SARACEN IN THE WOODS

No lengthy essay today (do I hear a collective sigh of relief?).  I am still on vacation and we have been traipsing around the Bay Area woods a lot.  Glamor is out, and I am happily blending into the woodworks.

Everything casual, comfy and well-worn

except for the studded wrap skirt

Skirt: Nanette Lepore

Given the surroundings, I've been drawn to mossy greens and olives and everything soft and natural.  Yet, I couldn't resist a nod to man-made craftsmanship -- hence the metallic skirt, purchased spur-of-the-moment at an after-Christmas sale.  The brass studs in various shapes and chain links bring to mind (mine, at least): Medieval Saracen.  Just in case there's a random encounter with a Knight in the forest fog!

I wore the outfit above on a trek along the coast of San Francisco, substituting some hardy boots for walking.  We discovered ruins there of an old bath house, from 1896.  It was marvelous in the fog!

Foggy coastal forest
by the ruins of the Sutro Baths from 1896
El Camino del Mar trail, San Francisco

More museum-hopping in San Francisco this week.  There is a Maharaja exhibit at the Asian Art Museum I am so excited to see, full of jewels and silver carriages and other regal objects from Indian royalty around the 1700s through the 1940s.  I might be inspired to don shimmering fabrics afterwards.

Hope you are all enjoying the first week of the Water Dragon!