Flagship Anniversary for Everyone

Here in Seattle, we like to consider ourselves the "flagship" - of business, culture, and goodness. I'm not biased or anything, but think about it:

We know how to do things in a BIG way : like Costco and Starbucks, Boeing and Bartell Drugs.
We know how to do things in a DIGITAL way: like Getty Images, Amazo, and of course Microsoft.
We know how to do things in a TASTY way: like Sur La Table, Theo Chocolates, Cinnabon, and Dick's Drive In.
We get outdoors with REI and Eddie Bauer, and indoors with Nintendo and Zillow.

And we get dressed at Nordstrom.

NORDSTROM.

One of our most prized possessions is located at 500 Pine Street, between 5th and 6th Avenue.
The Nordstrom headquarters and Flagship Nordstrom. Store 1, to be precise.

And so every July 15th we celebrate the fact that Nordstrom is ours by throwing an anniversary celebration for the whole country, where people - even those outside Seattle - can buy fall and winter clothes on sale before the season even arrives.

And wouldn't you know it, there's always one or two items that are so elusive, so coveted, only a few people get their hands on them. This year, there was one in particular.

The Tory Burch Riding Boot - a Nordstrom exclusive.

It was gone before I even knew it was coming to the sale. Gone. Anniversary celebration, boot-hunters, is over. So, I am here to tell you - if you see someone out there wearing that boot, it means that they built a relationship. It means they have a longheld connection with a Nordstrom salesperson that they have nurtured for years and years. It might mean they are were up in the wee hours of the morning the first day of the Anniversary Pre-Select Sale to procure that boot - braving traffic and escalators and Lord knows what else.

And whether they know it or not, it means they love Seattle just like us.

The Sun in Seattle?

Do you remember that scene in Will Smith's "Independence Day" where the UFO's first enter our atmosphere. He comes out onto his lawn and sees all his neighbor's looking up, mouths open, aghast.

I walked out of my house this morning and felt like I was in that scene.

People on capitol hill were standing in the middle of the street, not moving. blinking.

dazed.

Blinking.

Dazed.

Befuddled.

Smiling...

A woman dropped her FEED grocery bag on the ground, shattering bottles of Kumbacha inside.

And then, music began to play:

Men and women began dancing and laughing and frolicking! THE SUN!

THE SUN! It's still alive!

Cheers! To the People Who Remind Us...

One of The Non-Scotsman's good, rowdy friends also happens to have a magic touch. He came up to visit in Seattle to see my man, of course, but also to rent an ancient camera: a 35mm Hasselblad.

This man shot some of my favorite things without any editing! He gave me a fresh vantage point above my life, where I am now standing with arms open wide, yelling "THANK YOU!"

My neighborhood joint:

My place of work:

My parent's backyard:

My husband and my views:

My new hang at Melrose Market:

And even me in my pearls, made by my dear friend Jessica Andrews:

(I actually was very happy here; although I look like I'm about to pounce)...

Cheers to Nate and his wife for reminding me how beautiful life is, remind me to look at the details, remind me to be thankful.

Merry Christmas Seattle!

Heaven in the Morning

Not to anyone’s surprise, it’s a bit overcast today.

Seattle weather is something you just have to embrace. Buy a cheerful pair of rain boots, stock umbrellas from Bella Umbrella in every spare corner, take your Vitamin D supplement, and thank the heavens for locks, boats and moss-covered sidewalks.

I find one of the best ways to ward off a cloudy day is by starting with a steaming mug of something: this morning, it is tea.

Seattle’s full of snug tea shops and imported, exclusive leaves, but I think my favorite Seattle tea may be the classic Pike Place Market Spice Cinnamon-Orange tea.

I go out of my way to visit Pike Place Market every chance I get, and a trip to World Spice Merchants provides a good hour of opening and smelling the hundreds of herbal concoctions they stock. They mix all their spice blends by hand and in the right season, but this tea is their signature, spicy, year-round favorite. (Hint: they provide free, hot samples of this tea all day long – a perfect market pick-me-up)

I set out my teapot and my lovely silver spoons a darling brought me from London.

I think they deserve a second photo, don't you?

The highlight of my morning dress up party, my glittering finishing touch, is my mug from Match. (There are a few places around Seattle that carry this line, but I'll get into that later.)

I do feel the need to point out the curious stamps on their pieces. Each stamp represents a factory where their pewter and ceramics are hand-crafted.

No weather can cloud a day started with Match, Market Spice, and British silver spoons.