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By candace kramer, May 11, 2011 4:35 pm

In Portland, the first Thursday of every month is celebrated in the stylish Pearl District. Galleries, pubs, restaurants and design studios leave their doors open late to welcome Portlanders seeking out inspiration, delicious snacks and a glass of free wine! What a fabulous combination! I was in the crowd last week, my design radar was on and I found myself enamored with a new interior design firm – bright designlab. bright has over 25 years of experience in the arts of interior design, graphic design and architectural photography, plus they are LEED accredited! Gotta love that plus, who couldn’t like a company with these values:

work hard and be nice to people . design through simplicity and elegance of form . focus intently . behave with integrity above all else . always seek out beauty . never stop growing and learning new things . treat creativity like breathing.

Check out their simply gorgeous retail space…flooded with natural light and a symphony of textures, you can really feel the creative vibe in here!

bright’s partnership with local cabinetry company, Hammer and Hand, is evident and their stunning installations are seen throughout the space.

I absolutely love these retro, bright fridges from Smeg appliances! Perfect scale for smaller kitchens too! They were stocked with beer for First Thursday!

What a wonderful space!

Hope your week is going well!

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By candace kramer, April 4, 2011 3:29 pm

Heavy title, I know…but it’s something cities like Portland, has to consider. I’m biased but the fact is our city is incredibly beautiful, rich in resources and available land. We can count on an influx of our population in the future and people will continue to flock to the Great Northwest  – SO – how do we plan for it?

I recently attended one of the Bright Lights Discussions, hosted by Randy Gragg, Editor and chief at Portland Monthly Magazine and presented with the City Club of Portland. The topic: Climate Change and the Next Great Migration. (read more here) The fascinating forum took place at the fabulous Jimmy Mak’s club and was led by natural resource and transportation expert, Gail Achterman.

It was a full house and Gail held everyone in thrall with her passionate delivery. She pointed out that we can use this imminent population increase as an opportunity to restructure our land-use planning and reevaluate how we are conserving our natural resources.

With climate change, rapid growth and the threat of urban sprawl, now, more than ever, it is time to think creatively and plan accordingly so that Portland and its surrounding areas continue to flourish. Downsizing and using our land more efficiently make sense! Creating communities that offer public transportation along with eco-conscious designed residential and commercial spaces is key.

It’s tough living in a gorgeous place and it may take a little extra foresight to keep it that way…but someone’s gotta do it! I’m so glad that our city seems up for the challenge!

To read more about what is on the drawing board for the Willamette Valley go here. I highly recommend these monthly discussions, if you’d like to sign up for the Bright Lights newsletter so you don’t miss out go here and for more info visit the Bright Lights Facebook page here.

Get informed about the urban planning in your city and let your voice be heard.

Images via here.

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By candace kramer, March 21, 2011 3:48 pm

It’s been a whirlwind of activity with four pending sales in one week, which is fantastic but also exhausting. A trip to my beach house was exactly what I needed. Some downtime. A day or two to rest. Thinking that my weekend would be a rainy one, I had plans to do some creative projects around the house.  I was going to do this to my bathroom…don’t you love the vintage maps as wallpaper?

image via here

But…I never got around to this project because, lo and behold – THE SUN CAME OUT! When the sun is out in Manzanita you have to get out and enjoy it and we did just that!

With a busy job and bustling social life, the only pleasure reading I really get to do consists of short stories and poetry. Bite-size nuggets of literary goodness.

So…how perfect is it that the Hoffman Center was having a Poetry Fest!?  Without hesistation, I headed down to attend.

Four poets were spotlighted : Oregon’s own Poet Laureate -Paulann Petersen, Margaret Chula, Carlos Reyes and Penelope Scambly Schott.

image via here

All the poets were inspiring and listening to them read their work truly made it come to life, offering a personal insight to their prose. Carlos Reyes’ work struck me and I purchased his book – “The Book of Shadows“. He signed it for me too!

