Table of contents for November 2018 in Sunset

Located at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains in Los Gatos, California, Sunset’s 2018 Idea House in Silicon Valley features the quality and workmanship of a true Craftsman, but with modern design elements that speak to today’s West Coast lifestyle. While the home’s proximity to tech giants such as Netflix and Cisco played an undeniable role in the home’s concept, designer Lauren Nelson of Lauren Nelson Design delivered a space where modern Scandi and innovation meld seamlessly. “Innovation will always be knocking at the door in this technology-focused age, but that doesn’t mean classic design should be abandoned,” says Nelson. “There’s a familiarity that gives us comfort and can define what we think of as quality.” The same focus on technology and design can be found in the latest-generation…

“HELP PRESERVE GOD’S GREATEST CATHEDRAL,” Sunset implored in its June 1921 issue, warning: “when a redwood tree thirteen hundred years old is felled, chopped up into ties and grape stakes and shingles, no effort, no money can replace it.” Redwoods! Sequoia sempervirens (the tall coast variety)! And Sequoiadendron giganteum (the bulked-up Sierra Nevada brand)! Sunset loves all Western trees—oaks, aspens, palms, Douglas fir, bristlecone pines. But it probably loves redwoods most of all. Certainly, Sunset planted the trees on enough magazine covers: somber and stately (June 1904), soaring to cerulean Sierra skies (May 1962), rising from pure winter snows (December 1981). We also steered readers to the best spots to see the titans. Sequoia National Park, of course, but also Yosemite, and California’s North Coast, and Muir Woods National Monument, and…

IN 1972, wine could be a highly fraught topic. Sure, California had been producing the stuff since the Franciscan brothers planted mission grapes at the same time they were establishing the missions. But for more than a century after that, California winemaking went into an eclipse. Prohibition didn’t help, nor did wine’s image as the beverage of choice for French-spouting snobs. By the 1970s, a new generation of California winemakers had discovered what the Franciscans had known: The Golden State was a superb place to make vino. It was an oenological revolution—one that Sunset reported on and helped drive. Its October 1972 article, “Getting to Know California’s Table Wines,” painstakingly walked readers through the unfamiliar terrain of Chablis and Chardonnay, and if today some of its guidance is more than…

”WILDERNESS is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread,” writes Edward Abbey in his 1968 nonfiction classic Desert Solitaire. He’s talking about untamed nature in general but also about the glowing orange slickrock surrounding the town of Moab, Utah. Set mostly in the 1950s, when the then 29-year-old worked as a seasonal ranger at Arches National Monument (now Arches National Park), the collection of essays teems with rattlesnakes, vultures, petrified dunes, impassible cliffs, rants and raves, and philosophical ruminations. Though Abbey considered himself primarily a fiction writer—he published three novels before Desert Solitaire, another five after—this was the book that made him famous. It sold almost two million copies (and counting), linking his name with all…

GO-TO WEEKEND TRIP A 37-MINUTE DRIVE TO GREAT DIVIDE SKI AREA. SKIGD.COM POINT OF VIEW “Since our population is relatively small, I feel most people know someone involved with politics. One of my former classmates was once mayor of Helena, and my husband’s former classmate was the state attorney general.”—Susan Bjerke, architect and 60-year Helena resident Sought-after real estate Gilded Age mansions Population 31,429 Median home price $304,000 Annual sunny days 189 Town trivia Peculiar but true: It’s illegal to throw a frisbee downtown at night. Average commute 12.4 minutes Party lines 47% Democrat 50% Republican 3% Other Date night Housemade ramen with room for dessert at The Montana Club. montanaclub.coop. Caffeine scene Hub Coffee, one block from the City County Building. (406) 422-1102. Seats of government aren’t just for…

PLANT Place cool-season flower starts in the garden, including calendula, forget-me-not, Iceland and Shirley poppies, and violas. Sweet peas hate being moved—seed them in the spot where they’ll stay until next spring. Pot up amaryllis and paperwhite bulbs for a cheery indoor display. Leave the top third of the bulbs exposed, place them in a bright location, and water sparingly until you see the first green growth. No soil needed—they’ll happily bloom with their roots in stones, but good drainage is essential to prevent rot. In mild-winter areas, set asparagus crowns. Be sure you choose their home wisely—unlike many other veggies, asparagus will live for more than 10 years. Prepare the bed by removing rocks, roots, and debris, and give your crop a year to establish. If you’re jonesing for…

