Scott & I recently celebrated our 15th Wedding Anniversary with a trip to the Phoenix area (including a side stop at Sedona).  We had a great time trying out new restaurants, touring some local communities for design ideas and spending a lot of time lounging at the pool.

One restaurant we both enjoyed was named “The Gladly”.  It had great interior design, branding and a cute outdoor patio/wall garden.  It felt very preppy and happy and the style was not what we expected for a Scottsdale bistro.

While in Scottsdale we drove through the DC Ranch Community and stopped to see a ‘model condo’ that a developer was just beginning sales for.  I snapped a few pics of the kitchen and bath for design ideas.  You will probably be able to tell pretty quickly these aren’t your typical condos.  They started in the low seven figures.

You can never go wrong with honed marble and handmade ceramic tile in my book.  And that stove hood was a show stopper.

The bathroom also had some lovely details and I thought it was both traditional and current at the same time.

Scott and I celebrated our anniversary with dinner and drinks at Lon’s at the Hermosa.  We actually spent an earlier anniversary here and it was fun to relive memories.
Lon’s has a gorgeous garden and outdoor patio.

But, hands down, our favorite restaurant was the Elote Cafe in Sedona. We were told to show up no later than 4:30pm to stand in line in order to get a table for the evening.   Waiting in line is never what you want to do when given the choice, but the food (and view) made it worthwhile.  What a great way to end a great trip!

Sedona, AZ is a magical place you should visit if you get the chance!

I don’t know about you, but I was expecting to see a lot more adobe architecture and southwestern fabrics and rugs. It was a nice surprise to see such a variety of design styles in the area… not to mention amazing food!  Trips are always a great way to break up the routine and get inspired.  Feel free to share some of your trip plans with us in the comments or on our Facebook page!