This was a week of exciting expansions, remodels and moves for some of our favorite boutiques: As Karen Johnson reported on Wednesday, Blackbird is jumping on the Portlandia bandwagon and will open the first Blackbird enterprise outside of Ballard in PDX this summer. (Great news for us Oregon natives often stuck in the Portland I-5 slog; from now on find me hanging out at the Bird between 5-7 p.m. taking a break from the haul to Eugene). But the better news for Seattleites, The Field House is upgrading the house, expanding into an adjacent space. The remodel is underway so keep an eye out for more Pendelton coats, rough and ready boots and leather bag storage soon.

More news coming out of sweet little Sway & Cake downtown, owner Tamara Donaghy also recently remodeled, streamlining their space in anticipation of her in-house clothing line launch, which debuts sometime this spring/summer. Correspondent Joan Kelly stopped by the store and has all the juicy details:

In the Closet with Joan Kelly: Sway & Cake from Brett Renville on Vimeo.

Recently, I’ve been a sucker for two things: great cowboy boots (be sure to check out our April issue to see the full manifestation of this obsession) and Seattle-inspired jewels. So, I love how deliciously subtle this map necklace is from Seattle jeweler Sweetium; laser-cut from birch or black acrylic, it’s practically bursting with Northwest pride.