Retail Therapist

Retail Therapist stopped in at elsa+sam, a dishware boutique, while wandering Hawthorne this morning in search of a cute teapot to replace her banged up, eyesore of a metal kettle. Although that didn’t pan out, RT did find something just as needed and way cute at elsa+sam’s charming shop.

These tea cups from Circa Ceramics fit perfectly in your hand and are cheery enough to brighten even the darkest Portland days. They are dishwasher and microwave safe and each cup has a distinctly Oregonian feel to it. RT might end up giving a few sets to stressed-out friends come the holidays. She also loved Circa Ceramics line of graphic sauce bowls below.

Teacups $18, sauce bowls $16; elsa+sam, 4314 SE Hawthorne Blvd., elsasam.com

As reported in yesterday’s New York Times Thursday Styles section, Oregon-born Nau sportswear is anchoring a pop-up shop at 69 Mercer St. in SoHo, open Nov. 12 through Dec. 31. Portlander Jean-Pierre Veillet is designing the space using  fallen tree limbs, metal pipes, discarded cardboard and other found items. In addition to the Nau line, the shop will carry Timberland and Toms shoes, Stewart + Brown knitwear, and the ever-popular Freitag recycled truck tarp bags.

If you can’t pop by the pop-up shop in NYC between now and the end of the year, you can find items from these designers right here at our very own Lizard Lounge, 1323 NW Irving St., (503) 416-7476. MAP

Retail Therapist recently stumbled across this gorgeously super-sized potager planter on the internet and discovered it was designed and made locally. Dominic D’Andrea and Tram Pham—the Portland husband and wife duo behind the industrial and graphic design firm Design Night—created this extra-large sculptural planter that’s perfect for small-space gardeners.

The price tag of $375 is as hefty as the planter itself, but RT thinks it pencils out over time if you consider how much landscaping and buying fresh herbs at the grocery store will run you over the course of a year. Available online at www.designnight.com.

This chocolate brown polyurethane bomber with black and white wool cuffs and collar, $69, was spotted by Retail Therapist at Ipnosi boutique. Ipnosi, 616 NW 23rd St., (503) 223-4373‎.

Behold the Fly London short boot, available in black and brown, $204, at Imelda’s. It has a grommet. What more do you need? Imelda’s & Louie’s, on the Eastside at 3426 SE Hawthorne Blvd.; in the Pearl District at 935 NW Everett.

Vancouver, BC artist Lincoln Heller pounds bike spokes, nuts, bolts and rope into red and ochre leather to create these beautiful, one-of-a-kind hand and shoulder bags. Prices range from $95 to $399, and the bags are sold at PedX Shoe Shangri-la in the Alberta Arts District. PedX Shoe Shangri-la, 2230 Northeast Alberta St., (503) 460-0760.

Monday brings sad news: Crafty Wonderland, the fabulous show of handmade crafts in the basement of the Doug Fir—voted “Best Place to be Sew Cool” by Willamette Week and “Best Crafts” by Portland Monthly—will be shuttering its monthly operations after next Sunday’s show on November 8.

In an email sent out today, CW founders Cathy Pitters and Torie Nguyen said that the monthly show wasn’t paying off for the vendors. “Our main goal is to provide a venue where our vendors can make a decent living selling handmade goods,” said the email. To that end, they are transitioning to holding two events yearly, the Crafty Wonderland Colossal Holiday Sale and the Colossal Spring Sale, which will take place the weekend before Mother’s Day.

RT grieves the loss of this Portland institution. While the giant holiday sales do attract more shoppers, they tend to be headachy events characterized by long lines at the ATM, terrible coffee, and way too many overwhelmed, grumpy customers. In contrast, the monthly shows at the Doug Fir tended to be more intimate events, where a shopper could look at silver-plated jewelry before grabbing a beer and $3 burger for happy hour. And maybe paint a few popsicle sticks at the children’s station.

Stop by Crafty Wonderland’s last show on Sunday, November 8, from 11 am to 4 pm at the Doug Fir Lounge. Vendor applications for the winter and spring shows can be found at CW’s website here.

This is the time of year when Retail Therapist forgets the weather has changed and wears a skirt and no leg covering. Once the temperature sinks in, an emergency tights shopping errand ensues. Don’t let this happen to you. Stock up on these black, cable-knit tights made of bamboo fiber from Sock Dreams, $16. Bamboo is naturally antibacterial, breathable, moisture-absorbing and sustainably grown. And—getting back around to the point of this post—will keep your legs warm. Sock Dreams’ retail location has moved to Sellwood, in the building that used to house Greenloop. Sock Dreams, 8005 SE 13th Ave., (503) 232-3330 (store questions only); new hours are 11-6 Tuesday through Sunday (closed on Mondays).

The October Retail Therapist newsletter is now available! Read it online or sign up for the newsletter to receive future issues chock-full of content not available on the blog, including exclusive discounts. And more cute stuff than you can shake a stick at.

Retail Therapist likes these fall hats by local designer Elizabeth Rohloff. The Emma newsboy cap is $49 and the Goodman feminine fedora is $64. Bonnet, 412 NW 11th Ave., (503) 954-2271.