Darling Illustrations

You don’t appreciate something until you’ve lost it. That’s what people say, anyways. I remember taking Phoebe to downtown Tacoma for her fourth birthday almost a decade ago. We went to the Hello Cupcake shop; she got a ballerina topper, then we sat on bright pastel furniture and watched through the big glass window as people walked by on Pacific Avenue.

A few months ago, Hello Cupcake permanently closed their doors. They aren’t the only business to do so. The Harmon Bar and Grill is gone, as is the University Bookstore, and those are just a handful of examples from the two block strip of the Tacoma downtown. Times are hard.

Now is when it really makes a difference where we invest our money. Spending with intention and thoughtfulness is what turns us from consumers into a community. So here are some thoughts on how you can show your appreciation for small businesses and mom-and-pop shops while they are still here: (more…)

A few months ago, I invited people to tell me about their invisible selves, and I said I would paint them.

The concept of an “invisible self” comes from The OA by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij. It is not the self that we present to the world, but our inner self, our true being, the core of who we are underneath all our masks and barriers and defenses. It’s the “you” that stays with you when you close your eyes, the part of you that aches and dreams, the part of you that no one can ever take away from you. (more…)