Here in Sonoma County we get our entire year’s rainfall between October and June.  Normally gray rain clouds are punctuated by bright blue skies, but this year it was one long gray march to summer.   The up side to months of Scotland-like weather: happy water tables, full reservoirs and spring plant colors that dazzled.   I was particularly taken in by the pinks.  Pink flowers were everywhere-soft pinks, brilliant pinks, double pinks-I’ll remember spring 2010 in Sonoma County as PRETTY IN PINK and I snapped lots of photos when the sky did give us a sunny break.  They’re my tribute to spring and my welcome to summer.  Happy summer solstice!

Wishing you  lots of BBQ’s, tomatoes and languid days this summer.

Tribute To The Summer Solstice In Sonoma County is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

I’ve never had better bread anywhere in the world!

I love when amazing food is also healthy….

and Wild Flour is one of those places that’s foodie nirvana for me.

I take just about all of my out of town guest to Wild Flour.  It’s a Sonoma County destination that’s ‘not to be missed’.   I’m always recommending it to my out of town patients when they’re looking for something unique to do while they’re in Sebastopol.

Tourists from all over the country know about Wild Flour because the media’s found it, including CNN. Surprisingly though, it’s never overly crowded and it remains authentically local.

Wild Flour Bakery is in bucolic Freestone. The drive to the bakery is beautiful from every direction, but it’s even better to make the trip part of a little loop out to the coast or to the small town of Occidental.  It takes about 20 minutes to get there from Sebastopol, driving due west through beautiful countryside towards the ocean. It’s important to know that the bakery is only open on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

The breads, scones, sticky buns and biscotti made at Wild Flour are hearty, organic and a baked in a WOOD FIRED BRICK OVEN! They bake their breads continuously and there’s always something hot coming out of the oven. If you time it right, you might get extra lucky and be there when one of the CHEESE BREADS are coming out and –oh boy- there’s hunks of warm cheese in hot fresh herbed bread and little crispy bits where the cheese escaped and hardened on the pan.  Nowhere have I had bread like this; I just can’t tell you how wonderful it is.  The same with the walnut sticky buns-crispy cinnamon sugar on the edge and tons swirled in the center-and it’s all organic.  Believe me, you’re going to want to try everything, and the bakery staff are ready to let you; they have samples of all their breads cut up into little tastes and this bread tasting alone is worth the drive.

And this from me who rarely eats bread or cow dairy products (they don’t agree with me), and walnuts give me hives-but at Wild Flour I throw caution to the wind; like a bear willing to brave the bees for the honey in their hive. I pick the walnuts out of the sticky buns, eat the hunks of cheese in the cheese bread, and I take my chances…. because it’s that good.

Last weekend we went out to the coast for a picnic at our favorite spot overlooking Goat Rock State Beach.  We stopped at Wild Flour to get a loaf of bread, which made a perfect ’sandwich’ with artisan cured meats and Drunken Goat Cheese from Whole Foods.  (Accompanied by cold slaw and a glass of our pinot noir)

After I took this photo, we had a visit from a very friendly raven hoping for a handout.

Delicious food, beautiful scenery and entertaining wild life.  It was a lovely and easy get-away!

For more information about Wild Flour Bakery, visit their web site.

Wild Flour Bakery-Amazing Artisan Bread And A Beautiful Drive is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

Nothing compares to picking produce warm from the sun and popping it into your mouth-it’s teaming with antioxidants, vitamins and flavor.  Even if all you grow is a tub of cherry tomatoes, those tomatoes will be the tastiest ones you eat this summer.

We have one of the best organic veggie garden resource centers here in Sebastopol- Harmony Farm Supply.  I always recommend a stop at Harmony for my out-of-town gardener patients. We Sonoma County folks love our veggie gardens and Harmony Farm Supply is gardener nirvana.

Harmony Farm Supply is staffed with career plants-people and chock full of everything an organic gardener needs:

• The range of seeds and veggie starts spans from old garden standbys to a huge variety of esoteric heirloom and native varieties with lyrical, ethnic names that are fun to try
• Garden bug, disease and pest experts with organic solutions, if and when our plants start looking funny (I owe these guys for all the help they’ve given me over the years)
• All the organic fertilizer options in the known universe for big, happy veggie plants  that are teaming with vitality and nutrients (the basis of a healthy diet)
• Irrigation experts who help figure out how to water the garden even when we’re not home
• All the other stuff we gardeners could possibly need (tools, pots, trellising, etc.)

The recent weather report says it’ll be 80 degrees for the next 10 days.  That’s an early hot spell and you bet I got my veggie garden in this weekend.  I count my blessings that Harmony is just 10 minutes from my house.  It’s also just 15 minutes north of my office on Highway 116.

They have a small web site but there’s no substitute for bringing your shopping list and questions into Harmony.  After a trip to Harmony, I’ll bet non-gardeners find inspiration for having at least a pot of cherry tomatoes on their patio this summer.

Harmony Farm Supply-A Destination Organic Gardening Center for Spring Veggie Gardening is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

This morning the Laguna De Santa Rosa was a glorious burst of color from the office reception room.  Spring is around the corner and it’s a lovely time to be in Sonoma County!

