terraces and lovely vineyards. Pick classic wedges over fancy stilettos or you risk aerating the grass all evening.

Earrings - Basic gold studs are a nice compliment.

With her black hair pulled up and a swipe of red lipstick, Alex is ready for a memorable night in Yountville.

Weekend Round-Up: Town & Country

2011-10-02T20:13:00.000-07:00

Funny weekend! A bit of city elegance mixed with backcountry camping. We started out on Friday with Heart of a Soldier. Regular Turkish deli dinner before the show. The opera wasn't the finest new work I've seen, but enthusiastically staged and fairly touching.

The next day, we left the city early for a bike event called the Lion of Fairfax. Rob did his first ever cyclocross race! No flats, no injuries and a strong finish. It was fun to spend some time with the Marin dogs+kids set on the race sidelines. BBQ lunch at the race.

At 3:00, we met Elizabeth and Kevin at the Bear Valley Visitor Center in Pt. Reyes for a camping trip! 4 mile hike in along a fern valley to set up at Glen Camp. Once we got the tents up, it was time for the backpacker's staple: "sierra margaritas" made with tequila, water, powdered gatorade and (if you're feeling fancy) lemons.

We ate so much bread with truffle mustard and played cards until Margaret and Sean hiked in at 8:00 with our dinner supplies. Big bowls of hot pasta! Very lively conversation until we turned in for bed.

Chocolate chip pancakes and coffee for breakfast in the morning. Rob is the best camping-trip pancake-maker.

We hiked out of camp at 10 or so. 2 miles to where we dropped our packs for a while and another mile out to the coast. Beautiful views of Point Reyes from the shore. We picnicked on the beach with Elizabeth's pasta salad.

Back out along the main trail. Lots of lizards and pretty ferns. Those packs were starting to feel a little heavy!

We made it to the trailhead at about 3:30! A final count of about 10 miles round-trip.

We parted ways and drove back to the city. Rob and I had hot showers at home and a quiet dinner.

Ladies Activity Club: Breadmaking

2011-09-30T08:37:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely time last night learning how to make bread! Our instructor, LisaRuth, has perfected a recipe based on the famous NY Times no-knead bread. With the addition of all kinds of seeds and nuts and her pro-tips (she bakes 2/3 loaves a week), we received a wonderful lesson.

For appetizers, I served up the leaf cookies along with sweet potato chips and spinach dip, spanakopita, crackers with farmer's cheese and jalapeno jam, carrots, almonds, olives and cornichons. We had lots of red and white wine to go along. And, of course, a lot of delicious bread and butter.

Incredibly, last night marked the 6th anniversary of the Ladies Activity Club!

Fall

2011-09-29T08:04:00.000-07:00

Whew! My crazy week-of-work is over and my life is returning to its normal overbooked status.

The Ladies Activity Club is meeting here tonight to learn to bake bread (we always seem to bake during the heatwaves). I made these leaf sugar cookies in a rainbow of yellows, oranges and browns last night for the party.

Weekend Round-Up: Not Really a Weekend

2011-09-25T20:36:00.000-07:00

Only two more days to go in the 10-day crazy conference season marathon! Despite being dressed like this for the last eight days...

...I've still managed to squeeze in a bit of a personal life. (Black & white because they're all low-quality cell photos) On Friday, Rob and I went to the first opera of our season after work. Traditional dinner at Gyro King before the show:

Lucrezia Borgia was a lot of fun. Everything you want in an opera: multiple poisonings, incest, love triangles, suicide, 76 performers on stage, 50 foot tall sets, over-the-top costumes, two intermissions and world-famous Renee Fleming in the title role. Back home by subway at 11:00.

I didn't get to sleep in much with needing to be at the Hotel Rex downtown before 10. I was attending a create-a-thon event my team put together for filmmakers participating in our Health Film Festival. Fun to spend a day with artists, producers and advocates. I made a quick speech, but should have rehearsed more!

Cabbed it back home after the event's wine reception and had a couple hours to rest up. Rob and I walked over to meet Nicole at 8:00 for a "step out" dinner at Boulevard.

