I was heading to Petaluma from the Broad Summit ~ and just as i was getting out of Sebastapol i did a double take, pulled the car over, made a u-turn, and popped into California Carnivores in hopes it was open (it was late afternoon on a sunday) ~ and it WAS! And it is AMAZING. Apparently it is the "largest carnivorous plant shop in the united states"!!! AND omg. wow. you HAVE to see how stunning (and huge) this place and their plants and their kiddie pools filled with more plants in the process are... Good news is that they are carnivorous plant obsessed, extremely informative, super nice, and you can order online and they will ship anywhere in the US (he was even describing their intense packing process for shipping, and after hearing about it i'm confident to order more soon!) ~ but for now, i couldn't resist and currently have a box of 4 in my car... SO beautiful. They are so incredibly inspiring, take a peek at the pics of many species i have never seen up close before!

On unexpected discoveries, next time you're up in wine country california style ~ California Carnivores is a definite stop not to be missed!

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Tags: california - gifts - nature - plants - san francisco - shopping - travel

Just a quick peek at last nights festivities ~ i'm currently at the Broad Summit at the Boon Hotel up in the Russian River Valley ~ what is it? "So. You may be wondering what this party is all about. In short, The Broad Summit was an idea hatched over Margaritas at SxSW. Maggie has "organize a retreat" on her life list, Aubrey is a party planner, Laura Mayes is a conference organizer, and Helen Jane supplies wine and cheese for the entire Internet. We talked about how fun it would be to have our blogger friends in one place for the weekend. Tipsily laid plans don't often come to much, but we're an unusually efficient group." Basically its like a blogger/tech ladies summer camp (fall camp?) of sorts, but with wine, massages, bonfires, pajama parties, hot tubs, and fun sponsors! So, yes, i'm totally at a tech conference north of SF... and the bonfire was so pretty, had to share a few quick pics with you! (More random pics keep popping up over on my twitter) ~ so first take a peek at the awesome fire, and the surroundings on the next page!

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Tags: events - san francisco - travel - wine

While in SF, between the madness i simply had to make time to stop by and visit the folks behind the incredible products and packaging of Incase! If you haven't noticed over the years, i'm a bit of an Incase junkie ~ their design aesthetic, product concepts and details, and their understated hyper-functional stunning packaging skills are just irresistible. The user experience of their products from the time you see an image of them, or spot it on the street or in a store... to the time it's in your hands being unboxed and being put to good use ~ is just so well thought out. No wonder their tagline is "A better experience through good design."

Well, i'm honored they let me take a peek into their SF studio space, and it was just as inspiring and minimalist as you'd imagine. Clean black and whites ~ turn tables, couches, and a bathroom waiting for your doodles.... wiped clean weekly, and re/decorated by everyone that visits... check out some of their boxes i had yet to see in person... and the patterns that magically transform into those bags we love... and perhaps most interesting, what inspires THEM! A fantastic mix of goodies discovered while shopping in japan interspersed with their products greet you in their gallery space... on to the pics on the next page!

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Tags: incase - san francisco - studio - travel

So now you've seen the creatures of the California Academy of Sciences ~ ready to see what the scene was like for NightLife (their Thurs late night party/events ~ with drinks, food, djs, and more)... basically imagine going to an incredibly awesome museum/science center... but no kids! and the scene is like a 25-55 singles/date night! and as the evening progresses, the drunkeness runs a bit rampant... definitely have to feel for the poor museum folks who had to chase a few inebriated folks through the rather steep planetarium... and those starfish in the tidepools where it's one hand in the tank and the other holding your beer with your arm around your girl... Interesting scene. And BEAUTIFUL space! Definitely worth doing the VIP tour if you've never been, since you get some behind the scenes sneak peeks, checking out the roof in a tiny group of about 15, skipping the rainforest queue, a look in the Vault, reserved passes for the planetarium show (and they let you in first!)... oh, and open bar too. Anyhow, take a peek at the experience!

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Tags: architecture - museum - nature - san francisco - science - travel

So many pictures i didn't even know where to start ~ while in SF, i finally got to check out the California Academy of Sciences ~ did the Nightlife VIP tour (really, if you can, its perfect! You actually get to have the fun of Nightlife, but without the lines, so you can see everything in the few hours ~ including reserved spots for the planetarium ~ and an open bar)... The space is beautiful! So first, CREATURES! A look at some of the critters encountered... and in the next post you can check out the space... check out the pics on the next page! Everything from (what look like) hummingbird lollipops, frogs galore, living walls, albino gators, dino poop and more...

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Tags: animals - museum - nature - san francisco - science