|
|
|
Sort By:
 |
Arts & Crafts
Gifting, the age-old practice of giving stuff to others, is a year-round sport as the calendar is littered with various holidays and special occasions that require you to get out and spend. The specialty shops and boutiques along 24th Street in Noe Valley can help with this task. Shopping addicts from all over the Bay Area come here to take care of their gifting needs, no matter what the season, occasion or recipient requires. More
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
Fodder for your Inner Child
Ever pine for the novelty stores of your childhood, those quaint little get-ups that could be found on every street corner and painted a proverbial picture of Americana and its essentials? I can see it now: glass jars dotted with gum drops, marble-top counters sporting multi-colored pens, fire engine red stools made for lazy lounging and imbibing ice cream sodas. Getting nostalgic yet? Um, probably not, unless you grew up in the 1950s. All the same, avatars of the five and dime stores of yore, despite exponentially inflated prices, are popping up everywhere... More
|
 |
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
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
Stylin' Art for a Fraction of the Cost
For budding art connoisseurs disheartened by the lifestyle it takes to frequent San Francisco galleries in style, there's a new venue devoted to corralling money-conscious patrons. Artist-Xchange, a Mission district gallery conceived by owner Scott Mitchell in December 2003, was officially instituted in its 16th and Guerrero space almost a year ago. Mitchell's vision is simple -- to help promote the art and culture of San Francisco in a venue accessible to everyone. More
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
Candy Store for the Creative
Walking through an art store brings back memories of my hometown's sweets shop, with tubs of ice cream in a kaleidoscope of colors and large glass jars of candy stretching in a rainbow along the shelves. As I roam through the range of writing implements, paints, and papers, I want to touch and try everything in the store. San Francisco doesn't lack for places to satisfy these creative cravings, but Flax art & design is one of the best places to indulge your artistic appetite. More
|
 |
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
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
Creating Illuminating Works of Art
While sitting in church as a kid, I’d often daydreamed about the life of the biblical characters that were depicted in the tall stained glass windows. That is one of the original purposes of stained glass in churches: to teach the lessons of the bible to illiterate members of the congregation. In addition, the beauty of the light streaming through the glass was meant to inspire as pilgrims made their journey. Basically, its purpose is to invoke a different state of mind, one different from daily life. More
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
Satisfy Your Bead Needs
For any beading enthusiast or, for that matter, anyone looking to take up beading as a hobby, San Francisco has a variety of good places scattered around town to choose from. All seem to offer their own charms, but if you don’t know where to start, a good place to visit is Forbeadin’ on Church Street at 24th in Noe Valley. More
|
 |
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
|
 |
Arts & Crafts
With all the creative folks who call San Francisco home, it's about time a shop successfully synthesized writings, art, homespun clothing, and accessories the way Needles & Pens does. Tucked away in the Mission, this gem of a d.i.y. store used to be the stuff of daydreams for Andrew Scott, a writer/designer who's been involved in the zine scene for years, and Breezy Strand Culbertson, a sewing machine queen. After returning from six months of travel, the couple decided to give themselves a job by opening a spot that incorporated their own interests as well as those of their artistic friends and the creative community in general... More
|
|
