The SCAA Expo came to town last month, bringing with it the US Barista Championship. Below is Devon Chapman using a wine aerator in a performance that took him to the finals.

It’s been a fashion drought ever since the boom of the holidays. Like the Sahara desert, and Isaac Hers’ Fall 2012 fashion show is the watering hole we’ve all been waiting for. And when I say we, I mean Eden Dawn who takes her front row seat with a pen and pad in hand, Sami Boyle of Portlandlookbook, and Ashkan of dayafterpdx, who has photographer Jaycob set up beside me. Nicholas Peter is here with his muse Zoe, and his mentor Levenda is somewhere to be found. Meanwhile Mike Andersen and his Woodlands crew circulate the room waiting for this triple-feature fashion show to begin. Pale light comes through the windows of the warehouse space that Jillian Rabe found to throw the party and show. The space has some of my favorite features for creating pageantry in the city, like the busy one-way street outside where motorists roar their engines past the crowded sidewalk while everyone begins to push inside.

The show begins with mist billowing from the runway, and we see Barbara Seipp’s new Fall 2012 looks. New looks, yes, but also some familiar ideas which have been proven in past collections. Like the maxi-length silhouette that Seipp has made into somewhat of a science,  a silhouette that defines her iconic Diablo skirts and now reincarnates for Fall as a long maxi jacket with slim fitted sleeves, wide peaked lapels that lie subtly flat, and a midnight blue lining that flitters to be seen. The two lobster claw clasps make the hourglass-shaped front opening possible.

As far as models, Kate and Meredith need just step out for a second to remind everyone that it’s their classic look and flawless runway performances that allow them to dominate the Portland indie scene. Meanwhile, Zoe seems to be the newest standout, walking in Solestruck shoes and sporting some of the earlier Isaac Hers spring collection and doing it so well that someone may wonder why she wouldn’t be in future lookbooks. And I’ve yet to mention all the guys walking for The Woodlands who, needless to say, killed it.

Seipp’s shirt dress also covers a lot of ground. It’s topped with a wide soft collar, then midway there’s no cinch to be found, just a natural waist with a straight drape that terminates in a slight high-low hem (I just stole that term from Ashley, thanks!). I’d still like to see this dress up close because I couldn’t quite make out the stitch that lines and decorates the hem; also I’d like to see the triangle stitch where the collar closes because I think it’s a great detail to showcase on an otherwise streamlined garment.

The last detail I’ll mention is the use of  ”baseball tee” constructed sleeves on the blue-black maxi and the sand/copper blouse. On the maxi (below), the black sleeves crop the silhouette change the shape of the torso, which really makes the face pop. The effect is more subtle on the sand/copper top (above), but the blocking effects from the sleeves are tremendous as the garment becomes geometric and broken up, but at the same time remains clean around the shoulders. What makes the sleeves a different color? Is it right way/wrong way, or is the bias faced differently? I can’t tell from the picture, but it adds a great shape to the shoulders.

Ashley and I finally collaborated on some photos for her website 52 Dresses Project. We hid from the rain under St. John’s Bridge on an especially wet day. Dress #14 is a white dress with a hemline cutting just above the knee, a few pleats on the front, and a geometric design on the neckline. Take a look at her website to see her previous dresses and the great photos taken by her husband Tyler (especially dress #2 on a ferry in Washington!).

When did you start making patterns, and where did you learn?

I started making patterns late last year when I enrolled in Intro to Patternmaking at Portland Sewing in the Hollywood District. I had no idea how to do it and had only attempted, poorly, before taking the class. There are 4 levels and I’m just finishing up the last one, I’ll be done in about 2 weeks. Along with that, I’m also finishing up my last draping class, which is another form of pattern making. It can be difficult at times, it really depends on what it is. Sometimes I get it right the first time, sometimes it takes me several times to get the look and fit that I’m going for.

How did you come up with geometric piece on the front neckline? How is it attached?

