Trendy Tuesday: Shopping Locally at Kazoodles Toys in Vancouver

November 23, 2010

Thanksgiving is still to come (just a couple days!), but the Christmas music is already playing 24/7 on the radio. With about a month to go to those various gift-giving holidays, it’s time to start thinking about what to buy for the people you love. We all enjoy presents, but what’s more fun than picking out a toy for a child in your life and watching them open it with rapt appreciation? At Kazoodles Toy Store in Vancouver, you will find unique, fun gifts for the kids in your life.

Kazoodles was opened by Bob and Mary Sisson in 2006 to fill a niche market they had detected in the Vancouver area. They wanted to find safe, quality, unique toys for their grandkids without having to come to Portland, so they made it happen. Earlier this year, they opened a sister store. Kazoodles is independently and locally owned, scoring it big points with those who look to avoid supporting big corporations with their holiday dollars. Current social-awareness movements like No Corporate Christmas make independent retailers like Kazoodles especially trendy and attractive places to do your holiday shopping.

Let’s take a look at some of the great toys they offer!

The first thing that caught my eye, this “faux bow” by Marky Sparky, may seem like a reckless choice, but Kazoodles strongly emphasizes safety in the toys they sell, and this product won the Astra Best Toy award for Best Active Toy of 2010. The bow is recommended for those eight and older, and costs $24.99. I know kids who spend so much time in front of a screen, anything that gets them moving (even to shoot things) is a good thing in my book.

If you feel otherwise, Kazoodles has a lot more to offer, too!

This next product is a splurge at $169.99, but I am a sucker for dollhouses. Playmobile has the best sets and accessories, with lots of detail to make the scenes versatile and fun. This Furnished School Building will keep boys and girls entertained for hours during long cold days inside. And I certainly won’t judge if you choose to join the kids and play with it. Those figures are just too cute to leave alone.

For a creative activity that will captivate a budding artist, get the Create Your Own Pop-Up Books kit for $19.99. The kit includes blank books, markers and design ideas to get your young friend started on her pop-up masterpiece. These three recommendations barely scratch the surface of Kazoodle’s huge, excellent selection. Look at their website to see tons more great gift options, and search by age, activity or brand.

Even better than browsing on the website is browsing in the store, so check out Kazoodles at their original location, 575 W 8th St in Vancouver, or at their new location, 13503 SE Mill Plain Blvd, #B-3, also in Vancouver.

You Gotta Try This!: The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra

November 3, 2010

So Halloween is behind us and it’s time to start thinking about Thanksgiving and those December holidays. This is the time of year where you get to dress up and attend classy cocktail parties, festive and well-thought-out meals, and sophisticated outings to the theater. One such outing should take you to the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, where they have been producing great music and entertaining snazzily-dressed concertgoers for thirty-two years.

The orchestra has some sweetly humble beginnings: it started as a group of musical enthusiasts who played together in various groups. They moved up by steps, first becoming the Vancouver Chamber Orchestra than the Vancouver Community Orchestra, as they created a demand for chamber music in their region. String musicians joined the group to form the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and today this professional organization is highly regarded.


This weekend, the symphony has its last regular season performance of the year, featuring two outstanding pianists, Yukiko Akagi of Japan and Alex Alguacil of Spain, pictured here. They will perform together on the Concerto for Two Pianos at Saturday’s 3 pm performance and Sunday’s 7 pm show. Their piece will be followed by the whole orchestra’s performance of Brahms’ Symphony No. 4 and Liszt’s Hungarian Raphsody.

But the really festive concert will take place on December 18. The Big Horn Brass Christmas Show is a “perfect blend of traditional and swinging standards played by sixteen pieces of brass and percussion, and featuring vocalist Valerie Day.”

Another great reason to support this organization is their involvement in the Vancouver community and their dedication to providing opportunities to young musicians. Take advantage of this local treasure and make the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra part of your holiday celebration this year!

Trendy Tuesday: Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt in Vancouver

October 26, 2010

The idea of mixing toppings into a frozen treat is not particularly novel. We’ve all had McFlurries (yum) and ice cream mixed on a frozen granite slab and dropped into a little red bucket. I used to work at one such ice cream shop, where the thick, trans-fat-laden concoctions and the high prices ($.50 for each little scoop of M&Ms?) turned me away from our product quickly, although I loved my job. Perhaps I could have pimped my product with more enthusiasm had I worked at Menchie’s, a frozen yogurt shop that really is doing things in a new and different way.

