San Francisco!

This past weekend I went to San Francisco to visit my friend M (M is living there for the summer). I really wanted to be in LA for William and Kate's visit but this was the only weekend I could go up north (we made sure to check What Kate Wore every day!). I didn't have to work on Friday so I went up in the afternoon and met M downtown near her office.

Friday night:
We had dinner at Chow which is very close to M's apartment. We had SO much to catch up on!

Saturday:
M made breakfast and then we headed to the Ferry Building. Saturday is one of the farmer's market days so it was packed! Great people watching and the sun came out!
Warning: crazy wind blown hair alert!

(you can see the Bay Bridge in the background)

There was the cutest bakery/pastry shop called Miette. I found anchor chocolate bars there!

Photo source

Nautical pink and green placemats at a restaurant we passed:


We had grilled cheese from Cowgirl Creamery (I of course had their delicious chocolate milk too ;)

Then we took the bus to Golden Gate Park. We walked all around the park. I loved the lake and playgrounds. The weather was a lot cooler and there was no sun but still nice to explore!


After the park we sat at a cute coffee shop to warm up!

Back to M's apartment, changed, then took the bus to dinner at Pizzeria Delfina. Delicious! Great shopping nearby, including this adorable children's store, Mud Pie. I saw nautical flags so I had to go in! Here are the nautical flags I spied:


We watched Four Weddings and a Funeral after dinner. I can't believe I hadn't seen it!

Sunday:
We went to brunch with M's cousin, T, who lives in San Francisco. We ate at Greens, which had a gorgeous view of the water!


After brunch T gave us a driving tour of the city. The weather was PERFECT! We drove all around: we saw my stepmom's old apartment in Nob Hill, Coit Tower, and everywhere in between.



(you can sorta see Golden Gate Bridge in the distance)

Then T dropped us off in the Marina to do some shopping and exploring. I loved the shops in this neighborhood! I was so excited to see the Toss Designs store in person. The store also carries some Vineyard Vines, Rikshaw Designs, and A.Tierney!

Nautical park in the Marina! I spy 2 anchors:


After shopping we walked up a HUGE hill to see the house from Mrs. Doubtfire and Alta Plaza Park (AMAZING views of the city and really cute playground).


Then we raced back to M's apartment, I packed up and I headed to the airport. M was the best hostess and really planned everything perfectly. A quick but very fun trip!

Jonathan Adler: Nautical Niceties!

Just got this email from Jonathan Adler. I love everything! I've had the anchor pillow on my wishlist forever. Perfect color combo for my bedroom!

These whale bookends are new and would look great on any bookshelf! I could see them in a nursery (lucky baby!), home office or my bedroom (HA! I can dream)


Seahorse lamp:


I think I would have a smile on my face every time I drank out of these mugs:


Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?! Adorable for your nautical kitchen!
Jar:

Polyvore!

I have always loved browsing Polyvore for outfit inspiration! I have seen some really cute ideas and found fun nautical outfits! I am starting to create more sets, including some reader requests (keep sending them in!). Here are my recent outfits:

Chambray and stripes for summer! by Nautical By Nature featuring a ruched dress

Chambray and stripes for summer (kids) by Nautical By Nature featuring logo t shirts

J.Crew flats by Nautical By Nature featuring print shoes

Gingham Shorts! by Nautical By Nature featuring gingham shorts

Sea-inspired fashion: Guest Blog post by Seashells and Southern Belles

Hey everyone! It's Jana from Seashells and Southern Belles, a blog about all things nautical, sea-inspired, and southern. I am a huge fan of Kate and her blog and I am truly honored to be here guest posting at Nautical by Nature today!

I am majorly obsessed with sea-inspired fashion, if it's coral or has a seahorse or seashell on it, I will love it and want it! Today, I wanted to share with you some of my favorite pieces that are inspired by sea creatures.

