Belly Up To The Bar

When I was pregnant, I never left the house because I felt so hideous, and was so hateful that I couldn't risk being around anyone.   

I also lived in terror in my tacky fat clothes, fearful that someone might see me in all my frump. ("Did you see her?!?  She has NOT aged well.")  Plus I also didn't color my hair for 9 months in case it might seep into my bloodstream. I was not an attractive, glowing pregnant person, in fact, I was quite the opposite.  I couldn't rationalize spending the money on maternity clothes because they were so ugly then, and I'd only wear them a couple months since, mistakenly,I was certain I would never again find myself in this predicament.  So I opted for staying home, and if I had to go out, it was in frightful Gap overalls that I wore every day until they were floods, my twin-filled girth as wide as the length of my legs.

That was then, this is now, dang it.  I would almost get pregnant again just so I could shop at Bella Bellies Maternity, the new local shop that just opened Wednesday.  Just in time for Mother's Day, this store was created by Amy Radich, a local mom who realized there were very few options for stylish maternity clothes and accessories.  Bella Bellies carries the hippest mainstream brands - like Citizen Jeans - along with some beautiful maternity brands like Ripe.  They even sell skincare products designed for moms-to-be.  And get this, hah, they even have gorgeous lingerie (despite the fact that that's what got us into this mess to begin with).

The boutique’s mission is to offer the latest, most comfortable fashions from both local designers and designers around the world, and they deliver. But the best part: Bella Bellies even offers a variety of treats to curb any of those strange cravings at its Craving Bar!   That's a bar we'll gladly belly up to.

Bella Bellies Maternity
In Bridgeport Village
7351 SW Bridgeport Road
Tigard, OR 97224
www.bellabelliesmaternity.com
866-55 BELLY / 503.624.9609

Saucy Souri’s

In another life we’d be set designers – we have such good taste – or at least we’d like to believe.  Okay, that is pretty much up for debate ever since we saw our bamboo silverware and some other accoutrements show up in a movie…and that movie was “Meet the Fokkers.”  But still, we’d love to have the chance to decorate a city apartment or a country estate with an unlimited budget.
 
And if that dream project arose where we’d have to decorate a city townhouse for a jetsetting power broker who spends his/her time between NYC and Africa, we’d head straight to Souri’s.  Gorgeously blending sophisticated with rustic, mixing modern with Asian and African influences, and overall just being a wonderland of good taste and design, Souri’s makes our brains roar with decorating ideas.
 
We love the simple palette of colors in the store – shades of ivory, brown, red and orange, black and camel – it all blends so dramatically.  They carry oversized vases and pillows, exotic beds and armchairs, even picture frames and candles – everything is expertly coordinated in the store, and bound to look like a million bucks in your house – no matter what your style.
 
Souri’s
748 NW 11th Ave.
Portland, OR 97209
503.224.5401

Wine Down

We are wine aficionados, or rather, oenophiles (note the big words).  We love a good pinot or sauvignon blanc.  We may not be able to pronounce it, but we are perfectly capable of sipping a Chateauneuf du Pape with the best of them.  And you should see our "wine cellar" - our fancy wines stacked very fancily in the garage, in the same Costco boxes we brought them home in.  

If only we had a wine cellar, than we would truly be fancy.  If only we had a place to store our wine collection, we'd actually really collect the stuff.  And now we can!  We discovered Portland Wine Storage.  Now we can rent our own space and have 24-7 access to our precious babies.  

Portland Wine Storage maintains 55 degrees with filtered air constantly circulating in a secure, cave-like atmosphere.  And we can hang out if we want, in our own Bat cave, or relax with friends in the members’ tasting room.  The private cellar rooms and personal wine storage lockers are ideal for individual bottle-racking as well as bulk storage for any size collection.  And it just sounds cool. "Let's meet at my cellar..."

