Have you mapped out routes for the big after Thanksgiving sales? If you want to hang around for some of grandma’s pumpkin pie and take the stress out of holiday shopping, we might have a solution.
There’s been a lot of press about the Small Business Saturday buy-local campaigns, but have you ever thought about the gifts you can buy right downtown, all week long? Okay, admittedly, we have a way to go (or a way to grow), but there are still great options all within a quick jaunt of where you work, live or play.
Let’s start on Gay Street. We’ve got less-is-more wallet action at Zeroz, and right next door is Sugardaddy’s who will even mail granny in Arizona a holiday care package.
While you’re on Gay Street, find gifts for foodies or the caffeine addicts among us, and for those who you never know what to get, just one word – jewelry. Diamond Exchange and Chet’s Jewelers have just what you need, and don’t forget the manicure gift certificate at Nail Styling Salon so the jewels will drip from perfectly groomed fingertips.
For the football fan on your list, head to The Peanut Shoppe for an assortment of goodies to munch on during the upcoming bowl games. Keep on truckin’ to the Statehouse Museum Store for Ohio gift items or chatkes with a political flare.
Haven’t found the perfect gift yet? Fill your bag with trendy home décor items at Crimson Design Group, and don’t forget the fresh flower arrangements while you’re there.
There are lots of options. We’ve only just started to help you with your list so get out and explore. For more downtown retailers, check out DowtownColumbus.com or the Small Business Beanstalk. Let us know what you find.
Lots of cultures feast on some kind of combo of bread dough and sauce, maybe even a little bit of cheese. It’s average, common, perhaps even elemental, but there is nothing ordinary about the new kid in town. Daniel Lunsford opened Element Pizza at 250 North 3rd Street. Take a look at what he’s cookin’ and then make your way over to sample it for yourself. You are in for a treat of monumental proportions.
Spring has been a long time coming, and you deserve a treat. We have a fantastic way for you to celebrate the arrival of warmer temperatures – ice cream, perhaps? Oh and by the by, Pearl Market opens one week from today.
Hmmm… wonder what they two have in common? Here’s a hint:
The folks at Lexi’s on Third have been busy transforming their space into a restaurant to give downtowners just the fuel they need to keep the workflow going. You’ll find them open for business this week, and you’ll want to check them out for breakfast, lunch and happy hour! Just head to the Chase Bank Building at the corner of Broad and Third. And if the rain ever stops, you can savor your meal or happy hour on their beautiful, spacious patio.
The breakfast menu features breakfast sandwiches, omelettes and more – yummy and fast. While lunch items include hot and cold sandwiches, burgers, gyros and tasty signature salads. When the workday ends, head over for happy hour where you can enjoy draft or bottled suds or a glass of vino to help you unwind.
But before you go grab some tasty grub, check out the video that shows just how much elbow grease they used to get the space ready to roll.
The last time the peeps in C-Bus saw this much rain Grover Cleveland had just been inaugurated as President – for the second time; Frank Lloyd Wright had opened an architectural firm; and Thomas Edison was fine tuning his new-fangled phonograph. Needless to say, the Gore-Tex rain slicker was a few years away.
It could be worse; we could live along the Ohio River where they are getting even more rain. All the green stuff on the other side of the window pane loves it; so as you watch the grass grow, we’ve thought of a few more things you can do to make life less soggy.
10. Clean out a desk drawer and spiff things up a bit. Graham’s Office Supply has just what you need. Besides, new Post-Its will help distract you while you’re waiting for that gargantuan file that your boss just emailed you to download.
9. Pick up a few growlers of beer from The Elevator and invite a few friends over to start construction of a mini-ark. Mmm, Dopplebock.
8. Head on over to the Ohio Theatre to see Mary Poppins. The umbrella that Mary uses on stage is big enough to keep your entire office dry.
7. Dream about warm sunny days when you Kick It Up at Columbus Commons for Downtown Kickball. Have you sent your registration yet?
6. Hire a trainer at your favorite gym. It may not lift your attitude, but you’ll be too exhausted to really care.
5. Hit every downtown restaurant for happy hour specials. Cocktails abound downtown; start creating your list here.
4. Stroll down Gay Street and take a whiff of all the spring flowers. Heck, Gay Street is also a good place to begin your Happy Hour Hop.
2. Take your inner child to the Center for Creativity at the Columbus Museum of Art and recharge your artistic self.
And the number one thing that will help get you through this rainy season… Lunch on us and here’s your chance. Post a comment about how you like to spend your time downtown and you’ll be entered to win lunch from a variety of downtown restaurants, worth more than 30 bucks. Yum.
It’s spring and time to spruce things up a bit – maybe even paint over some of that boring beige that covers every nook and cranny of your house or office.
Need some inspiration?
Well, look no further than Pearl Alley because the team at Crimson Design Group brings experience and creativity to the showroom and retail store at 51 North Pearl Street. What? You never noticed they were there? Well, stop on by for the open house this Thursday from 3 – 7 p.m., and in the meantime, see what Crimson owner Cheryl Beachy Stauffer has to say about collaborating with clients and why she loves downtown.