We sat at the chef's counter overlooking the busy kitchen. Cocktails all around. An amuse-bouche of tiny stuffed squash blossoms. Sea bass for Rob, filet mignon for Nicole and a dungeness crab salad for me - with lots of sharing! We had watched the pastry chef at work during dinner and ordered three delicious desserts. Fully stuffed, I crashed into bed at 10pm.

It was rainy out on Sunday, perfect for resting up. Rob went for a muddy bike ride with Seth in the morning. I watched Conan O'Brien Can't Stop (love the behind the scenes look at his "work family") and did three loads of laundry. Rob came home and we had egg tacos for an early lunch. At noon, it was back to work. This time, helping to set up our exhibitor booth for the final conference.

On the way home, I stopped at farmer's market to pick up tomatillos, cucumbers, tomatoes, white nectarines, cilantro and artichokes. At home, I made a big pot of New Mexican green chile from scratch and a pan of brownies.

Quiet evening with lots of tasty chile! I'm looking forward to Wednesday and getting back to a normal schedule. Fall is here in full force, lots of Halloween decorations to put up and pumpkin bread to bake!

La Redoute

2011-09-19T20:57:00.001-07:00

I used to love shopping the La Redoute catalog a few years ago. At the time, they were being processed through a larger US catalog company and eventually closed down shop (after a massive sale!). But I got an email this week that they're back.

The prices seem much higher, but the lovely french fashion is still in there. Love this camel sweater dress and this polka dot dress. And these t-strap pumps are so fun.

Weekend Round-Up: Big Sur

2011-09-18T21:13:00.000-07:00

Lovely weekend! Summer weather arrived just in time for our three year wedding anniversary! On Friday night I stayed at work late to prepare for the craziness of the next week and then had a quiet evening at home with the adorable French film, L'arnacouer (Heartbreaker), on Netflix.

Up early on Saturday to drive south for a weekend in Big Sur to celebrate our anniversary. Gorgeous weather the whole way. Rob and I stopped at Pfiffer State Park to hike the valley view trail.

And then further south to check in at Treebones. Our little yurt was quite adorable with an iron stove, lattice walls and skylight dome, (restrooms at the lodge) but it was the 180 degreview of the ocean from the front door that really impressed.

Now almost five, we went right for the pool and spa overlooking the water for a few hours of blissful sunburn-danger-free swimming. In the evening, we changed and waited for a table at the sushi bar with our favorite view:

Huge sushi dinner at the little 10-seat restaurant perched at the hotel. Thanks to Carlos for serving us so many delicious rolls. After dinner, we grabbed a puzzle from the lodge and two glasses of wine and headed back to the yurt in the late dusk.

Super cozy at night, I love falling asleep to a burning fire and the heavy blankets kept us warm when the timer on the iron stove shut off. We woke up pretty early on Sunday to get in on the waffle breakfast.

Back to the yurt after breakfast, we pulled up our deck chairs and sat for two hours reading and trying to spot whales passing by. Even warmer weather than on Saturday!

After checking out at 10:30, we drove North to hike at Limekiln. First, up to see the kilns along the rushing creek (so many ferns!) then to see the waterfalls. It was hot enough to wade in and get a closer look at the moss:

My camera battery ran out exactly after Rob took this photo. We hiked the third trail and checked out the beach at Limekiln and then drove further north. Picked up a delicious blackberry strudel from Big Sur Bakery. Next stop was Garrapata Beach to hike along the colorful dunes and turquoise water.

We drove home from there, stopping at Moss Landing for produce and an early seafood dinner. Hot showers and strawberry, watermelon, beet juice cocktails at home. I'm looking forward to warm weather in the city this week, but it happens to coincide with the annual crazy conference marathon. Expect posting to be light, but I'll try to check in.

Mary Tyler Moore: Bud Vase

2011-09-15T19:31:00.000-07:00

Mary always had a few fresh flowers on her desk in a Japanese porcelain bud vase. A great policy for any busy working woman. I need to pick up a similar vase like this one on Etsy.

What to Wear: Mary Tyler Moore #2

2011-09-15T07:46:00.000-07:00

Navy and burnt sienna is one the best trendy color combinations for fall. It's bright, but as easy to wear as neutrals. Let's channel the fashion through our MTM filter. Mary always looked great in a trim skirt with something tucked in:

Sweater - A navy v-neck with slight batwing sleeves is a more modern pairing than a classic white blouse.

