Challenge the chill with your own built-in heater, courtesy of West Seattle–based Toast’s heated long underwear tops and pants. Created by outdoor sports enthusiast Julia Aiken and her hubby, Andy, the moisture-wicking Polartec garments warm up frosty types with hidden air-activated heat packets in core areas, including the lower back, neck and waistband. $75–$95 at…

We’ve grown accustomed to meals on wheels, but now Amanda Linton and Allison Norris are transporting the concept to fashion for their new mobile vintage boutique, The Kippy Ding Ding. The duo first brainstormed up the idea after meeting last year at a coffee shop. Linton, a seasoned wardrobe stylist, had spotted similar boutiques-on-the-go in…

Tina Witherspoon didn’t intend to become a clothing designer; she just wanted to organize her closet. Looking for a creative outlet back in 2006 (she had dabbled in acting, costume design and rocking out in bands), Witherspoon pulled her sewing machine out of mothballs and started fixing garments that didn’t fit right. “I was hooked,…

Last week marked the official 175th anniversary of Tiffany & Co., a landmark the iconic American company has marked by resetting the 128.54-carat, 135 year-old Tiffany yellow diamond in a platinum setting with 481 white diamonds totaling over 120 carats — just a little bauble. This is the fifth setting for the diamond, one of…

As the political fur flies this month, insert a little levity into the conversation with Mount Baker author Ben Clanton’s book, Vote for Me!, in which a donkey and an elephant duke it out in a familiar blue and red rivalry. The rhetoric accelerates to a mudslinging climax of self-promotion (“How can you NOT vote…

Too big for a highchair, too little to reach the table? In the old days, sitting on a phone book would do the trick, but now, we reach for a Luv Chicken booster cushion. Created by Renton mom and graphic designer Ann Hurley, these lightweight, 4-inch-tall square wonders are covered in vinyl-coated cotton and come…

Ever step on a Lego barefoot? Then you understand why View Ridge graphic designer and mom Sarah Kirk felt the need to create the ultimate brick wrangler, the Swoop bag. Inspired by a storage bag that her grandmother made 30 years ago for her brother’s Lego collection, Kirk makes her bags from durable cotton canvas…

With celebrity clients like Michelle Obama, Diane Sawyer and Jennifer Garner, Rachel Roy has established herself as the thinking woman’s clothing designer. Her collections are savvy, smart, wearable and touch on sexy rather than scream it. Perhaps best known for her apparel, Roy also does shoes. She’ll be at the Downtown Nordstrom store on Thursday,…

It’s the era of the high/low collaboration in fashion (Neiman Marcus and Target’s upcoming Holiday collection being the ultimate in incongruity) and Nordstrom has entered the fray this week as Topshop, one of Britain’s most beloved trendy high street retailers, set up shop in 14 of their stores throughout the country and online. Seattleites can…

Seattle magazine’s 2nd annual Seamless in Seattle fashion show was proof that Seattle has style! The five Seamless in Seattle award-winning designers presented their chic, sophisticated and totally wearable collections to 350 guests, picturesquely set underneath the glowing cars at the Seattle Art Museum. Plus, each designer created a unique look for the Peroni Nastro…

Ever wondered what really goes on during a fashion photo shoot? (Let me tell you it’s a lot less flash bulbs a’popping and quick posing, and quite a bit more waiting around for hair and makeup and stealing snacks.) But even the real, non-movie-portrayal version is pretty gosh-darn fun, standing on the sidelines and watching…