Have you ever visited the Mojave desert? In the high desert you can vanish into the surrounding nature: the sunlight, the starry nights and the spaciousness of it all. 

Before visiting Joshua Tree for the first time, I had never experienced anything quite like it's landscape and terrain. It almost felt like the surface of some faraway planet, but amazingly it is here on Earth, a textural horizon, scattered with Joshua Trees and rocky formations. The National Park spans 1,200 square miles of the Mojave and Colorado deserts. 

Over the past 3 years, we have made an annual trip out to Joshua Tree, which is about a 3 hour drive east of downtown Los Angeles. 

This year, our trip was for a long awaited block-printing workshop that I participated in with Block Shop textiles! Today, I will share some photos from the area near Joshua Tree National Park, where we stayed, and a few of our favorite hikes. 

I hope you are ready for a mid-week escape to the desert with me! 

The Togetherness House where we stayed was a few miles from the west entrance of the park. As the name itself, inspires connection to self, others, and your surroundings. The house is a mid-century pioneering woman's dream. It's mid-century furnishings, cozy area rugs, and a large front picnic friendly front porch.

This home's owners were drawn to the property and all of the accessible adventures that the National Park had to offer. The quiet, stillness of the desert, and, really, the people. According to them, everyone up here has a story and they are incredibly friendly, it has a real small town feel with a contemporary attitude of eco-consciousness, equal rights, and artists galore.

While we drove, I noticed many signs pointing to various artist studios throughout the town. In the morning, we enjoyed waking up to the sweeping views from the front porch and enjoying breakfast outdoors!

Some of our favorite things about the Togetherness House are as follows:

• the kitchen
• the collection of books on architecture, arts, and photography
• cozy floor mats
• mid-century furniture and feel 
• outdoor living space 
• location near the National Park 

For us, this place really is perfection, with it's mid-century flourishes. Furthermore, the home offered us plenty of sleeping accommodations as a family of 3. I hope to return to share the space with family friends in the future. 
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Yes, California really is all about the outdoor living, The Togetherness House is located on an large plot of wilderness with some footpaths for you to enjoy. 
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In the evening, we made a toast to a successful family trip and our time together! True to form my husband came up with a custom mixed drink for the occasion: The Joshua Tree, which features bourbon, apricot, and thyme. 

You can check out the Joshua Tree drink recipe too~ cheers!

Meanwhile our son, nature boy was really enjoying the local scenery by lining up a solid rock collection! The surrounding nature is surreal and inspiring: branches and rock formations dispersed wildly.

I hope you have enjoyed getting lost with me:) I always feel much more peaceful, inspired and motivated, when I return from even a little getaway. My son actually did not want to leave. There is something transformative about time spent in nature and what it does for us all, and especially children, filling our craving for exploration and freedom. 

If you would like to see more posts on west coast travel, then please check out our guides:
Kauai Guide and Seattle Travel Guide 
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Next week, I promise to share a few photos of the textiles workshop, which was creative and inspiring! I hope you will check back in to see.  

Come away with me to see exclusive and original photos of the Pink City, Jaipur, I have the perfect photos to treat your eyes and satisfy your wanderlust today. Our visit to the Rajasthan area of North Indian was rich in inspiration, color and patterns. The Rajasthan region is rich in color, culture and arts. Jaipur, the Pink City, is one of my favorites and was named for the color of the stone used in many of the building structures. Today, I would like to share some arts and architecture to inspire you, especially if you are considering a visit to North India! 

Samode Palace lies on the outskirts of the city. It is a magical place that offers a lot of stunning visuals and historic architecture. Sunny yellow motifs, bougainvillea, and pink dahlias greet guests as they arrive. 

Are you feeling inspired yet? Just look at all those hand-painted wall patterns!

​If you are as passionate as block printed textiles and patterns as I am, then please read on to see exclusive photos from a block-printing factory and more candid shots of Jaipur.. 

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Last weekend, we took a (much needed) trip up to Seattle to reconnect with old friends and celebrate their 10-year wedding anniversary. We had been looking forward to seeing our friends, our vacation at the end of summer and another chance to explore Seattle, the nexus of the Pacific Northwest. The last time we visited the city, we stayed in the downtown area, so this time we opted to stay adjacent to the city's center. This was a perfect location for us because our friends stayed less than 1 mile away, the neighborhood was walkable, and featured lots of great restaurants. 

Lucky for us, we discovered a designer townhouse near Seattle University right where Squire Park meets the hip and walkable Capitol Hill neighborhood. 

Read on, to see the neighborhood highlights and why I recommend staying in this location and this townhouse, if it's available when you visit!