PLANT For narrow spaces between homes, north-facing exposures, and beds beneath airy trees, try agaves that can handle partial shade. Growing to 3 feet tall and 4 to 5 feet wide, cow horn agave (Agave bovicornuta) sports wide, yellowgreen leaves and has a bold sculptural presence that looks great below ironwoods. The twisting spider agave (A. bracteosa) has thinner, pale-green foliage, and at only 1 foot high and up to 2 feet wide, it’s ideal for pots on covered porches. At the nursery, look for skunkbush sumac (Rhus trilobata) shrubs, as well as ‘Red Push’ pistache (Pistacia x ‘Red Push’) and ‘Bonita’ Arizona ash (Fraxinus velutina ‘Bonita’) trees. By the time they’re in the ground, they’ll already be changing color during fall’s last call. Throughout the Southwest, garlic is an…

As the new year approaches, we can hardly contain our enthusiasm for getting a fresh start—and we’re planning our holiday giving accordingly, with everyone’s well-being in mind. Our December/January issue features a gift guide packed with exceptional items for pampering yourself and others. Want a preview? We partnered with West Elm to offer one lucky reader a $1,000 gift card. (We’d use it to stock our closets with the brand’s just-launched line of bath linens—a practical-meets-indulgent investment for 2019.) Get the official rules at sunset.com/westelmcontest and enter to win on Instagram (October 17–November 14). SUNSET (ISSN 0039-5404) is published monthly (except for a combined Dec/Jan issue) in regional and special editions by Sunset Publishing Corporation, P.O. Box 70710, Oakland, CA, 94612-0710. Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, CA, and at additional…

BY ANY DEFINITION, 120 years of uninterrupted publication puts Sunset in a rare position. Whether printing the early works of literary greats, introducing transformational architects and designers to the world, or taking a stand to protect the environment, Sunset played a pivotal role in ensuring that the West became what Pulitzer Prize–winning writer Wallace Stegner hoped would be “a society to match its scenery.” When the magazine started in 1898, the states of Idaho, Montana, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming had recently been admitted to the Union, and the Republic of Hawaii was being annexed by the United States as a territory alongside Alaska, Arizona, and New Mexico. Great Western cities like Phoenix and San Jose (the heart of Silicon Valley) were dusty frontier towns—and the population of Los Angeles hovered…

TEAM ARCHITECT Ashworth Design Office, adesignoffice.com CONTRACTORS Jorge Alvarado American Glazing, americanglazing.net LANDSCAPE DESIGN Fiore Landscape Design, fiorelandscapedesign.com CHARITY PARTNER United Way of Greater Los Angeles, unitedwayla.org SHOPPING GUIDE ACCESSORIES Hayneedle, hayneedle.com ART Cindy Hsu Zell, cindyzell.com Zoe Bios Creative, zoebioscreative.com AWNING Van Nuys Awning Co., vannuysawning.com BEDDING AND LINENS Coyuchi, coyuchi.com Serena and Lily, serenaandlily.com CONTAINERS Rolling Greens, rollinggreensnursery.com DOORS Western Window Systems, westernwindowsystems.com DRAPERY Sunbrella, sunbrella.com The Shade Store, theshadestore.com EXTERIOR PLANTS Sunset Western Garden Collection, sunsetwestern gardencollection.com FABRIC Sunbrella, sunbrella.com FURNITURE Arhaus, arhaus.com Hayneedle, hayneedle.com Lowe’s, lowes.com Universal Furniture, universalfurniture.com HARDWARE Emtek, emtek.com LIGHTING Lamps Plus, lampsplus.com MIRRORS Hayneedle, hayneedle.com OUTDOOR FURNITURE Arhaus, arhaus.com Hayneedle, hayneedle.com Sunbrella, sunbrella.com PAINT Benjamin Moore, benjaminmoore.com PAVERS Belgard, belgard.com PLUMBING FIXTURES & ACCESSORIES DXV, dxv.com RECEIVERSHIP CR Creative Services, crcreativeservices.com RUGS Hayneedle,…