Skirt - A button up skirt in brick.

Shoes - Ankle strap pumps in saddle leather.

Purse - Vintage clutch with tortoise accent.

Earrings - Gold hoops.

Something about the skirt seems so feminine to me. Maybe because it's so reminiscent of our mothers in the 80's?

Mary Tyler Moore: Chemex

2011-09-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of the first things you notice watching Mary Tyler Moore is how she is constantly making coffee. Good hostessing in 70's style wouldn't be complete without a Chemex carafe in glass and wood.

The elegant, artisanal design seems perfect for our modern sensibilities too. They're already on the return, SFMOMA has started selling them in the museum gift shop.

Tips: Kyoto

2011-09-12T21:26:00.000-07:00

{A quick disruption to your regularly scheduled Mary Tyler Moore week}

Have you been to Japan? Kyoto in particular? Rob and I have friends living in Kawanishi and we're thinking about a trip this fall.

Any advice on places to stay or things to see while there would be wonderful!

What to Wear: Mary Tyler Moore #1

2011-09-12T21:18:00.000-07:00

The wardrobe on Mary Tyler Moore is impressive not only for being relatively timeless considering the decade (there are a few bell bottoms in the mix) but also for being pretty realistic. Mary actually re-wears her clothes, mixing and matching her wardrobe like a normal person - which you never seem to see on TV today.

Here's a modern take on one of the favorite outfits: knit dress with scarf!

Dress - A plum-colored swing sweater dress is a perfect office staple.

Scarf - A bright silk scarf from Pucci.

Pumps - In black suede with a hidden platform and sensible heel.

Trench - Classic for fall.

Sunglasses - From Forever 21.

Inspired: Mary Tyler Moore

2011-09-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

I'm dedicating this week to my favorite show of the summer: Mary Tyler Moore! I've been watching The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Hulu. So charming, funny and lovely! And it just so happens to perfectly coincide with a 70's fashion revival for the fall.

Weekend Round-Up: Summer

2011-09-11T21:43:00.000-07:00

I spent Friday at work volunteering, vigorously landscaping a vegetable garden for a children's community center. By the time I got back to the office and through the company Oktoberfest party, I was pretty spent. Rob and I walked to the cinema and saw The Guard. Good movie!

Lazy day on Saturday. Rob left early for a mountain bike ride down south with friends. I caught up on New Yorkers, had a bath and walked to town for a little shopping. First round, I hit up Macy's for a new set of baking pans. Back home with the -heavy!- pans for lunch and a bit of cabinet organization. Then, back downtown to shop for gifts at Gump's and L'Occitane. It was just too nice out to stay indoors.

While walking back, I stumbled across a big US Open event being held by American Express at Yerba Buena gardens. Free iced tea and gourmet salads plus comfy outdoor couches to sit and watch a few sets. Back at home, I read the Saturday papers and then worked on the garden for a bit. Rob returned home and I made a big dinner and a cake using our new oven.

Up early on Sunday morning to read the paper and reflect on the 9/11 anniversary. Rob and I had coffee and hit the road at 9:30. We picked up Margaret and drove to Davis for a combination going-away and birthday party for our friend, Jackie. Brunch at Cafe Bernado and then over to Folsom for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding on the reservoir. After spending a lovely hour on the water, we drove to the foothills for wine tasting at Boeger Winery.

The carrot cake pictured here was decimated just a few minutes later! Perfect weather and a lush garden to enjoy at the winery. Back to Davis for dinner together at a local Thai restaurant. We feasted and said our goodbyes, for now, since they're moving to Atlanta in just a few days. :(

Margaret, Rob and I drove back to the city. Dropped Margaret off at home and then crashed into bed, exhausted.

What to Wear: Power Dress for a Reunion, Wedding and Conference

2011-09-07T20:38:00.000-07:00

Cara has a big month ahead of her and needs help finding a dress:

Next month I'll be traveling from New York (my home) to Illinois for my high school reunion, then from there to Minneapolis for a business conference where I'll be presenting a paper, and then directly to Malibu for my cousin's wedding. I'm hoping to be able to wear the same dress for at least two of these events, but they're all quite different. And September in Illinois and Minnesota can be quite different from September in Malibu!