Portland Wine Storage
306 SE Ash St.
Portland, OR 97214
503.231.1121
www.portlandwine.com

Catch the Train

We are constantly wowed by the boutiques popping up in this town.  Portland is like heaven for savvy shoppers who want a girlie, special something that is nice enough to wear to the office and hip enough to make the nightlife scene.  And we love Le Train Bleu for just that reason.
 
The sweet little shop is in a restored house on Overton, and everything from the old-fashioned, French-style sign outside (it’s just a little pink light!) to the hot-pink painted floors inside is so unique and lovely that we want to buy things even before we peruse the racks.
 
And once we do, oh, sacre bleu!  Every single item is quirky and delicious – we can’t get enough of their carefully edited selection of clothes and accessories.  Their selection is so well-chosen that you could practically go there for all your wardrobe needs.  Even though there may be 10 pairs of shoes on display, or six handbags, those shoes and handbags are divine!  
 
And with designers like Development, Prudence, C Ronson, Maggie, Mint, Ella Moss, Tart, and Miss Ruby, you will find fabulous frocks, shoes and accessories that will make you feel you’re in Paris on a rainy day.
 
Le Train Bleu
1822 NW Overton St.
Portland, OR 97209
www.letrainbleu.com

Coldwatercreek, The Spa

Shopping can be exhausting, so plan wisely, especially if you've got some terrain to cover out at Bridgeport.  Shopping is a sport, after all, and there needs to be a half-time.  And for your half-time entertainment, pop into The Spa at Coldwater Creek for a quickie, 30-minute...ta da..."Take a Break" massage.

When you need to recharge from the rigors of shopping, the new Spa at Coldwater Creek is the right place at the right time.   You’ll emerge from this half-hour retreat revived and refreshed, physically and mentally, and ready to attack the second half of the mall.   And since it's all about you, this massage focuses on your area of choice, such as neck and shoulders or lower legs and tired feet –  wherever you need relief the most.

If that's not enough, this new spa (a first of its kind) also offers other intense massage treatments, super anti-aging facials, lush body treatments (like their mango sugar polish), and the essential mani/pedi.  Just sink back into their feather bed with Frette sheets and a soft-as-a-cloud down comforter and relax, and let them have their way with you.  You'll think you're dreaming!

The Spa at Coldwater Creek
7449 SW Bridgeport Road
Tigard, Oregon 97224
503.598.0524
www.coldwatercreekthespa.com

Wild on Wildwood

When we told people we had dinner at Wildwood, everyone was like, “Ooh, that’s the place with the celebrity chef who started the whole local/seasonal/organic thing.” That’s true, but what they didn’t know is that chef Cory Schreiber also is a board vice president for the Sauvie Island Center, which teaches children and adults about “food, farming, and the land.”
 
So Cory is not only cooking with wonderful ingredients (which won him a James Beard Award in 1998 for Best Chef in the Pacific Northwest), but he’s also educating people about the importance of sustainable farming.
 
And the food is so good at Wildwood. The ingredients – not surprisingly – are stellar, and the bold flavors (a salad of ruby grapefruit and sorrel with crème fraiche and toasted pistachios, house-smoked Monterey Bay mackerel on smoky bacon with braised dandelion greens and sauce gribiche, pan-seared Alaskan halibut on a crushed potato-artichoke cake with pea vines and Manila clam vinaigrette) are not to be believed!
 
Wildwood is a gorgeous place, too, with fantastical rounded wood ceilings, modern art, white tablecloths and a just-loud-enough energy to balance intimate conversations with the feeling of being in a big city. It’s true! We are wild on Wildwood! Learn and enjoy!
 
Wildwood Restaurant
1221 NW 21st Ave.
Portland, OR 97209     
503.248.9663
www.wildwoodrestaurant.com

A Chocolate a Day

There are some new divas in town, and they are sweeeeet.

These divas are all about attitude, going after what they want, and turning roadblocks into opportunities. And they live by the philosophy that chocolate is one of the fundamentals of a Divas life.  

