Author: mrsem

Last night’s dinner party was probably the best in terms of food that we’ve hosted so far. A delicious spread of homestyle Mexican food focusing on fresh seasonal produce straight from farmer’s market. Menu Chips and homemade salsa Pollo en salsa chile de arbol tacos Rice with fresh cranberry beans and cilantro Pickled onions Mini…

I’m just back from farmer’s market and ready to start cooking. Can you guess what the theme of this week’s dinner party is going to be?

Rob captured a few photos of me waiting for a Lyft pickup on Saturday night. We were meeting my sister and brother-in-law for a birthday dinner in the Mission – the current hub of the hipster foodie scene in San Francisco. Skinny jeans are de rigueur, but isn’t it nice to dress up if you’re going…

The 1985 Merchant Ivory version of A Room with a View is one of my all-time favorite movies. Helena Bonham Carter is so lovely as the moody Lucy. And all those gorgeous settings in Italy and “Windy Corner.” This outfit is inspired by the movie without being too costume-y. Perfect for a warm fall weekend…

We’re going to cook an authentic African meal together with my parents and family friends tonight! My Mom and her good friend lived in Ethiopia while working with the Peace Corps. For Christmas, I bought her a suite of authentic Ethiopian spices online, and yesterday I walked down to the corner deli on Grove Street,…

Rob and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary last weekend. A perfect time to share the results of having a painter, instead of a photographer, document our Sausalito wedding ceremony and reception. This was back in 2008, when Rob and I were still occasionally photographing weddings on weekends as a favor to friends. Rob was using…

Yesterday, I showed you the wedding paintings that Paul Ferney made for the preparations and ceremony at our 2008 event. Today, I’ll show you his photos from the reception. Starting with probably my favorite of all the wedding paintings: a small simple portrait in the window seat at the Sausalito Women’s Club: Along with our…

Rob and I joined up with the Volunteers for Outdoor California (“V.O.Cal”) on Sunday for a day of trail repair at San Bruno Mountain, just south of San Francisco. We’ve occasionally volunteered with the National Parks, but none of those work days involved heavy-duty backcountry firefighting gear! We’re both now pros at using McLeod rakes…

Boxy crop tops are one of the few fall fashion trends I can really get behind (why is everyone selling sweatpants!?). The cut is a bit of a throw-back to the 1960’s and 1990’s but with a modern, flirty style that works perfectly for the office when paired with a high-waisted skirt. Top – A…

Banana Republic is having one of their usual, bonkers sales this week. Online you can find a few good deals, but the real steals are in stores. Clearance items are an additional 50% off the discounted prices.  Margaret and I went last night and came home with a black wrap dress and slacks…basically for free.…