Tucson

We know spring is just around the corner because it says so right on our calendar but the frosty mounds of white outside combined with the chilly scarf & glove weather has us rhapsodizing about a warmer clime and our autumn trip to the toasty heat of Tucson.  The purpose of our trip was an art & trunk show at Bonnie and Crystal Flynt's beautiful shop, BON, but once we arrived our hosts took us to all their favorite local sites and the trip turned into a wonderful feast of inspiration.

Mission San Xavier del Bac was completed in the late 1700's and still functions as a parish church today.  The interior is filled with intricate details like beautifully rendered statues and very contemporary looking painted patterns.  It was a wonderful overload of stimuli for our eyes. 

One of our favorite details was this geometric pattern covering the bottom section of the walls.

In contrast to the ornamentation of Mission San Xavier is Mission San Jose de Tumacacori which was established in the late 1600’s.   We loved the crumbling interior walls that still show a hint of faded murals.  The space possessed a quiet serenity and was decorated with one large cross embellished with brightly colored tissue flowers.  It was truly beautiful.
 
There are two BON stores in Tucson and both locations are magical places filled with an eclectic assortment of merchandise selected and artfully arranged by Bonnie and Crystal.  We love when we discover a store where it is obvious that someone took real time, thought and care in gathering together the merchandise and creating an interesting environment.  It can be a hardware store or a bakery but when we're there we know we are somewhere special.  Bon is one of those places.