Introducing Diva Chocolates!  These Divas believe chocolate should be eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner –  not just for dessert.  (Amen!)  So they developed a line of spice blends and grilling rubs – all containing chocolate – for meat, vegetables and salads.  This line of hot chocolates, roasted nibs and other treats takes a turn from the ordinary, giving you the opportunity to expand your chocolate-craving palette.   And remember, chocolate is filled with antioxidants that are said to prevent cancer and heart disease, and provide all kinds of other goodness.

These divas make it easy to get our chocolate a day.

www.diva-chocolates.com

Bliss in a Box

In case you're looking for a decadent Mother's Day gift idea, Spa Willamina is offering their popular Mother's Day BLISS IN A BOX which includes all of the following in a pretty, ribbon-embellished box for $220:

• $150 gift certificate for the treatment of her choice
• A bottle of Kneipp herbal bath treatment
• A bar of lovely, natural Pacifica herbal soap
• A lovely small, ribbon-adorned box of Portland's own Alma Chocolates

Spa Willamina takes a natural approach to health and beauty with only the purest plant-based ingredients touching your skin.  Tucked into a cozy, elegant bungalow in northeast Portland, you'll find tranquility, healing and renewal.  And for this Mother's Day, you'll find a great gift in one place!  Trust us, your mom (and you) will love this.

And for the mom-to-be this Mother's Day, pamper her with a nine-month package to help ease her challenging days and ever changing body (or her changing days and ever challenging body).

Spa Willamina
2223 NE 43rd Ave.
Portland, OR 97213
503.287.2787
www.spawillamina.com

Check It Out

Sometimes, okay always, we think we're dying.  Most recently we were pretty sure we were developing early onset Alzheimer’s and Arthritis (and that's just the beginning of the alphabet.)   I had a tumor on my chest and later found out it was my sternum that I hadn't noticed before.  If only there was a full-body MRI scan that could detect any cancer.  Hey, there is!   Except that that's bad too...too much radiation.  But hey, now we can pick and choose what concerns us most, especially if there's a 'real' reason to be concerned.

There is a new imaging center called Siker Medical Imaging with a high-field MRI and CAT-scanner (they have the best equipment in the city – the machines cost the most and give the clearest images).  Dr. Siker has recently started doing screenings for women with a history of breast cancer in their families, and for men or women with a history of brain aneurysms. They can even look at your coronary arteries and see if any heart problems loom.  These are all great methods for prevention and have little or no radiation.  And they are insanely affordable.  Priceless.

Siker Medical Imaging
501 North Graham Street, Suite 260
Portland, Oregon 97227
503 595 3967
www.sikermedical.com

Just Cheeky

Cheeky Baby Butter is for scrumptious babies.  All you do for dry skin, a sweet baby massage, or chapped cheeks is scoop out a teensy bit,  gently warm it in your hands until it melts like buttah, and apply to baby while singing.

For parched mamas, this is perfect on dry skin, wrinkles (not that you have any), scars, and those pesky stretchmarks.  Check out their superduper cute Cheeky products and all their adorable goodies.

www.babybearshop.com

Your Charming Children

You’ve gone through all that trouble to have those precious little ones, you deserve the bragging rights.  Short of that annoying flashing neon billboard that we loathe (the one above the freeway near P.S.U and the West Hills) how can you show off your little loves?  

We’ve discovered necklaces that feature your kids’ names on silver charms.  Just add another charm as you add kids.  Spell their name out or use their monogram.  They come in silver, gold and suede (our fave).  

This is a perfect gift for you and Grandma.

www.heathermoorejewelry.com

The Best Method

There's nothing cheesier than a Glade type plug in air freshener.  You might as well hang a pine tree on the rearview mirror of the car.  And don't you think the whole Windex/Comet/409 bit is a little tired as well?  Your cleaning supplies are a reflection of you after all, so nothing but the finest.  And there’s that whole chemical thing that’s not too good for you anyway.

These Method cleaning products smell yummy, and do a really great job.  We love the cleaning wipes in the pink grapefruit scent, and the laundry detergent and fabric softener. And they don't test on animals, which is very important.  

