Pimp My Ride: Pick-up Truck

Nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.

-Jon Krakauer

For the second half of our Pimp My Ride series, we took to the woods. Embodying the man who with every tick of his eight hour days at the office grew a little paler, a little more distant, a little more weary. So to stave off apathy, he threw his tackle box, books, and a few thermoses of coffee and soup into his old Toyota truck bed, and left at 4:59p Friday afternoon with his girl at his side.

He drove and drove until his nostrils smelled water and his face felt the cool breeze coming through the rolled down windows.

And for the weekend they floated, fished, read and relaxed the days away. They lived the simple life from dawn til dusk, until they returned to wax professional from nine to five again--tanner, engaged, and a little more inspired.

We all need a break every now and again, wouldn't you agree?

The Weekly Six

Before we open our doors for the week, check out our top six vintage picks. We constantly update our inventory, and we want to keep you in the loop of the new things coming in! So, without further adieu, we bring you:

1: Shed some light on it. It, you say? Whether illuminating a dining table, workbench, cutting board, bed or reading chair, this industrial light is the it piece in its space. Comes complete with a working Edison bulb.

2: Squeeze every last ray of sunshine out of Summer with this classic folding chair. It's wooden armrests won't burn as you work on those tan lines. Tote it with you to any beach in any city, it folds right up and weighs less than a surfboard-it will keep you relaxed, riding the waves of great summer memories and daydreams of next year's.

3: I got my eye on you: a bold necklace to pair with all your summer and into-fall dresses. Everyone sees you have an eye for style with this pendant around your neck, it completes any look.

4: Gone are the days of under a dollar shakes and splits, and soda pop for a few nickels (bet the coffee came with free refills, too). But the memorial of simpler days stay embalmed on old hand painted menu boards--preserve the good ole days on your wall, and consider charging guests small fees for sipping on your homemade ice tea.

5: I see you, staring back at me. A rope-fringed, portal mirror brings a sometimes nautical, sometimes shaggy, sometimes too-good-for-words statement to one of your four walls. What unique beauty would this mirror reflect hanging in your home?

6: Last chance to take off before the summer closes its doors til next year. Whether romping through the streets of Paris, savoring street food in Bangkok, or lounging on a cruise in the Caribbean, this skirt will serve you well. Bold, curious, and creative, it matches your traveling, ready-for-adventure spirit and attracts like-minded souls to your table.

Pimp My Ride: VW Bug

I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move. 

-Robert Louis Stevenson

Travel is what drives us, brings us to adventures on scenic roads, small towns and to undiscovered treasures. For this photo shoot we decided to pimp our rides, outfitting them for different trips and places one might skip off to. This Volkswagen convertible calls for coastal drives full of sea breeze and roadside picnics. Pack a suitcase, snacks, maps, and an umbrella for those afternoon naps--not in a hurry, the drive is the journey.

For the love of a road trip, for love of the company we keep, and for the car that takes there...

 

Sisterhood of the traveling bag: Kendraaahhhhh

After oo-ing and awe-ing over this bag for weeks, we knew it was no ordinary purse. And in a stroke of inspiration, we found its purpose (rather, its purse-pose): to accompany us in our daily lives. It's a hand-stitched, black and tan leather bag, with a simple design and easy function...it complements any outfit, day or night, and is hearty enough to go just about anywhere. For this year, we are passing it around through the Ruby crew, and documenting what adventures ensue. It is our version of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. So, without further adieu, we bring you The Sisterhood of the Traveling Bag!

Hello Ruby Rose readers! My name is Kendra Aronson, also called kendraaahhhhh around the shop to avoid any confusion with the original Kendra :) I wrote a blog post back in March about my vintage Central Coast pennant collection. How are y'all? It's so nice to be back; I've had quite a month! I got married the day after 4th of July and then took off for a 2.5 week trip to Baja with my husband Shea Somma. We drove from San Luis Obispo to Scorpion Bay, with our sweet dog Sadie, and I brought along the traveling bag of course! 

DAY 1: San Luis Obispo > Leucadia 

We crashed the first night at my parents house, my childhood home, in Leucadia. It's a quick 5-hour drive from San Luis Obispo. It's a funky little community with quirky characters, hole-in-wall taquerias, and beautiful beaches. 

If you are ever in town you must go to Pannikin. They have the best coffee, loose-leaf tea, pastries, and PIE. Oh my lord, their pie. I dream about it. 

 Belly full of pie and bag full of loose-leaf tea!

After your long morning at the Pannikin I suggest meandering down a half-block to Lou's Records to pick up some analog tunes. 