PLANT If you love weeping fig (Ficus benjamina) as a houseplant but not its leaf-dropping tendency, try a relative that’s less susceptible to shedding: F. natalensis leprieurii has triangular leaves, while F. maclellandii ‘Alii’ has long, slim foliage. Shop for blueberry bushes, which provide brilliant fall color now and fruit next summer. Look for ‘Toro’ and ‘Olympia’. Pot up ‘Paper White’ narcissus for quick fragrant blooms. To keep them from flopping, water normally for the first week, then continue with a mix of 7 parts water and 1 part 80-proof distilled gin, vodka, or whiskey. Plants will flower normally but grow one-third shorter. Scatter wildflower seed in empty plots that have been weeded and amended. Propagate lilies by pulling all scales off a bulb, air-drying them for a day, and…

01 CRISIS: THE BIRD’S STILL FROZEN FREEZER TO TABLE, FAST It’s the morning of the feast, and there’s your turkey, still icy. Yikes. Normally it takes several hours to thaw in cold water and a couple more to cook, but dinner is at 5. What to do? Perhaps run out for a precooked bird (if you can even find one this late in the game)—or you could try this unusual method from Flip Wise, chef at The Way Home in Carbondale, Colorado. Pair it with one of the seasoning suggestions here from top chefs in the West, and you’ll have a juicy, flavorful turkey by dinnertime. FAST HERB PAN GRAVY MAKES ABOUT 1 QT. / 15 MINUTES Peacefully make gravy while your turkey rests after roasting. Roasting pan juices2 cans…

“I’M GOING TO HAVE FUN photographing attractive people, doing attractive things in attractive places,” George “Slim” Aarons told a friend upon returning from the battlefields of World War II. In fact, the famed photographer would go on to make a storied career out of snapping the rich and beautiful at home and on vacation—whether they were in Los Angeles, Palm Springs, or the Sierra Nevada. His photos captivated a post-war audience and helped him score his first Life cover at the age of 35. Thereafter, Aarons’s work was a glossy magazine staple. Our favorites, of course, are those pictures that put a spotlight on the West. A vintage gem pulled from the Getty Images Gallery and Photos archive, the 1959 poolside tableau seen here was shot at Tahoe Tavern—one of…

TEAM BUILDER: De Mattei Construction; demattei.com. INTERIOR DESIGN: Lauren Nelson Design; laurennelsondesign.com. LANDSCAPE: Tamura Landscapes; tamuradesigns.com. Sycamore Design; sycamore-design.com. FRONT YARD/ENTRY Driveway, Moduline Slab Pavers in Rio and Sundeck Porcelain Pavers in Spirit, Belgard; belgard.com. Deck, Vintage Collection Weathered Teak, AZEK; azek.com. Aluminum Thermally Controlled Folding Doors, LaCANTINA DOORS; lacantinadoors.com. John Timberland 9-Inch -High Seedy Glass Outdoor Wall Light, Lamps Plus; lampsplus.com. Plants from Sunset Western Garden Collection; sunsetwesterngardencollection.com. Video doorbell, Nest Hello, Nest; nest.com. Paint in Temptation 1609, Stormy Sky 1616, and Ibced Marble 1578, Benjamin Moore; benjaminmoore.com. Sculpture, Brian’s Welding; brianswelding.com. 2019 Lexus ES 350 F Sport, Lexus; lexus.com. THROUGHOUT THE HOME “Del Mar” hardwood flooring, La Maison Nicolas; lamaisonnicolas.com. SECOND-FLOOR STAIRWELL/HALLWAY VELUX Solar Powered “Fresh Air” Skylight, VELUX; veluxusa.com. Wall art, Gewagt W.gend abstract, Metropolitan VI, Study…