I'm very bad at picking out dresses. I hardly ever wear them - I work in a lab so I have to wear pants to work. I know I look terrible in any belted dress (perhaps because I'm very high waisted) but I often like empire waists. I'm 5'7, size 10, with red hair (i.e. no orange or pink - I'm not one of those redheads who can rock a pale pink). And I will fall down if I attempt to walk in anything more than a kitten heel. I'm willing to splurge a little if I can get some wear out of a dress - I have several weddings and related events in the next few months.

All these events require one seriously gorgeous dress. One of those dresses that you will remember 10 years later. An epic dress in dark emerald green for our lovely redhead! I think Cara can make one dress work for all three events (disclaimer: I have no issue with being a touch overdressed).

Dress - It's a splurge at $398, but a perfect dress can be so worth it. If this is too spendy, use the cut and color as inspiration while shopping for other options.

Evening - For the reunion and wedding, pair the dress with a pair of low gold shoes. These Jimmy Choo's are perfect but I don't believe in spending that much on shoes and we already broke the budget on the dress. Instead gold sandals or snake sandals instead. Plus, a gold clutch and earrings.

Day - For the conference, pair the dress with a gray cardigan, skinny blue belt (wear it on the empire waist) and gray mini wedge shoes. Wedges should be way easier to navigate than kitten heels.

What to Wear: Business Travel

2011-09-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

Natalie wrote in with a What to Wear request for her busy work life:

I have a question. I'm headed to Montreal and Germany for 4 weeks for a work trip, both trips I am really excited for but I leave straight from Canada to Germany, so I have to pack for everything at once. Do you have any suggestions for a few basics that would mix and match well for the trip? I'm from Seattle, so I'm not going to a climate that is significantly different and I've got quite a few basics (white button down, jackets, dresses, belts). Any help would be appreciated!

I used to travel quite a bit for work, so I got a routine down pat. I could load up my trusty carry-on bag with my eyes closed! The trick is to find a uniform and stick with it. No need to get creative, just grab your favorite basics with the same underlying color palate (black, brown or blue). It's actually a great way to test your outfit mixing and matching skills.

Along with something like this for the travel day, I usually take a pair of trousers that never need ironing, a couple sweaters, a jersey wrap dress, pajamas and a pencil skirt for a few days trip. For four weeks, I'd add in bright tanks/tees for layering variety, a second dress and bold accessories to mix it up. You could definitely still make a carry-on work if you're careful.

Skirt - A miniskirt in camel.

Blouse - White blouse with a loose cut.

Cardigan - In gray, just fancy enough.

Flats - For fast access through airport security and comfort while traveling.

Pumps - To upgrade your outfit when it's time for a meeting.

Valise - A sturdy soft-sided carry-on bag with both duffel and shoulder straps is my favorite for business travel. Bring a purse big enough for your laptop and lunch along with you.

Scarf - Works as a wrap, pillow or blanket on the plane.

Glasses - From Forever 21.

Water bottle - An empty water bottle that you can fill up past security.

Weekend Round-Up: Lounging

2011-09-05T21:14:00.000-07:00

This was a very leisurely weekend - exactly what I needed before crazy-work September officially starts. On Friday, Rob and I worked late and came home to relax. We bought a new juicer and went through a couple pounds of nectarines trying it out. Yum, delicious results!

Saturday, Rob and I got up early to bike, he went up Twin Peaks and I rode the trainer. We walked down to breakfast at the Ferry Building together and hung out with all the foodies. At 11:00, I met Margaret at H&M for a shopping frenzy. We spend a full two hours at two different locations of the store - they have some really great items for fall and Margaret is a perfect shopping buddy.

Dashed off after shopping to take the card to my hair appointment in Dogpatch at 2:15. Back home after to pick up Rob and drive to Sears down in San Bruno. New oven! Our old one has been broken for ages, only heating up to 150 degrees.

Back home to lounge about, we convinced Margaret and Sean to come over for an impromptu dinner party at 8:00.

