As Tarah and Dawn have already reported, we roadtripped down to Portland to check out Portland Fashion Week. I used to live there 10 years ago (my god, has it been that long?) so I was excited to visit my old stomping grounds. Although a lot has remained the same, there were so many new areas to explore, one being the fabulously revamped Pearl District. It's now a hip neighborhood with galleries, cool eateries and chic lofts, but when I lived there, it was street after street of industrial warehouses where junkies came to shoot up. People were just starting to see its potential back in 1997. Walking through it now, with all its manicured streets and boutiques, it's hard to remember what it used to look. And boutiques it does have! There's so many wonderful little independent stores to check out (Dawn and Tarah give the scoop about the ones we visited). Despite all the changes, it warmed my heart to see a mainstay like Powell's Books still going strong in the same location.Another big difference is that PDX now has a sleek intercity North-South metro as well as the old East-West route. That's one thing I definitely miss about that city - their transportation options. You can get to pretty much anywhere within the city without a car. Seattle, is so behind the curve. Granted Portland is smaller and still has gridlock in areas, it is much smarter when it comes city planning.
I also have to say that Portland's downtown is really quite elegant and quaint full of beautiful fountains and public art. It's got a Vancouver/European feel to it that Seattle just doesn't have. All in all, it was wonderful to go back and remember what an awesome city it truly is.
On a fashion note...The fashion show was full of all types of people, young, old and really really young - like we're talking 11 years old who came with their parents. It took place in the shipyards outside of town, and while not all that convenient, it added to the show's mystique. I was impressed by the fun and fresh collections by Seattle and Portland designers, (to get the compete fashion show rundown, see Tarah's blog). We have a lot of burgeoning talent here in the Northwest, so it was a pleasure to attend the event. One thing I hope the Portland Fashion Week organizers will do next year and perhaps in later shows this week is elevate the runway, so everyone can see these great pieces.
So next time you're in Portland hop on the Max to the Pearl District and NW 23rd and check out some of the local boutiques (we're working on expanding the UBN to include a Portland directory). There's no sales tax and you don't have to pump your own gas!