Sebastopol View of Mustard Blooming in the Laguna De Santa Rosa is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

In my February 3rd post I described my favorite stores on the west side of the Sebastopol’s North Main Street. In today’s post I’ll complete my recommendations on our  main shopping street with the east side of North Main Street.

Silk Moon

This store is a Sebastopol treasure chest of extraordinary hand woven textiles from around the world.  The owner Janet started with a small store and has had to move into bigger spaces twice to keep up with the demand; people just can’t get enough of her beautiful textiles, most of which are from South East Asia.  Janet travels extensively in Asia, developing personal relationships with the people who produce the beautiful hand woven textiles that she sells. All the items are fair trade and her relationships with her producers can be felt in the warm ambiance of the store.  I’ve bought many gifts and items for myself at Silk Moon, including the blue runner on the reception room table in our office.

195 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 824-4300

Web Site www.silkmoon.org

Dressers

Mother and daughter owners Mary and Tessa carry many of my favorite clothing brands at Dressers. These are perfect California clothes that can be dressed up or down and are flattering and wonderful to wear. A quick survey of their merchandise in my closet includes Velvet, Michael Starrs, Repeat, Cosabella, White+Warren, Christopher Blue, Theory, , Weston Wear, and Bibelot, all of which I’ve gotten good use out of.  Mary, Tessa and their staff know their fashion and will help you find stylish clothes that look good on your particular body. The clothing brands at Dressers aren’t cheap, but because the staff are terrific at putting clothing combinations together I get the maximal use out of what I buy.  Most of the cloths they carry are for women, but there is a small selection of men’s cloths too.

Location 145 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA Phone (707) 829-8757

Sprint Copy Center

The paper wizards at family run Sprint Copy Center keep my business going with the educational pamphlets and other paper products that we use in our practice.  If you have a business or personal project that involves formatting or printing, these guys give you the personal attention that gets the job from creative inception to finished product.

Located at 175 North Main Street, Sebastoopol, CA 94572 Phone (707) 823-3900

Web Site www.sprintcopycenter.net

See my post on the West Side of North Main Street.

More ideas for spending quality time in Sebastopol: Take a wonderful art walk on Florence Ave and grab a bite at Peter Lowell’s.

Places I Love To Shop In Sebastopol-North Main Street’s East Side is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

Our main shopping area is North Main Street on the one block section of Highway 116 between McKinley Street and Bodega Highway.   North Main Street is packed with great stores and the highest concentration of my favorite Sebastopol retailers are here:

In this post I’ll give a summary of the stores I frequently shop at on the west side of North Main Street:

My Favorite Stores On The West Side Of North Main Street In Sebastopol CA

Artisana

Artisana is always the first place that comes to my mind when I want to give a special gift.  Tej Greenhill, the owner, and an artist herself, has a fantastic eye for selecting lovely hand crafted jewelry, home accessories, leather goods, textiles and other functional items. I’m tempted by everything in this wonderful store and have bought a number of items for myself here as well as many gifts over the years.

Located at 146 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 829-3036

Web Site www.artisanafunctionalart.com

Copperfield’s Used and Rare Books

An absolutely incredible selection of beautiful ‘coffee table’ books, art monographs, big glossy picture books for cooks and gardeners etc. Copperfield’s is very selective about the used books they purchase making their shelves  a real treasure trove.  I found my favorite, beautifully illustrated Mediterranean cook book here one day when I was just browsing.  When I started taking painting classes I went straight to Copperfield’s Used Books to buy inspirational art monographs of my favorite artists. Much of my garden design inspiration came from books I bought here as well.

Located at 176 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 829-0429

Web Site www.copperfieldsbooks.com

Cultivate

Our new housewares store with an irresistible collection of table linens, cookware, tableware etc. This store is dangerous retail for me as an insatiable foodie.  I’m always eager to try the next healthy cooking trend and of course outfit myself with the proper cookware for the job.  I’m REALLY happy to see Cultivate in town.   I did quite a bit of my 2009 Christmas shopping here and I can’t wait to see what they’ll bring in for spring.

Located in the Basso Building at 186 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 824-1400

Incredible Records

Jonathon Lipsin, the owner of this one of a kind music store has been in the music business his entire life (as was his father).  He’s  a great resource for me when I’m looking for a particular type of CD, but don’t know enough to even begin my search.

His store is also a trip down memory lane because it’s filled with  rare rock memorabilia that many of us baby boomers grew up with.  I love to browse his posters collection because I had some of those posters in the 60’s and 70’s.

Located at 112 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA Phone (707) 824-8099

Rosemary’s Garden

Anyone interested in making their own natural personal care products needs to know about this store. You can get expert advice on making or using natural care products from the experienced staff here.  They also carry wide selection of ready made botanical products including essential oils, tinctures, body care products, teas, candles and culinary herbs. Rosemary’s Garden also carries a number of good books on making natural care products.  The store smells heavenly and it’s worth a trip in for that.