Watermelon juice cocktails, fish tacos with chimichurri, fresh salads, chocolates and lots of card games!

Up early again on Sunday to head south for a mini vacation. Rob and I drove down to San Jose to bike Coyote Creek trail. 32 miles of rolling, dedicated bike path along oak trees, reservoirs and old farms. We raced the entire way back, big workout.

After the ride, Rob and I drove to Los Gatos and checked in to our hotel. My parents gave me a gift certificate to the Hotel Los Gatos as a birthday present (almost a year ago, oops!). We dropped our bags off in the room and walked around town. Late lunch at the Purple Onion. Los Gatos is quite fancy with lots of shops, restaurants and big historical homes with immaculately groomed gardens. Back at the hotel in the evening to lounge by the pool.

Setup for an Indian wedding quickly took over the patio. It was quite nice to be swimming along to the string quartet before the event got going! Champagne and pizza delivery in our huge suite for dinner.

More swimming in the morning and a big continental breakfast. We packed up and headed back to the city in time for a Labor Day BBQ at Sean's. The sun even poked out in the Richmond for the event. Onion dip, kosher dogs, potato salad....the works!

Back home at 4:00. Laundry and clean-up from the weekend. 3 mile run along the water at 6:00. Look for a bunch of What to Wear posts over the next few days - we got some wonderful requests over the weekend!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

2011-09-02T08:40:00.001-07:00

Enjoy your 3-day weekend! Rob and I are staying in town, with a quick jaunt down south to sit by the pool and have breakfast in bed. I plan to wear maxi dresses and eat onion dip. Summer is just starting here in the city...and not a moment too soon!

Pool inspiration from TakeSunset

To Do: Butterlap

2011-09-01T08:26:00.000-07:00

I've started riding Butterlap each Wednesday night with Rob on the tandem. It's a 17 mile loop around the city, starting at the Ferry Building, running through Crissy Field to Baker Beach, Legion of Honor and then Ocean Beach before heading home.

Most days I'm reticent to getting on the bike, preferring to stay comfortably inside with a cocktail. But by the time we hit the Golden Gate Bridge, I'm marveling in the views and feeling very lucky to live in this gorgeous city.

Photo by butterlap rider, Donald.

Inspired: Yellow Chinese Wedding

2011-08-29T21:37:00.001-07:00

Margaret and I worked on inspiration boards for our friend Jackie's wedding last night. They're planning to get married at the Shakespeare Garden and then have a traditional Chinese banquet at a nearby restaurant. She suggested yellow and Tiffany blue as colors and the restaurant is decidedly pink inside...voila!

Clockwise from Left:

Yellow Chinese porcelain as inspiration and accents
White paper lanterns
Bouquet with peonies, yellow and blue ribbon
Garden wedding with garden gates in the same color scheme
Chinese wallpaper patterns
Takeout boxes as flower vases
Vintage Chinese birdcage
The dining room at Hong Kong Lounge
Small blue favor boxes
Chrysanthemum style wedding invitations
Pretty aquamarine earrings

Weekend Round-Up: Birding

2011-08-28T20:57:00.000-07:00

Rob's parents came to town this weekend for a visit to mark the end of summer and track some birds. We started out on Friday night with dinner at Plant, a great waterside restaurant for visitors. Very foggy ferry ride out to the island. We started our hike on the south side and got a tour from a nice docent dressed as a Civil War soldier. By the time we made it to the beach on the East, the sun had come out!

Picnic lunch at the East Garrison with Acme bread, Cowgirl Creamery cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, sausage, nuts, raisins and olive tapenade. The birders spotted all kinds of hawks on the island.

Ferry back home at 4:30. We accidentally took the wrong boat and ended up walking home from Fisherman's Wharf, with a break for ice cream halfway home. Rest and showers at home. Huge fondue dinner at Matterhorn that night. Delish!

Up early the next morning to head out for some bird watching. First stop: Heron Head park, a wetland preserve down in the industrial Bayview side of town. Lots of cute, tiny sandpipers and oyster catchers.

