Third and Fairfax

At 3rd and Fairfax you will find a little place called the Grove/Farmer's Market. This is another place that I used to frequent as a teenager living in Hollywood that has now become a tourist attraction and home of tv's Extra (why??). But it still has a soft spot in my heart and I love roaming the stalls at the Farmer's Market and trying some new delicious meal. Although, let's be honest here- most of the time I end up at the French crepe stand. Look at the goodies we found!

On this particular day it happened to be very hot outside so my sister and I decided to treat ourselves to a nice air conditioned lunch at the French restaurant inside the Grove. I adored their wall near the entrance and had to snap a shot...

I love how perfectly imperfect it is. 

Well, that's all for now. Have a great evening!

Butter goes to...

A visit to Los Angeles just would not be complete without a trip to the beach! We always seem to end up at Venice beach (the part off Washington, not so much the boardwalk). It's less crowded than the touristy Santa Monica beach and there are lots of fun places to visit near by. We usually end up taking a stroll down to the boardwalk but quickly return once we are feeling overwhelmed by the masses of people, body builders, and smoke scented air. If you are feeling hungry I always enjoy C&O Trattoria just up the street- their garlic rolls are amazing! 

As you can see the weather was perfect and it was great to spend some time relaxing in the sun (with sunscreen, of course!). Julian was the only one brave enough to enter the water this time (it was very cold!) but even that was a short lived adventure. I ended up burying him in the sand after just so he could warm back up!

Nothing quite beats the California coast.

The Good Urth

Oh, Urth Cafe. I loved you long before you became a mecca for the "see and be seen" crowd that flocks to you in hopes of accidental fame these days. Your strong Italian lattes stole my young heart when I was only fifteen years old and I will never stop loving you. Your bake sale pastries and deserts fill me with joy and you are still the only place I will order a restaurant pie. Mr. Butter and I often catch ourselves saying "if only we could go to Urth Cafe right now..." and daydreaming about the treasures you offer. 

Note to visitors: My favorite treats are the decadent chocolate pound cake (they give you three huge slices) and the deep dish peach pie. Always ask for your treat warmed- it will make it taste 1,000 times more delicious! The belgian waffle with strawberries and bananas is also delightful!

These visions of creamy coffee treats are going to dance around in my head as I drift off into sleep tonight...

To Infinity and BEYOND!

In all of my years spent in Los Angeles I am surprised to say that I never actually visited the Griffith Observatory. When I first arrived in the City of Angeles it was under renovation but I remember there was a big to do when it reopened. I have visited the park on numerous occasions but this, my friends, was my first trip the the observatory itself. 

We went with the intentions of viewing one of the planetarium shows about vikings and the Northern Lights (sounds amazing, right??), but much to our surprise the place was packed. We had to park so far away that we practically got in another hike. We missed our viking show and had to settle for one about the Mayan prediction of the end of times. It wasn't nearly as dramatic as we had anticipated but very fun indeed!

I think my sister fell in love and this is her new favorite place/soon to be second home. She was quite smitten with the Tesla coil and the Cafe at the End of the Universe. I even caught her pondering the ways of the universe with Albert Einstein. 

Another must see next time you are in Los Angeles!

Until next time- May the force be with you.

(Yes, I am aware I am a total nerd.)

Butter goes to...

My sister is living the fabulous LA life and just happens to live down the street from Runyon Canyon. What is Runyon Canyon, you say? It's the hot spot in LA to go for a run. We used to visit Runyon frequently when we lived in the Hollywood Hills and I have fond memories of walks taken there with my mom and Greg. I don't know why on earth I ever stopped going!

There are a couple of courses to choose from in the Canyon, and one happens to be very steep and quite the challenge. As you can imagine, I was feeling pretty accomplished after reaching the top. My brother Julian patiently waited for us at the top and then we ran back down as one happy little family. 

But the views! Oh, the views- you must see them! You can see the entire city and quite a good glimpse at the Hollywood sign. Plus, it's excellent people watching up there. Hardly anyone is wearing proper work out gear, and I spotted numerous women attempting to "exercise" in bikini tops. 

It's a fun little adventure if you ever find yourself in that neck of the woods! 

California Dreaming

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to sneak away for the weekend to visit my brother in Los Angeles for a few days. I bought a very last minute plane ticket and took off for sunny California for a long overdue visit (it had been 2 years since I last saw him!). 

The first night I got there we went to the Hollywood Bowl to see the BBC/Discovery Channel's Frozen Planet in concert. The Los Angeles Philharmonic provided the tunes and there were big screens displaying scenes from the documentary. It was amazing! We were given polar bear masks at the entrance and you better believe we had fun with them!

It was my mom and sister's first trip to the bowl, and I think it was a hit! My best friend Liz joined us for the evening as well. One of my favorite things about the Hollywood Bowl (besides the amazing view) is that it is picnic friendly! We brought a nice spread of wine, cheeses, fruit, and veggies to snack on. I am always amazed that even though the bowl is in the heart of Hollywood, it is so peaceful once you are inside. I spent a lot of time there in high school, and it had been years since I last saw a show there. It was such a treat! The only thing missing was Mr. Butter (he had to stay in P-Town and work).

Can you tell I was excited to see my Lizzieloo?? 

Anytime you are in LA during the summer you should definitely catch a show at the Hollywood Bowl! 

To Rome With Love

The other day Mr. Butter and I went on a little movie date to see WoodyAllen's newest creation, To Rome With Love. The highlight of this movie for us was, of course- the setting! We were excited to see the streets and piazzas where we spent our honeymoon together. The images of the Eternal city and the wonderful italian music were certainly the best parts of the movie. The film was written and directed by Woody (of course!) so I think you can know what to expect without me having to say much. However, I much preferred the story in Midnight In Paris to this one. 

All in all it was fun to cuddle up in the movie theater and enjoy a walk down memory lane with my husband! 

Photo via this site.

Let the Good Times Roll

Last weekend I decided to throw a little birthday bash for myself and celebrate another year on this beautiful earth with a few friends. I haven't thrown a party in a long while, but I certainly enjoy doing so! I tend to go a little overboard, and the perfectionist in me comes out. 

I am surrounded by all kinds of awesome creative inspiration at work every day and it gets my mind racing with ideas! We have festive tissue pom poms hanging in one of our windows, and I decided I had to learn how to do them and make some for the party. Then I found an awesome kraft paper flag that I decorated with muted pink and green paper and some sparkly alphabet stickers. The obsessive side of me even wrapped the wine bottles in matching paper. 

Oh, but it couldn't stop there. I had to coordinate the dishes, the cocktail napkins, and even the iced tea. I'm not a huge fan of cake (don't get me wrong, it's good stuff, just not my favorite) so I prefer pie on my birthday. My favorite recipe as of late is a peach and nectarine combo. Mmm! 

A few more photos:

And you better believe the night ended like this:

Cheer up, buttercup!

Look at this sad pug. He represents how I feel about the amount of neglect that my little blog has received as of late. But cheer up, little pug! I have some fun things headed this way.

My birthday was last week so I decided to throw myself a little celebratory shin-dig. The last time I had a birthday party I was still a teenager, but oh- the memories! I love throwing parties, mostly (if not completely) because I love making festive decorations! I am surrounded by creative inspiration at work all day and decided to make an assortment of tissue pom poms for this event. From there I got carried away (as usual) and made all kinds of coordinating party decorations. Photos and how-tos coming soon!

For now, it's time for bed. I had to work rather late tonight, and will need to rise and shine first thing tomorrow morning to do it all again!

Adorable photo via thedailycute.