What a week it’s been! I left for San Francisco early last Thursday morning and I returned on the red eye Tuesday night, which landed in Boston around 8:20 yesterday morning. I did a ton of walking and I took 810 photos. Yes, that really says 810. Today’s post will be about the things that I found most inspiring. Enjoy!

While walking around San Francisco, I couldn’t help but notice all of the beautiful metal work on railings, outer doors, and even street lights. I adored being surrounded by so many graceful swoops and swirls, and this is just one of the many pictures I took of doorways, and you will defintiely be seeing a design or two as a result!

I went to the big farmers’ market at the Ferry Building on Saturday morning. There was a lot of hustle and bustle because it’s such a popular market. I didn’t buy any vegetables, but I couldn’t resist taking pictures because they looked great all stacked together. I ended up getting a fresh, juicy peach. Yum! I wish I had one right now. Inside the ferry building I got some delicious Italian bread and some fancy cheeses. As you can imagine, I had a delectable lunch. I love food so much that I already have two food-inspired designs (apples and garbanzo beans), and I’m hoping to do a few more.

On Sunday I went to the Strybing Arboretum & Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park. It was stunning. I took about 200 photos of flowers, and I could have spent days there. It was a sunny day and the gardens were quiet and peaceful. There weren’t many people there, so I didn’t have to fight any crowds while I enjoyed the the scenery. If you’re going to be in the area, you should definitely stop by the gardens.

I’ll leave you with this Otis Redding song about San Francisco. Have a beautiful Thursday and a wonderful week. Feel free to share stories about California or your week in the comments!

Note: I’ll also be writing about my adventures in a little more detail in my personal blog, if you’d like to know more about my trip.

-April