let's curl up on this couch and read a book

dreamy. courtesy of vintage

the weekend story: 2.4.11



while you relax after a week of getting a lot of stuff not done at work, watch this video and learn how we all could and should be working smarter.



over on one of my favorite blogs, sweet fine day, jenna writes eloquently on her decision to dramatically change her family's health care plan due to skyrocketing costs. a must read. photo courtesy of sweet fine day.



time to start shopping for spring. i love this bag in the infusion shop on etsy. it's the perfect farmers market, running around on the weekend, travel bag. would be a great laptop bag too. want.



seattle's most famous chef, tom douglas, has created a kindle-based walking tour of our food-obsessed city. 
(available for use on all smartphones and computers enabled with Kindle software). download here.
photo courtesy of the interwebs.

have a lovely weekend.

garnet girl designs: (etsy)

photos courtesy of onegarnetgirl

oh my. lovely. so, so lovely.  madelynn of etsy shop garnet girl designs crafts an amazing collection of beautiful jewelry working with metal from recycled materials, precious gemstones and fair trade and conflict free diamonds.

these earrings would be a lovely valentines day gift.

this ring from her constellations series would look amazing on my gemini finger. hint.

visit the garnet girl designs website

visit the garnet girl designs etsy shop

rides a bike: (blog love)

photo of geneviève bujold courtesy of rides a bike

the people of the internet never cease to amaze me with their genius ideas. like, how about a simple blog featuring photographs of old school celebrities riding bikes. it's kind of like the us magazine feature, celebrities: they're just like us. except so much cooler than that.

visit the rides a bike blog

become a fan of the facebook page

dirtybils: (etsy)

photos courtesy of dirtybils etsy shop

normally i'm not one to find home inspiration in the plumbing section, but then i saw these industrial metal pipe bookshelves by etsy seller dirtybils. these would be killer in a bathroom as a towel rack too. pipe never looked so good.

dirtybils etsy shop

downtown from behind (blog love)

photos courtesy of downtownfrombehind

i'll admit: i'm a little obsessed with this blog. downtown from behind is the brilliant idea of the photographer bridget flemming. a photographic project capturing subjects shot riding their bikes from behind, dfb now has an archive of photos of  200+ streets, avenues and lanes below 14th in nyc. the goal to highlight a unique set of individuals who have had an impact, previously or currently on their street or neighborhood. subjects photographed to date have included designers, musicians, artists,  restaurantes, entrepreneurs, hoteliers and academics.

i want to pedal my backside down that cobblestone street. like, right now.

jed and shauna: soupcycle (portland)

photos courtesy of soupcycle and the interwebs

I was just saying to a good friend of mine the other day, "I could eat soup every day. why doesn't someone start a business delivering just soup and bread." and then I received my new issue on sunset and read about soupcycle. of course soupcycle is in portland; they are way ahead of seattle in many ways when it comes to innovative food concepts.

soupcyclers jed and shauna love soup and bikes and believe you deserve wonderful, healthy food delivered right to your doorstep. they started soupcycle two years ago when they delivered soup to close friends and neighbors on their bikes. the soup was a hit and word spread like wild soupfire. since that first delivery they have cooked and delivered 25,000 tasty organic soups, saved 9,000+ car miles using bike delivery and supported local farmers by purchasing locally grown produce.

jed and shauna: please bike on up to seattle and spread the soup love.

become a soupetarian

interlaken boulevard: now and then (seattle)

interlaken blvd on north capitol hill - present day

interlaken blvd in 1911, looking across portage bay towards the university of washington

wow, what a difference a few decades makes.

and here's the story of this road..
in the 1890's, interlaken blvd was the principal bike and buggy path linking capitol hill with the boulevards on lake washington.  in 1903, the olmsted brothers approved interlaken as a boulevard route. it soon became popular with walkers and auto drivers, who appreciated the views of mountains and lakes. In 1913, five acres of the interlaken area were set aside as boren park to honor louisa boren denny, the last surviving member of the party of pioneers that landed at alki in 1851.

dani cone: high 5 pies (seattle)



photo courtesy of daily candy

watch out, cupcakes.

photo courtesy of seattle weekly

dani cone has been making high 5 pies since 2008, selling them at her fuel coffee shop locations on capitol hill, wallingford and montlake. she just opened the first high 5 retail location on 12th & madison in the trace lofts building. 

high 5 grew out of dani's love for eating pie with a good cup of coffee. using her grandma molly's all-butter crust recipe, she creates both savory and sweet pies in several different sizes - classic 7 and 9-inch pies, mini cutie-pies, flipsides (similar to a turnover), piejars (baked in a mason jar - adorable), petit-5's, or - my personal favorite - piepops! you can even pick up a pie and bake it at home - genius. so far i've had the sweet potato and caramel pecan flavors - both delicious. you can also get your pie a la mode in the shop, with a scoop of molly moons or bluebird ice creams on the side, both locally made.

stop by fuel coffee or the new high 5 shop and get your pie fix.

check out the high 5 blog to stay up to date on new flavors (fruit loop cream pie people)

flora grubb: (san francisco)

photos from dwell

2003: flora grubb and her business partner saul nadler opened a small garden shop in the mission district of san francisco. the neighborhood nursery soon became a destination for gardeners from all over the bay area. four years later flora and saul moved to an industrial part of town and opened a 8,000 sq. ft. shop in the bayview district. a brilliant combination of plant nursery, garden-supply store, coffee shop, and botanical garden, flora gubb instantly became an institution and urban oasis.

the staff at flora grubb is knowledgeable and patient, the prices for plants are reasonable, and the architecture of the place is inspired. well worth a visit for anyone interested in urban gardening, innovative public spaces, or a good place to chill out for a few hours.

