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Arts & Crafts
The weeks before the holidays are fraught with good intentions. I make extensive lists of all the personalized gifts I’m going to make. I stock up on yarn, fabric, paper. I dust off my sewing machine and break out the knitting needles. Then, sometime between another late night at the office and the billionth holiday party, reality sets it. There is no way everyone on my gift-giving list will receive handcrafted goods. At least, not handcrafted by me. Which is why I thank my lucky shopping stars, I live in a city where amazing artists abound and the do-it-yourself revolution is alive and kicking (or shall I say sewing?). More
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Arts & Crafts
Pictures of an imperfect world
Don't get caught in the megapixel madness when you're about to purchase a new digital camera. Loosen the vise that technology and precision have on you. There's a cheaper camera alternative on the market. With only a grip of $5 bills, you'll be able to buy cameras for you and your whole crew. All you need to do is point, click, and shoot. More
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Arts & Crafts
Delights for the Wondrous-Minded
When fellow Banana Slugs Lauren Smith and Derek Fagerstrom met at UC Santa Cruz over a decade ago it was a recipe for magic. The San Francisco natives fell in love and after graduation packed their bags and set sail for New York. Nearly eight years later they decided it was time to leave the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple to return home and channel their creative energies toward what has now become the Curiosity Shoppe: a magical collection of vintage and modern treasures topped off with a lovely window display currently inhabited by… bats! More
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Arts & Crafts
Well, here it is again, the hallmark of Hallmark holidays. A day of exculpation, it can be used as an excuse to get schmoopy over your significant other or to get blitheringly sauced because you don't have one. But whether you need a table for two or will be sitting at the bar Saturday night, Valentine's Day is also a great excuse to go shopping, for your honey or yourself. More
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Arts & Crafts
Sew Smitten
I come from a long line of non-sewers. Despite the fact that none of the women in my family grace 5'3" and therefore must hem every pair of pants purchased, threading a bobbin was not a talent passed on through the generations. But that hasn't stopped me from dreaming. "Learn to sew" has been a new year's resolution of mine for three years running and the second-hand Singer in my closet, though never actually used, gets dusted off every now and again and gazed at longingly. I buy fabric for projects I'll never make, I mentally sew Christmas gifts for everyone I know and I clip patterns I haven't the slightest clue how to read. More
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Arts & Crafts
Personal Enrichment
It's spring, contrary to what the weather may say. You've finished the dreaded spring cleaning and gotten your taxes out of the way like a good boy or girl. Or not -- regardless, if you're looking to reinvent yourself this spring, here are a couple things you might consider: More
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Arts & Crafts
The Art of Versatility
When Priya Saraswati and Yugala Priti launched Saffron Rare Threads a little over a year ago, they were very precise in the selection of their name. It takes a thousand hand-picked threads of saffron to create a single ounce of this flavorful substance. It was the perfect embodiment of Saraswati and Priti's initial concept -- to create a line of clothing that symbolized the same impeccability and vividness as the world's most coveted spice. More
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Arts & Crafts
Out of the Park
Posters. Prints. Paperweights. Paperbacks. Piggy banks. Postcards. Pillboxes. The Petit Pattern book. It's only appropriate that the store housing such miscellany be named Park Life (emphasis on the first consonant). Opened in 2006 on Clement near 3rd Ave. in the Inner Richmond, Park Life provides a fresh take on art and design, creating a space where affordable goods meet adventurous designs. More
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Arts & Crafts
The snip of scissors fills the air, scraps of paper flutter like snowflakes, glitter is everywhere and your fingers are crusted with glue. If you're anything like me, this sort of crafty chaos defines your holiday season. But regardless of whether you make your own greeting cards or are willing to give your right arm if it means someone else will wrap presents for you, there is one holiday season necessity and it's not that gingerbread latte. From imported washi to mass-produced rolls of wrapping, no holiday season is complete without some form of paper. More
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Arts & Crafts
A Noe Neighborhood Knitting Nirvana
There’s a new sisterhood at my work that’s been growing over the past year and it’s made up of knitters. I only joined this club a little over a month ago. I’ve always heard that knitting was a fun and relaxing activity, but I was a little skeptical of that claim at first. I thought that learning something that looked complicated like knitting would cause me to pull my hair out more than it would put my mind at ease. More
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