Seahorse

Coach Romona Sandal


Tracy Negoshian Seahorse Dress:


Fornash Seahorse Earrings:

Seashells

Anthropologie She Sells Tank:


Lilly Pulitzer Stuffed Shells Shorts:


Anthropologie Sandy Secrets Top:

Starfish

Fornash Starfish Necklace:


Vineyard Vines Beach House Starfish Dress:


Betsey Johnson bracelet:

Coral

Mud Pie Color Me Coral Tunic:


Vestique Coral Tree Necklace:


Furbish Turquoise Coral Necklace:


I hope you enjoyed my sea-inspired picks. A big thanks to Kate for letting me stop by today!

New monograms in my apartment!

I posted about my decals in this post and this post. Well I have added several new monogrammed items to my apartment!

Here are the new(ish) things I have added to my collection:

Monogrammed blanket. This was a Christmas present from my friend M. It perfectly matches my bedding. It is from Lands' End.


Framed monogram decal over my fireplace. I saw this on Jill's blog and thought it was such a great idea! I didn't want to put my decal directly on the wall since I'm in an apartment and am not sure how long I'll be living here. So I copied Jill's idea and framed it! The decal is from Decal Monograms.


Anchor monogram from Decal Monograms. I put this on a bin I found at Marshalls.


Monogrammed cup from Marley Lilly:

Nautical Outfit of the Week: Tiffany

I always love "meeting" a fellow prep in crazy LA! Tiffany and I haven't met in person yet but hopefully soon we can get together and talk all things west coast preppy! Here is Tiffany and her fiance, Isaac, at their engagement party last month. Thanks to my tweet about the nautical things at Target, Tiffany was able to stock up for the party! Her dress is old school J.Crew circa 2003/2004.

Nautical Pet Accessories

I really miss having a dog. I can't wait to get one (that's years away but I am already counting down). My mom adopted our neighbor's cat when they moved so I'm thinking he might need a nautical collar... ;)

Here are some nautical dog (and one cat) accessories I found. I have a slight obsession with the boat beds!

Sailor's Knot Solid Natural Collar:



Boat bed:


Skipper Collar:


Anchors Away tank:


Boat dog bed:


Nautical Refillable Kitty Catnip Mat:

Back from Mexico!

Before I recap my trip I just wanted to thank the girls that guest blogged for me last week! I love each post and hope you enjoyed them too! I am going out of town again soon so stay tuned for some more fun guest posts! In case you missed last week's posts:
Nautical Makeup
Summer Essentials
Nautical Interior Design
Nautical Outfit Ideas
Nautical DIY Crafts

And now onto MEXICO!

My sister and I had a very relaxing trip to Playa Del Carmen. We didn't have the best weather (just one day of actual sun) but it was nice to rest, read, drink margaritas, eat a ton of delicious guacamole, and explore. It rained almost the whole trip but we had a perfect beach day our first full day.

Loved the nautical street signs!


Our hotel is partnered with a great beach club, Mamitas, that was free for us to use. There is nothing better than just floating in the beautiful ocean on a sunny day! Then we could lounge on our chairs and soak up the sun (good thing we stayed all day since the sun never came out again!).

The beach club (images from mamitas website):



What it looked like during our non-sunny afternoon (had a small window without rain so we went to the beach):


I was sad we didn't get to go parasailing or snorkeling but the weather just wasn't right for those activities. We did do a really cool "adventure" in one of the underground rivers (perfect for a rainy day since you are underground). There are these underground, secret rivers and caves. We did the Rio Secreto and it was AMAZING!!! You wear a wetsuit, life vest, and helmet (with a light) and explore these caves formed by an underground river. There are some beautiful rock formations (think stalactites and stalagmites).

I'm on the right (the most unflattering outfit you could imagine!):


The photos below are ones I found on google (since you can't take a camera inside-the guide takes a photo of you):



Restaurants we went to:
Carboncitos
La Parilla
Ajua Maya
Ah Cacao
Casa Mediterranea
John Gray's Place