One poem, in particular got me thinking and brought me back to the focus of my career -Downsizing.

This poem truly speaks to the job of clearing out our belongings – our past, our memories – and the inevitable nostalgia and emotion that accompanies the task. Enjoy…

ESTATE

by Carlos Reyes

Each piece of paper

each leaf each

breath left

or scent inhaled

from a piece of clothing

in a green and yellow box

from Brazil that says

“Entrga Urgente”

“Cuidado Fragil” …

I spend the weekend

at estate sales trying

to determine if this

is how we measure

our lives, by what’s left behind

to sell to strangers – the box

marked “free.” Untouched

as though unclean…

In the end does it matter

if the prints of our passing

ends up as rummage?

We sniff the air inside

the garages and houses

of strangers, judge

their lack of taste,

their sentiments.

But when the chattels are our own?

How reluctantly we part

with these traces

This plastic bag,

the scent the piece of clothing

in it carries, we are sure we know it

before we seal it up again

in the carton labeled

“… Urgent” “… Fragile”

That scent a breath

still alive

as we take it briefly

into our lungs.

Pretty amazing right? Can you relate to these words? We’ve all experienced the process of letting go when there is a shift in our lives. Isn’t it funny how easily we can go through the belongings of others at estate sales but when it is our own possessions it’s a whole different story.

p.s. Check out this fantastic Q & A session with Carlos Reyes via the Oregonian.

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By candace kramer, February 1, 2011 10:54 am

Last Friday night, we got the privilege of seeing the band, Ghost of the Saber Tooth Tiger at The Woods. The Woods is a fantastic, eclectic venue that is a funeral home turned concert hall, bar and lounge, nestled in the historic neighborhood of Sellwood! They even do bingo/bourbon nights! As unique as Portland itself, this new spot is one of P-town’s best kept secrets! You must go check it out.

See a video tour of the venue here:

As for the band, they were fantastic. Sean Lennon and his beautiful girlfriend, Charlotte Kemp Muhl are the lead singers.

Image via here

A captivating duo, Sean’s voice is wonderfully familiar and Charlotte’s whispery soft tones blend perfectly. Their music is comprised of a lyrical blend of different influences….well, I could try to explain but why don’t you just listen for yourself…the talented couple appeared on the Conan show Thursday night…

The opening act was done by the lovely and local, Laura Gibson. Listen to some of her music here.

Overall, it was a wonderful night! I love seeing live musicians at fabulous venues like the Woods and you gotta love it when old and rather depressing buildings (funeral homes) can be transformed and filled with light, energy and music!

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By candace kramer, September 8, 2010 3:34 pm

Looking for something fabulous to do with your Friday night? Why not get a little wild and come to this wonderful event put on by the Columbia Land Trust? Wine, dine and do some good for this worthy cause…

Columbia Land Trust works to permanently conserve the natural resources of the Columbia River region. We conserve, restore, and manage signature landscapes, vital habitats, and working farms and forests in Oregon and Washington from east of the Cascade Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. These lands are at risk from overdevelopment, unsustainable practices, and other threats. By working positively with landowners and local communities we can sustain the unique qualities of the Pacific Northwest for our children and future generations.

We all love wine and we all love the pristine beauty of the Northwest. You may be giving up your big backyards as you downsize but it just means you have more resources to protecting the true “backyard” of our community – acres of breathtaking wildlife preserve – that will bring great pleasure to generations to come! Talk about a sweet gift to your grandkids!

I really believe in this organization and was co-chair/coordinator of the live auction back when it was called The Three Rivers Land Conservatory. It has been amazing to witness the growth and support increase over the years and a lovely treat to just sit back and enjoy the event this year!

If you join us, be sure to look for me at the “Wild Wall of Wine” where a display of 100 bottles of wine, all concealed in identical wine bags will be up for sale. Buy a magical, mystery bottle for $25.00! I love this!

Hope to see you there!