On this dress, the shapes are hand sewn onto the neckline. I wanted to keep the dress simple, because I thought the fabric looked so natural, but I still wanted to have fun with it. The idea just kind of came to me and I just played around with it a bit until I liked it, and then sewed all the pieces on. I still wanted them to move a little, which is why I chose to hand sew them.

What’s next? What are you going to do now to challenge yourself?

I’m not sure what’s next. I’m working on Dress #15, although it’s still in the pattern process. I have a lightweight denim that I really love and I’ve been wanting to make a denim dress for a while, so I’m excited about finally being able to do it! Every time I get an idea, I draw it out, but I always end up changing things when I actually sit down to start it. I think I need the stress a bit.

Since my last visit, Matt and Jim have been building up the largest portfolio of single-origin coffees available in Montana. They’ve remained the only light-roast choice for coffee enthusiasts in Missoula, rolling out a natural process blend called BLOOM, pulling in a Cup of Excellence from El Salvador, and topping it all off with their lightest roast yet: a Rwandan from the Musasa Cooperative.

Unlike the roasters in Portland and elsewhere, Jim and Matt aren’t roasting everything to a relatively similar level. They’re selling light brown beans as well as slick black beans. So when I visit Jim Chapman on a cold sunny day, we talk about how they determine a roast profile for each coffee and how the lighter roasts have been received by their customers.

But this isn’t just another conversation about light roast vs. dark roast. Black Coffee Roasting Company is in the unique position of introducing lighter-roasted coffees to a market that hasn’t seen anything like it. This is first contact, so they’ve had to offer the dark blends alongside the lighter single-origins in order to retrain the palates of the coffee-drinking community. Going a step further, their Black & Tan blends a light Brazil roast with a darker roast of the same bean, giving their customers a gradual step toward the single origins.

Tell me about the Black & Tan’s conception. How did you discover that you needed a darker Brazil roast, and how did you decide to blend a dark and light roast?

We came up with the Black & Tan when cupping a spectrum of light and dark roasted Brazil. Brazil is an interesting bean because it has unique characteristics on both ends of the spectrum. As of opening here in Missoula, Montanans were accustomed to dark roasts, period. We had a lot of requests early on for roasts darker than what we were offering, so we wanted to find a bean that could go that direction. Blending the lighter and darker style of the same bean felt as natural as blending coffees from different origins, because the light and dark roasts taste considerably different than one another but compliment each other nicely.  And so, Black & Tan was born, and people seem to love it.

And the Rwanda is on the other side of the spectrum as far as bean development. Would you prefer to be roasting everything lighter?

We do not really see ourselves as ever limiting our roast style to one end of the spectrum or another. We test every bean we get on a full scale of the spectrum. A crop can be different year to year, and we will roast them according to that crop’s characteristics. This Rwanda is fantastic on the lighter side and we have a few others that seem to do great on that end of the spectrum as well. We have had to explain why we roast the way we do to this market, but people have been very receptive and are excited about the concept of tasting the differences that a lighter roast can highlight in coffee beans. Looking across the spectrum of our coffees I would say the majority of our coffees’ roasts fall in the middle, somewhere between light and dark.

How do your wholesale accounts and end-consumer effect how your roast?

There have been a few coffees in the past that we thought were terrific with a very light roast but would be fairly unapproachable to the masses, and so we took it just a little further. People loved them. One was from Bolivia, another from El Salvador. They were great the way we profiled them, but if it was just for ourselves we might have gone a touch lighter. Matt and I share very similar palates, and often blindly choose the same coffees when cupping. This has made bean development quite easy in terms of agreeing on which direction we are taking a coffee.

But for the most part Matt and I get more excited about the dynamics of lighter to medium roasted beans, where nuance and complexity are more front and center. We want to roast coffee for both the coffee geeks and for those that do not want to think about it. We want coffee to be approachable and simple, but we ourselves delve so far into this we can’t help but focus on the complexity. We want to serve simple cups, but we also want to highlight all the various and unique characteristics. Do those two objectives collide? Maybe. But at least they collide in the same cup.

