Lovely Los Gatos

A few weekends ago, I spent a delightful long weekend visiting my sister and her husband, who live in the town of Los Gatos, California, near San Jose. What a beautiful little place! The old stores and office buildings had architectural charm aplenty:

I poked around several of the mom-and-pop stores. This floral shop, "Bunches," was one of my favorites:

The shop has a resident duck, named "Pete." (They named her before she laid an egg, confirming her girl status.):

"The Maid's Quarters" is a shop filled with Parisian and Continental things, all of them flat-out gorgeous. Love the glittery bee:

A new shop had just opened, and it was filled with the most fantastic, unusual pieces of furniture and things for the home. I was smitten with the rough, gilt-covered table and the tote that looked like a huge, green Puli dog:

One wall was painted a vivid blue. It made everything placed near it sing:

I have absolutely no need for this side table or end table, but Oh! how gorgeous are they?:

Never seen a piece quite like this. A chair-and-a-half, yes:

But with a herd of camels tromping across it? Brilliant!

A stack of painted metal chairs made me want to throw out my kitchen chairs and start all over again, with these:

This wonderful bench reminds me of how kids turn their defunct skateboards into art, or furniture. It's colorful and kicky. Wouldn't it be fabulous in a large entry, or pulled up to a dining table?

"Natural Creations" sells plants and all sorts of natural things for the garden. It is an enchanting little hole in the wall:

Outside, several water features splashed quietly. I loved this one, with an upright branch serving as the "spigot" for a little cascade of water. And floating on the surface, adding movement and whimsy, were some figs. What a fun idea!

Wonderful textures down low: terra cotta, stripped-bark branches, pebbles, and a soft, trailing plant:

I stayed clear of most of the chain and big-box stores, because why bother? I can see those in my own home town any day. But I did pop in to Sur le Table, where my sister and I were amused by these spatulas, because when we were growing up, her family nickname was "Bee" and mine was "Bug":

If you ever get up in the Bay Area, try to clear some time to visit the charming burg of Los Gatos.

It's simply ducky.