Church Street Flowers

For my second local business feature I am showcasing Church Street Flowers, which is right around the corner from my work. I walk past it every day on the way to the bakery, and every time I do I look in to see the faces of smiling girls surrounded by flowers. The shop is very small, but packed with every variety of flower you can imagine, and bursting out onto the sidewalk.

They purchase all of their flowers from the San Francisco Flower Mart, and try to be green by buying as local as possible. They know the vendors and their families and want to support them. One unique thing about Church Street Flowers is that they do business big and small and everything in between. They will sell one stem for a dollar or do the arrangements for an entire wedding.

When I was taking photos I came across a hot pink fly! (Top right)

Brianna, Rachel and Stephanie all worked at the flower shop as employees before buying the business from their previous bosses and becoming small business owners themselves. They love being part of the local community and getting to be involved in the important moments in people's lives. Rachel told me what she appreciates most about the flower shop: "We get to be artistic every day, we get to make people happy, and we get to work with our best friends."

I spent a couple weeks visiting the flower shop to take photos, waiting for market days when the shop was full and waiting for sunshine to light up such a small space. Every time I was in there I had a hard time leaving. They were creating works of art before my eyes, and everything kept becoming more and more beautiful. Plus there is laughter and good conversation and it is such a warm and inviting atmosphere, it is like being surrounded by old friends.

Thank you ladies of Church Street Flowers for sharing your shop with me. Your business is beautiful!

snapshots from a sunny day

I've been lucky with the weather on my Wednesdays off. Apparently the San Francisco sky gods shine on hump day. Today I went in search for a dress to wear to a friend's wedding up in Willits this weekend, and was victorious. I also found two vases for my own wedding and an adorable vintage skirt at Salvation Army for $7. Here are some photos from my walk around the Castro, the Mission, and Noe Valley.

The final two photos are a sneak peek at my upcoming local business feature: Church Street Flowers. I've spent a couple weeks photographing the lovely ladies and flowers at the shop around the corner from my work and I'm really excited to share it with you. Stay tuned!

check that one off the list

It has been overcast in SF for over a week, and the other night Jeffery finished working around five and we walked to the bank. As we were walking we could see blue sky peeking through the grey up ahead, so after the bank we decided to walk to where there was sun. It led us down Polk street where we wandered in and out of hardware stores, consignment stores, and a little jewelry shop.

Zee Continental Jewelry is run by a very nice husband and wife duo who welcomed us into their shop and told us a stream of stories. Even though it was late in the day, they certainly weren't trying to get us out of there. We started talking about wedding bands and they brought out an old comfort fit white gold men's band that was all scratched up. They were planning to melt it down, but we liked it, so they shined it up, re-sized it, and sold it to us at cost. I had our wedding date engraved on the inside and I can't wait to give it to Jeff!

I also decided to have my ring cleaned and re-sized. I've been putting it off for years, but with the wedding coming up in less than 6 months, there's no time like the present.

I've thought a lot about what kind of bride I want to be on my wedding day. I want to be easygoing and happy and not let myself get stressed out over the little things. I recently realized that my actions while planning also shape the kind of bride I am. And so far the decisions have been effortless. Jeffery and I have always been a bit impulsive in our decision making, which is much better than agonizing over them. I  bought Jeffery the first ring we saw and liked. And now it's done. And I can move on to the next step.

Oh, and my orchids are blooming!

The Grotto

On one of our last days in Hawaii, we discovered a grotto on my parent's property. They own six acres of pastureland (i.e. ridiculously tall grass) and beyond that is a treeline and a dry creek bed.

Looking up over the grass towards the ocean.

Looking back at my parent's house and the monkeypod tree.

Nala in the grass.

Devin cutting an overgrown barbed wire fence, which is probably there to keep out the wild boar (no joke).

Climbing over lava rocks in the creek bed.

There it is. A 12 foot diameter swimming hole. The water disappears underneath the porous rock and travels underground for a while before popping up further down the hill.

I can't wait to share it with my friends at the wedding!

To Move or Not to Move

It's only human to strive for better. A better job, a nicer apartment. We've been planning on moving once our lease is up all along, but now that it almost is, we can't find anything better than what we already have. So I'm trying to focus on what's good. One thing I love about our apartment is how great the light is. We have west facing windows, so we get soft morning light, bright afternoon and evening light, and warm pink light once the sun has set over the rooftops of the facing buildings. I hand wash all of my delicates and hang them to dry by the windows. In the morning the sun shines through making them glow. Aren't they beautiful?

I love waking up and seeing blue sky almost every day, which is a luxury living in San Francisco. We don't live in a wind tunnel, we don't get the billowing fog. We just have the street noise and fire truck sirens, which isn't so bad. It's the noise of the city. My commute is a breeze, we are super close to all forms of transportation, and we can walk most places, which is why I live in San Francisco. We are on the top floor, so we don't have people walking on our heads and our orchids are really happy. Our kitty is too. And we're happy, and is moving worth the risk of being unhappy somewhere else?

Introducing...Local Business Features!

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I am excited to announce a new element on this blog where I feature local businesses in San Francisco. Just in the neighborhood I work (Church and Market area) there are so many incredible businesses providing the community with beauty and comfort. I want to share with you some of my favorites. First on my list is Thorough Bread and Pastry. Here is a sneak peek at this incredible bakery and cafe.

I love the reflection of Church Street apartments in this photo.
Best baguette in the city, and only $1.50 each!
Stay tuned for more!

My Everything Ring

The ring I wear on my left hand has a history. Its journey with me began in a little black velvet bag.

When Jeffery was 19 he decided it was time to move out of his mother and stepfather’s house and out of our small town and leave the grocery store he had worked at since he was 15. It was time to stop taking classes at the local community college and move to the city. It was time for him to spread his wings. We had been together for a year and a half and I still had two years of high school left. We loved one another and still wanted to be together, but Jeff needed a change. He decided he was going to move to the bay area, live with some family and take classes at the city college of San Francisco.

I cried for weeks before he left.  And then I pulled myself together and tried to make the most of it and be hopeful. But it was difficult because I was an angsty and hormonal teenager.

We talked about getting promise rings because it felt appropriate. We were young, but committed to one another and going to try to make things work long distance.

But I was scared because we didn’t know what was going to happen.

On a warm summer night before Jeffery moved away, we were hanging out in my room after dinner. He pointed to a small velvet bag on my dresser and told me to look inside. I had noticed it earlier that evening but hadn’t opened it (which is totally out of character). I reached in a pulled out a gold ring with twelve (!) diamond. And it fit! I was shocked.

I put it on my left ring finger, where it has remained for the last six years. When we were in Florence two Aprils ago it turned into an engagement ring, and come January it will be my wedding ring (until we can find and afford a vintage art deco diamond).

The ring was once given from Jeffery’s dad to his mom, and she gave it to him to give to me.

For now, it’s perfect. Understated, elegant, classic. I have loved it for as long as I have had it. It may sound silly, but at age 16 it was a great comfort having a diamond ring on my finger. And Jeffery only lived away for four months (and visited every weekend) before moving back to be with me.

Away We Go

I've been wanting to watch this movie for years and finally did last night. It was really cute. I love it when after a movie is over you can just let the credits roll and the song playing becomes a soundtrack for your before bed ritual (putting the food away, brushing teeth, kissing your honey, etc.).

John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph's characters are believable and endearing. The dialogue is good and there are some really beautiful scenes. This movie makes me want to go on a trip across the country, and have an orchard of orange trees in my backyard, and sleep on a trampoline. It also makes me grateful that I have Jeffery to share things with.