The laundry starter kit is a great place to start, and our favorite air freshener is the eucalyptus and mint aroma pill.  Try them and you’ll be hooked.  Stinky Lysol smell, be gone!

www.methodhome.com

Miss Misa

Okay, now we really feel like slackers.  The brains behind Miss Misa is a UCLA student with her own fab jewelry website.  We can’t get enough of her whimsical designs like the Vintage Heart Yolk necklace and the peacock earrings (which we’re wearing today! We had to have them.)  

Miss Misa designs are sweet without being saccharine, and just edgy enough to keep for yourself, and precious enough to give to your mom for Mother’s Day.  And there’s even a jewelry-of-the-month club where you can get a subscription and even vote on which designs she sends out next!

Skirt Power

We love this whole skirt-as-exercise-gear thing for women.  They are so cute.  And now we found the motherload.  The inventors of the sport skirt.  And guess what?  Even pro athletes have body issues.  Even as a buff triathlete like Ironman Champion Nicole DeBoom still finds herself cruelly at odds with her behind (too big, she frets) and her upper thighs (way too big, she worries).  That reflection was the springboard for a fashion inspiration. DeBoom, winner of the 2004 Ironman Wisconsin and a former Yale University swimmer, envisioned a skirt for running, workouts, and playing afterward.

The revelation spawned the founding of her company, SkirtSports, Inc., and its first clothing line, TRIKS, launched in 2005. The pink-based skirts are feminine and sassy, slimming and flattering, a combination that is missing from the fitness apparel market. It's not your mom's skort. It's not a kilt. It's not like any tennis skirt. Most of all, and most importantly, it's not sausage-casing tights or boxy, mannish shorts.  And check out her growing line of exercise gear!

www.Skirtsports.com

Savvy Business Women – Claim Your Stake in the Global Marketplace

Helping business executives stand up and speak successfully defines what Denise Harrington does best. As founder and CEO of Blue Dragon Communications and She Speaks Productions, Harrington provides communications counsel to top executives, Fortune 500 companies and professional athletes in Oregon and across the U.S. Now you too can benefit from that experience. Join Portland Female Executives (PDXfX) and Denise Harrington on Tuesday, May 16, to hob nob with some of Portland’s smartest women, enjoy savory hors d’oeuvres, and discover how women’s leadership roles in the global marketplace are changing.

“The Feminine Success Factor” presentation is for women working in all types of business. Whether you’re the CEO of your own company or just starting out in the mail room, you’ll benefit from Harrington’s presentation, which will look at women's presence and power in today's global economy, the current paradigm shift in corporate leadership styles, and characteristics of powerful women leaders.

Harrington will also describe her “Spiral Leadership Model,” which encourages collaboration rather than sealing power at the top, how it supports women in expressing their unique power, and the importance of the new girl-power network.

• When:  May 16, 2006 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
• Where:  Portland Marriott
  1401 SW Naito Parkway, Portland
• Cost:  $40.00, register online or at the event, includes refreshments
• Info:  503.705.9149 www.pdxfx.com

Hotel Vintage Plaza Goes "ORganic"

Downtown Portland's Hotel Vintage Plaza has launched its new "ORganic" Night Package.  The name of the package playfully incorporates the postal abbreviation for Oregon (OR) into the state's well-known passion for anything organic, green or environmentally friendly.

Guests who book the ORganic package will receive overnight accommodations in a deluxe guest room or specialty suite, complimentary valet parking, two bottles of organic wine from Cooper Mountain Vineyards (an organic and biodynamic winery), two bars of Dagoba Organic Chocolate, one packet of organic herb seeds, and one can of ZooDoo to help fertilize the seeds.

 ZooDoo is, er..."manufactured" by the herbivores - including the world's most prolific herd of captive Asian elephants - that reside at the Oregon Zoo

 To reserve an ORganic Night, guests may call 503.228.1212 or visit www.vintageplaza.com.

