Friends, gather round -- behold this week's edition of Racked Seattle, where all the good retail gospel is spread by your girl, Ali Brownrigg. Check back here everything Thursday for news, tips, sales and events, and if you've got fun tips for our in-house sartorial mastermind, hit the tipline at seattle@curbed.com.
U Village Makes Room for Room & Board: Room & Board has announced plans to open at University Village this fall. This is the first store in the Pacific Northwest and the twelfth in the US for the 32 year-old Minneapolis-based furniture and accessories company. The 27,000 square foot store, located on the second floor of the former Barnes & Noble space, will feature high-quality, design-conscious modern interior furnishings, 90 percent of which is made in the USA. According to the press release Room & Board already has a solid fan base of 5,800 Seattle customers, but we’re sure that many, many more of you in our strong “socially-conscious, design-centric community” will get right on board, so to speak, once the store opens.
Madrona News: Tiny consignment shop, Driftwood, is moving across 34th Avenue into the space freshly vacated by interiors store Guesthouse (read all about it here). Starting September 1, Driftwood will super-size from its current 187 square feet to a palatial 900 square feet, which means even more amazing gently used designer clothes at fair and friendly prices, as well as a new men’s section. Driftwood will not close during the move, and the grand opening celebration is September 9.
Sales: The city is full of them at the moment. It seems like every window we shop in has a sale sign in it, so take your pick and have some fun. If you need a little more direction than that, Sweetie in West Seattle has all summer merch marked down between 30 and 60 percent and Re-Soul in Ballard has a great selection of summer sandals for both men and women on super duper sale. Plus, check out their blog for dose of great styling tips and beautiful design inspiration.
Trick Out Your Toms: Head to Horseshoe in Ballard this Saturday, August 4 from noon to 4 p.m. for a Toms Style Your Sole event. Bring your own pair, or purchase a pair there, either way, artists will be on hand to paint ‘em up and customize them to your specifications. Or you can go your own way and decorate them yourself. Enjoy the requisite snacks and beverages and enter to win a raffle prize from Toms, Kai, Butter London or Jao.
West Elm Ice Cream Social: To thank their loyal Facebook fans for really, really liking them to the tune of 100,000 plus, West Elm is hosting an Ice Cream Social on Saturday, August 4 from 1 to 3 p.m. with free ice pops from Six Strawberries. The Seattle store is one of 10 stores across the country to host one of these, which is pretty cool, as is our newish South Lake Union store, which if you should check out if you haven’t had a chance to yet.
Future File:
Spun Sample and Closing Sale: Save August 11 from a.m. to 7 p.m. for Spun Collective’s Closing/Sample Sale Event. Spun has been a haven for indie designers including Cameron Levin, Kate Chrisman and of course, Spun clothing, but the building that houses it is being redeveloped, so Spun is moving on out. Such sad news! The 11th will be Spun's last day open, so expect deals up to 90 percent off samples, one-offs, old stock and close-outs. It's not the end of Spun Clothing, however. Owner Sara Seumae tells us that she'll continue to sell her great organic collection wholesale and online. P.S. Fall Spun is off-the-hook cute.