PLANT Try ‘Snowflake’ euphorbia, an unusual yet easy-to-carefor succulent with distinctive, silvery columnar stems that are deeply ribbed. It will happily live indoors in a shallow pot by a sunny window. Use a quickdraining cactus mix, and water only when the soil dries out. Fertilize once a month. For a houseplant that has tropical flare and clusters of bright orange blooms, go for an ‘Orange Marmalade’ firecracker flower (Crossandra infundibuliformis). To amp up the humidity, place the container on an impermeable, pebble-filled tray, and keep it full of water. Add ‘Frizzle Sizzle’ albuca to your indoor bulb collection. Leaves form corkscrew tips, while its pale yellow blossoms exude a vanilla scent come spring. Locate in a sun-filled window and ensure it dries out completely between each drink. MAINTAIN While doing…

PLANT To encourage stronger root systems, sow or set out vegetables while the soil still retains some of its warmth. Choose what your household will enjoy eating all winter long—options include cole crops, leafy greens, root vegetables, and members of the allium family. Add flowers that can handle colder weather. Choose from alyssum, baby’s breath, bachelor’s button, calendula, campanula, candytuft, coral bells, coreopsis, cyclamen, English and Shasta daisy, dianthus, forget-me-not, foxglove, hollyhock, Japanese anemone, larkspur, linaria, lunaria, lupine, phlox, snapdragon, stock, sweet peas, violas, and regionally adapted or native wildflowers. Sink native bulbs like calochortus and dichelostemma and corms like triteleia. There’s still time to plant perennial herbs like chives, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, and winter savory. Get them established now so you can harvest from them through winter.…

As GRAY WINTER SKIES APPROACH, DAYDREAMS HAVE A WAY OF TURNING TO THE TROPICS—PERHAPS AN ISLAND GETAWAY WHERE A HAMMOCK AWAITS BENEATH A SOARING COCONUT TREE. RUSTLING FRONDS, A CREAKING TRUNK, AND JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF SHADE INVITE A NAP. Yet there’s more to the palm than its starring role in vacation fantasies. Indigenous tribes used the West’s only native species, the California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera), as a resource for food, shelter, and tools. In-the-know desert travelers also recognized that spotting W. filifera usually meant that you had found water—they often grow near creeks and springs. But with roughly 2,400 palm species found worldwide, it was only a matter of time before W. filifera was joined by near and distant relatives—especially as the climbers were wielded to draw…

TV when it’s on. Art when it’s off. Enhance your living space with a TV that adds premium style and design. The stunning Frame TV boasts a crisp, clear picture, and transforms into art to elevate the style of any room. samsung.com/Frame Each Day in Ventura Starts with a Little Piece of Summer! Each dawn brings surfers to the shores and each evening brings an ocean sunset more beautiful than the last. Ventura is a Southern California vacation at half the cost. Call the Visitor Center for a free visitor guide, 805/648.2075 or VisitVenturaCA.com Discover the Nevada You Never Knew Existed Nevada’s a road trip waiting to happen. Countless open highways and dirt roads beckon you towards unforgettable experiences: Real-deal western culture, epic outdoor playgrounds, 24 state parks, history-packed towns,…

TRAVEL 120TH SPECIAL EDITION 101 Bozeman Area Chamber of Commerce 102 Destination Irvine 103 Destination Missoula, Montana 104 Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau 105 Travel Nevada 106 Yosemite Gold Country 107 ALASKA 108 Explore Fairbanks 109 UnCruise Adventures 110 Visit Anchorage/Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau ARIZON 111 Tempe Arizona BED & BREAKFAST INNS 112 Sorensen’s Resort—Hope Valley CALIFORNIA 113 Alpine County Chamber of Commerce 114 Bear Republic Brewing Company 115 Calaveras Visitors Bureau 116 Charles M. Shultz–Sonoma County Airport (STS) 117 Fairfield—Gateway to the Napa Valley 118 Flamingo Resort & Spa 119 Fort Ross Vineyard & Tasting Room 120 Sonoma County Tourism 121 Stockton Visitors Bureau 122 Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite 123 The Lodge at Torrey Pines 124 Tickle Pink Inn—Carmel 125 Ukiah—Hub of Mendocino County 126 Visit California…