Menchie’s deals in frozen yogurt, not ice cream, automatically giving it points for healthiness (or at least guilt-free-indulgence-ness.) Of course you can deck out your froyo with hot fudge and peanut butter to up the dessert factor. Or add fresh fruit and granola for an honestly wholesome snack — Menchie’s yogurt has live and active cultures, which are good for digestion, and lots of bone-building calcium. Sugar-free, low carb and dairy-free options are also available. Sounds good, you say, but what’s going on at Menchie’s to deserve a Trendy Tuesday post?

And here we come to the best part: you pay for what you grab, not based on charges for each tiny spoonful of topping, but by weight! No longer will the number of toppings you want, however little of each variety, break your bank. Although Menchie’s is now an international franchise company, this is no evil, opportunistic corporation. The concept came from a young couple who got married and opened their first store within the same year.

Their company has experienced wild success and growth. Still, “Every Menchie’s is founded on the same principles of community, outstanding service, healthy living, and the pursuit of the perfect yogurt mix!”

So stop by Menchie’s in Vancouver on your lunch break, or take the family after dinner for a reasonably  and fairly priced, wholesome treat. The store is located at 19171 Mill Plain Blvd, Suite 107.

Written by Forkfly intern Eleanor Brown.

You Gotta Try This!: Big Al’s Vancouver

October 20, 2010

I’ve been trying to get my boyfriend to take me bowling for weeks now. Maybe bowling makes you think of your ninth birthday party, but I’m convinced it’s for adults too, and it makes a perfect date night. How often do you get to drink beer while participating in a sport? (Okay, bowling is a sport the way billiards is a sport, but you know what I mean.) Our options in NE Portland are limited to a few pretty sketchy, dingy alleys. To up the appeal I’m going to propose we check out Big Al’s Vancouver, which offers so much more than just bowling.

Big Al’s provides nice facilities at prices comparable to less classy joints. Bowling leagues play here, of course, and Galaxy Bowling, with blacklights and a neon motif, occurs during the day on weekends for families and after 9 Fridays and Saturdays. Pretty standard, you say? Well after a game or three, when those rental shoes start to pinch your toes, your night is still young. Finish that pitcher and mosey over to the sports bar for dinner, or the arcade for more games.

This isn’t just any arcade, or any sports bar. Big Al’s takes arcades and sports bars very seriously.

The arcade boasts 4,000 square feet of video-gaming fun. This is going to be the hook that gets my boyfriend to finally take me out. Check out the new additions to the arcade here. At Big Al’s you’ll find all the standard favorites, like Buck Hunter Pro and DDR Supernova, plus more than 100 others. Inside the sports bar, find more games, like billiards ($5 for an hour!) and shuffleboard.

This is not your average sports bar. The bar is built with a stadium structure in mind and it rocks 4 50″ TVs and 2 42″ TVs, plus the 8ft by 36ft jumbotron pictured here. Die-hard fans looking for a great viewing experience could not ask for more. The grill menu will satisfy anyone, sport-inclined or otherwise.

So get your own man or lady to take you out for a fun evening at Big Al’s Vancouver, located at 16615 SE Vancouver Way and online here.

Written by Forkfly intern Eleanor Brown

You Gotta Try This!: Your own Beer & Wine Making Kit

October 4, 2010

If I really sat down and thought about it, I would probably die from shock at the amount of money I spend on beer and wine every month.  If I made my own product at home, not only would I save some money in the long run on prepackaged beer and wine, but I would be the envy of all of my friends every time I walked into a party with my own beer creation in hand.  But I am no chemist by all means, so how does one go about making their own beer or wine?  The answer is buy your own kit!

Bader Beer & Wine Supply in Vancouver, WA sell beer and wine making starter kits, as well as brewing equipment and ingredients.  So now you have everything you need to make your drink of choice, but you still don’t know what the heck you are doing, so why not take a class and find out?  Bader’s also offers beginning beer and wine making classes for as low as $20.  By the time you are done with the class you should be be able to offer your friends a nice glass of Grenache or an ice cold Porter next time they come over.  The hardest part about the beer and wine making process is waiting a week or more for it to be ready for consumption.

You Gotta Try This! Fun Slides from Kazoodles

September 29, 2010

There is something so entertaining about sliding around in your socks on a newly waxed floor.  I don’t care if you are five or fifty-five, this never gets old.  But what if your house is entirely carpet, or has little space for sliding?  Don’t fret, the good elves at Santa’s workshop have came up with a solution just for you, and they are called Fun Slides.

The photo is pretty ridiculous looking, but Fun Slides are carpet skates that let you “cruise” on carpets the same way you would in your socks on a hardwood or linoleum floor.  It looks like loads of fun, but as a parent I would be weary of constant accidents occurring.