We do custom roasts for several accounts in which we work with them to find the specific style of coffee they are looking for and that their customers are looking for. This level of development is what we love about the coffee world, because everyone notices different things about coffee and takes different things from it. This keeps our days dynamic, and our palates in motion. We get to highlight different coffee characteristics for each unique account’s needs.

I’m visiting the home and studio of Joey Maas, whose Pop Art paintings have a steadily growing fan base in Portland. He sits at the dining room table with his dog, Rocky, and drinks coffee before going to work on a new painting. He lives with his wife, Shauna Haider, and brother-in-law, Carey Haider, and the three of them make up a household that is radioactive with creativity.

What initially inspired you to go in the pop art direction? What did you like about that look?

Well, to put it simply, what inspired me to start painting was a really ugly bedroom.  I’ve always been a fan of modern design and decor, but my bedroom at the time was hideous with bad 1970′s faux wood paneling and brown carpet, and since I was renting, I couldn’t really tear it all up and put up fresh drywall.  My only option was to liven it up with some bright colored artwork.

I always loved the bold yet simplistic style that classic pop art projected.  It seems to work in just about any room, and people can identify with it.  There’s a lot of great art out there, but a lot of it isn’t something that appeals to the general public.  Pop art defies that for the most part.  I’m not really an artist that’s trying to make a huge sociopolitical statement, I just want to make things that look good.  A lot of artists would probably call that shallow.

And I imagine you get tired of hearing people refer to your work as just “pop art style”. In your own words, how is your work different? How have you tried you differentiate yourself from the classic works?

Obviously the classics are what initially inspired my earlier pieces, and it’s pretty apparent by looking at them.  As I became more comfortable with my work, I started to include more design elements, as well as getting much more detailed with my portraits.  I started adding text, numbers, shapes etc, to define my style.  I guess I would call it Neo Pop Art.

Joey’s attic studio has low angled ceilings and just enough floor space to fit a large blank canvas. He sits cross legged and begins working on his next piece.

See also:

Adam Friedman & Maryanna & Jake

“Shirt is Gitman Vintage, got it at Union Made in SF. Waistcoat is from Epaulet in Brooklyn, ordered it off their web store.”

“These are Mark McNairy New Amsterdam Brogues. They’re one of the few that he’s made in something other than suede, and they manage to wistande the rain pretty well.”

“My 3sixteen jeans are from the Woodlands, they’ve been my favorite since I got them in May.”

When I visited Maryanna and Jake to document their studio and living space, I also took some shots that really show their individual personal style.

“The suit jacket is a great vintage score from Buffalo. The pin is a gift from a friend, who bought it in an antique store in Texas. I bought the red boots from a friend in his apartment in Tempe, AZ.”

“I’d been riding a little moped for awhile when a lady friend of mine (and avid rider) approached me about the motorcycle.  It’s a 1974 Honda CL100. I couldn’t resist.”

“It’s a scrambler; the exhaust pipe is set higher off the ground than a CB so it’s meant for a little off-roading. I bought it with 1,000 miles on it, and my guess is that the original owner bought the bike for his wife, who never rode it.  I absolutely love it.”

Back in Reid’s shop, he’s working on the “toe puff” or “toe box”, which stiffens the front of the toe for protection and maintains its structure and shape.

And while he’s working, I come across a pair of sidelace oxfords (below) he finished a few weeks ago:

“It’s called a side lace, and it’s not very common but I like it a lot. That pair would technically be considered and oxford if you want to classify them, with a beveled waist. They are the simplest version of a side lace that I’ve done, and I wanted more emphasis on shape rather than pattern. The triangle stitch helps hold the tongue on the lining, and the heel is finished with a puzzle-piece lift. The construction is English welted, which is what the Goodyear machine was created to mimic. One problem about welting machines machine is that the needles cannot change direction, so two threads are used. When the welt is done by hand, there is one thread with two needles, one attached to each end, therefore creating a much stronger welt. Also, machine welts do not use a leather insole but instead use synthetics which is one of their greatest downfalls.”

