2009 April (2)

Archive | April, 2009

Apr292009

report on portland part 2: the ace hotel

Posted by Mary S in living with pets, traveling

Interesting surroundings, interesting people, cool art, and they take dogs? It’s no surprise we liked our stay at the Ace Hotel in Portland so much.

Because we have two large mastiffs, we made sure to get a room that wouldn’t be too small. We ended up in one of the Superior Deluxe corner rooms, and let’s just say — yes, it was big enough! At 500 square feet, it was larger than my first apartment. The enormous couch (which converts into two twin beds, and no, we didn’t let the dogs on them) was super comfortable and looked to be upholstered with old military tent material. The desk was made from reclaimed wood and a battered Marines locker. The room also had a record player and a selection of vinyl. I had a nice moment of nostalgia listening to a Boz Scaggs record that was once a major feature in my older sister’s music collection. Click for more photos and fun! (more…)

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Apr292009

here’s a shelf for your comic book collection

Posted by Mary S in decorating, organizing

Oh, we love the shelves around here. The latest are these Small Comic Bookshelves by Fusca Design, as seen at Outblush, and There’s the “Bigcomic Shelve” if you have more to say. Just one catch: we can’t figure out how to buy them. Can you?

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Apr282009

i tried pepsi natural

Posted by Mary S in drinking

A few years ago, I was struggling with a bad addiction to caffeinated, high fructose corn syrup-laden carbonated beverages — most notably Coke and Pepsi. Quitting that stuff was the hardest thing I’ve ever quit, seriously. Occasionally, I still crave those sweet, fizzy delights and indulge, but only in a cane sugar-sweetened Coke or Pepsi from Mexico (which still has other naughty stuff in it, like artificial flavors). How delighted was I to see Pepsi Natural on the shelf at Target the other day? With its cane sugar and all-natural kola nut extract tempting me, of course I immediately imbibed, but with restraint — this is a “classy” soda after all. The carbonation wasn’t as aggressive as most colas I’ve tried, and the cola flavor itself was much more subdued and earthy than regular Pepsi. Delicious and different, indeed — but thankfully not addicting! –Megan B.

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Apr282009

etsy find: peacockmodern vintage homewares

Posted by Mary S in giving, shopping, surfing

Need a good place to start looking for a Mother’s Day gift? PeacockModern on Etsy is a treasure trove of cute vintage pieces. Owner Heidi Unruh scours thrift shops so you don’t have to — she has a discerning eye for good quality vintage design and the odd dash of quirkiness, and her prices are reasonable, too. The Esty store is updated often with a good range of vintage glass and dinnerware, Pyrex, Mikasa, and Danish Modern, spiced up with a bit of kitsch. Plus, they’ll ship all over the world. See all the latest vintage wares at PeacockModern here. –Paola T

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Apr282009

these pear terrariums are the apple of my eye

Posted by Erica P. in gardening, living green, shopping

I still haven’t exactly honed my green thumb (read: I even kill cacti) but I’ve heard that keeping plants in a terrarium is an especially easy method for keeping them alive. At least I’ll be less likely to let them dry out. I think one of these pear-shaped Recycled Glass Terrariums from Viva Terra would look especially cool on a kitchen window ledge. At $49 they’re a little pricey, but if it will keep me from killing a plant every other month, then it practically pays for itself. –Erica P.