With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, let me give you a little advice garnered from my years of experience (ha!). Instead of struggling to book a last-minute restaurant or trying to wedge your way into a crowded bar, make that special someone a deliciously flirty cocktail at home. Here are five possibilities that taste scrumptious and fit the “Be Mine” mood. [Want restaurant recommendations for Valentine's Day? Check out Leslie Kelly's picks.]
Think in and outside the box with these great Valentine’s Day gift ideas:
Heart shaped flip flips by Melissa, from Clementine (see above).
Jen Ament print from Far4:
MUST SEESapeurs Ongoing (1/25–3/2) — Do not miss this stunning photography exhibit at M.I.A Gallery downtown, featuring the work of Baudoin Mouanda, a Congolese photographer who documents the “Society of Party Revelers and Elegant Persons,” a group of men dedicated to donning electrifyingly elegant fashion (think: dapper suits in day-glo colors) as an antidote to poverty and social stagnation. M.I.A Gallery, 1203-A Second Ave.; 206.467.4297; m-i-a-gallery.com
Unless you’ve got other plans for that worn-once, too-small dress that has occupied space in the back of your closet since… well, that’s not important… consider giving it a second chance to see the light of day—or rather, to see the light of a disco ball. On February 24th from 11am to 1pm, the Ruby Room will be holding a dress drive at their Capitol Hill boutique for low-income and foster teens in need of formal wear.
Save Your Sole consignment boutique and other Belltown/Midtown businesses have joined together in Belltown Unites, a partnership dedicated to helping keep some of the 2,500 homeless people sleeping on the streets of Seattle warm this winter. Each business has created a special promotion to donate warm wool blankets to the homeless community with a goal of distributing 3,200 blankets before May 1.
This Sunday, Speed Rack comes to Seattle. This local iteration of the national batending competition will feature top local “mixtresses” from Seattle, Portland, Spokane and Denver competing in timed heats in which they mix cocktails picked randomly from a selection of 50 classics. Judges evaluate each drink on accuracy, taste and presentation. This rounds' judging panel features cocktail heroes: Libation Goddess Audrey Saunders, amazing cocktail writer Robert Hess, Rob Roy’s awesome Anu Apte, and bar-chef angel Kathy Casey.
I’m a little obsessed with Kickstarter—the popular crowd-funding website—and often get lost in the site, checking out the cool, weird and improbable campaigns that people launch. I’ve always loved the thought of being a benefactor, and Kickstarter is a great way to do that on a micro-level, since a few bucks often makes all the difference to these ideas.
Vancouver, BC-based retailer, Aritzia, has announced that their first Seattle location will open on March 14 in University Village. If the name is familiar, it’s because they already have a boutique in Bellevue Square, their first in the US, which has been open since 2007. The brand started out as one boutique in Vancouver in 1984 and now has 50 worldwide, including 13 in the US.
Last we spoke with Seattle entrepreneur Bill Predmore, he was discussing his love of Pop and street art (if you liked the documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop, his personal art collection would have you drooling).
These days he's gearing up for the first season of Seattle Reign, the first professional women's soccer team in Seattle, which he owns. The team features star players Hope Solo and Megan Rapinoe and takes its name from the former Seattle women's basketball team.
What a bittersweet mistake!
I sat down late last night with the February issue of Seattle mag, and immediately started drooling over the gorgeous photos and mouthwatering prose describing the city’s finest chocolate makers and treat purveyors. [Get a digital copy for your tablet here.]
The Super Bowl won’t be as exciting as it should have been this year. (If things had just gone a little differently, this post would be all about drinks nicknamed “Russell” and “Marshawn”). Alas, there are still fun game day parties to be had. And to make them more fun, can the cheap beer and serve better drinks! The first two in this list are team specific, for the Ravens and 49ers fans among us.
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