portland business blurbs

Lately, I've been contributing content to Neighborhood Notes' The Localist, a business directory of locally owned businesses in Portland. Some of these blurbs are repurposed from past content I've written, some are basic write-ups to introduce a business, and others highlight specific products, events, services, or just things we like (because we think you should be in the know too). All of them show up in various places around the site (like on a business' directory page) and sometimes on the homepage as part of the curated Local Agenda, which changes daily.

Here are a few samples and links to more.

Artistic Taxidermy

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! More like deer, elk, antelope, ducks, and “a lot of bears lately,” says Artistic Taxidermy’s Garret Heying of the fauna he regularly sees come through his shop. Although he does stuff some African game (including an impressive kudu on the wall behind the counter) and some exotics from New Zealand, add to that list aquatic creatures like bass, trout and salmon—including a 75 pounder once—and you have the bulk of Heying’s Northwest fare. Peering through the doorway into the “Employees Only” zone, the ceiling racks hold more than 100 antlers while the showroom—where you can stop in and browse—of the 71-year-old business, which has called Foster Road home for more than three decades, houses an ever-changing inventory, from finished orders awaiting pick up to examples of the professional mounts, scaled and feathered trophies, rugs, restorations, and antler lamps and chandeliers fashioned on-site.

Artistic Taxidermy, 5700 SE Foster Road, 503.771.DEER

Take A Trip But Don't Forget Your Passport

Laurie Lewis of Hip Chicks Do Wine was instrumental in organizing the PDX Urban Wineries association, which represents a range of winemakers making a variety of wines all right here within the city's limits. And now, the burgeoning number of urban wineries involved in the collaborative coalition has created the perfect way for you to tour their facilities and taste their wines. The PDX Urban Wineries Passport grants you a free tasting at wineries around town—including Hip Chicks, ENSO, Alchemy Wine Productions, and Seven Bridges as well as three different winemakers in the shared space of the Southeast Wine Collective (which features Helioterra Wines, Vincent Wine Company and Division Winemaking Company) and the appointment-only, garage-based operation of Jan-Marc Wine Cellars—plus discounts at local wine-oriented bars and restaurants. Want to get a group together and arrange your own tour? The passport also provides deals on transportation options like the Portland Short Bus and PDX Pedicab. So, buy your own passport ($20) and organize a tasting trip. Then, present your passport for complimentary sips and swirl, sniff and swallow—or spit, if you must. Like what you tried? Receive 10 percent off any bottle purchased that day. Then, repeat this process at your next urban winery stop.

The Jane from Tiffany Bean's 2013 Riviera collection

Plus, read about Muse Art and Design's month-long An Artist A Day event in April or Tiffany Bean's new spring 2013 collection at Mabel and Zora. Or, there's weekly Fiber Fanatic Fun on Thursdays at Pearl Fiber Arts and tons of canning supplies at Mirador. Physical Element has new shoes in stock while Milagros Boutique's event space is now available for rental. Then, catch a weekend show when the daytime workshop of Sellwood-Moreland's Modcott Pianos turns into a nighttime venue called The Piano Fort.