 

courtesy of flora grubb



the next time you find yourself in the city by the bay, make your way to flora grubb and soak up the plant love.

flora grubb website and online shop

become a fan of flora grubb on facebook

sunday routine: christine baranski

photos courtesy of the new york times

great idea from the nyt: the sunday routine feature in the new york section.

dream apartment

i don't know who lives here. i want to know her story. i can't credit anyone with these pictures sadly. i've had these photographs on my computer for a long time in a folder called "dream apartment." i love everything about this space: the walk right in and take your shoes off and curl up on the couch and read a book feeling, the vintage touches, the tile in the bathroom and kitchen, the tin ceiling, the light fixtures, the old door, the painted brick, the wood floors. it's tiny, but everything is charming and perfect. did i mention THE PATIO?

weekend wish: snow

via birch and bird

 

it's not going to happen, but i really wish it would: snow. i haven't had a chance to wear my new sorel snow boots at all this winter. what happened to la nina?

the weekend story 1.28.11

1. check out a gorgeous shot of oregon fog from a new blog I've discovered. i'll say it again: oregon is rad.
2. if you're gonna make pancakes this weekend, make these. and please invite me over.
3. if you haven't already, listen to the first song released from adele's new album, out 2/22.
4. speaking of recipes, the new york times mark bittman (the minimalist) has published his top 25 favorite recipes of all time. try the bread recipe.

5. check out a painting a day by abbey ryan and be completely awed. she's been doing a painting a day every day since 2007. yes, you heard me correctly.
6. i know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream (vincent van gogh). this quote is printed on this gorgeous necklace, available on jeweler jeanine payer's website. start shopping for valentines day.
7. read the new issue of rue, online now.
8. the aliens are coming. close encounters is playing at the egyptian this weekend.

9. do some shopping on emersonmade. i am digging the moto jacket.
10. the days are getting ever so slightly longer. i leave for mexico one month from today. the countdown is on. what are your travel plans for the spring?

peace out.

lizzie garrett: creator of tomboy style blog and freelance writer (los angeles)



Film still of Manhattan via Tout Le Cine



Photo via Telecaster.com



from Ruush Magazine

Seriously?! As in, how seriously cool is this blog? As soon as I clicked on Tomboy Style my heart skipped four beats and then I fell into a bit of a depressive, jealous slump. I rebounded pretty quickly as I began looking through the photos that Lizzie has selected of remarkably cool women with true, individual style. You can read more about Lizzie herself here and if that isn't enough, check out her other blog, here. Lizzie, I am humbled. 

Top to bottom women with Tomboy Style:

Mariel Hemingway, actress

Linda Ronstadt, musician

Isabel Marant, fashion designer

sharon hoyle and roger williams: mixed pickles (oakland)

Mixed Pickles is Sharon Hoyle, Roger Williams and a big pile of really great vintage stuff. Sharon opened the first location in North Berkeley in 1998. Roger wandered into the shop in 2002. They struck up a conversation about 1920's Jazz musicians, and have been talking ever since. The opportunity for a great new location in their hometown of Oakland presented itself. The new bigger & brighter shop opened as a partnership in December 2010 when the contents of their two homes reached maximum capacity. Favorite things: Salvaged and architectural antiques, advertising signs, furniture with clean lines, and finding new uses for vintage items.

 (via desire to inspire)

6395 Telegraph Avenue Oakland

visit the mixed pickles blog

all photographs by christina schmidhofer

lee rhodes: glassybaby (seattle, new york city, online shop)

photos by glassybaby and yours truly

“It began with a light of hope.” 

the glassybaby story began in founder Lee Rhodes garage in 1998 while she was battling a rare form of lung cancer. Today, she is cancer-free and oversees a thriving business with 4 retail locations and an eye towards expansion. The experience with cancer never left her however. The company's foundation and mission - glassybaby goodwill - exists to this day, donating a substantial percentage of sales each year to cancer-related charities, along with several others dedicated to improving health and providing comfort. 

My own story began on my birthday three years ago. I unwrapped a birthday present from a friend – a small, sturdy white box with a simple, lovely name printed in green: glassybaby. I remember thinking as I removed my beautiful orange votive from the box that I had never seen anything quite like it. I still haven’t. 

If you're looking to begin your own glassybaby story, or add to an already growing collection, you're in luck. The glassybaby seconds sale is coming up! Mark your calendars for Saturday, January 22nd and prepare to get up early. An extremely popular event (it happens only twice a year) the seconds sale allows you to get your hands on glassybaby's at a discounted price. Held exclusively at the Madrona shop, the doors open at 10am. But you'll want to queue up much, much earlier. Bring a box, lighter, tea lights, patience, and cash (the cash-only line moves faster!)

Getting married, throwing a party or looking for a morale event idea? glassybaby has an event rental program and they also rent out their Madrona store. For more information contact their events team.

Thank you Lee and team for sharing your story.


Shine a light.
visit the glassbaby website
follow glassybaby on Facebook