Blue & White Napa

Hello friends! So I just got back from Napaaa.  Yep, it was awesome.  The last time I was there, I was 7 months pregnant.  I ate so much food to compensate for the lack of wine that I gained 7 pounds in 4 days! (It was worth it obviously).  It really is a foodie's paradise and beautiful to boot.

I'll spare you a detailed rundown of everything we did, but here are a few highlights (mostly of the blue and white variety).

* Auberge du Soleil

The view from Auberge is pretty much my Heaven.   We woke up and had an early, quiet breakfast overlooking the valley.  That hour was enough to re-energize me for the rest of the year. 

* St. Helena 

St. Helena is probably my favorite little town in Napa Valley.  We walked up and down Main St. a couple of times waiting for stores to open (everything opens around 10:30ish there). 

When we stumbled upon this restaurant I gasped.  The painted brick, the gate, and ... 

Archetype

... a huge screened-in porch with blue and white ticking pillows!  You know I LOVE a screened-in porch.  Not pictured is a giant wall of potted plants and herbs. 

Archetype's Screened-in Porch

Upon further research, I discovered that Architectural Digest named Archetype one of the "10 Most Beautifully Designed" restaurants. 
 
As I was snapping pictures, a patron came over to us to rave about the food.  I'm definitely adding this to my list of places to go next time I visit. 

We did a little "shopping."  And by shopping I mean, I snapped pictures of things I wanted to buy.  

This large white coral from Martin Showroom is exactly what I need for an empty shelf above the sofa in the library.

 

I stalked this blue and white antique shop window for 45 minutes before they opened. 

Open.  Open.  Open.

See, no face prints on the glass.  Y'all should be proud of my willpower.


* Back in Napa

Not 5 minutes in Napa, and I spotted this beautiful cobalt blue hand-painted chest in Thomas Bartlett Interiors.  I had a strong desire to give it a hug.  The color was so beautiful.

More blue and white in Thomas Bartlett

We visited a couple wine spots including Chateau Montelena (gorgeous grounds, good Chardonnay, which I normally don't drink), Del Dotto (amazing cave tour, loved all of the wine).  I happened to be reading in the car this post from MFAMB where she linked to this Remodelista article on the Scottish-inspired Cairdean Estate.  We had an extra hour and I was hungry so we popped in!

Outdoor seating for their restaurant The Farmer & The Fox - love the whimsy

The restaurant is only open for dinner, but we had a lovely sandwich from their bakery and sandwich shop, adorably-named Butterscots.  I'd love to go back when the grounds are finished.  There was still quite a bit of construction, but the design is so fun and interesting that I'd love to see what else they have in store. 

Y'all, I feel rejuvenated and lucky.  It was a really fabulous weekend.  Kip gets to spend some time out there for work once or twice a year (I know, tough gig) so I know I will be back.  I can't wait!

I'd love any recommendations from y'all!

Here are a few more places of note for anyone visiting soon:

Annette's Chocolate & Ice Cream (Napa) - Go there for coffee and order the Almond Mocha - so delicious!

Bottega (Yountville) - Amazing food, ask for Murph to be your waiter and then let him tell you what to eat. 

Pennyweight (St. Helena) - prettiest selection of fine stationery and gifts

Torc (Napa) - Relatively new restaurant, great atmosphere, amazing food and service

Jan de Luz (St. Helena) - gorgeous monogrammed linens

The Christopher Hill Gallery (St. Helena) - contemporary fine art, Christopher is also the nicest person in the world and so fun to talk to, we had so much fun analyzing the work of this cheeky artist Mario Garcia Miro

St. Helena Olive Oil Company - I literally tasted everything in there.  I ended up buying their Nuovo Olio 2014, which is the first press for 2014.  It was so good.  I'm turning into an Olive Oil junky.