What is...

Well, Saturday came pretty darn close. PamKittyMorning and I decided that we needed a reward for all our hard work last week--good grief, did we ever SEW. For us, "reward" generally means ROAD TRIP!!

It was so gorgeous this weekend in the San Francisco Bay Area--blue skies and nice warm temperatures. So off we went across the bay headed north. I tried to get some shots of how clearly you could see San Francisco as well as Oakland, but I wasn't too successful. We were moving pretty fast and then there was that wonderful digital camera delay issue, so I ended up with several pics of a silver Toyota pickup truck--but I bet you've all seen one of those before. Take my word for it--incredible views.


Our first stop was Mill Valley. We'd read about a shop called Maison Reve and wanted to check it out.


Lovely shop, but didn't see anything in my umm, "price range". But Pam and I decided that the darling French cafe just a few yards away was a place we needed to explore...




That strawberry tart was amazing. Seriously.

What else is paradise? Curling up with a good decorating magazine is pretty high up there on my list. Anything with the word "Cottage" on it gets tossed right into the shopping cart. "Cottage Style" is always fun. Awhile back I saw a feature on a wonderful vacation home...with peely-paint furniture and one of my favorite ModaHome fabrics used on curtains...and you can see the homeowner, Michelle, relaxing on her cozy couch looking very happy.
I recently grabbed the March issue of Cottage Style and to my delight, it turns out Michelle's other house is featured, and it's just as wonderful. It also turns out that Michelle owns an antique shop in Petaluma called Summer Cottage Antiques and it just so happens that I was in charge of mapquesting this road trip...so off to Petaluma we went!



Wow. All I can say is WOW. I went nuts. Could have gone ever-so-much MORE nuts if we'd had a truck. I HAD to have that suggestion box. I still don't know why, but knew it would haunt me forever if it didn't come home with me. I'm hoping my kids don't notice it because I'm a little worried about just what sort of things they'd feel compelled to "suggest". I also got a nifty clothes hanger from Oakland, my "paradise" sign, an incredible vintage jar with a pink painted lid that's full of PINK vintage sewing items, a little glass jar with a clock face decoupaged on the lid and finally, an old rose plate from a store in Kansas. I spent many a summer visiting my grandparents in Topeka, and while I have no idea where Fowler, Kansas is, it was a necessary purchase.




The shop was quite busy--they were celebrating their 10th anniversary and when we walked in, there was Michelle! It was so much fun to get to talk to her--she's just the sweetest person ever. I can't wait to go back there--and next time we're taking a truck.



It was just a super day--I don't feel the least bit guilty about taking time off from quilting--it was a great experience and I'm totally recharged for the non-stop sewing week to come!