Greene with Envy

Jennie Greene Designs, the ubercool little yellow flower shop at 1408 NW 23rd near Pettygrove, that was featured in the March issue of Sunset Magazine, is celebrating it's First Birthday on Friday May 12 and Saturday May 13 from 10-6.

In honor of the occasion, Jennie will showcase her special artistic flower arrangements, with displays for weddings, weekly flowers, and floral classes. Also, a special Mother's Day section for you last minute shoppers, who want to upstage your conservative siblings with something to Oooh and Aaaah about. Cake, fun and flowers will be served. 

Free and open to the public. For more info. call Jennie at 503.957.9567.

Two Hot!

Twin designers, Shane and Shawn Ward of Detny Footwear, will be making a personal appearance to show off their Spring 2006 Collection at Imelda’s and Louie’s Shoes (Hawthorne location) on Thursday, May 25, from 4 to 7 p.m. If you don’t know anything about these designers, take a look at their website, www.detny.com; we dare you to not fantasize about either of them (or both) personally fitting shoes on your pretty pedicured tootsies.

Brilliant, sexy and trendy, these designers create shoes for people just like them, jet-setters that want comfort in hot, sexy footwear. Among their clients are Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas, those other twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, and Jamie Foxx.  Shane spent some time here in Portland, designing shoes for Adidas, which led to Detny’s philosophy that comfort and style go hand in hand.  Their sexy sandals are to die for and their take on the Mary Jane goes beyond Euro-chic.  So if you need a new pair of shoes and enjoy some eye-candy while trying them on, hit Imelda’s and Louie’s Shoes.  Oh, and even though you might be distracted by the twins, don’t forget about your man.  They have an excellent line of men’s footwear as well.

DETNY by Shane & Shawn TRUNK SHOW
Imelda's and Louie's
3426 SE Hawthorne Blvd.
Portland, OR 97214
503.233.7476
wwww.imeldasandlouies.com

Moms: Treat Yourself at Bridgeport Village
 
Bridgeport Village celebrates Mother’s Day this weekend with fashion shows, pampering treatments and giveaways galore.
 
On Friday and Saturday from noon to 7 p.m., make your way to the center’s gazebo for a relaxing mini-facial, massage or make-up demo from the new Origins store.  Saturday, beginning at 1 p.m., watch as hip chicks and their pups hit the runway in “Canines on the Catwalk,” featuring styles from Helly Hansen, New Balance and Lexi Dog Boutique.  Then at 3 p.m., check-out the latest in mom/child fashions as models showcase gear from Bella Bellies, Via Lago, Louie Permelia, Talbots and more.
 
All weekend long, enter to win prizes hand-picked just for moms.

For more information, visit www.bridgeport-village.com.

Enjoy a wine country experience like no other...

Jump start the wine country tour season with an evening of Oregon's finest food and wine during Erath Vineyards' Wine Country Cooking in the Dundee Hills dinner. On May 18th, guests will sip Erath wines and rub elbows with Oregon wine pioneer Dick Erath, while enjoying a paired five-course menu from Cathy Whims of Nostrana - named Oregonian's Best Restaurant of 2006 - and all in the spectacular setting of a Tuscan-style villa atop rolling vineyards.

The Whims dinner is the first in a three-part series hosted by Erath Vineyards, celebrating Oregon's natural abundance in the height of the season. On July 27th chef Danté Boccuzzi from Aureole in New York will take cooking to new heights atop Erath’s Prince Hill Vineyard. And on September 14th, Mark Kiffin from The Compound in Santa Fe, New Mexico, will spice things up on the deck of Erath Vineyards’ winery.

Each dinner includes a personal welcome from Dick Erath, a multi-course menu with wine pairings, interaction with the featured chef and Erath Vineyard's winemaker Gary Horner, a gift drawing and more. Seating is limited and the cost is $125 per person, or attend all three at the series rate of $100 per person. For those interested in extending their Willamette Valley experience, Erath has partnered with local bed and breakfasts and will offer a complimentary shuttle service to and from the dinner.

To purchase tickets or for more information visit www.erath.com , or call (503) 538-3318.