Lunch at the Ramp in the sun. Fish and chips and dungeness crab louis salads with iced tea. From there, back in to the fog out at Sutro Baths on the other side of town. We toured the crumbly ruins of the old bath house and counted cormorants on the rocks offshore.

Quick stop at Farmer's Market on the way home. Rob's folks bought purple long beans and a guava melon for the road. We had a rest at the apartment and then they headed back to Fresno at 4:30. Rob went for a bike ride with his friend Corey while I lounged about at home. Sangria with nectarines for his return. I made orange chicken, rice and a salad of yellow plums, Korean melon and cucumber for dinner.

Inspired: Wild Target

2011-08-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

Wild Target isn't much of a movie, pretty silly overall. But the costumes for Emily Blunt's character are wonderful! Opaque tights, bright skirts, lovely pumps and lots of floral, leather, fringe and embroidered details. It's basically my dream wardrobe.

Watch the movie on Netflix and take notes for a very British fall.

Ladies Activity Club: Candles

2011-08-23T21:32:00.000-07:00

We made candles at last night's LAC party; a first for me and a perfect "economies of scale" project for a group. Our hostess, Lauren, melted down big pots of soy and bees' wax and provided inexpensive containers, scents and colors.

This candle in a jar is my favorite: soy wax with peppermint and lavender. It smells like a fancy spa!

Coveted: Le Shack

2011-08-22T20:38:00.000-07:00

Of all things to covet, does it seem strange to obsess over a tiny cabin with no running water?

I'm fascinated with the french vacation cottage featured in the Sunday paper this week. A quiet, sunny, warm place in the woods where you can make delicious dinners and just lounge about with friends.

Of course, not pictured are mosquitos, pumping your own water and weekends spent sanding and painting. Daydreaming is more fun!

Weekends: Marine Layer

2011-08-21T19:50:00.000-07:00

The fog rolled in extra heavy this weekend. I can't wait for our Indian summer...hopefully starting soon!

On Friday night, Margaret came over to the apartment and we worked on a carving monograms into linoleum blocks for a future stationery project. After she left, I caught up on my letters.

On Saturday morning, I slept in and then made Rob egg tacos for breakfast with these delicious purple and yellow bell peppers. We rode our bikes to the Ferry Building to pick up picnic supplies from Cowgirl Creamery and Acme Bread. At 1:00, we met up with Seth, Amy, baby and dog in Pacifica. Picnic at the beach. The boys went riding on Planet of the Apes trail and the ladies sat at the beach, bundled up, watching surfers, reading New Yorkers and taking pictures of the baby.

Four wonderful hours of relaxing by the waves. I just love sitting at the beach, even when it is mid 60s out with freezing wind and fog. Back at home, I worked on the garden for a few hours.

Quiet night at home, we watched a movie and had a big dinner of fresh pomodoro sauce and pasta.

Slept in again on Sunday and had a nice breakfast with the paper. Rob and I loaded up the car at 10:30 and drove to Tennessee Valley in Marin for a little mountain biking.

Whoa...mountain biking is not easy. I made it up about half the hills. 900 feet of climbing. I couldn't do the whole ride (frustrating) but at least I didn't crash (yay!) on the way up or down.

After the ride, Rob and I had lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Sausalito and drove back to the city. Quick stop at Farmer's Market at Civic Center, home to drop off the bikes, back out to the car wash and Trader Joe's. Light dinner at home with leftover gourmet cheese and a big garden salad.

Recipe: Pimm's Plus

2011-08-17T21:09:00.000-07:00

We had a variation of the classic Pimm's Cup at last night's (quite successful!) work party.

Instead of just Pimm's and regular ginger ale,this adds cucumber vodka and hearty ginger beer to the mix. Here's the recipe:

1/2 shot of Pimm's
1/2 shot of cucumber vodka
6 ounces Strong Australian ginger beer
Ice
Cucumber/lemon slices and mint for garnish

To Do: Work Party

2011-08-16T21:43:00.001-07:00

I'm having a party for my work team at the apartment this week. It's the first time most of them have been to the place and I'm a bit nervous!

I'll just have to channel the radiant spirit of Katherine Hepburn as the boss in Desk Set. Isn't she lovely?

Have you had all your co-workers over before? Any tips?