Then, take a drive down the 101 to soak up the sunshine and salty air. Say hello to Swami's while you are at it, an internationally known surf spot. Fun fact: there's even a shout-out in the Beach Boys Surfin U.S.A at 1:10 in the song.

DAY 2: Leucadia > El Rosario (stay: Baja Cactus)

For our first day of travel we journeyed to El Rosario allowing ample time to cross the international border. For those who are curious/interested in traveling with pets, traveling with a dog is easier than you think. We took our pup Sadie to the vet a month prior to leaving to get all her shots and you simply bring the paperwork with you when you cross the border. Piece of cake. We didn't have any problems with the Federales at the military checkpoints. In fact, when were questioned why we were traveling in Mexico we replied it was our luna de miel (Spanish for honeymoon) and they would crack big smiles and make sweet and sometimes sarcastic/silly remarks... we joked that every time we go down to Mexico we should plan on using this magical phrase!

DAY 3: El Rosario > Loreto

The entire drive we listened to heaps of podcasts, our favorites are: Stuff You Should Know, Freakanomics, and Radiolab. All super stimulating ear candy. What podcasts do you listen to on long drives?

Here we are taking off in Loreto in the early morning, I'm already dripping in sweat and Sadie was trying to help cool me off!

We stopped to get gas in Guerrero Negro and for a quick bite at this awesome fish taco truck. He just latched this thing to this truck, how genius is that?! These tacos were tasty. 

Did I mention we served tacos at our wedding?! HAHA we are taco fanatics :) Search the hashtag #tacotimeisallthetime on instagram to get an idea.

DAY 4: Loreto > Scorpion Bay (stay: Scorpion Bay hotel)

After a long 4 days of road travel (approx 30 hours) we arrived at our destination: Scorpion Bay. We posted up at the Scorpion Bay Hotel for a whole week. As you can tell from the map we went the long way - that's because the south road is better paved and well worth the extra trek. Our days consisted of waking up without an alarm, moseying up to the common area to enjoy a buffet brekky, reading in bed or in the hammock, eating tacos for lunch, going to the beach to (a) surf (b) paipo (c) surfmat or (d) read, then going home to lounge more, then off to eat more tacos for dinner, then to bed super early. Repeat 7x. It was the easiest lifestyle EVER. I've never taken such a lounge-y vacation in my entire life! The traveling bag throughly enjoyed itself too :)

Sadie lady, myself, and the traveling bag outside an ocean-front taqueria. We chowed on some fish tacos here before hitting up the beach. 

Here is my beach set-up: my radical vintage beach chair c/o of Ruby Rose, the traveling bag which held my Fuji Film instax camera and sunnies, a gifted woven basket from one of my bridesmaids that held my towel, sunscreen, my ideas notebook, and my daily reads. 

The traveling bag and I outside our favorite fish taco joint in town. Templeton Feed & Grain, represent. 
Shea opted for a ballena of Pacifico and I opted for a Michelada - it's a spicy beer cocktail, beer + lime + chili powder + tomato juice / hot sauce. Mmmmmm.

At every place we ate they brought aaaaaall the fixins to your table. It was a beautiful build-your-own spread that we want to emulate soon when we host a taco party! 

Our last night in Scorpion Bay really dazzled us with this sunset! The whole week we had amazing sunsets (in the east, not the west) but this one really left us in awe. 


Next stop: Scorpion Bay > Abreojos (stay: Campo Rene)

 We headed to Abreojos for 2 nights, again taking the south road because it's paved and the route was familiar at this point. We could have taken the north road through the salt flats which is doable but we didn't want to risk getting stuck, especially considering it was our honeymoon :) Perhaps next time we will be more adventurous. 

The traveling bag and I en route to Campo Rene in Abreojos...now warning: what I'm about to show you is not for the faint of heart. We took a drive to nearby beach in Abre and I noticed something in the water...all I could tell was that it was a large sea mammal. We decided to investigate. It was a belly-up dead sea turtle, Shea flipped it over and we both screamed in shock. It was something out of a sci-fi movie. Oh man was it a gnarrrrly sad sight to see. So I did what anyone would do in this situation: I took a photo with the traveling bag. You're welcome. 

Return Trip: Abreojos > Leucadia

We ended up coming back a day early because the swell was tiny and we were itching to come to SLO :) We took a roadside pitstop to explore this cool unfinished dome structure on the long 17-hour drive home to Leucadia.
  

Thanks for indulging me and stay tuned for the next sisterhood of the traveling bag adventure!