Showing posts with label San Francisco. Show all posts
Showing posts with label San Francisco. Show all posts
Happy Tuesday friends! I hope your week is going well! I am still overwhelmed by the excitement from my post in August all about Creative Reuse shops and reviewing these places! I am so excited that y'all are so excited about this travel series! These stores are truly a treasure trove adventures for artists, teachers, creators, homeschool and creative mamas, and anyone who loves to create. You can find a map of all of the shops HERE!
Today I am so excited to share about SCRAP, located in San Francisco, California which is the oldest creative reuse shop in the United States!! Started in 1976, SCRAP is truly the pioneer in these types of shops!
If you would like to know just basic facts about this shop please just scroll down to the bottom of the post where I will be sharing basic information to help those who want to know more specifics about each of the creative reuse shops and some tips from each store!
Today I am sharing more about SCRAP which is located in San Francisco, California. I visited there in April 2023 and it was wonderful!
This honestly is one of my favorite creative reuse stores and shops I have been to! There are so many unique things and so many great prices that it deserves tons of time but even if you only have two hours like I did, go visit because you will love it!
This store had so many fun offerings of all different types of mixed media, scrap, craft and art resources and more. Compared to other creative reuse shops that I have visited so far I would say that this would had the most items for every type of artwork (not just crafting).
You can see from the very first picture that while the space from the outside looked small, as soon I entered you could tell that it was HUGE.
It felt symbolic honestly y'all because it felt like an abandoned warehouse that had been salvaged along with all of the treasures that I was finding inside! BUT- they are looking for a new building (you can read more about that HERE)! In the meantime this 9,000+ square foot building is a lovely home and honestly so wonderful!
I ended up spending nearly 2 and 1/2 hours and I still didn't feel like I had seen everything!
Compared to some of the other creative reuse places I have visited this may not have been defined as "cutesy" but I loved it. It was an amazing place and if you are into searching stores for art supply treasures and digging through a bit- you will absolutely love this place.
Things are very organized, despite the amount of items and there were so many things to look through! Honestly, you could find so many different items depending on your craft/work/hobby here. It was truly filled with so many things and I loved the way that people had donated these items to be reused instead of just throwing them out into a landfill!
The prices were fair from my experience in visiting so many different creative reuse stores and the people and workers were friendly and helpful. One of the neat things with the workers that we interacted with was they truly seemed genuinely interested in what people were making and creating. One of the managers came up and introduced himself and knew that I was there for the first time. He asked all about my art and what I like to create and offered to show me all different ideas that he had. It was FABULOUS. It was neat to see that there was obviously a community that was common there and I was welcomed right into that. As I walked around I interacted with artists of all different stages and those who were creating amazing things. Definitely a fun creative community experience!
It is definitely a place that I would go to visit again and I definitely recommend it! If we were within a couple of hours of this store we would definitely make a trip back there often- the prices were fair and the unique assortment of items definitely was a fun treasure hunt experience that we had!
......RECRAFT CREATIVE REUSE CENTER SHOP INFORMATION......
LOCATION:
San Francisco, California
2150 Newcomb Ave, San Francisco, CA 94124
HOURS FOR SHOPPING:
Closed Mondays
Tuesday-Sundays: 10am-6pm
TYPE OF SHOP:
Total craft experience: numerous items for crafting/mixed media/lots of different projects and types of creating and creating art of any and all kind
YEAR OPENED:
*oldest creative reuse shop in the United States*
1976 - read history HERE
MISSION:
(taken from their website)
SCRAPs mission to inspire creativity and environmental stewardship in children and adults through promoting the creative reuse of materials that traditionally have been discarded as waste.
KEY DISTINCTIVES:
*Oldest Creative Reuse shop in the United States
*Free Parking (a key thing for San Francisco)
*Restrooms for Staff and Public
*Loading Dock for donated materials
*HUGE warehouse
COST:
Compared to other shops we have tried and visited, the prices were fair even compared to shops around the country that exist in other large and expensive cities. I should also note that there was bargaining allowed there. I had found a huge roll of ribbon that I really loved and asked if a few dollars could be knocked off it which was quickly accepted. I heard others asking similar things and asking for a few dollars off of some items appeared to be an accepted practice.
PARKING:
There is a free parking lot, free street parking, and close proximity to a public garage.
CROWDED?:
It was busy, but plenty of space for shopping.
DISABILITY /CHRONIC ILLNESS FRIENDY?:
Absolutely yes. There is a ramp to get in, and while some aisles were narrow, a wheelchair could fit through although there were some spaces that it could be difficult due to the creative displays.
Thank you so much for reading today friends! Please let me know if you have any questions about Creative Reuse Shops or SCRAP! I am happy to answer and can't wait to hear about your creative reuse shop adventures! And again, if you would like to read about other Creative Reuse Shops that I have written about on the blog click HERE or click on the links below:
Have a wonderful day friends!
If San Francisco houses were Valentine's Day...*smiles*
I snapped this picture when I was in San Francisco on Tuesday after an appointment and just smiled at the colors. Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers for this week- I am excited to share more soon about how everything went! I arrived back home last night!
Happy Valentine's Day y'all... I hope that your day is filled with special moments, surprises, and lots of love.
"This is the best tree-lover's monument that could possibly be found in all of the forests in the world."
-John Muir-
Several weeks ago I posted on my Instagram Feed that we had the opportunity to spend a couple of lovely hours in the beautiful Muir Woods when we were in California. It was absolutely stunning and one of my favorite places that I have ever visited.
