30% OFF EVERYTHING SALE AT DIGS - THIS WEEKEND ONLY!

GOBBLE GOBBLE!!!!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY TO YOU AND YOURS! ....AND HERE'S A TOAST TO ALL OF US SMALL SHOP OWNERS TO A GREAT DAY TOMORROW AND THROUGH THE HOLIDAY SHOPPING SEASON!

PLEASE SHOP SMALL - SHOP LOCAL!!!! IT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE...........

HECK OF A SALE AT DIGS - START THE SHOPPING SEASON RIGHT!!!

Thank God for happy hour.......

A lively drink at Olympic Provisions......

Perfect day for a pedicure!!!

Snowy and blustery.... Perfect day to get a seasalt leg scrub and a
soak in warm water. Nothing like a good foot rub to get the day
started. The blue nail color reminds me Morocco.

First snow in Portland. Yippee!!!!!

The land of tillandsias and gnomes

I have a love affair with tillandsias this year. In fact, I love them so much that the we literally have a few hundred of them at the shop this week! They are so easy to love and even easier to care for......

These tillandsias look great adorning this tulipiere - kind of an unexpected pairing!

We also have lots of happy little garden gnomes.......we even have a "gardening" gnome and the craziest gnome I have ever seen - the "biker" gnome. Unfortunately, I need a better photo...so tune back in to check them out...or better yet, come on down to the shop and take a gander....the espresso is on us!

Lastly, Frenchy and I went out for dinner with some friends - the ever charming Sue and Eric at a relatively new restaurant downtown - Pinot American Brasserie - it was delicious! Nice interior - tasty food and excellent service! A perfect combination!.....Sorry for the bad iphoto - but we started with the duck fat fries (yum!) and a great beer!...Ty it for yourself at SW 12th & Washington........

Have a great Sunday!

SEEK THE UNIQUE

Here is a peek at a cute vintage / salvage shop I love that has VERY recently gone under major renovation. Andrea has fantastic taste and an amazing eye for picking up some real treasures! Today, I found the mantle for my fireplace that I have been looking for for years! YIPPEEEE!!!! Now it just needs a good coat of black paint, a little distressing and a little bit of gold accents and we are good!

Here is my new mantle......love it! So excited!!!!!!

This super cool wreath is made out of a vintage gear and holiday baubles...way to be crafty!

today at the flower market.......

So this morning the flower market was buzzing with activity..you know the week before Thanksgiving and all....and while I was gathering my things for the shop, I came across the craziest fruit tree I have ever seen. The image below is a citrus fruit (totally with the skin of a lemon) from a tree called Buddha's Hand - (Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis)

Here is a description I found online.....

"Fruit forms finger-like sections resembling a human hand. It is much esteemed for its delicate lemon fragrance in China and Japan. Fruit has virtually no pulp, but can be sliced and candied in syrup. It is extraordinary as an evergreen ornamental with multiple "hands" hanging from the branches. No frost tolerance."

CRAZY COOL!!!!!! Buddha's Hand Citrus......

So before the torrential rains started today, this was a perfect fall moment in the Irvington neighborhood......makes me want hot apple cider....

Have a great evening!!!

JIB JAB HOLIDAY GREETING

So, you have to click on this link (below) and see our hilarious holiday video. I love Jib Jab - so crafty!

http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/7T6hw2Pn6eYbLaIG

Here is part of a project we are working on for a client that will be installed on Monday morning. I am SOOOOOO pleased with the way that this turned out. We also have draperies to install for the client that will happen in the next few weeks.......so stay tuned!

This is the client's beautiful vintage settee that we are recovering - BEFORE. What a graceful piece!

....another angle......

TA-DA! The finished product! What a huge and elegant difference! Of course, you all know my love for Schumacher's Chiang Mai Dragon, but I have never used the red colorway before, and it is indeed stunning!

...from the back.........

..and from the side.....

Ok then...there it is! Lovely!

more photos of Portugal...

I know the light is bad, but this chapel was really beautiful. The roof line and the roof tiles....in the canal district of Aveiro.

In the warehouse district of Aveiro, these are old salt warehouses. There are tons of salt flats right on the water here and this is where they store the salt...a very precious product. We always bring back salt from here.......

look at this beautiful wild agave in front of an abandoned ceramics factory on the outskirts of downtown Aveiro. so random

Last photo.........from across the canal...very picturesque.

photos of portugal

look at this beautiful blue tile on this wonderful little chapel in Aveiro, Portugal. This is about 15 minutes from where Frenchy grew up. The blue tile art is called azulejos......truly amazing artistry.

small house in the canal district of Aveiro.....

the cutest beach town called Costa Nova is right outside Aveiro....most of the little cabins are painted in broad stripes. For some reason my other pictures did not turn out at all, so this is the best I have got. Google it...I am sure there are more.... we had lunch in this cute little area the day before we left for Spain. Great seafood.......the grilled Atlantic salmon was divine...

here are the gondolas on the canals in Aveiro...kind of like the ones in Venice. Kind of. So charming though. This area comes right up to the center o the downtown area and the gondolas are available for tours.....lovely!

Last one of this batch....this was an abandoned little place right around the corner from the cute little tile chapel. I would love to buy it and fix it up. hmmmm......

madrid barajas airport

I know I have been back for a week, but I just had to show you these pictures of the inside of the Madrid Airport. It is very stark and modern feeling, but the undulations of the ceilings are amazing. Since they used a soft wood, it is much less noisy than any other place would be that had marble floors, metal columns and super high ceilings. The yellow is also quite cheerful. The use of reflected lighting in the Airport is quite resourceful and quite green. The lighting is so well done you hardly notice that it is that nasty fluorescent stuff.....

So we were checking in at the airport at 5 am...doesn't Frenchy look delighted? HA! Glad to be home now.....getting ready for the holidays! Bring on the shopping!!!!

Gnomes and Frogs......

I am just starting to crawl out from under the fog that is/was my head/chest cold courtesy of Portugal and I realized that I could not be happier with how the shop is looking at the moment. It's the little things......Such bright colors to balance out the gray days. What I am most pleased with is my gnome chair and the frog chairs. All of them are vintage and re- purposed pieces with new fabrics applied. The gnome fabric is so freaking cheerful! We have one gnome chair and 4 of the frog chairs - perfect for a small dining table! You should really stop by the shop and take a look........

How cute are those???????? LOVE LOVE!!!!

Out of touch......

DUDES! It has been one full week since my last post......I have my new best friend, THE HORRIFIC HEAD COLD to thank for that...oh yeah, and the really bad weather in Portugal last week..

So The French One and I got home at 1 am this morning - it was a crazy long day - 32 hours to get home....and it seems that I have been added to a watchlist by the Department of Homeland Security. Seriously. That's what I found out during my 3rd body search in Madrid yesterday. I am not sure the woman who corralled me was supposed to tell me that, but there it is. What the hell!

Anyhoo...at least we are home - nothing is more comforting than being able to get into your own bed and hope your cold packs up and just goes away!

So, thanks for your patience, I just need a few days down time to get rid of this cold thing...... The pressure in my head is almost unbearable. Thank God for the inventor of the neti pot. If you don't know what that is, google it. I know, it sounds kind of disgusting, but you cant imagine just how much it helps your head. It took me quite some time to resign myself to the use of it, but on my flights home, when my head was pressurizing and de-pressurizing with the planes cabin pressure, all I could think of was getting home to use the neti pot. All hail the neti pot.

Have a great week!