Delma lives in the Sellwood neighborhood. She hosted our book club in her art-filled condo Saturday afternoon, and then we went for a walk around the ‘hood.
One intersection is designated as a community gathering place, with hand-built structures on each corner. This one is a play station for kids. The street itself (in the foreground) is painted with swirling, colorful designs that are changed or updated regularly.
Under-cover benches grace two of the corners. I think this is straw bale construction. Love the streamers. Directly across from this bench is a coffee/tea station with a couple of carafes, tea bags and a selection of mugs on pegs.
We couldn’t resist trying out the other bench, but it was way too cold to linger for long. The orange house in the background gives you some idea of the character of the neighborhood: lots of old-time houses, gardens galore, and in-fill projects designed to complement the mix.
Before we move on, here’s the artful little news kiosk, filled with local newpapers “The Sellwood Bee”, produced just down the street.
The commercial strip is lined with antique shops and boutiques. On this weekend, they had conspired to put on “Decemberville”, complete with horse-drawn carriage rides up and down the main drag, and goodies like hot cider and homemade cookies offered for browsers.
Fittingly, the swankiest building on the strip holds a shop filled with luxury items from many eras.
Just inside the door is this room-high tree with a white feathered peacock.
One of many chandeliers. There wasn’t a one of us who failed to find something to lust after in this shop…which made us short on time to do the other intriguing places justice. You could do worse than to plan on spending a whole day soaking up the atmosphere in Sellwood.
Good morning,
Looks like you had a fun time browsing there. You must have a very flexible town council to allow so much freedom in putting up structures. I particularly liked the mail box.
Lots of stuff one doesn’t need in those ant/bou/tiques but likes to look at.
Joco: You’re right. Need has nothing to do with it, and not a one of us cracked our wallets, but we did have a swell time.
I think the gathering corner was spearheaded by an architect living in the area. He probably had an inside track in navigating the bureaucracies.
what fun to see the bookies afternoon chronicled! you were surreptiously snapping shots all the while we chatted, shopped away the afternoon! maybe the rest of the bookies would like a link to your blog post here –
Oh man, when I saw that first shot I thought it was where you had gathered for your book group! Thought the structure looked a little on the flimsy side for a dwelling, but as a outdoor gathering spot it’s perfect! If I saw something like this in the parking strip in my neck of the woods, I would probably faint with delight. Where is Sellwood? I need to get out my (google) map. What a treat, thanks for sharing.
Ellie: Thanks! I was just about to send out an email with a link.
Karen: Sellwood is the little old neighborhood at the east end of the Sellwood Bridge, the southernmost bridge over the Willamette. I thought you would like the gathering spot, as it fits right in with the theme of your blog.
Nice Ricki~~ I love those kinds of stores. I don’t have the budget for them but I love to browse, especially with good friends. It’s been years since I perused the Sellwood antique mecca. I’m glad to hear that it’s still alive and thriving.
Grace: ‘Just Looking’ is the byword, especially since the item that called out to me was a lap-robe made from porcupine (politically incorrect as well as over-the-top expensive). We lived in Sellwood for a number of years. It has gentrified since then, and the ‘thug’ element seems to have disappeared.
Wendy: Wish you could have ambled with us in person. Thanks! I’ll be putting the spirit flags on Etsy as soon as I get some decent photos.
Wow, Ricki, what a cool place! I have always dreamed of living in a very artsy neighborhood like that, but am happy with the freedom allowed where we are. Asheville is similar, full of artists unafraid of personal expression and a town that enables it. Their primary business is tourism, and the art is a big draw. Even their mino league baseball team is named the Tourists, with a big suitcase as their logo. Are the benches made from straw bales then covered in mortar or concrete?
The Tourists…I love that! One of our high schools is the Democrats ( nice departure from Warriors, Wildcats and such).
Yes, the visible part of the benches is concrete. We were just guessing that straw bale construction was underneath.
Oooh – what a fun neighborhood! Our nice little town has a ‘holiday walk’ during one weekend in December complete with carriage rides and reindeer and such. I like the name ‘Decemberville’.
What a fun book club.
ICQB: Isn’t it wonderful that all over the country people seem to be reclaiming old neighborhoods rather than the ’50’s trend to cover over every brick with plastic or aluminum?