Muir Woods is a unit of the National Park Service, on Mount Tamalpais approximately 12 miles north of San Francisco. It is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and is near the Pacific Coast.
Muir Woods has a fascinating history that spans many decades and many people who cared enough to preserve this beautiful area of the United States. Before the logging industry affected California there was an estimated amount of a couple of million acres of redwoods that existed. After the logging industry came to California that acreage had been primarily cut down.
But there was one section, just north of San Francisco that remained untouched. This valley was named "Redwood Canyon" and remained protected simply because it was difficult to access for the logging companies.
US Congressman William Kent noticed that there was great interest in this area of California and he and his wife, Elizabeth Thacher Kent, decided to purchase 611 acres of land that was then owned by the Tamalpais Land and Water Company. The couple paid $45,000 with the simple goal of protected the redwoods that lived there and the mountain.
In 1907, a water company (from Sausalito) decided that they would dam Redwood Creek, which would in turn flood the valley and harm the Redwood Forest. US Congressman Kent objected the plan, but the water company took him to court, citing useeminent domain (basically stating that they had the right to move forward with their project).
US Congressman Kent, who was known to be a brilliant thinker in politics, sidestepped the water company's plot by donating almost 300 acres of the Redwood Forest to the Federal Government. In doing so, he was able to side-step the local courts thus invalidating the water company's court case.
In 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt declared the area of land that had been donated a National Monument. This was of great significance at the time as this was the first to be created from land donated by a private individual.
The original name of the monument was to be the Kent Monument in honor of US Congressman Kent and his wife Elizabeth, but the couple insisted that the monument not be named after them. Instead they suggested that the monument be named after John Muir whose environmental campaigns helped to bring about what is now known as the National Park System.
In 1928 the Kent Memorial was placed in the park. This memorial- a Douglas fir- not a redwood ironically was chosen because it was said to be US Congressman Kent's favorite. The tree remained and grew until it finally came down in 2003 damaging several other trees in its vicinity and closing several trails for months.
The park was visited frequently but did not see the number of visitors that it does today until after the Golden Gate Bridge was completed in 1937. Muir Woods is now one of the major tourist attractions of the San Francisco Bay Area with almost a million visitors per year.
Visiting Muir Woods is a definite must if you love nature and trees. As John Muir said so many years ago it is definitely a tree-lover's paradise.
There are so many options for what you can see in the park and there are many different trails that you can take. If you have a disability or just want to take a slower walk, taking in the beautiful views the main trail is concrete and can be easily walked. If you are wanting to do more adventurous hiking or come with the family to explore there are plenty of different trails that take you to several different look out locations, including one where you can see the Pacific Ocean.
One of my dreams at Muir Woods was to see the famous Cathedral Grove. Cathedral Grove is simply breath-taking. Visitors grow very quiet as you are overcome with the vastness of the trees and how little you are compared to those trees. It was absolutely gorgeous.
Cathedral Grove in Muir Woods is a sacred and holy space that can truly only be experienced fully by going. It is an easy 3/4 of a mile hike from the entrance and I can't express enough how stunning it was.
In 2008 Cathedral Grove was added to the National Register of Historic Places in honor of President Franklin Roosevelt. President Roosevelt, or "FDR" was to have opened a conference for the United Nations Conference on International Organization for which delegates from more than 50 countries were to meet to draft and sign the United Nations Charter.
Unfortunately, FDR died in April 1945 and never saw this dream of his come true. In May 1945 the delegates held a private ceremony to pay tribute to his memory and a dedication plaque was placed in his honor there.
To stand in a place of such rich history, of so many people who across the decades fought to preserve these beautiful trees was humbling.
If you ever get a chance to spend some time in Muir Woods I highly recommend it. You will not regret your time there.
Have y'all ever visited Muir Woods?
I am so delighted to share some more pictures from my March trip out to California for my doctors appointment. Last week I shared with y'all my fun in discovering Redwood City and a few pictures from driving through San Francisco towards the bridge. Today I wanted to share the beauty from San Francisco Bay Bridge. What a beautiful area of the country this is! As I left the city and headed towards the bridge I started to see some small glimpses of the bridge.
My original plan had been to only drive over the bridge but when I saw the sign for the viewing area I decided to pull off and was so happy that I did! I definitely recommend doing this if you haven't before!
Just pulling into the parking lot provided a gorgeous view of the bridge!
After I paid the $1.75 (for an hour - it was so cheap!) to park the car I decided to spend a few minutes walking around. My doctors appointment had been overwhelming in a lot of ways and I needed to spend a few minutes just "outside of medical world". Spending time here turned out to be the perfect gift of the day! As I walked around I slowly made my way to the observation area and literally stopped and gasped when I came across the total view.
Absolutely stunning! It was a gorgeous day!
After I had walked the short distance to the viewing area (lower level) I slowly walked back to my car. There are other trails that you can take to walk and see different views of bridge. While I didn't explore these on this visit I definitely hope to in the future!
As I got back in my car and drove over the bridge I was in awe of the amazing talent and work that it took to build this bridge. I love that you can walk across it if you want to too and would love to do this in the future!
Before I turned around to head back to the hotel I pulled through the viewing area on the other side and snapped a quick picture of the city.
It was such a gorgeous day and I was so thankful to have the opportunity to see this famous landmark. What a beautiful area! If you haven't had a chance to visit it I definitely recommend it! (Of course by now y'all know that I will recommend California completely *smiles* Happy Monday y'all!
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