Girlfriend & I did a spa overnight at the Hotel Valencia this past weekend. A little retreat, if you will.

 Since the hotel and spa are both in the upscale retail Santana Row, we took a leisurely stroll around the place, enjoying the beautiful wares on offer. I didn’t buy a thing; sometimes, just steeping myself in the aesthetics is enough.

Like this color & texture.

The very first thing I really swooned at, though, was this set of bowls below, which would look lovely in the family room, when I finally finish furnishing it. I didn’t want all three, but they aren’t sold separately. I’m considering them. What do you think? $129 for the set.

Fell in love with these. They’re inspired by traditional Indian singing bowls.

Youthful, adorable.  I love everything about it. Too young for me, but cute cute cute.

The nice thing about no longer living in the tropics is that textures no longer make my skin crawl.

This color combination rocks, although the short waist would do nothing for me.

This reminds me of bargello or flame stitch, often used in upholstery.. but in this light fabric, in a dress.

There’s something about retro that I love. Maybe its hominess. Is that a word?

I. love. this. bag.  Do I love it $400 worth? (sale price) That is the question.

It seems like a lot of money, but I do have a girlfriend who spends $2,000 on her bags. Each. So in comparison? A deal.  What do you think? Worth it or not?

Citrus restaurant, Hotel Valencia

I’m a big fan of any restaurant that uses my favorite flower as a centerpiece. Girlfriend and I had an early dinner and then headed to the spa for our late night appointment. I luxuriated in the huge hot tub for a while, before I met girlfriend in the quiet room, where we relaxed in comfy recliners for a while. Then, my masseuse (her name is Cypress, no, not kidding) came to get me. She worked me over for an hour with some hot stones.

After, we staggered back to our lovely room and collapsed in bed, off to dreamland.

The hotel is only a few miles from our homes, so this was a little staycation. Highly recommend.