February 2008
Editor’s Note: Blinded by the Sun
When my husband and I first moved here in August 1997, we knew of the seductive powers of the golden month’s glorious glow and warm temperatures. We had been to Seattle before—in the throes of a rainy February, natch—but in relation to the Midwest and East Coast arctic winters from which we came, Seattle winter…
TruAthlete to Host a Three-Sport Competition for Everyone
Get ready, all you diehard athletes, sports fans and Seattleites who are just in the mood to be active and have fun: This July, TruAthlete, a company that hosts organized sporting events for the everyday Joe and Jane, is taking over Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila with its first tri-sport event. Dozens of creatively titled…
Rachel Comey to Visit Totokaelo
Last night an email bearing some pretty awesome news popped into my inbox: Rachel Comey will be making a personal appearance at Totokaelo on Saturday, May 18 from 5 to 7 p.m. The whole day, however, is a Rachel Comey extravaganza with a trunk show of new styles and a chance to check out the…
The Fight Against Toxic Flame Retardants in Your Couch
A pioneering Seattle coalition wages a battle against toxic flame retardants, one couch at a time
Washington state Senator Sharon Nelson loved the comfy brown loveseat she bought for her office in Olympia. The couch gave her Statehouse digs a cozy feel. And curling up on it with her laptop for a precious half-hour now and then provided respite from the long hours at her desk and in her chair on…
Cocktails for Kathi Goertzen + Brain Tumor Awareness Month
Several local restaurants have partnered with broVo Spirits to serve up classic cocktails all during May in honor of National Brain Tumor Awareness Month. A portion of the proceeds for each cocktail ordered goes to the Kathi Goertzen Foundation, the organization created to help raise research funds for brain cancer cures and patient support. Goertzen,…
Writer JM Sidorova Talks about her New Novel, The Age of Ice
Seattle writer and scientist Julia Sidorova pens an icy and expansive debut novel
Sitting in a Ravenna coffee shop, novelist Julia Sidorova is making sweeping gestures across a table, like a seamstress extending a measuring tape across a long swath of fabric. She’s explaining what she does during her day job as a biomedical scientist at the UW School of Medicine’s Department of Pathology, where her particular niche…
Paul Gregutt’s Waitsburg Cellars Unveils Wine Standouts
The wine reviewer becomes the winemaker with the first release of Waitsburg Cellars from Paul Gregut
Getting down to the studs: preserving the bones of a thing, maintaining a foundation and building something beautiful on top of it. It’s an approach I first heard Paul Gregutt espouse when discussing Waitsburg Cottages, the century-old houses he and his wife, Karen, have purchased, refurbished and rented out in the formerly sleepy, now-buzzing hamlet…
Artist Kristen Loffer Theiss Gets Creative with her Work/Life Balance
How one Mount Vernon mom gets creative
The act of parenting doesn’t allow parents an abundance of time for artistic endeavors. How could it, when you’ve got the life of (at least) one other human to organize in addition to your own? Yet Mount Vernon mom and artist Kristin Loffer Theiss has uncovered a trick to the work/life balance we may all…
New Scent from Olivine Smells Like a Perfect Tropical Isle
Longtime Seattle shoppers will remember Julie Merriman Wray as the proprietress of the now-mythic Olivine boutique that once graced Ballard Avenue NW. Perfume lovers will know her for Lulu Beauty—recently renamed Olivine Atelier—which includes a lush collection of fragrances whose heady scents are redolent of sweet pikake, sandalwood and Merriman Wray’s favorite sultry gardenia. With…
Mother’s Day: Last Minute Gift Ideas
Mother’s Day is Sunday in case you’ve forgotten, but it’s not too late to hop on some really great gifts with local flair for your favorite lady. Here’s a quick visual rundown. For the new mom: A Carry-All Tote from Glittersweet. For the kitchen gardener: Tomato plants and tomato-scented candles at Fleurt, where you…
A Chat with Project Runway Winner Michelle Lesniak Franklin
The Project Runway season 11 finale was ages ago but based on how awesome her final collection was, I have a feeling that winner, Portland’s Michelle Lesniak Franklin, is here to stay. If you watched the show, you remember that Franklin struggled in the beginning of the season because of the the teams she was…
Two New Ventures for Far4
Big news from downtown’s Far4: Owner Jenny Hudak Klimenkoff has announced an expansion of a vintage corner she’s been testing out for a couple of months. Head in to shop from her current inventory of thoughtfully curated shoes, purses and scarves—clothing coming soon—or bring in your own treasures to consign. Here’s a bit of what…