Has this election season worn you out with all the political ads blaring on every radio and television station you turn to? Well, today is the last day (for awhile anyway) and regardless of your political affiliation or the outcome, there’s a way to relieve stress right around the corner – and that’s a promise we can keep. Best yet, it won’t even require campaign finance reform. All you need is 10 bucks and 10 minutes.
The folks at Take Ten for Life offer massages for as little as $10 for 10 minutes and in return you get mind-numbing relaxation. If you can spare a few more dimes and a couple more minutes, they offer great massage deals designed to fit everyone’s busy schedules from 10 to 30 minutes. Don’t stop there, though. They also have traditional Swedish and therapeutic massage, or you can show your tootsies or arms some love with a 15-minute foot or hand massage. It’s a great way to take care of yourself before you head into a hair-pulling-stress-inducing holiday season.
For the month of November, they sweetened the pot and the massage table – buy one gift certificate and get the other one for half price. Win some points with your mother-in-law by giving her a gift certificate and grab a little solitude for yourself at the same time, or skip the altruism altogether and treat yourself like a king or queen. The special runs through November, so don’t wait long.
Make good on your own I-promise-to-take-better-care-of-myself campaign slogan and make an appointment today. It’s not too late. No need for political rhetoric, just pick up the phone or schedule an appointment online and let the folks at Take Ten help you de-stress, de-compress and de-light with a massage in as little as 10 minutes.
This message has been approved by the I Need to Relieve Stress Today movement, not affiliated with any major political candidate.
Market Days in the fall are coming! That always means a change in produce, a change in the smells surrounding the Market. You can almost smell the cooler air coming. More farmers are bringing apples, which I love and so do the kids. I’ve been waiting for it to get cooler so I can make some warm cider with local apples. The miles that these apples travel are less than one hundred from tree to your table. The miles that apples from a typical super market travel can number closer to thousands and thousands. By coming down to the Market and buying our apples, you are saving the world from all that extra pollution. You are also single-handedly helping our local economy by keeping your money here. It’s just another reason why the Pearl Market is such an outstanding place.
Another thing that comes with fall, customers are starting to look for Christmas presents! I saw on Facebook recently that there are quite a few vendors at the Market that will take custom orders for their work. If you are looking at a vendor’s work and want something that you help control the design, ask them! We have been asked for quite a few pieces of custom work over the summer and we have obliged every order. It’s a wonderful option to mix your own creativity with someone else’s know-how, and it’s such a lovely idea for a gift.
Now that the days are gorgeous and cool, come help save the world and buy local with us!
We’re so excited about what the future of Pearl Market might be. Check out this video where Cleve Ricksecker dreams big and our vendors share what they love about selling their wares a the Market.
Tuesday at the Market was supposed to be ridiculously hot, but Pearl Street had such a lovely breeze that it felt like spring. Usually I pick a couple of booths to check out and head straight for them, but this time I meandered slowly down the road to see everything.
Crimson Design Group has a store front on Pearl and they set out a Market booth as well, so you can see the amazing things that they have in their store. I haven’t bought anything from them yet, but I always see the decor they sell and think, “Ooohhh, pretty! Those are the people I want to make my living room pretty!”
Another booth I always like to see is The Sweater Lady. Everything is so colorful and it always draws my kids over. There are little hand-knit finger puppets that are so incredibly detailed that I just don’t understand how somebody can do that. I also love the adorable kids’ sweaters that have scenes on knit into them, with suns and animals.
This week I also bought a good deal of produce from an array of farmers. Some tomatoes from one guy, some zucchini from another, and English peas from a third. I feel like I eat so much better in the summer when I get to spend so much time at the farmers’ market.
SATURDAY ALL WEEK LONG
A LITTLE LEXI’S FOR LUNCH
The last time the peeps in C-Bus saw this much rain Grover Cleveland had just been inaugurated as President – for the second time; Frank Lloyd Wright had opened an architectural firm; and Thomas Edison was fine tuning his new-fangled phonograph. Needless to say, the Gore-Tex rain slicker was a few years away.
PROMISES, PROMISES
Market Days in the fall are coming! That always means a change in produce, a change in the smells surrounding the Market. You can almost smell the cooler air coming. More farmers are bringing apples, which I love and so do the kids. I’ve been waiting for it to get cooler so I can make some warm cider with local apples. The miles that these apples travel are less than one hundred from tree to your table. The miles that apples from a typical super market travel can number closer to thousands and thousands. By coming down to the Market and buying our apples, you are saving the world from all that extra pollution. You are also single-handedly helping our local economy by keeping your money here. It’s just another reason why the Pearl Market is such an outstanding place.
Tuesday at the Market was supposed to be ridiculously hot, but Pearl Street had such a lovely breeze that it felt like spring. Usually I pick a couple of booths to check out and head straight for them, but this time I meandered slowly down the road to see everything.