Month: April 2018

planter party.

Published by

Free Home Depot workshop? I’m in! Home Depot has monthly DIH or do it herself workshops. The workshops are made for beginners, and they walk you through a simple home project. This month we made wall planters. The DIH workshops are generally taught in demo fashion and you have to purchase supplies and make your project at home. But tonight we got hands on access and got to take home what we made for free. Score! Our instructor cut the wood for us and we sanded and stained, and attached all the hardware. This was probably dangerous, but I totally used power tools while wearing sandals! 😛 With the right tools and space, this is a super easy project. I’m not a big fan of the sawdust (it’s messy and I don’t want to breathe it in), but I did enjoy the staining part (just like painting!). Tahdah! Now, what plant to use and where to hang? Home Depot might be my Third Thursday hangout from now on…

it’s pronounced CHO.

Published by

Chocolate!!! A TCHO chocolate tour has been on my list of local activities for a while now. What better time to go than for my birthday! I invited friends to play hooky with me (it was a work day, after all), and come celebrate at the chocolate factory. Inside, the waiting area is so colorful and vibrant. Their eye for design extends from their chocolate packaging to their chocolate space! We began our visit with a company history and chocolate making lesson. Chocolate rewards were given for all correct answers! Then it was off to tour the factory space. No jewelry, no false eyelashes, and no sandals allowed. I even had to cover up my nail polish with gloves. Also, no pictures so you’re stuck here with this photo of me and Hubs in our factory suits. Before stepping into the factory our shoes even got a quick cleanse. Once inside, we learned about each machine in the factory and our tour guide took us through each step in the TCHO chocolate making process. After …

foodchella.

Published by

My trip to the Palm Springs area was for business and for pleasure. I conveniently scheduled a work project meeting for the day before my cousin was to get married. Sneaky, sneaky! All the food adventures below plus links to all my reviews. THURSDAY I flew into the Palm Springs airport on Thursday evening and headed straight to food with my co-worker. Rooster and the Pig / pickled okra / green papaya salad / shrimp spring roll / panko-crusted rice ball with yellow curry Long wait, hole-in-the-wall feel in a strip mall. I’m liking my dinner choice! And once inside, a culinary experience. Dishes are easy to share; my fave was the pickled okra, but check out that rice ball on top of the yellow curry. Unique finds! If I wasn’t there during the work part of my trip, I would have tried a fancy adult bevvie. Regardless, my foodchella experience was off to a great start. FRIDAY Friday was the day of my work meeting so instead of trying a breakfast hotspot in the morning, I …

cactarium!

Published by

Also on my Palm Springs weekend wish list: a visit to the Moorten Botanical Garden, a privately owned garden with over 3,000 cactus species. This garden is everything. I never thought I’d enjoy a botanical garden without flowers. There is a small fee to enter garden, and you can spend however long you want strolling the grounds. The garden is organized by region, and most of the plants are labeled. There are so many kinds of cactus varieties that I’ve never seen before. One of my faves were these Giant Golden Barrel Cacti. Another special treat – the garden’s cactarium (the first of it’s kind) which houses rare cactus varietals. We weren’t allowed to touch any of them. I wouldn’t want to anyway; look at these spikes. The Moorten residence is on the garden grounds… And look! Garden crafts – natural dye! You can take a piece of the garden home with you, too. They had lots of plants for sale. Hubby and I brought home four mini cactuses. Super cute! We hope the Bay …

roar.

Published by

Whilst in the Palm Springs area, I had to visit the Cabazon Dinosaurs! I remember visiting as a kid circa the late 80s, but I don’t remember there being an indoor museum-like option. I remember a lot of sand… I’ll have to dig up those photos! In any case, I made Hubby take me to see the dinosaurs. I. LOVED. IT. I think he loved it, too. 🙂 I was surprised there weren’t tons of people here. We actually got solo shots with the T-Rex! These photos will forever make me smile. Road trip much? What are some of your favorite roadside attractions? Share below!

joshua tree.

