weekend away

calivintage: weekend away

this past weekend i celebrated my 29th birthday. i’m not one to make a big fuss or throw a wild party, and i’ve very specifically informed all of my closest friends that i do not like surprises. instead, i prefer to take the opportunity to ease into my new year on a relaxing weekend away. it’s actually become a bit of a birthday tradition for me. and this year, we drove three hours north to a little town called gualala along the california coast, to stay in a beautiful beach house at st. orres overlooking the ocean complete with everything you could possibly need: expansive views, a cozy fireplace, a sauna, and a jacuzzi overlooking the water.

the beginning of the trip was just a bit tumultuous. the forecast threatened rain and thunderstorms, and we found ourselves driving through winding country roads when the gas light started blinking. past the point of no return, we meandered along the hilly terrain for 50 miles until we finally popped out on the coast to be greeted by a service station. the entire time, we were doing our best not to imagine what it would be like to find ourselves stranded in the middle of a thunderstorm on a windy one lane road without cell phone reception. but our fears were for naught because we we made it out alive with .2 gallons of gas left in the tank, and a bright blue sky with the sun continuing to shine as we explored the area before heading to the house for a very pleasant evening (see photos).

the next morning wasn’t quite so kind, but it was honestly just as beautiful. i woke up obscenely early to look out at the ocean and watch the waves crash along the shore while big grey clouds filled the sky and it began to rain. and it pretty much rained for the rest of the day, foiling our plans to explore the nature areas, but certainly not stopping us from enjoying a few indoor activities like breakfast in bed, naps, and more sauna time. on the way back, we drove along the coast and reminisced about our bike tour, almost amazed that a couple of years ago, we actually rode that entire stretch of highway one on our bikes.

all in all, it was a weekend i will not soon forget!

calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
a beacon of light. never have i been so excited to find a gas station.

calivintage: weekend away
quite possible the prettiest gas station ever.

calivintage: weekend away
a room with a view. i could seriously get used to this.

calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
i still can’t decide what was better. the jaccuzzi overlooking the ocean, or the sauna.

calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away
sometimes rainy mornings are the best.

calivintage: weekend away
the saddest part of my day was when we had to pack up and leave. i stuffed all of my belongings into my amelia weekender by portland-based line, ellington.

calivintage: weekend away
calivintage: weekend away

60 comments

  1. LOVE this post. you are a great writer, too, which makes your blog even better in my book. I’m turning 29 Friday and haven’t planned anything except dying my hair and going to the opera. I’m jealous of your weekend away and it looks like you had a nice relaxing time with a little bit of adventure and uncertainty. xo.

  2. Happy belated birthday! My 25th birthday is just a few weeks away. I’m just like you in that I love to spend my birthday relaxing. All I need is my sweetheart and some good food.

  3. Oh so sad about the rain…but it looks like a beautiful place to spend the day indoors anyway :) Glad you found a gas station on the way out. Driving on empty is one of the worst feelings! It’s like some kind of impending doom…yeesh.

  4. definitely sounds like the perfect birthday. I had a surprise birthday this year however, it was my first, and I was definitely overwhelmed, but still really shy at parties as I always am.

    1. haha, if anyone ever threw me a surprise birthday party, i would probably cry. just because i get so overwhelmed by having that much attention on me. i know it sounds silly, but it’s true! though i’m sure that like you said, it would be a blast once you got over the shock! it’s actually once of my great fears to, like, have a whole group of people sing happy birthday to me in a public place. i would die of embarrassment!

  5. Um wow! I know this is a weird picture to pick from all the beautiful sights of the sea and nature but i love the wood with the cut out hearts! I’d totally try and DIY that (somehow) into a bed headboard!

  6. Love this post! Gualala is a wonderful little town. My fiancé proposed to me at the Point Arena lighthouse a little bit further north of Gualala, and we passed through it on our drive back home. The town is very Old West with its late 19th/early 20th century buildings. Very charming!

  7. The first picture in your post is just so adorable. Great capture. Your post in its entirety is fantastic. The writing is spot on and the photographs are so fabulous and inspiring.

  8. Happy Belated Birthday!! That first photo is amazing. I love when little moments like the movement of wind against the skirt of dress can be captured. So beautiful! xoxo

  9. I’m happy to see that you were able to find a place to celebrate your birthday! That place looks spectacular with that beautiful ocean view! Happy belated birthday!

  10. I LOVE birthdays and love having an excuse to gather friends together (great excuse to get people who don’t know each other to hang out!) but I totally respect that everyone likes celebrating different. And honestly, this looks like a pretty wonderful celebration. Happy birthday. All the best for your coming year!

  11. Happy Birthday ,it was my 30th on the 20th Jan ! i celebrated with a lovely party full of all my fave people and received a fab Marc Jacobs handbag from my husband – it could not have been better , love your blog , im a fashion lecturer and your images always inspire me.

  12. Oh my gosh … your story about almost running out of gas reminded me of a time the exact same thing almost happened to me, but in Utah! Boyfriend and I were moving to California and drove the whole way from Minnesota … well into the desert, and about 50 miles beyond the last “No more gas FOREVER!” sign the light came on … we frantically took a random turn, hoping to find a station, and managed to pull into a two-pump station in some ghost town in Utah as the car was sputtering on empty. Fun times. Glad you found gas!

  13. Hello! First off, hope you had a great birthday! And secondly I, too, live in the bay area and love driving to the coast. But Gualala is my all time fav. I’ve gone camping there since I was very young, but sadly haven’t been there in two years. Your post made me smile and yearn to go back. Thank you!

  14. hi there, could you please tell me the name of the option at St. Orres that you stayed in? I’ve wanted to visit every since you first posted these pics, but can’t seem to find a cottage with a hot tub overlooking the ocean and my boyfriend and I really want to book it. Was it the “treehouse”?

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