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Friday Finds

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Instagram photos from my evening at Urban Farmer

Today’s {Friday Finds} it totally about the Portland area…. sorry to those who don’t live here! However, bookmark this post in case you plan on visiting soon.

I moved to Portland six years ago. And, while it is much more expensive and has a limited job market compared to my mid-western home, it is one of the most amazing places I’ve ever been. Living in Portland is like living in a big city that has the feel of a small community. We live about an hour from the mountains, an hour and a half from the coast, a few hours from the dessert, and close enough to get away to Canada if things get really rotten. 😉 This post may wax a little poetic about this town I’ve grown to call home.

So, here are some of my Portland {Friday Finds}:

  • Last night I had the opportunity to tour the kitchen, see a demonstration, and eat dinner at Urban Farmer. Urban Farmer has been on my list of restaurants to visit for some time now. I love their sustainable practices and the fact that they use organic, local food whenever possible. Last night’s experience confirmed it as an awesome dinner destination. I’ll be posting about my visit next week…. but, if you’re looking for a delicious steak dinner PLEASE visit Urban Farmer. You will not be disappointed if you get even a fraction of the experience that I had last night. I even ate beets there…. I am not usually a beet fan! (Although, I once made Beet Pierogies that were fairly tasty.)
  • After dinner at Urban Farmer you should totally check out the bar upstairs called Departure. It is like walking into a space ship. A space ship that serves good cocktails and has a beautiful patio with a view of the city!
  • The creative community here is one of the biggest reason’s that I am IN LOVE with this city. There are so many opportunities to build connections, do creative collaborations, or just be inspired by some pretty amazing creative people. If you are in the Portland area check out these awesome groups: Portland Bloggers (gotta plug it), Creative Connection (a women-only group of creatives), Portland Preservation Society (canning group… I can’t wait to be more involved with it), and The Crave Company (women entrepreneur group).
  • The Timbers (Portland’s MLS team) have started playing. I haven’t been able to get tickets to games yet, but it has been fun listening to updates and seeing my friends post photos from the game. I can’t wait to bring the little guy to a game.
Also,
  • Spring is near… and, with that the tulips are coming out! Today, Friday, March 8, all Whole Foods Markets are selling 3 10-stem tulip bunches for $10…. that is 30 tulips for $10. If, [cough, cough], someone’s husband thought to grab a bunch after work today then I’m sure it would make his wife extra happy.
And,

Happy International Women’s Day!

* I did receive a free meal from Urban Farmer curtesy of the PR firm, Little Green Pickle, however no promises for positive reviews were given. I really enjoyed it and want to tell everyone I know about it! No other compensation was given for this post. *
Glittered Jewelry Dish Project via A Beautiful Mess

Today’s {Friday Finds} is brought to you by the letter R. R as in random. I’ve been trying to incorporate more of my life into this blog to go along with my idea (not original idea by any means) that life is a party and we should celebrate it. So, in that theme of things you’re going to get a peek into my very random brain. I’ve found these links throughout the week and wanted to share!

  • I love glitter. It is a problem. My husband does NOT love glitter. So, of course when I showed him the above jewelry dish project I could see the fear in his eyes. I think it is a great way to bring just a little bit of sparkle into the everyday. I’d use the project on a tray and put letters and/or pretty magazines in it. I think it’d be just BEAUTIFUL. I wonder if the glaze is hard to work with… anyone out there ever done something similar?
  • Every wondered what all you could do with the cupcake topper or party circle printables? I love this {Party with Paper} series that Hostess with the Mostess has included on their site! I also really like that they call the printables “Party Circles” as they do so much more than just top cupcakes! “How to cut a party circle {3 ways to use it}”
  • Now that you know what to do with those party circles why don’t you stop by my “Free Printables” page and see what party circles I have made for FREE download.
  • Tonight I have some friends coming over for blog talk, beer, and homemade pizza. I’ve been playing around with crust recipes and have been drawn to the following recipes:
    • Alton Brown’s pizza crust from his book, I’m Just Here for More Food: Food x Mixing + Heat = Baking. He uses a children’s chewable Vitamin C tablet in his recipe! Crazy, right?
    • I’ve been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer a lot recently and in one of the episodes, Ted,  the bad guy makes an amazing cast-iron skillet pizza. I think I’ll have to try making it…. I’m leaning towards this recipe from Macheesmo.
    • And, because I am ready for the weather to be better, I think a grilled pizza would be delish. Good ole Martha has a recipe I’d like to try out sometime soon.
  • I have lot of fun dressing my toddler in cute clothes. (Check out my Baby Style posts for proof.) He is a stylish young kid… but, lately it takes a ton of effort to make me want to get either of us out of our pjs during the day. One of the Instagramers/bloggers I follow, Lauren Hartmann, did a 7 days of style challenge for her little girl and is now opening it up for others to participate. I thought it would be a good way for me to get the kid out of pjs for a week. One of the challenges is to take three items and style them throughout the week, which is great practice for my upcoming trip to Oklahoma with just me and the babe.
See… RANDOM.
I hope you found a link or two that interests you!
I’m excited for a fun, easy weekend. I hope that you get a chance to create a {Weekend in Review} post for this next week’s linky party! I’ll be sharing some of my favorites from each week.

The Oscars are this Sunday… are you celebrating? I am probably not… I have a busy, busy weekend. But, for those of you that are watching & celebrating with an Oscar Party, and need some last minute tips and ideas, check out these great posts:

  • My movie themed {real party} celebration has a lot of great ideas for a cinema celebration. My favorite details include using plastic popcorn buckets as flower vase and making some adorable “popcorn” cupcakes.
  • Free chic Oscars printables made by Party Chic for Catch My Party.
  • Star-studded popcorn on Red Hat Society.
  • This popcorn bar featured in Utterly Engaged is AMAZING. So chic and beautiful.
  • And, as for food… I love the idea of gourmet, home-made pizzas for a Hollywood studded evening!
I’ll see you back later today tomorrow for a {real party} Portland Wedding! Super excited to share the photos that I just HAD to have two posts today. Sorry! Time got away from me today. Have a wonderful weekend y’all!