Neighborhood Natural Treasure

After a mellow morning of treasure hunting, a.k.a. garage sale-ing,

we followed a few posted signs to treasures, of a natural kind.
A few sweet farmers at Ellwood Canyon Farms offer their amazing organic
produce on an honor system, at a place they call "Honest Man Stand".

"Please take what you please and leave payment in hangin cash box".

Rows of fresh organic produce are sprouting in this little jewel tucked away in a nearby

neighborhood!

Meet the farmers!

Whimsy Inspiration

Found this great pic on Patina White's blog, but you can sure find

vintage locker baskets at Whimsy (Linden Shop).

our humble whimsy abode

Whimsy customers often ask us if our house is like our shops...

Here's a tiny glimpse into our lil' home and yes friends, our house is full of Whimsy !
It's not that we are big fans of CAKE (well, carrot cake is definitely on the radar)--
but we discovered that the first letter of each of our names spelled CAKE and soon that was a theme we used in many rooms...


Here's a boot that never made it into the shops, but many of our finds certainly do !

A common love of decor for me is "painted wood". I love original painted wood and if it's
chippy, I am a big fan. My son always teases me about finding "chippy garden gates in seaside blue". If I did, I would hit the jackpot, in my world of original paint!

Collections of wood skittles is found on my mantle.

The crow was added recently and seemed to find a great home.

Love old mirrors that are far from perfect... and I have several bird collections.

Vintage children's chairs are one of my faves...

Can't say we live in a mansion or even a dreamy seaside cottage, but

we surround ourselves with vintage treasures that make it home.

And, we practice what we preach...LIVE WHAT YOU LOVE

(just like on the prints at Whimsy)!

Ventura Flea Market

Take a quick browse with me as we scope out the

Ventura Flea Market that happened today, June 20th on Father's Day ! It is a bittersweet day for me, as this is my first Father's Day I don't have my father anymore, but it is special to be with my hubby and father of our 2 super teenagers.

Wait, do those 2 words go together--super + teens... Hmmm... ? This adorable rabbit was resting on a tree ready for the hunt!
It reminds me of the one hanging out in our backyard near the apple tree.

Loved all the game pieces..


The seaglass was very appealing,
but I prefer to find mine on the beach one piece at a time..


We really enjoyed the old cool graphics on the game boxes!

I gravitate to the kids toys of yesterday. Love the colors and graphic appeal.

The little painted stools were fun all stacked up in all thier glorious colors!

The monochromatic pallete is also refreshing.
Flea Markets are just the best for people like us, who love JUNK !

Please visit Whimsy Antiques soon to see the amazing finds

we scored on today to share with you!

Take Steps Los Angeles

The weekend after the Take Steps Santa Barbara Walk was the veteran Los Angeles walk and a small group of us joined the festivities for Crohn's and Colitis Awareness and went to Griffith Park to see what we could learn for our walk next year! 800 people strong and canines joined the fun, and the energy was high and upbeat. We learned, and we enjoyed ourselves.

Perfect combo!

In my own backyard

Not literally my backyard, but close enough. There's a lovely park called

Alice Keck Park Memorial Gardens, and as some people say

Alice Keck Park Park

because Park is Alice's last name. Confused? Don't be.

Look at the lily pads and you can see someone peeking out.

There are numerous turtles in the lil' pond.

Thanks for browsing with me in our paradise we call home. Santa Barbara.

Embrace, Evolve, Emerge

When I received the call asking me to be on a panel of women entrepreneurs for an upcoming conference,, I found myself a little out of my comfort zone.

Because I felt that way, I knew I had to do it.
I was on a panel of 3 women and we answered questions at the conference about our business and each of us were giving our versions of our business plans, etc. Since I have 3 businesses, I certainly had lots to share. I was invited to stay after and enjoy the rest of the conference put on at the University of California, Santa Barbara byt he Professional Women's Association.
I did stay and went to a few other sessions and absolutely had a growing experience. The lunch was superb and the people I met and chatted with were all amazing.
I left feeling empowered, and realized that was exactly what I needed.

The view of the lagoon right outside from my panel's room!


Dianne led our panel and asked the questions and then the audience had their own questions.

Whimsy in Westways Magazine !

Both Whimsy stores were recently featured in Westways Magazine in the SHOP

section of the great article! The feature came out in San Diego a few months ago and the June issue in the LA region. We have had many folks drive up from all over with the article in their hands. We welcome you to discover both our stores so please stop in and say hi!

Both shops open 11-5 everyday.

Whimsy (Home and Garden)--5042 7th Street 805.684.7211

Whimsy (Town and Country)--962 Linden Avenue 805.684.1222

Take Steps Santa Barbara

For the past year, a handful of us took on the inaugral Take Steps Santa Barbara Walk and we met weekly and worked hard trying to get our Walk to be a success, despite not enough PR help from our town....but we held hands with Jo Bender, the Walk Manager based at the Crohns and Colitis headquarters in Los Angeles, and made this important awareness project

become a reality on June 6, 2010.

Making noise , raising awareness and raising funds to find a cure is what the purpose of this walk is and through networking with our tiny committee, we managed to bring 175 people to support our cause.

We had Owen Plant of the Sunshine Brothers play his beautiful tunes for us and he alternated with Rebecca Chapman, who is an amazing 2o year old living with Crohn's Disease, and daughter of one of our commitee members.


My Mom who has Crohn's was relaxing with her Celtics green headband and
enjoying the celebration with her granddaughter (and my daughter) who came to Santa Barbara from UCLA to join us...

Our Marylan and Ethan team for the First Take Steps Walk !
Next year we will double our numbers! Will you join us?!