The decoration on the side of his Prince Albert loafers catches my eye. It was created using a decorative wheel pressed into the dense leather after the heel was constructed.

On the underside of the heel there’s a nail pattern consisting of five carefully placed triangle pairings of nails. It’s a pattern of German descent, he tells me, and it reminds me that those seemingly-superfluous details are what make handmade shoes are so special; whether the wearer is climbing a set of stairs or sitting with their legs crossed on the MAX, those almost-hidden details reveal something their character.

See Also:

Reid Elrod Shoes Part 1

Reid is currently making shoes starting at $700. If you are interested in having a pair of bespoke shoes made for you please send your information to marrowmag at gmail dot com and I will pass it on.

I’m thrilled to visit Maryanna & Jake in their their new SE Portland home. I’ve been a fan of their illustration and design styles, which are each finely-honed and distinct, but amalgamate nicely in their collaborative projects. The decor of their home, their clothing, and the imagery in their most recent work suggest that the two artists share a reverence for the past and the passage of time.

In the new house, a roomy studio catches the morning daylight. Paintings for Maryanna’s upcoming show line the perimeter of the room. She will show her work next at Pony Club Gallery, and in April she’ll be at the Stumptown Comics Fest showcasing her first comic book.

Jake is quite prolific. He currently resides at Roundhouse Agency, where he produces imagery for Adidas, Skullcandy, and others. The process behind some very interesting projects are documented on his blog, including how he created his own personal brand to a recent project utilizing Tanner Good’s ability stamp leather with custom designs.

Maryanna and Jake met in 2009, and soon they began to draw together and collaborate. Eagle & Wolf is their collaborative entity, and there you can find a portfolio of images including some from their most recently finished campaign for Lemolo Baggage.

Maryanna neals down and retrieves several posters from a chest on the living room floor. They’re advertising posters that Jake’s father, who worked for Sandstrom design as an art director before going freelance for several years, made for Warn Winch Co. and Tommy Bahamas. Now, Kurt Hollomon teaches drawing and illustration at PNCA and carries on a blog featuring a regularly growing collection of his own studies.

I’m in Reid Elrod’s basement studio and he’s telling me about the tools and machines that lay around us. Everything has a story behind it. First, he shows me a pair of metal tools that he received from his mentor and master shoemaker, Marcell Mrsan. After acknowledging his need for a teacher in order to move forward with his shoe making, Reid attended Marcell’s 5-week workshop in Budapest. During this stint in Hungary, Reid picked up a skiving knife and channel knife, both reproduced for Marcell from some older knives from 1939 Sweden, and both made from 56 rockwell steel.

Then there’s the Consew sewing machine and a Landis sole cutter, which Reid picked up on two separate occasions in Los Angles. Machines used for leather work and shoe making are rare these days, Reid tells me, so he keeps his eye open on Craigslist for uncommon finds that shave hours off his production time.

The skiving machine is a major time saver. Each piece of leather needs its edges thinned so that it can be easily sewn to another piece of leather, creating a smooth seam. By hand, slicing small strips away from the width of the leather is atime consuming process, so Reid picked up the skiving machine from an Armenian couple in LA.

Some skiving can’t be done by machine, like the leather for the toe puff for a pair of 2-inch heels he is making for his mother, so he holds a marble plate between his legs and thins the piece of leather by hand. Using a a curved knife, one of the two tools he brought home from Hungary, Reid cuts toward himself and shaves thin the leather.

Reid’s uppers are made from chrome tanned leathers, which stretch nicely, retain dye, and age well. He generally uses JR Rendenbach soles, which are made in Germany. The Rendenbach leather spends up to 9 months bathing in oak tanning fluid, resulting in a very breathable, very durable  sole. The inlaid wool is an English cashmere found at B. Black & Sons in Los Angeles.