Located at 132 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 829-2539

Sumbody

Beautifully made natural, organic skin care that  perfectly complement my professional skin care products. Deborah Burnes, the founder of Sumbody, has extraordinary expertise in formulating natural ingredients into practical, luxurious and effective skin care products.  My aestheticians use some of her products for their facials and skin care treatments.  My aestheticians also sell several of Deborah’s eye creams and face creams to their clients as well.  Doborah’s products are popular with the Hollywood celebrity world-proving that you can never underestimate the uniqueness of little Sebastopol!

Located at 118 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA 95472 Phone (707) 823-2053

Web Site www.sumbody.com

Sebastopol Gallery

Our local gallery featuring some of our many local artists.  I’ve taken workshops with oil painter Sterling Hoffmann whose work is featured in the gallery.  Also, my husband had jewelry artist Anita Selinger make me a lovely necklace and earrings for our 25th wedding anniversary.

Located at 150 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA Phone (707) 829-7200

Web Site www.sebastopol-gallery.com

Copperfield’s Books

In addition to Copperfield’s Used and Rare Books, North Main Street has Copperfield’s Books for new books.  This is a lovely, local bookstore with knowledgeable friendly staff.  I order my new book purchases from Copperfield’s.  They get me my books just as fast as if I ordered from Amazon and I’m ‘going local’.

Located at 138 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA  95472 Phone (707) 823-2618

Web Site www.copperfieldsbooks.com

These are the stores that I find myself patronizing the most on the west side of Sebastopol’s North Main Street.  There are a number of other lovely stores that I also visit from time to time including a wonderful organic bedding store and another gift store  in the Basso Building.  Also in the Basso Building is a new old fashion candy store.  The block also has a nice little bead store, an art supply store and an import clothing store.  There are also several places to eat on the same side of the street.

You can spend a lot of quality time strolling this one block on the west side of North Main Street in Sebastopol!

Next post in the series-The East Side of North Main Street in Sebastopol.  There are two real retail treasures that you can’t miss if your in town.

If you liked this post, you may want to read:

Visit Florence Avenue for a Walk, Delightful Art and a Great Meal-Very Sebastopol!

Places I Love To Shop in Sebastopol-North Main Street is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

Patrick Amiots makes enormous, joyful, comic sculptures from found objects.  He lives on Florence Avenue and most of his neighbors have one of his big sculptures in their front yard.   To visit Florence Avenue, park anywhere on Florence between Highway 116 and Wilton and walk those few blocks.  There’s even some of his pieces on Huntley.   My dear friend Lorraine from Australia took photos of some of the Florence pieces when she visited me this summer:

Patrick Amiot is a real West County treasure and a proliferic artist.  If you keep your eyes open in Sebastopol, you’ll see his work all over our town.

Peter Lowell’s restaurant is right on the corner of Florence Avenue and Highway 116.  For me, Peter Lowell’s really nails the Sebastopol food scene.  His biodynamic, local, organic ingredients come out of the 800 degree hearth oven and make my ‘health nut’ foody heart quiver!  My favorites are the macro bowl (which I never tire of) and his amazing thin crust pizzas.  The wines, coffee and teas are also organic, thoughtful, local and not to be missed either.  Take a look at the building that houses the restaurant.  It’s a cool live/work project made from entirely green construction.  It represents the type of lifestyle that many Sebastopolians envision for our towns future.  The landscaping is particularily interesting to me as a gardener.

If you want a longer walk, you can cross the very busy Highway 116 and walk up Ellis Ct. to the West County/Rodota trail.  This paved bike path actually goes all the way from Forestville to Santa Rosa.  You can bring your dogs and give them a good workout too.  I recommend walking left until the trail meets on Highway 116 then turning back and walking until it hits High School Road.  That gives a nice little walk either before or after your meal at Peter Lowell’s.

View Larger Map

More ideas for spending quality time in and around Sebastopol

Places I Love To Shop In Sebastopol-North Main Street

Places I Love To Shop In Sebastopol-North Main Street’s East Side

Visit Florence Avenue for a Walk, Delightful Art and a Great Meal-Very Sebastopol! is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog

Sculpture by Sebastopol Artist Patrick Amiot on Florence Ave.

There’s no place quite like Sebastopol!

I love giving my out of town patients recommendations on what to do here.

Sebastopol’s the hub for the artsy and alternative culture of Western Sonoma County. Our town is small and not touristy, yet our businesses thrive because so many people come through Sebastopol on there way to the Russian River or our beautiful coast. This means that our stores and restaurants rock!

Many of my patients are from out of town and drive hours to my office. They want to run errands, eat, and stretch their legs before driving home again. I love giving patients my recommendations for how to spending time in Sebastopol. By posting my favorite Sebastopol things to do here on my blog, I hope to give my out of town patients good ideas for what they can do here in wonderful ‘West County’.

Ideas for spending quality time in and around Sebastopol:

Visit Florence Ave for a Nice Walk, Delightful Art and a Great Meal-Very Sebastopol!

Places I Love To Shop In Sebastopol-North Main Street

Places I Love To Shop In Sebastopol-North Main Street’s East Side

Around Sebastopol is a post from: OTB Skin Care Blog