Tomatoes get ready to head to the festivals. Every weekend you can find a market or fest to satisfy all of your shopping, drinking and eating desires.  You know we love to shop til we drop, and we have some delightful and intriguing shopping for you. Music by candlelight is soothing or energizing or just plain fun depending on the artists. Tomatoes you will love these!

Aug. 26-27. Palo Alto Festival of the Arts

This is one of the most popular festivals in the bay area. Head to downtown Palo Alto (bike or go early) for this high-quality festival. Celebrating its 40th year it takes place on tree-lined University Avenue. The backbone of the festival and the key to its success are the 250 fine artists and crafters whose display booths are placed back-to-back. There will be fine artists and crafters whose work you’ll see only at a few select shows on the West Coast.

While strolling through the festival, don’t forget to stop by and listen to sidewalk piano virtuosos located at Bryant St. Look for the PLAY ME sign. The Italian Street Painting Expo—always a crowd-pleaser—will again showcase chalk artists from throughout the state, creating larger-than-life works of art. Tasso Street is where it’s happening so don’t miss it. This year’s co-beneficiaries of the Italian Street Painting Expo fund-raisers are the Palo Alto Youth Community Service and Ada’s Cafe. Food and drink will be plentiful of course. GET THE DETAILS.

The Park Market

The San Francisco Parks Alliance is partnering with Sunset Mercantile to bring a new market series, The Park Market, to Dogpatch’s best kept secret, Crane Cove Park. Each themed market will feature local makers, live music, food & drinks, and family friendly activities, including free paddle boarding lessons from Dogpatch Paddle. This newest recurring market features local makers, food, drinks, activities and musicians all in the lovely waterfront park. September 2nd features Secondhand Saturday featuring vintage fashion and goods. Head to the website for the dates of three more this year. GET THE DETAILS.

Aug. 19-20. Country Festival

t’s that time of year again, when Pescadero hosts a small country festival, showcasing a variety of handmade crafts and fine art. Featuring live entertainment, great food, and plenty of fun for all. Admission is Free. All proceeds benefit local youth and programs.There will be over 50 vendors, from crafts to food, while volunteer musicians provide all-day live entertainment, including Rock’n’Roll, bluegrass, and folk, and features their “ONLY in Pescadero” fan favorite, the South Coast Children’s Services comedy “Fashion Show”. GET THE DETAILS.

New Fun Retails Spots

We haven’t told you about shopping for a while fellow tomatoes, not that we haven’t been doing any….but we have recently found some fun new retail spots.

Goldstories

Personal fav, I mean who doesn’t love gold jewelry, is Goldstories fresh new pop-up in Hayes Valley. SF native Subikksha Balaje has always been a jewelry girl. Her mom and both grandmothers were all jewelry collectors, and she took note of their love of every piece—and the unique story each behind each one. Her eco-luxe, fine jewelry brand Goldstories pays homage to her family while feeding her own passion for beautiful things.

The new jewel-box boutique in Hayes Valley serves as the perfect backdrop for limited-run, solid gold pieces—bangles, rings, charms, necklaces, and earrings. They’re designed to mix and match with your own heirlooms and everyday faves. Of course, we’re thrilled that everything is made in SF using sustainable, recycled gold and ethically sourced gemstones. To celebrate the opening, everyone who shops the pop-up in August gets 10 percent off. Open daily from noon to 6pm. goldstories.com

Marcella

Some of you may be familiar with Etsy favorite “Marcella”. Siyana Huszar’s brand chose SF as it’s first IRL store.  Recently opened on Pacific Heights’ main shopping drag, it is filled with versatile wardrobe essentials—dresses, bodysuits, tops, coats, shoes—but Marcella also has a mission: design that matters. Translation: Along with creating original designs at affordable prices, ethical production practices and fair wages for workers are a priority. Additionally, small-batch drops use sustainable fabrics and, with every design sold, Marcella supports three days of school for girls in Sub-Saharan Africa via a partnership with NGO CAMFED. And we love shopping for a good cause! 2120 Fillmore St. marcellanyc.com

Oaktown Spice Shop

Also on Fillmore street, for those foodies, is Oaktown Spice Shop. This is the new go to spot for cooking ingredients: This is Oaktown Spice Shop’s third brick-and mortar and its first in SF. Whether you’re looking for amazing single-origin spices or delicious blends, OSS always delivers. Not only is it a Bay Area favorite but the original Oakland shop was named one of the world’s best spice shops by Food & Wine. Warm and welcoming, it’s impossible to miss the SF shop’s cayenne-pepper red exterior. The vibe inside is charming and sleek with products merchandised by category: onion and garlic, spice blends, teas, chiles, and more. Even if you’re not much of a cook, it’s still worth a whirl through for things like the avocado toast spice blend gift box and other special sets and teas. oaktownspiceshop.com

Candlelight Concerts

These offer an intimate and unique musical experience in SF Bay Area, set in beautiful and historic venues lit by the gentle glow of candles. Talented musicians perform a wide range of music genres, from classical to modern, allowing you to fully immerse yourself in the performance and relax in the soothing atmosphere. Coming up at St. Ignatius church are a tribute to Fleetwood Mac, 100 years of Warner Brothers and Vivaldi’s four seasons. Nothing like being immersed in sound with acoustics that are sublime and candlelight making everything glow! https://feverup.com/en/san-francisco/candlelight