As he works I look around and see blue lasts in every corner of the room. “When I first started making shoes I bought some wood lasts from Oregon Leather and they are perfect because they are so anatomically correct, but I haven’t been able to find any more,” he tells me, “so most of these lasts are plastic and they come from Mexico. They are high density and I have to use a grinder and a hack saw to shape them up, but they work great in the end and last forever.”

“If I made a ready-to-wear line, I’d have the proper lasts made up for me for each size. Those lasts would be made to fit the shape of foot for the most amount of people. But for now I create a custom last each time I work with someone new.”

Reid is currently making shoes starting at $700, so if you are interested in having a pair of bespoke shoes made for you please send your information to marrowmag at gmail dot com and I will pass it on.

See Also:

Reid Elrod Shoes Part 2

Adam Arnold & Anthony Parrish Leather

I picked up this pair of Imogene + Willie jeans last night from Jarom at Reveille. I chose them for their near-perfect fit, and the great  aesthetic of the husband/wife duo who make them in Nashville, but I’m starting to love them for all the details I’m now noticing. I love the subtle green bar tacks, and the lack of a branding patch is a plus; the only maker’s mark is an orange X on the right seam. Also, there aren’t any arcuates on the back pockets so the overall look of this jean is minimal and modest.

It snowed at the vineyard today so we decided to do some pictures outside. The belt is Tanner Goods, the chain goes to my pocket watch, and the parka is a Penfield from Mike at the Woodlands.

I’m looking forward to more honeycomb fading behind the knees than I experienced with my last pair of jeans, which weren’t as slim. That last pair is in for some repairs. They underwent some staining and wear from sorting grapes, tending to burn piles, and kneeling on the pavement during a few outdoor shoots. They’ve been retired to my ‘weekend jean’, and I’ll post some pictures of them as soon as I get them back.

Photos by Mark Stock

See Also:

Reveille Store & Jarom at Reveille & Selvege Denim Around Portland

Since we took this photograph, Jess and Camille have gotten engaged, launched their new website, and brought into their shop some exciting new lines (WHiT, Imogene + Willie, new Opening Ceremony). Nice.

I’m running with Jacob Hinmon and his crew to shoot a video for Schoolhouse Electric Supply Co. We’re at Schoolhouse’s new space, an expansive, brick, five-story building on NW Nicolai Street. The first floor houses a show room where their iconic reproduction, glass-blown lighting is displayed alongside their new home decor items. We haul our equipment up wooden stairs to the second floor where, surrounded by white and yellow painted brick and ancient wooden beans above, a fervent assembly department and textile design team work.

We film owner Brian Faherty in his office. He’s wearing Alden wingtips and a button-up flannel. Light from big windows spill onto a turntable, a vintage lime couch, and light fixture designs pinned to the wall.

Brian tells us the story of how Schoolhouse Electric came into existance:

Jacob has become known for documenting several stylish businesses in Portland, starting back when he produced the Winn Perry video, and I will post what he and photographer Kelly James (right) produce next.

See also:

Holly Miranda – An Ace Hotel Lobby Show & Matt at Wood & Faulk

Bags of water, suspended from the ceiling of Adam Arnold’s two-story high studio space, leak drops like rain onto the runway below. Adam’s models splash down the watery path dressed in his Fall/Winter 2011 collection.

See Also:

Adam Arnold’s Spring 2011 Collection

I walk down the 2nd floor hallway of the Ace Hotel early in the Saturday evening and the conversation lingering at the end of the hall is about the size of the ax in room 228; I know right away I’m reaching the Tanner Goods display. There is a pile of freshly tanned hide resting next to an old American flag stretched against the back wall. Their new cast silver tie clip with interchangeable leather center strips (to avoid a color clash) is suitable for any logger-turned-lawyer.

Also making a presence in the leather accessories field is Draught Dry Goods, a recent transplant to Portland from Missoula, Montana, presenting an impressive show in room 208. Not wasting anytime to win over the detail-conscious Portland crowd, the custom sewn leather handlebar grips branded with “Content 2011″ are the show stopper.

