Local Love

Hey friends! On Sunday, I was able to escape for a fun little event in nearby Sacramento {California’s state capital if you didn’t know where I was talking about}. Years ago, I lived in Sacramento and it still feels like a second home to me. I love the vibe and energy. Some of the neighborhoods make me daydream with their beautiful curb appeal. East Sac and Land Park are two of my faves but I also adore midtown. Because of my draw to the town, I wanted to give a little love to some businesses and bloggers in the area.

I’ve been a little distracted this week as I have been knee, OK maybe elbow deep in paint. If you have been following me on Instagram then you might have seen how I decided to repaint all of the main spaces in my house. So yeah, the hallway, front room, dining room, stairwell, upstairs hallway, family room and kitchen. I am 2 days and about 1/3 of the way done. My hand hurts {if you are familiar with Friends then let me reference the time that Chandler played Ms. PacMan for too long}. but it’s so worth how fresh and pretty everything feels. Of course, I need to redo the baseboards and I plan to paint the exterior doors soon as well. And I hired a painter to do the exterior. Within a month, this place will be feeling pretty + polished from the inside out. Unless you start opening doors cause those spaces need TLC too! #operationhouserefresh

Now, my hubby thinks that I am cray cray for even wanting to paint anything. He doesn’t share my affection for design but thankfully, he supports it. Whew! His profession has him away from home 2 days at a time. Sometimes more. When he’s gone, I get to work on the projects. This allows me to be messy {shhhhh – he never knows cause it’s all pulled together perfectly when he comes home #smokeandmirrors}. Currently, he is in a class til Thursday night which might turn into Friday because of the crazy snow that the mountains are getting. Rumor has it that the passes will be closed for travel. Yikes! We are getting a pretty delayed winter but we need it.

OK – on to the local love —————>

Today a blogger brunch was held at R Cubed Lifestyle. Shannon {the adorable and sweet owner} opened up her store for 2 hours to host local bloggers and she had some sweet local vendors there including my friend Alicia at Allie Studios. R Cubed houses home decor, clothing and lots of other treasures like makeup bags and candles.

Back in November, I found this fun group called The Blog Bloc. Within that group, I have met some of the sweetest people!

My friend Britney is the cutest unicorn and sprinkles loving girl that you will ever meet. She talks about fashion and food over on her blog, Seams & Sprinkles. Check her out. She talks about eating cake for breakfast people. Enough said. I love her.

Ruthie Ridley is also a new friend. She is a powerhouse and does all.the.things. She inspires me and has an infectious energy. Her recent blog post is a must-read for all of us!! Think: positive self-talk. Check her out at Ruthie Ridley Blog.

Instagram is my jam. Yes, that could possibly be the perfect song lyrics in a rap song, yo. Ha. But really. There have been two local peeps that I followed on Instagram that I got to meet in person and well, #fangirlmoment

The first is the sweet Stephanie Birch over at Stephynow who is a local yoga teacher. I’d followed her on Instagram for years and then she actually started teaching at my local studio. She was so sweet! It was fun to meet the face that I’d been following. Plus, her yoga class is rad!

My second fangirl moment came on Sunday at R Cubed Lifestyle. A few weeks back, I tried to sign up to hear a certain speaker at Creative Mornings but I got waitlisted cause it filled up quickly. I was so bummed as I’d been following Shavonda Gardner on Insta for awhile and I really wanted to hear her speak cause you know, I LOVE being inspired by people. Anyway, she was at the event! So I got to meet her and chat with her. She was hilarious and real and I think we bonded over our mutual ‘love’ of having teenage children. Ha ha! Anyway, her blog, SG Style documents her love of design and how she and her family downsized and revamped the coolest little bungalow. Her style is a bit boho and so fun.

So back to Alicia from Allie Studios.  I love this girl! Her energy is contagious and I think we could talk all.day.long. Seriously. I am so excited to finally have scheduled a lunch date with her. She has sold at my in-home vendor event every fall for the past 5 years but we both get so busy and this time we just decided to get it on the calendar. It’s been so fun watching her evolve and grow over the years. She has the coolest hometown pillows and well, everyone needs one on their porch or couch. Just sayin.

PS – she takes custom orders!!

I love old school magazines. Is that a thing? I think so in this day + age of digital media. I subscribe to a few mags and I love getting them in the mail and flipping through the pages. Recently, East Sac Farms popped up in Sunset Magazine and then graced the recent cover of BH&G. Two things – first, their garden is gorgeous and second, he’s a firefighter {so is my hubby} so that was a fun little bit of extra info. I love the concept of a beautiful garden like they’ve created but I lack the follow through. The best we do is tomatoes in the summer. Check them out at East Sac Garden and also on Insta @urbanfarmstead and @dailyflourish

These are just a few of the local places that inspire me. I’m also including the Instagram tags for a few other locals that I love to follow.

• Kindra @hearthstonedecor
• Cammie @placervillecandleco
• Nicole @flickerfarm
• Bushnell Gardens @bushnell_gardens
• Jenny @rusticsouldesigns
• Janis @terra_cottage
• Leyla @designshopinteriors
• Shannon @rcubedlifestyle
• Melissa @shopcompliment
• Lacey @thecommonfarm
• Bridget @lovealways_bk
• Monica @monica_egretta
• Bryan @guysonthegrid

Wishing you a beautiful rest of your week! I am hoping to pop back on with a foodie post this week but I’m in the midst of this painting project and really want to get that wrapped up ASAP. I am hosting my cute nieces 1st birthday party here on the 18th and there is so much to be done!

Hey, what inspires you?? Remember, “Beautiful minds inspire others.”