Desert 2 District Design II Olde City Farm and Garden
The first day of spring was earlier this week and, even though it snowed that day, it got me excited to visit one of my favorite places in D.C.--Olde City Farm & Garden.
The farm and garden, located on Rhode Island Ave. NW in Shaw, is the perfect outdoor oasis in the middle of the city. I love to go there get away from city life and wander the rows and rows of plants. It's a large space that's full of all kinds of plants--from vegetables to flowers to trees for your landscaping project--and extremely knowledgeable and kind staff. They love what they do and it shows. Their selection also changes with the seasons so you can get pumpkins in the fall and a fresh Christmas tree in the winter.
They also are a wonderful community space as well and they host all kinds of fun events, including yoga classes and arts festivals. You can find me there a few times a year during their festivals, along with other awesome D.C. creatives and local businesses. I'll be updating my fairs & events page with upcoming events soon if you'd like to follow along.
The farm and garden is still closed for the winter, but you won't have to wait long to visit. They reopen at 9am on March 31st. Can't wait to stock up for my spring garden!
I'm starting a new series that I'm really excited about--each Saturday I'll illustrate one of my favorite D.C. small businesses and share about it here. My business is still a baby, but I've been so overwhelmed by how supportive and amazing the small business and art communities in D.C. are so I want to keep spreading the love.
This place has become my yoga home. We're lucky in D.C. that there are so many great studios and teachers to choose from. Before I found this studio, I bounced around from studio to studio, trying out their new member specials (most studios have a 1-2 week special price for new students) or hopping around via Classpass. I started at SY in a similar way, purchasing their new member special ($20 for 2 weeks of unlimited yoga!) and I was hooked. There's something so special about the teachers here and the community that the owners, Parker and Liz, have built. I've been going to classes, volunteering (even updating the chalkboards!), and making friends, there for over a year now and it has truly become a home away from home for me.
If you're a fellow yogi or aspiring yogi, I highly recommend checking out this studio. They are tucked away in the cutest alley, Naylor Court, off of 9th Street NW, between N and O, across from Sundevich. If you're on 9th, turn left into the alley before you get to A&D.
I painted their illustration before they got their beautiful mural (painted by the talented Billy Colbert), but you won't be able to miss Ganesh welcoming you to the studio!
Desert 2 District Design II Playa del Carmen packing list
Last weekend, my husband and I celebrated 11 years together in beautiful Playa del Carmen.
This was my first time visiting this region of Mexico and I was just blown away. The weather was gorgeous, the ocean was so warm and bright, and the city was so vibrant. I can't wait to go back!
Today, I'm sharing a couple of the outfits I put together from this packing list. Thanks for following along!
I was totally obsessed with this beautiful piece that hung in our room. It's making me want to add more bright colors to my painting palette and to try to paint whimsical patterns like this.
Desert 2 District Design II art selfie
outfit
no. 1
I found this lovely high-waisted skirt at Unique Thrift, a gigantic thrift store in Falls Church, VA, and paired it with an old Old Navy cami and Charles David sandals (found on consignment at Clementine in Richmond, VA). If you're ever in Richmond and have some time, I highly recommend Clementine and their sister stores. If you can't make the trip, they actually also have an online shop as well! Some great finds there for sure. I threw this on before heading out to explore Playa del Carmen.
outfit
no. 2
In the afternoon, we headed to the beach and then came back and hung out at our hotel's rooftop pool. I broke out my new Poppy Apparel swimsuit and threw on a thrifted cover-up and my favorite hat from ThredUp. This isn't a great photo of my swimsuit, but it is seriously so flattering and comfortable. I highly recommend it if you like the high-waisted style. Use code "desert2district" for 10% off your order at Poppy Apparel.
outfit
no. 3
After washing up and grabbing dinner, we ended the night with a couple cervezas on the roof. I paired my comfiest thrifted cut-off shorts with this off cold-shoulder top (originally from Nordstrom Rack, similar here).
Thanks for following along! I'll be rounding up a map of the places we visited on our trip soon. I'm thinking this is a good time to try my hand at a watercolor map...