In fact, all of room 208 is filled with wish list items including a waxed canvas weekender bag built tough enough to tackle any adventure and the tan leather Olivier Camera Strap with brass detailing that instantly classes up any camera. Draught Dry Goods owner, Caesy Oney, christened his Portland workshop with the camera strap two months ago.

Each room for Content was uniquely designed, some of which totally abandoned the hotel room décor, like dress designer Sarah Seven, whose elegant examples of her Spring 2012 Bridal Collection were breathtaking against a pitch black backdrop. Pictured is the beautiful Bethany Gosvener wearing the “Practically Perfect” wedding dress.

Other note-worthy rooms include the strobe-light shower party room of REIF and the Duchess Clothier party aftermath in room 220 where articles of clothing were hastily discarded amongst piles of condom wrappers, empty cigarette boxes, and cold pizza; all tied together with a note written in red lipstick on the shower wall giving thanks for the good time.

Words and photographs by Ryan Donaldson

It’s a sunny evening and I walk off the street to enter a vintage store in NE Portland. I make new acquaintances over a meal thoughtfully prepared by Heather and Remy. I seek them out because they are professionals. They create a memorable experience and a meal with a concept. Tonight’s is a Victorian Feast, incorporating posh food from the manor and street food from the urban working class.

The meringue dessert is pictured above, with rose cream, a citrus chip, and rose hip conserve. Also included in the dish is rice pudding with condensed and evaporated milks, bay, rum raisins, lime and basil syrup, banana powder, and wild plum.

The venue has character: Palace of Industry, a vintage store in NE Portland named after a Victorian textile mill (Kenton neighborhood, 5426 N. Gay).

See Also:

Planetary Supper by Special Snowflake Supper Club & Din Din Supper Club

Somewhere along NW 23rd, Jess and Camille veered off and found this beautiful garden.

Camille is wearing the Samantha Pleet Castaway Romper in white, and Luxury Rebel Sakura Pumps in deep taupe.

Jess is wearing all Mister Freedom with Marc Jacobs boots. The pants are the Pantalon Ouvrier, “workman’s trousers”, from the Spring 2011 Les Apaches line. They’re in Indigo Rayure fabric, which is “8 oz. indigo/white  warp and black weft striped twill, herringbone weave, white selvedge, un-sanforized (respectfully lifted from a late 1800′s swatch of french textile)”. Here are the other details that I lifted straight from the MF website:

Inspired but late 1800′s – 1900′s French military bourgeronstrousers (often made of HBT natural colour linen) and early French workers garb, our Pantalon Ouvrier falls into the “denim” part of the collection. Both fabric options are inspired by early French workwear textiles, then the Old World equivalent to American denim. The silhouette is reminiscent of turn of the century imagery, a slimmer type fit, narrower legs with a higher rise.

The buttons are Original MFSC Corozonatural wood buttons. (aka “vegetable ivory”, corozo buttons where an hi-end option for suiting from the 1900′s to 1940′s). “MFSC déposé” engraved buttons combination. The trousers come with matching fabric removable suspenders, inspired by overalls straps.

Reveille recently did a collaboration with Julian Boot, and Camille brought in WHiT‘s Fall collection.

See also:

Reveille, Fine Clothier – An Opening Celebration & Reveille Store Opening

WWII Bomber Jacket – Reveille & Jarom on NW 23rd

Last summer Sterling Coffee filled half gallon growlers that donned a griffin logo with cold brew concentrate. This summer, Barista on Alberta is serving their cold brew outside from a coffee cart because their coffee house is still fire-ravaged.

But the cube ice, walnut bar from Goby, and house-made cookie pictured above are from Courier. The coffee is a wash process Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Biloya that arrived in August. Joel says “it has grapefruit qualities and citrus, still has jasmine on the high notes, but it has a bitter grapefruit quality too.”

When I visit Matt Pierce I am most interested in hearing about the D-ring belts he made for Darian’s store at Free/Man. The ring belts are made of vegetable tanned leather from Hermann Oak Leather, and utilize d-rings which have a flat side so the leather doesn’t bunch up. The leather is English bridle, so the back side appears soft and finished when it doubles back. The belts can be found at the Free/Man shop.

