Located on Congress Street, directly across from the Portland Museum of Art, Yes Books is something of a local institution. Like a cat with nine lives, it has survived a location change, a change in ownership, changes in the face of the city, and the move toward digital content, and yet it continues to be [...]
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So, how was your summer? Here are a few images from Saturday’s annual Picnic Music + Arts Festival, probably the premiere showcase for independent artisans and craftspeople in the city. Enjoy! Please visit the Picnic website (www.picnicportland.com) to learn more about the vendors whose work is featured here. You can also follow them on [...]
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A blue, brick wall. A white door. An understated sign. Although they are on Fore Street, in a prime location, it would be easy just to walk right past. Don’t do it. Open the white door and go inside: stepping into Lovely Things was the best surprise I’ve had in some time. You should open [...]
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My inside voice always subtitles Blanche & Mimi with the words “that great baby store” although it’s not really true — they certainly have a wide assortment of treasures that aren’t related to babies in the least. It’s just that, whenever I have a baby-shower related need (now that my own baby has grown tall [...]
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Until recently, getting home design tips from nationally renowned designer, builder, fashionista, and home renovation expert Nicola Manganello was something that a middle-class HGTV junkie like me could only daydream about. A Maine native and MECA grad (she studied sculpture), Manganello’s work has been featured in numerous publications, including Better Homes and Gardens and Maine [...]
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Why drumming squirrels? Diane Toepfer, the genius behind Ferdinand, explains that when she and her husband moved here from California, they were told by locals that they could tell how bad the winter was going to be by how fat the squirrels were. Which led her to thinking about squirrels needing tiny sweaters. And she [...]
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Let’s be clear up front: Fun Box Monster Emporium is a comic book store (Coast City Comics, in fact). But it is not just a comic book store. Instead, imagine if you crossed a comic book store with Hot Topic and your favorite vintage shop. Throw in a few great pinball machines at the back [...]
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Since it seems to be local crafts week here, today I’m going to highlight one of the most interesting and innovative businesses to come out Portland’s active craft and vintage movement: The Merchant Company, which opened this spring and has quickly become one of the most interesting and talked-about businesses in the city. Co owners [...]
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