articles

Category: Eat + Drink Articles      It’s no accident that biting into chocolate is blissful. “There is so much rich history and science to the experience of chocolate,” explains Dr. Kristy Leissle, who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Washington in the economics of cocoa trade and the culture of chocolate in Ghana and…

Category: Arts + Events Articles   1. Get Your Nerd OnEmerald City Comicon and Sakura-ConComics fans may want to move into the Convention Center this month, when graphic geeks will swarm the place two weekends in a row. First up (4/4–4/5) is the seventh annual Emerald City Comicon, featuring comic book writers, illustrators, gamers and…

Category: Shopping + Fashion Articles   The RE Store’s Eighth Annual Haute Trash Fashion Show on April 17Our economy may be in the Dumpster—but that’s not the reason one of the city’s most anticipated fashion shows features couture crafted entirely from castoffs. Timed to coincide with Earth Day festivities, the RE Store’s Haute Trash Fashion…

Category: Articles   So you think we’re bike-friendly? From Copenhagen to Portland, take a look at how we compare to our competition.Portland, OregonThe first version of the Rose City Bicycle Plan was drafted in 1973. Portland’s current bike master plan was written in 1995 and is continually updated by city transit agencies, a Bicycle Advisory…

Category: Articles   Time to complete: 10 years, beginning in 2007Estimated cost: $240 million (in 2007 dollars)Miles of bike lanes, paths, sharrows and signed bike routes in 2006: 67.6 Miles of those facilities recommended to be completed by the end of 2009: 201.2Miles of those facilities recommended to be completed by the end of 2016:…

Category: Eat + Drink Articles   Marionberry tart with white truffle honey crème fraîcheServes 8 for dessert Sweet tart dough (pâte sable)Makes enough dough for two tarts 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour2 tablespoons cornstarch2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into half-inch cubes1/3 cup granulated sugar1/2 teaspoon salt1/4 cup heavy cream2 egg yolks Whisk the cream and…

Category: Shopping + Fashion Articles   Dome DelightAlthough bicycle helmets offer much-needed noggin protection, they don’t typically do much for your image. Not true anymore, thanks to Portland-based Nutcase Helmets’ line of fun, brightly colored headwear, including this black-and-white striped dome accented with orange Gerber daisies. The creations, by company founder and graphic designer Michael…

Category: Beauty Articles   When a young kid loses his balance, he may fall—but he probably won’t break his hip. The same isn’t true of older adults, whose balance can become impaired with age and lead to serious injuries. (A 2006 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that falls are the…

Category: Articles   When Cynthia Lair hears people talk about eating right, she wants to tell them it isn’t complex. If you don’t have an illness related to food, this veteran nutrition and cooking teacher at Bastyr University, host of the hilarious online cooking show Cookus Interruptus (cookusinterruptus.com) and author of Feeding the Whole Family,…

Category: Articles   Eastern Washington’s gorgeous Cave B Inn at Sagecliffe, overlooking the Columbia River, is hosting a yoga and wine weekend with nationally recognized yogi Angela Gargano, April 24–26 (from $975/person). Daily yoga workshops, wine events and cooking classes with Shauna Scriver, executive chef of the resort’s Tendrils Restaurant, will leave every sense sated….

Category: Arts + Events Articles   Michael Herschensohn, A-Y-P Exposition Centennial Program Manager for the Mayor’s Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, shares his recommendations for can’t-miss Centennial activities around Seattle this year. 38th Annual Northwest Folklife FestivalIn May, the 38th Annual Northwest Folklife Festival officially kicks off the A-Y-P Centennial celebration with a recreation…

Category: Beauty Articles   Sure, the economy is tight, but you want to look your best, right? We went to the city’s foremost nail parlor, Julep, to ask owner Jane Park and lead vernisseur and innovation manager, Lisa Hahn for advice on how to get the most out of your favorite beauty treatments. Billed as the…

Category: NW Home Articles   A Medina kitchen got a French chateau makeover, with useful touches like exterior fabric that doesn’t stain in the kitchen nook, colors reflecting the lake outside, lavastone countertops imported from France and a mosaic to match. Amely Wurmbrand started her Seattle-based firm, Amely Wurmbrand Designs (206.542.0447; amelydesigns.com) in 1999, where…

Category: NW Home Articles   Think of it as Google Street View, circa 1910–discover how to get photos of your pre-1930s Seattle house Discover the biography of your very own home by obtaining an original photo of your pre-1930s roost. Puget Sound Regional Archives provides a free and user-friendly service to assist you with your…

Category: Articles   Quang H. Nguyen’s story, in many ways, is the story of the Vietnamese American community. Uprooted by war, displaced to a new country and culture, Nguyen and his family were among the 45,000 Southeast Asians to settle in Washington state between 1975 (the fall of Saigon) and 1985. “My parents came here…

Category: Arts + Events Articles   As metaphors go, having your life compared to a circus is not necessarily what you want—take for example the fact that Britney Spears has named her comeback album Circus. It would seem much better to have life be a cabaret (old chum) or, at the very least, a zoo….

Category: NW Home Articles   Car payments. Waists. The national debt. Some things are definitely better small. But what about homes? In these times of a troubled economy and a fragile environment, modestly sized spaces are the clear choice for affordability and energy-efficiency. Still, those of us raised in ramblers can’t help but wonder: Does…

Category: NW Home Articles   A remodeled family room marries form and function  Faced with a young family’s typical domestic disarray, a Bellevue couple decided on a family room update for their 1970s home that blends form with function.  Suzanne Zahr Fleming, of ZDS Architects, with whom the couple had worked previously, created a space…

Category: NW Home Articles   Fabulous furniture geared for small spots Small spaces call for a similarly scaled-down decor. Check out these clever, petite pieces that definitely don’t scrimp on style. Henrybuilt’s teak Wall ChairsEven the smallest spaces can make room for a houseguest thanks to BoConcept’s (901 Western Ave., Seattle; 206.464.9999; boconcept.com) funky Xtra…

Category: NW Home Articles   If you were a kid in the ’60s, you assumed that the new millennium would find you stepping out the door each morning to strap on your jetpack and zoom to work over a cityscape of domes, spires and bubbles. Alas, 2009 has dawned and we’re still stuck in traffic,…