Matt first made his first set of belts a year ago for his “belt project”, during which he sold several belts at cost and the recipients each documented how their belts looked after six months of wear.

If you watch this video about the belt project, you’ll notice Matt uses a hand tool to bevel the belt’s edges. This took was time consuming and initially turned Matt off from making belts for sale on his store, but since then he’s upgraded to the edge finisher that’s pictured above. He pulls the belt through and it shaves the edges smooth in one pass.

After deliberating over the design of white stitching, Matt settled on the design pictured above.

One of the first places I found Matt’s projects was on his friend Victoria’s website SF Girl By Bay. She really drew my attention to the home improvement projects he’s undertaken to convert his tiny 103-year-old house into a unexpectedly stylish hideaway.

An ax and custome leather ax holder hanging on an antler from Portland-based Antler & Co.

Matt shows me the Kubb project that will become his latest submission to Design Sponge. It’s a Swedish lawn game. The next product that may appear in the Wood & Faulk store is a nicer version of his Folding Tripod Camp Stool, which won’t be finished prototyping until next week.

See Also:

Oxblood Cardholder with Horween Chromexcel & Gentlemen’s Reserve by Free / Man

Maryanna Hoggatt & Reid Elrod Shoemaker

One summer evening a group of 75 people convene inside Versailles Gardens and Pomarius Nursery in industrial Northwest for a six-course meal crafted by chef Courtney Sproule. Through the grill’s billow of smoke and lit by the setting sun, Courtney orchestrates her cooks and servers to execute a French inspired menu, and the dishes are whisked away to awaiting diners.

I first learned about your supper club a year ago, and tonight’s supper was packed and busy. How have things changed in the last year? Is its current state what you imagined when you started?

Din Din grew out of parties I used to host for friends.  I learned the beauty of dining later in life and started throwing food-centric parties frequently as a way to teach myself to cook and host.  At one point, I decided to challenge myself (and to heed my budget!) by offering dinners to the public in public settings.  I did this monthly for a year as a side project, and then took on Din Din as a full time gig.  It totally took me by surprise that cooking, something I never gave a thought to until I was about 20 years old, would come to be my main pursuit.  I’ve been incredibly lucky to have such loyal, open guests and such a talented, generous staff bring us to this point!

What’s next? Are you trying to increase the size of the suppers, or hold the clubs in more sensational locales?

We always try to be better and better cooks and more welcoming and creative hosts.  Right now we’re working on ways to host our public suppers more often.  We’ll announce an early fall lineup soon!

How did you create your recipe for tonight? Did you use any particularly unusual purveyors?

I was totally endeared to this menu as I wrote it while staying in a friend’s medieval guest home in château country in France.  It demanded an elegant protein, so I knew to get Reister lamb from Jake Reister in Washougal.  He finishes his lamb with peas, so it has a subtle, sweet deliciousness and is so incredibly tender that we joke when fabricating it about the risk of it sliding right off the bone (still raw!).

Uncommon to us, but very traditional to the region I was staying in in France, is a trick taught to me by Robert Reynolds of the Chef Studio where you dump fresh strawberries into your leftover red wine for dessert (in this region, it’s Chinon).  We has a stellar Chinon that happened to marry perfectly with raspberries, which was the only berry to be had that week from Polar Farms, which my friend Kristen Murray (an incredible pastry chef Portland is so lucky to have) introduced me to.  That worked wonderfully!

One fun thing that happened was that I forgot my cooking brandy.  This cooking brandy is Germain Robin, which is nothing to dismiss, as you’d be lucky to finish any meal with it.  But in its absence I livened up the tomatoes on the zucchini cake by borrowing from the aperitif we offered our guests upon arrival– this fun modern French liqueur called M.P. Roux, which lended a welcome complexity to this season’s tomatoes.  It was a good mistake!

See also:

Planetary Sculpture – A Supper Club