Gather Locally

Spring cleaning season may be over, but the summer is also a great time to refresh, rejuvenate and redecorate your abode.  Here in Berkeley there are several places where you can find unique furniture, fixtures and accessories to make your home as individual as you are.  To top it off, you can go green because the wares in these shops are recycled, reused or repurposed.  Redecorate your house and reduce your carbon footprint at the same time.  What could be better?

The first local shop we'll feature in Berkeley is Ohmega...

Summer is in full swing, and there's still plenty of travel time left on the calendar. Whether you're taking a trip abroad or just heading to the coast for some weekend R&R, there's no better way to relax than listening to some music or getting lost in a wonderful book.  Good News... You don't have to look far to find local musical groups or authors to take along with you on your adventures.

Local Music

The San Francisco Bay Area has a rich history of being on the leading edge of the music scene and of producing nationally known musical...

This is an on-going series on fun things to do with your friends.

When was the last time you grabbed a girlfriend and took a day to pamper yourself.  Here's a suggestion for a fantastic day out and about dedicated to rejuvenating your soul and rekindling friendships that get neglected in the daily grind of our everyday lives.

Start with a light breakfast at Pizzaiolo on Telegraph Avenue in the heart of Oakland's Temescal district.  Fuel up on coffee or tea, freshly made doughnuts and bread and house-made granola with yogurt.  It will be...

The countdown to Valentine’s Day is on and there's never a more perfect time to source local for this year's box of chocolates.  Here are some suggestions of a small group of local artisanal chocolatiers who creatively and passionately ply their trade.

Casa de Chocolates

The Berkeley Elmwood neighborhood’s Casa de Chocolates creates delicious confections with “premium chocolate from Bay Area- based chocolate providers known for their quality and sustainability practices.”  You can find beautiful, hand-crafted creamy ganache bonbons in...

Remembering to shop locally can be hard.  We’re all so used to buying things at our tried and true big box stores or the websites that are conveniently bookmarked in our browsers.  But we should shop locally because by doing so, we keep our neighborhoods healthy and strong.  Of the everyday items that we pick up running errands each week, almost all could be purchased at a local independent retailer.  And for every $100 we spend locally, $68 will stay in our community --fixing pot-holes, improving parks and supporting city projects....

When it's time to give a teen a gift, it's easy to write a check and call it a day. While they'll love the money, opening a card is not nearly as exciting as unwrapping a gift. Here are some last-minute-gifts ideas that you can pick up locally… so no worries about if your shipment will arrive on time.

Find awesome teen gifts at these local shops:

For the teen who’s never without a skateboard… The Drifter Backpack (A classic bag with a functional little secret, it can carry an entire skateboard!)  ($65.95) at Oak Common - 3231 Grand A...

The counterpart to Black Friday, the sixth-annual Small Business Saturday encourages people all over the country to celebrate and support small businesses the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Founded six years ago in response to small business owners’ most pressing need – getting more customers during the busy holiday shopping season – Small Business Saturday has quickly earned its’ stripes among holiday traditions.

Why not think about visiting Old Oakland, Uptown or Downtown Oakland, College Avenue from Broadway to the Cal Campus, Solan...

Spread The Local Love...

Thanksgiving is next week and after that is the official holiday shopping season.  What better way to kick off the season than to hit the streets for Plaid Friday on November 27th. 

Plaid Friday was conceived by Kerri Johnson, now owner of Marion & Rose’s Workshop in Old Oakland, when she was looking for a way to get small businesses together to promote shopping local during the holidays.  It is the colorful, local alternative to Black Friday — a celebration of the unique and creative locally owned businesse...

Remembering to shop locally can be hard.  We’re all so used to buying things at our tried and true big box stores or the websites that are conveniently bookmarked in our browsers.  But we should shop locally because by doing so, we keep our neighborhoods healthy and strong.  Of the everyday items that we pick up running errands each week, almost all could be purchased at a local independent retailer.  And for every $100 we spend locally, $68 will stay in our community --fixing pot-holes, improving parks and supporting city projects....

Oakland Central

Want to stay on top of all the happenings in the heart of Oakland without missing a beat?  Want to get the word out to prospective customers about your indie business? Visit Oakland Central, the official site for what’s going on in Uptown, Downtown, Old Oakland and Jack London Square. It's a one-stop site specifically deisgned to help indie businesses in and around the downtown area connect to residents, customers, visitors and each other.  Oakland Central has its pulse on the city and is a valuable resource f...