Mama Without Borders: Store tour: Whimsical creations to adorn every room

Many of my shopping expeditions these days begin with my nose pressed against the glass of the window display.

This is one of the display windows at Whim in Southern California

This is just the way life with two little kids can be and I simply find creative ways to shop with the kiddos without the threat of A) draining our bank account due to having to pay for items broken by bored and/or rambunctious kids or B) draining our bank account and not being able to pay our son's preschool tuition because mama went a little wild buying things up in the store.

When I first discovered Whim, I admired the vignette in the window for a few minutes. You may remember how much I love pink, so I took a couple photos to tuck into my inspiration folder.

But really that wasn't enough, so I plotted my return so I could take a peek inside the store. It took a couple months since the store is about an hour away from where I live, but I returned with my two kids in tow and two adults (my husband and mom) to help watch the little ones while I browsed inside the store.

Even the walk leading up to the store entrance was so inviting.

It really felt like I was going to someone's home.

First, the garden room:

Let's go inside now:

This made me want to sit right down at the desk and begin penning a note to someone:

This is one of the "living rooms." Entire rooms were furnished as though an event was about to take place or at the ready for a family gathering.

Gorgeous accessories abounded for every corner of the home. A limted but highly selective collection of books reeled me in.

For once, I didn't browse the book stacks for long since there were so many things to see and admire.

I'll definitely have to return. Thankfully, Whim is just a short walk away from the train station, a small children's zoo and many other tourist attractions (including an antique mall right across the street) in historic downtown San Juan Capistrano.