I am an adult and if my  friends and I had a pair we would use them to race around my house, so just imagine what kids would do :)  I still say this is a product “You Gotta Try!”  You can find the Fun Slides locally at the Vancouver toy store Kazoodles.

What Makes Vancouver’s Cinetopia the Best Movie Watching Experience in Oregon?

September 16, 2010

I am a huge fan of beer theaters, and I have become so accustomed to being able to drink good beer and eat pizza when I go to the movies that I actually haven’t stepped foot into a normal theater in about a year.  I decided I needed to go check out the Cinetopia in Vancouver, WA, which I have heard great things about, and find out for myself what all the fuss is about.  I have been waiting to go see Machete and now was the perfect opportunity.

I quickly discovered that The Cinetopia experience is much more than a trip to the movies.  Cinetopia is fine dining, luxury seating, a wine extravaganza, and movie watching at its best!  The theater is broken up into several sections: a wine, beer and dining area called the Vinotopia; Grand Auditorium Theaters, which are open to all ages; and Living Room Theaters, which are 21 and over only.  Unfortunately my movie wasn’t playing in one of The Living Room Theaters, so I was unable to bring any alcoholic beverages into the theater, but I did have a nice meal and some good local beer in the Vinotopia before the start of the show.

The Vinotopia is the perfect combination of luxury, comfort and convenience.  You can choose to sit at the wine bar, in the dining area, around the fireplace in comfy couches, or outside in a beautifully laid out garden setting.  The staff is constantly aware of your time constraints and the food is prepared in a timely manner, and if you are cutting it close to show time, the waitress will have your food wrapped up to go so that you can enjoy it in the theater.

The Grand Auditorium where I sat looked just the same as most theater seating, but once you sit in the chairs you immediately feel the difference.  The seats are cushioned, wide and lean back far.  They also all include a pull out tray table on the side for eating convenience.  The sound and picture quality were very impressive, and the whole experience was well worth the higher price tag.  A normal evening adult ticket costs $10.75 in the auditorium and $14.25 to $15.50 for the Living Room Theaters.

The Living Room Theaters are more expensive because they are even more cosy and pampering than the Grand Auditoriums.  The Living Room Theaters have five Living Room seating areas.  Each area has excellent viewing and a secluded “skybox” feeling. The seating areas have thirteen extra wide customized Seating Concepts VIP Ultra Leather seats, each with its own footrest and unlimited leg room.  These theaters also have pre-show restaurant and wine bar table service. In addition, prior to the films showing Friday and Saturday, customers will be provided with live pre-show dinner music from a small overhead performance balcony.  There is also something called The Pillow Pit, which is a large space at the front of the theater full of pillows for you to rest on while enjoying the show.  I would pay the higher price for this kind of entertainment.

It is well worth the drive from Portland to Cinetopia located at 11700 SE 7th St in Vancouver, and for more info check out their website.  I can’t wait to go back and check out the Living Room Theaters!

Trendy Tuesday: New Shop “Rebel Row” Brings a Rock ‘N’ Roll Pin-up Style to Vancouver

September 7, 2010

Rebel Row owners Brian and Brittny Houghton are not new to the retail scene; in fact, the couple have been toting their unique wares to conventions, car shows, and festivals all around Portland and Vancouver for quite a long time.  I just discovered them about six months ago while attending a classic car show.  I loved absolutely everything they had on display: coffin belt buckles, metal and rock t-shirts, pin-up style dresses, and classic horror stickers and patches.  It is not every day I am able to find a boutique that satisfies my love of pin-up, rock ‘n’ roll, and classic horror, so of course my first question was where is your shop and how have I never heard of you guys before?

It takes a lot of time and money to open up your own retail clothing store, but the huge reactions from customers like myself, demanding more from Rebel Row, convinced the Houghtons that they just couldn’t put off opening up a store any longer.  Brittny was born and raised in Vancouver, WA and always had a dream of opening up her own shop that focuses on the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle that she loves so much, and Brian, being in the rock ‘n’ roll music scene, felt the same way.  They both were unsatisfied with Portland’s retail scene, and were frustrated with the high prices and limited choices, and quickly found that they weren’t the only ones that felt that way.  After a long period of selling their stuff out of booths, Rebel Row opened up their official shop a couple weeks to rave reviews.

Located at 1901 Main St. in Vancouver, Rebel Row has made it self right at home amongst other thriving businesses that line Vancouver’s Main strip.  They carry over 20 different clothing/accessory lines, and are always hunting for more.  They love to support the local music and art scene, and not only play music by local rock musicians in their shop, but encourage local designers to show them their stuff, as long as it has a rock ‘n’ roll or pin-up theme of course.  Check out Rebel Row’s website here, and follow them on Facebook.

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