Coveted: Big Sur House

2011-08-15T21:26:00.000-07:00

I've been dreamily planning a Big Sur weekend getaway for a group of old friends.

This vacation rental is way outside our price range....but so amazing. Those 180 degree views, modern interiors, sunken hot tub, sunny patio, gourmet kitchen! I'll add this to my "when I win the lottery" file.

Weekend Round-Up: Outside

2011-08-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

Even with Outside Lands, this managed to be a super quiet weekend! On Friday, I was supposed to head to the concert but a late night meeting at work and a health scare with our visiting friends cancelled the plans. An evening of chips, guacamole and Mary Tyler Moore.

Saturday morning, Rob and I slept in very late. He had been volunteering with the Bike Coalition until 1:30 in the morning. Apparently, Phish fans tend to forget their bikes entirely at the end of a show.

We had a huge lunch with heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers and french salami.

At 1:30, we loaded up the tandem bike and rode across town to the concert. We had free tickets thanks to Yvette and Tom and an extra pair thanks to volunteering, so we brought Seth and Amy (with baby in tow) along with us.

Caught the end of the Grayboy Allstars, then on to OK GO and STRFKR. Props to Elliot for hooking us up with wine and to delicious tater tots and oysters from the food vendors.

My lovely friend from high school, Sarah, met up with us. Seth and Amy headed home and Rob off to volunteering. I watched The Black Keys and Girl Talk with Sarah before leaving the show and going to help Rob with the bikes. There were about 1,000 bikes parked with the Bike Coalition and we worked until around midnight before riding home.

Slept in again on Sunday. Coffee, cheerios with raspberries and the paper for breakfast. Rob went off on a bike ride and I headed to the spa next door for an amazing 100+ minute massage, a gift for working so hard these past few weeks. At lunch, we drove across town to pick up Margaret and Sean for an adventure. Out to the Legion of Honor, where we visited only so briefly before Sean had to go to band practice. Still so beautiful!

The three of us grabbed lunch at an Italian deli and then visited Japantown for some cheap shopping at Daiso.

Back home to work in the garden, wash bikes, clean house and have artichokes for dinner. We're gearing up for a busy week - but thankfully all in town!

What to Wear: Outside Lands

2011-08-11T20:41:00.001-07:00

Outside Lands is my favorite music festival...actually, the only music festival I like at all! Mild temperatures, open space, tasty food, good friends, great music and only a taxi ride away from my own bed at night.

The whole city seems to be gearing up for this weekend's shows. Dressing in comfortable layers is a must, but you still want to be stylish:

Blouse - A little bohemian flair from H&M.

Jacket - A crinkled metallic jacket small enough to fit in your bag and cheap enough to be lost.

Shorts - From Saks, but you can find a more affordable pair easily. With opaque black tights.

Boots - A pair of flat brown boots, preferably pretty old. Wearing heels is a terrible, no good idea.

Sunglasses - Aviators.

Pashmina - A black scarf you can also use as a blanket to sit on.

Purse - A crossbody bag for your cell, cash, red lipstick and sunblock.

Earrings - Feather drops.

PS: I survived the business trip to Maryland! Sorry for the drop off this week.

Weekend Round-Up: Fog

2011-08-07T20:57:00.001-07:00

The weather this weekend was the pits! Temperatures barely hit the 60s and it was practically raining with over 90% humidity. So we played it pretty easy. Friday night Rob and I went with Bike Party as far as Golden Gate Park and then turned home.

Saturday, I got up early to walk with Rob to the Ferry Building. We had a great breakfast from one of the stalls. He stayed on to volunteer with the bike coalition and I headed home to catch up on overdue emails. I watched Mansfield Park on Netflix and Rob returned home. We walked downtown and got evening tickets to Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Japanese stationery store and Japanese cream puffs before the movie. The film was actually pretty good! Back home for a quiet evening.

Egg tacos and coffee with the paper on Sunday morning. We took the tandem bike out to see the Picasso exhibit at the de Young and had a delicious lunch at Velo Rouge. From there, we headed to Cole Valley for the newly opened Mount Sutro trails. Such a gem right in the middle of the city. It's an actual rain forest, complete with huge ferns, vine covered trees...and lots of mud!

