3 aspects of a Wine Country Life

 Hi, I’m Yana from WineCountryLife.

I live and create in the beautiful Napa Valley of California. Napa valley is known for its wine industry, thus often referred to as “Wine Country”. Today I would like to share with you what it’s like to live a wine country life. Here are the three aspects that in my opinion define a life in Wine Country.

1. Inspiring vineyard views.
It does not take much to get inspired here. There are gorgeous vineyards everywhere and it’s fascinating to watch grape vines change year round. I often take my camera and go for a walk. I watch leaves change colors in fall making vineyards flare up with red, orange, and yellow.

When winter comes grape vines become bare exposing bright stripes of green grass and yellow mustard flowers between the rows of grape vines. In spring you’ll see vines waking up from winter hibernation with fragile leaf buds coming out. In the beginning of summer I keep a close eye on the vines waiting for them to bloom. Have you ever seen grapes bloom? They bloom so shortly and their flowers are so small and unpretentious that you can easily miss it. The entire season cycle is so beautiful in the vineyards that I decided to create a calendar depicting the life of vines through the 12 months of a year.

Fresh country air, warm California sun, and the beautiful Napa country side always rejuvenate me but there is more that makes Napa Valley such a happy place.

2. Culture of hospitality.
All of these grapes and all the wine would mean nothing if you couldn’t share it with others. Many Napa Valley wineries set a great example of hospitality by hosting wine tastings for their guests, regular parties for their club members, as well as all kinds of charity events. Napa lifestyle is big on hosting and entertaining not only at wineries but on a personal level.

I like inviting friends over for dinner that is always paired with delicious Napa Valley wine. And whenever you visit someone you bring… you guessed it! – a bottle of wine.

3. Napa Valley Style
Going out to dinner or wine tasting is also a big part of a wine country life. Most people get fashionable and dress up when going out in Napa Valley. Even though California fashion style is rather casual and you can wear your flip-flops or tennis shoes almost everywhere, when it comes to Napa Valley, people get extravagant. That’s why luxurious one of a kind jewelry and accessories are another part of a wine country life.

It’s not unusual to see limousines on the roads of Napa Valley. People often hire a limo with a driver to go wine tasting, which is very reasonable - who would want to go to a winery and not try all of that delicious wine? There is a lot of fine dining in Napa Valley, The French Laundry being the most famous. Napa Valley is also home to some modern artists and you will see beautiful art installations walking the streets in Napa or Yountville. So it’s only natural that people want to look chic when they are going out in Napa Valley. Do you think I can pull it off? :)

Gorgeous views, great hospitality, and fabulous style are the three aspects of a Wine Country Life as I see it. I’d say it’s definitely a happy life. I strongly encourage you to come and visit if you have not yet. If you have been to Napa Valley, I don’t have to persuade you for long. I would also suggest that you get yourself a piece of Napa Valley by shopping at WineCountryLife ;-)

Interview with a star - Nadezhda (MamaTita)

Meet our fellow teammate Nadezhda who runs MamaTita shop on Etsy. She is creating beautiful hand cut paper cards and decor items perfect for weddings and memorable events. Everything in her shop is hand made, her main tool is an exacto cutting knife and a calligraphy pen. In her free time Nadezhda is enjoying being an actress at the local Theatre Of Improvisation.

- Please tell us a little bit about yourself
I am a very adventurous person - life does not stay at one place - I always need something new in my life. It started from my birth - I was born in the east side of Soviet Union in the city called Hakhodka (near Vladivostok), then we changed our place to Latvia - we had a flight through the whole Soviet Union to the west. Now I live in the west of Russia. But all my life my places were close to sea. I do not why - I even can not swim. 5 months in my life I lived in a wonderful place in Slovakia but it was not easy - to be far away from big water.

- How long have you been creating? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
I am an artist all my life. Not very good artist, because I did not want to learn about painting, but I am an artist in my heart. What I really like - it is different kinds of decoration. I love smooth, delicate works - like the lace. Love very small details - I can make them all the day.

I had many interests in my life. The newest one is paper cutting. When I started it some months ago, I understood that I would like to make business with paper ideas. This is wonderful material and there are so interesting kinds of paper in the paper-shops now!

Another my passion is calligraphy. I love the way of stylus and ink very much. The beautiful hand writing always has its own story and soul.

- What items in your shop do you most enjoy making and why?
I like to make my butterflies very much. Because I feel myself like butterfly or feather in my life. This is why I want to add feather sign in my future works, too. I know that butterflies are very popular, may be even too much popular. But I think that my paper butterflies have their own life and soul and they are like alive.

- What are your main sources of inspiration?
The people who like my work, who want to have them in their house or event. They inspire me because when they order my works, they trust me. They trust that I will make their area more beautiful. When I make every order, I imagine it in that person's area and imagine his smile when he see it at first.

 - Do you take custom orders?
I love them! I love when my customer brings his own idea to my things. He helps me to do something new and his ideas can be wonderful!

- Where would you like to go with your business?
I would like to earn enough with my business and then I can work everywhere in the Earth where is a good paper shop and good work of the post. It is difficult for me to live more then 2-3 years in one place. I always need to change my area.

- What is the best reaction you have gotten from one of your pieces?
I love reactions from my husband. He is a very good designer and when he likes what I do, it means that it is really good and other people will like it, too.

- Name 3 things you can’t live without?
The sun and colors of nature. My family. The life full of adventures.