Published by

Joshua Tree!!! I’ve been looking forward to an adventure here to see an actual Joshua Tree in Joshua Tree. They come in so many shapes and sizes. I couldn’t help but take photos of all the trees. We followed the Burnt Hill Trail for part of the way, perfect for all levels of hikers. There were lots of signs to guide our hike, and paths are clearly marked. There isn’t much shade around but we all had our adventure hats on, plus, to my surprise, the weather was much cooler than the Palm Springs area and there was a nice breeze blowing throughout our hike. Side note: Other than all the awesome plants, I found desert clouds to be interesting  to look at, too. I spotted this thought bubble cloud as we begun our hike and we all took photos under it. …And now, all the Joshua Trees, plus a dash of other desert finds like berry bushes, rocks and cactuses. I want to go back! Once we got into the ‘deeper’ parts of the …

swap…and make!

Published by

Spring cleaning! My friend and I hosted our second craft swap last month. OMG, so much good stuff and so many good people! Per usual, we set up areas for each type of art or craft supply (e.g., painting supplies, paper craft supplies, jewelry making supplies). Swappers placed their unwanted items on the tables and were free to grab whatever other items they wanted. We also set up a free make and take station – felt flower gardens for all! Highlights: I met a felt mouse friend, I scored big on the swap (yarn, sushi fabric, dominos, a giant basket, beads…I’ll keep you posted on the things I make!), and all the unclaimed items went to three awesome places that support educators, creativity, and reuse! Shout out to my God-sister for helping get stuff to places after the swap! For next time, we’re dreaming up ways to make it a more social and creative event. A crafty challenge mayhaps? What new/fun crafty item have you scored lately? Share below!

fogrise.

Published by

I’m a big fan of sunrise adventures. They are glorious! Behold, our sunrise adventure to Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands. We started our adventure walking through a tunnel and entering what seemed like a scene out of Lord of the Rings… It was super foggy and we didn’t expect to see much… So I took to taking photos of the plants. It was already bright on Hawk Hill… But then nature pulled through and we saw the most amazing sunrise, beginning with a peachy/orange glow. Pictures, of course, don’t do this sunrise justice. Which is probably why my camera battery decided to die midway through my photo taking so I could simply enjoy the view. 😉 Above: the tunnel we came out of + the trail we walked to see the views. Below: early morning wefie filled with excitement because coolest sunrise ever! West Coast, where are your favorite spots to see sunrise? Share, share, share!

garden apothecary.

Published by

Any place with the word apothecary in the name and I must go to there. My friend took me on a shopping adventure in Half Moon Bay and we stumbled upon Garden Apothecary. Filled with items for gardening, teas, glass bottles, succulent arrangements, and a handful of locally made items, there’s a gift idea for every occasion. They also carry what they deem foraged curiosities, like these spectacles! Even when you look up, things! On our visit they were sampling a red rooibos tea and handing out copies of the gather journal…Fun, fun, fun. I ended up gifting myself a bag of dried elderflower and a bag of cacao powder for steeping. The cacao is the shopkeep’s fave to use for iced tea. I must try it for myself! What a lovely find in a cute part of town. Where have you explored lately? Share below!

crafty reuse.

Published by

Alameda field trip to The ReCrafting Co! The shop was mostly yarn and fabric, but they also had collections of stamps, buttons, punches, beads, how-to books, and crafting tools. This was my first visit to the shop and I was super impressed. It’s a reuse and consignment supply shop so I was expecting a lot of digging through items to find ‘something good.’ But to my pleasant surprise, most of the items were new or like new with original packaging. It was so easy to find what I was not looking for. 😉 Any used items like these knitting tools were gently used and in great hand-me-down condition. And the yarn and fabric stash sorted and neatly displayed. In case you’re wondering what I went home with: three skeins of yarn to add to my collection! Lovers of yarn and fabric crafts, this is a must visit!