We hiked about 2 miles to the summit and returned home by bike, making a stop at Civic Center farmer's market. Lazy night at home with big bowls of fresh spaghetti. I'm off to DC tomorrow, so posting may be light this week!

Inspired: Tour de France Posters

2011-08-04T21:46:00.000-07:00

Rob discovered this wonderful series of Tour de France posters from UK artist Neil Stevens of CrayonFire.

He documents each stage, from the day 10 aqueducts....

...to the crazy switchbacks of Col d'Aubisque!

What a perfect set to carry you over to the summer's bicycle race!

Happy Anniversary

2011-08-03T07:56:00.000-07:00

Rob and I first met 10 years ago last night. Amazing how fast this decade has gone and how many wonderful adventures we've had!

We celebrated last night at a Giants game with friends. Next weekend, we're off to spend a romantic weekend down by Santa Cruz. And I spent the morning looking at old photo albums of our early years together, including this goofy impromptu photo shoot inspired by a friend bring us a bushel of lemons circa 2003.

Our relationship is so wonderful, it's hard to describe. If you've read this blog for a while, you know that one of the most key elements is growth - we're constantly helping the other to try new things and reach for new goals. I am incredibly lucky to be partnered with this fun, kind, creative (and oh-so handsome) guy!

What to Wear: Silk Scarf

2011-08-01T21:04:00.000-07:00

Silk scarves, tied like a bandanna, are my latest favorite accessory! It's such a pretty detail to have a flowery piece of silk. And they're super affordable to pick up at vintage stores.

I wore this outfit to work yesterday on another classic foggy day in the city:

Tee - Basic black v-neck tee from Gap.

Skirt - A high-waisted white pencil skirt.

Tights - Gray opaque tights.

Jacket - Faux leather bomber jacket.

Scarf - Silk scarf, folded in half and tied on the side.

Pumps - Basic black pumps, inspired by this designer pair.

Weekend Round-Up: Empty Nesters

2011-07-31T21:27:00.000-07:00

We had a weekend of bittersweet goodbyes. On Friday, Trent joined us for his last day in the Bay Area after a summer internship. He joined us in taking the nephews out for the first part of the big Critical Mass bike ride and then had a delicious Mexican dinner at Tropisueno. Ping Pong and Knight Rider back at home.

Trent headed off to the airport on Saturday morning. Rob and I took the kids to the Ferry Building for picnic supplies and then to the Exploratorium by bike. Lots of great photo opportunities with the museum's special exhibit on color.

Ice cream from the Twirl and Dip truck at the Marina Green on the way back. We rested up in the afternoon and then went to happy hour at Local for a final send off with Roy Rodgers, oysters, squash blossoms and fries. Rob's brother-in-law arrvied to pick up the boys in the evening. A very successful week together!

Slept in on Sunday morning (so quiet). Rob and I had our coffee with the paper and leftover Acme bread with strawberry jam. He left for a big mountain bike ride and I left for wedding dress shopping with the newly-engaged Jackie and Margaret. Our first stop was Haight Street for the city's best vintage. Then over to the nice ladies at Glamour Closet and on to Nordstrom. Thai for dinner in the Westfield basement. A marathon shopping trip, and a lot of fun. Jackie headed back to Davis around 9:00.

Boy Heaven

2011-07-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

Last night, Rob took the nephews on a long bike ride to Golden Gate bridge. They had dinner at In-N-Out and, back at home, we played ping pong in between episodes of the A-Team and Knight Rider.

I think Rob might be sad to return to our regularly scheduled life involving the opera, flower arranging and Ladies Activity Club meetings!

To Do: 3 Wheelers

2011-07-27T08:27:00.000-07:00

The secret to entertaining young nephews: having a ping pong table inside your apartment. Ping pong balls have been ricocheting off the walls, ceiling and floor for three days straight! Definitely a winning feature.

In between sets, Rob and I have been trying our best to wear out the boys around the city. Last night I took them to Golden Gate Park by train where we rented go-cart bikes from the nice man at Stowe Lake. The three of us pedaled like maniacs all over the place.

So far, we're failing at wearing them out - but I'm exhausted!