9 Days in the Bay Area
swimsuits by day and sweaters at night.
You may be wondering why I have not done a newsletter most of July and the answer would be because I was on a proper, and necessary vacation! Jack I took off for nine days in California a few weeks ago and had the most amazing trip, so I thought I’d share a bit of what I did, ate, and wore on our trip.
I’ll start here- It was off to a promising start with my bag checking in at 47.5 pounds, the perfect amount of wiggle room for the inevitable shopping I would end up doing on our trip (foolishly had told myself I wouldn't shop for myself-hah!)
Jack and I landed in California and much to my happiness, we were met with a foggy cool drive along highway 1 as we headed down to Aptos to be with family for our first few days. Theres something about the crispness and grayness that immediately revitalized me, a break from the unrelenting sun and humidity and heat of Atlanta- I was able to finally feel like I was stepping outside of the humid routine I’ve been in all summer. I’ve been visiting this part of California every year since I was 11 (and every couple years before that), and I still am giddy about its beauty every time I come back. Driving along the water with the windows down and cold breeze, passing farms along the ocean and smelling eucalyptus when we drive through certain patches of trees- I may be romanticizing it, but I truly think it is one of those special types of places. When I’m there, it feels like I’m meeting back up with an extension of myself again.
While I was of course looking forward to the getaway of it all, I also couldn't help how excited I was about getting dressed in bay area weather. I mean seriously, getting to wear a sweater in July because its CHILLY *swoon*. As Jack put it when we were packing “that’s some ‘getting dressed’ weather”- and he was right. I had 47.5 lbs of clothes and shoes that when put together in the outfits I’d planned, would be perfect for this very specific, and very special climate. The perfect outfits to eat, drink, and relax our way through San Jose, Aptos, Carmel, and San Francisco
Weekend 1: Aptos/ San Jose
As I mentioned, this area feels like reuniting with an extension of myself and I think I really picked and planned outfits with that feeling in mind. This is another arm of my lifestyle and I had the opportunity to express that in my outfit choices. You know I love juxtapositions in outfits and during this trip I felt my thematic juxtaposition was that of east coast versus west coast. How do I combine my two selves? How do I feel comfortable and true to where I am at, but also maintain who I am in my every-day lifestyle?
A pencil skirt with a ribbed tank and awning stripe beach bag and studded sandals- each piece on its own feels like it was made for a different setting, but together it felt like the perfect expression of me. That’s what getting dressed is all about after all-outward expression!
One of my favorite outfits above, because frankly there would never be a day in Georgia in which I think I could appropriately where my eyelet pants with my wool green sweater (maybe indoors with the A/C?!) We spent an evening walking the beach in Aptos before the tide came too high and the fog started settling in.
On a sunnier day spent between Aptos and Santa Cruz, we headed to Mentone for dinner with family. I’ve been coming back to Aptos for almost two decades and I was very excited to hear about new restaurants in town, but when we ate at Mentone it was an extra special meal. They had light and delicious italian food, orange wine, great service, and frankly some of the cutest uniforms I’d seen at a restaurant in a while! Saint James-style boat neck tees with dark denim and canvas aprons really complemented the light and colorful vibe of the whole restaurant. I did not get a single picture of my food, but to note- I want to try and whip up the yummy marinated olives we got as an appetizer- warm green olives with fennel, citrus, and mint.
Next up: Road trip to Carmel!
Carmel is just about 45 minute from Aptos, but we had a whole day to do whatever so we shot past and took the 1 all the way up to Nepenthe in Big Sur for a nice long lunch, in true luxurious vacation style. Another luxury is getting to steal your husbands shaggy dog sweater because you got chilly in your sundress. An outfit moment were I felt some of my east coast style influence coming out a little bit more…
At Nepenthe:
I think one of my favorite luxuries in life is being able to have a long lunch while sitting outdoors. It doesn't get much better, except when that lunch is in the middle of Big Sur with a clear view of the Pacific ocean where there are whales jumping in the water, all while I eat french fries and enjoy a glass of white wine. Yes, I absolutely recommend going to Nepenthe if you’re anywhere remotely near Big Sur.
On to Carmel:
Off the top, I’m just going to say that we had such an amazing time after only one evening in Carmel that we tacked on an extra night to our stay and didnt have a single regret. Carmel, CA is one of the most beautiful towns I’ve been to in America, I mean it’s so special and surreally perfect that you feel like you're in a little European town.
We stayed at Hotel Carmel and were only a 15 minute walk to the beach, of which was filled with Nancy Meyers looking beach houses- I say again, perfectly surreal.
The rest of our time in Carmel was very much trip of leisure: we hiked Point Lobos, laid on the beach, ate indulgent foods, tasted wine, and spent a few hours at Refuge (a therma-cycle spa that left me feeling like a new woman.)
Hit The Road:
We headed back to Aptos for a day and a half before we took ourselves back to San Francisco for out final weekend
Final Stop: San Francisco
We met up with a friend who lives in San Francisco who has the same “love for retail” as Jack and I do, aka can also nerd out on talking about merchandising and product assortment and brand history the same way we do. San Fransisco was 3 days of walking and eating and talking and it was absolutely gorgeous. What I really loved about our “tour de retail” here, was that we visited like half dozen independent shops that each had their own unique offering- not just copies of each other, but real specialty shops. Being at the end of our vacation, I had, had 7 previous days of head clearing so when we were walking around these shops I really could take the time to feel inspired and appreciative of the vision these store owners were putting in to the world. It was very cool and felt very San Francisco. Outside of just shopping, the food was spectacular and we drove around the city, and across THE bridge to Sausalito, but San Fransisco is huge and I feel like we still have so much to see next time we visit.
And that, my friends, wraps it all up in a nice bow for you. Nine days in the beautiful bay area and I wouldn't change a thing!
Cheers xx,
Taylor