SFBayStyle

Hey Cookie - Be Mine

Barbara Felix, baker extraordinaire from Felix the Cook, has a special Valentine for you. Six of her super-chic-heart-shaped sugar cookies for $26.00, including shipping. Get some hearts for your lova, your mom, your BFF ... hey, we say treat yourself! Check it out at: www.felixthecook.com.

Boot-a-licious at every age

With the rainy cool weather back in town, boots are the way to go in the Bay Area.  Here are my tested recommendations for great stylish boots for every age group.

Teens/Twenties: An absolutely girly look from Poetic License, the Horizon Boot in Purple has a slight wedge heel to make it totally wearable for walking all day long.  Another sassy choice is the Bronx Cody Button Boot in Black or Black Nappa, with adorable buttons along the cuff.  The Bronx Boot runs a little small and narrow.

Thirties/Forties:  For a tougher look with leggings or jeans, Fly London's Tess Casual Boot is a sturdy and hip choice.  Sleek and fabulous, the Velvet Angels Pull-On Boot can go daytime or evening, but is a real splurge at $399.95.  For a more casual look, Gee WaWa's Tom Tom Tall Riding Boot is detailed and cool but very wearable.   

Fifties/Sixties and Beyond:  Marvin K's Aquatalia Boot is chic and delicate, for those of us with narrow ankles and calves.  The color choices range from a solid sleek black, red and silver, to the on-trend ombre grey, olive and berry.  The Miz Mooz Amber Buckle Boot comes in the perfect milk chocolate brown, as well as a great lipstick red, with a medium-height heel that pairs well with skirts.

All of the above are available at www.endless.com as well as other retail and online shoe stores.  Here's to staying warm this winter and looking great the same time!

Pinkberry Comes to Santana Row

The Pinkberry craze has finally arrived in Northern California.  Did it launch in San Francisco first before making its way south?  No!  The much anticipated frozen yogurt establishment has decided to show the South Bay love and set up shop at Santana Row.  This is good news for all of us fans who live and work nearby.

To show even more love, Pinkberry threw a launch party to introduce their unique frozen dessert to the Row-burbanites.  The special tented event took place just outside the new store location.  As I entered the exclusive VIP event, M.I.A.'s "Bucky Done Gun' was blasting.  Guest DJ, Benji Madden, of the band Good Charlotte, was 'swirling' music and igniting the decks.  Wine was flowing.  Pinkberry tasting staff handed out unlimited cups of the tart, chilly yogurt to the attendees.  Toppings were for the taking.  Pinkberry bags with gift t-shirts inside were being toted around like badges of honor.  Photographers were snapping pictures of John Feldmann and Jason Evigan.  Pinkberry had arrived, and in L.A. style.     

   

Wine & Wishes 2009

Yes, 'tis that time of year of again for one of the hottest culinary tickets of San Francisco - Wine & Wishes 2009. This is a spectacular culinary event showcasing the best of the Bay Area's Chefs and Wineries, while celebrating and supporting the Greater Bay Area Make-A-Wish Foundation. It is to be held at the dramatic and unique setting of Treasure Island on Saturday, February 7th.

The Epi Party

 

Did you know that as many as 12 million Americans suffer from food allergies? That's a fact that the Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board wants you to know and to help get the word out they hosted the Epi Party on January 16th, 2009. 

One hundred people gathered at San Francisco's latest hot spot, Le Club, to learn that 8 foods cause 90 percent of allergy reactions - soy, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, wheat, fish, and shellfish. Reactions can range from skin rashes to swelling of the throat and tongue, known as anaphylaxis. Co-founder of BAAAB, Mireille Schwartz (pictured above with BAAAB board member Damion Matthews) was inspired to educate people, having to cope with her own allergy to fish and her daughter's allergy to nuts.  

For the Dogs: Rocket Dog Rescue Benefit

Put on your party duds and come on out to the Rocket Dog Rescue Benefit, Saturday, January 31st, 9PM for a rockin' good time at El Rio. Great bands, great food, and no better a cause than the work of Rocket Dog Rescue, which to date has saved over 3000 abandoned (many abused) dogs and found them loving homes.

RDR is based in San Francisco and run by Pali Boucher with her team of volunteers. Founded in 2001, the non-profit rescues dogs from overcrowded shelters saving them in the nick of time from euthanasia.

Biting into the Crunchies: Innovative Awards and a Great Party

Civic Center Plaza, oft bustling with symphony and opera patrons dressed to the nines hosted a different kind of crowd last night at the Crunchies, TechCrunch awards for best new technology companies for 2008. The ceremony, located in Herbst Theater, brought satisfaction to the Silicon

 Valley faithful,many of whom voted online for the award recipients. Followed by a party at City Hall sponsored by MySpace, the night showcased some of the best and the brightest people and companies around.

Co-sponsored by VentureBeat, GigaOm and Silicon Alley Insider, the award ceremony was the anti-Oscars, featuring mostly men in denim and lots of hoots from the crowd. Winners included Google Reader (accepted by Marissa Mayer, pictured right), Facebook, Twitter and more.  Across the street, the party raged following the awards, featuring DJ ZTrip, wine by Cannonball and a host of geek games. With 900 people in attendance, the event proved to be a combination networking scene and who's who of social media.

Author Reading

Don't miss the chance to meet our own man-about-town, Gurbaksh Chahal. He will be discussing his memoir The Dream: How I Learned the Risks and Rewards of Entrepreneurship and Made Millions (Palgrave Macmillan) at the following locations:

Sunday, January 18, 2:00 at the Pleasanton Library, 400 Old Bernal Ave., Pleasanton

Tuesday, January 20, 12:30 at Stacey's Bookstore, 581 Market St., SF  

Zip It

I call it bad jean karma. I have been searching for a great fitting pair of jeans for ... years. Yes, years! I shop, try on dozens of styles, sizes, and in the end, exhausted and grumpy, I slump home with no jeans. Excuse me, but who says we all want Super Low Super Straight? I even had a pair made, but that was a complete disaster and material for another post. The situation is so dire that I'm wearing a pair from 10 + years ago. (Shhh!)The fact is the old pair fit and they're comfortable and so be it. But there is one problem - the zipper won't stay up.

After way too long of having to sneak a peek at my fly every half hour, I had just decided to have the zipper replaced when a little something called the ZipHolder came along. A small rubber band looped through your zipper pull tag and then attached to your button and presto, no more fears of exposure. It's one of those, "Why didn't I think of that?" We didn't but some clever folks in Sweden did. Available on line at:  http://www.zipholder.com/ 

Dressing up your little man

Everyone seems to say that shopping for boys isn't nearly as fun as shopping for girls. That may be true, but perhaps that makes finding a nice outfit even more exciting. This week I'm shopping ahead for recitals, weddings, and other special occasions coming up throughout the new year - and hoping to get some good deals while avoiding those stressful, last-minute searches down the road.

Dine About Town

 If you are looking for a good excuse to go out to eat, I have one for you, The SF Dine About Town event starts on January 15th - January 31st. Participating restaurants will be offering a prix fixe three course meal at a great price. (economical dining in 2009) Lunch is set at $21.95, and Dinner at $34.95. Be sure to check the days the meals are offered. You can get all the details and even make reservations, on one of my favorite sites, Open Table.

For those of you that live on the Peninsula, and do not feel like making the short trek to city, Palo Alto is offering their own version of "Dine About Town." On Monday and Wednesday evenings, select restaurants will be offering a three course prixe fixe meal. I did notice that one of our family favorites, Three Seasons is on the list.( However with my myriad of allergies, I fear that set menus rarely work.)