Brands and Stuff That You Love (Emphasis on Quality)

[skoobdo]

I love Columbia and Pacsafe too. I own lots of pants and shirts from Columbia, and 2 shirts started fading the 1st month I purchased them, but I dealt with, and many months later (within 1 year), I contacted them and they sent me a $95.00 credit. Even though the shirts cost less than that. So, their customer service was outstanding.

My personal items are Pacsafe purses and Scottevests. Wouldn't be without them.

[SusanM]

Krebs Recycle leashes are available at Amazon.com

[Shanisol]

I love these leashes. I thought they were sold on this site at one point?

They were... I bought one from TB years ago. Sadly, my 6 month old puppy chewed the handle completely off last week. She had me so fooled - I thought she was just lying down in the back of the car being good. Not so much. The joke is on her though, because now she's stuck with the shorter, no pull leash (which is also a very good leash).

[bltkmt]

Krebs Recycle dog leashes

Best dog leashes in the whole world, plus they up-cycle small pieces of our 500 denier Cordura. Read more here.

I love these leashes. I thought they were sold on this site at one point?

[imperator]

Shoes: Carmina or Santoni

Watches: Jaeger-LeCoultre or F.P. Journe

Travelwear: Costco...beat that warranty!

[sarahlin]

Yay! Glad to see activity on this thread. Here's two brands I've appreciated as of late:

Aigle Boots
I first learned about Aigle here on the Forums! Aigle boots are hand made in France; here's a video about the process. I get cold toes and had been looking at these boots longingly for a while. Then, on President's Day weekend, a coupon from Aigle arrived and I couldn't pass them up! I've pretty much been wearing the boots ever since. I think they'll be a good investment: they seem well-made and I get the sense they'll last me many years.

Evan Healy
Natural and simple skin care products made with ethically sourced ingredients.

Evan Healy is amazing and local to me!

[roarmouse]

What is BAE?

Also curious, why the spelling 'Merica?

Salutations!

BAE is an acronym/slang for "Before Anyone Else." Used(mostly?) by young people when refering to their significant other. Drop the 'A' from "America" and you somehow add more old-fashioned, smalltown patriotism. I think an element if humour is involved. I would just refer to my home state when asked where I'm from😊

Peace!

[Kirri]

What is BAE?

Also curious, why the spelling 'Merica?

[Muni_Jedi]

Soft Star Shoes are BAE for me in the footwear department. They don't have much support, structure or variety in style but they are handmade in 'Merica and feel like you're not wearing shoes.

Ibex merino wool products are also a favorite of mine. Again made in 'Merica, versatile and overall a great product.

[sose]

Man oh man. Where do I begin?

In no particular order:
Knives - Chris Reeve Knives, made in Idaho, are some of the best production knives out there in my opinion. Not only that but they are elegant! Sebenza is the flagship model but also look at the gorgeous Mmnandi.

Pens: I swear by my Montblanc pens. Own several and they are my go to. Waterman makes a fine pen as well.

Outdoor wear: Arc'teryx makes some high quality jackets, fleeces and other outdoor items. Their warranty is incredible. Honestly, if you buy an item from them, you will likely not have to replace it in a very long time. Patagonia is right up there with them as well.

Hiking shoes and boots: Salomons are incredibly comfortable for trail use. I own a couple of goretex boots that perform beautifully. On the other end of the spectrum, Redwing boots are incredibly well made and stunning.

Backpacks: I love my TB but I wouldn't use them for hiking or backpacking. For that genre, the acclaim should go to Hill People Gear. I own three of their backpacks for different applications - day hikes (alone), day hikes (with another person or two) and backpacking trips of a night or more. In order, these bags are the Tarahumara, the Umlindi and the Ute.

I'll add on to this list as I can think of other things.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MDF]

As a self-confessed soap-a-holic, I am always on the lookout for all natural handmade soaps as I like to always have options on hand. It's the one thing I find it hard to be minimalistic about! Just ordered from a great company called Stone City Farm (also in Washington State). They sell handmade goats milk soap on their 14 acre farm from goats they raise themselves. There is a video on the website showing pics of the farm, the beautiful goats, which look loved and very well cared for by their family. My soap arrived with a handwritten thank you card from the owner and a free sample. The soaps smell great and the ingredients attest to the quality. It was very personal experience and I will be ordering again.

[Juanito]

Currently enjoying...

Floracopeia's Pinon-Juniper essential oil.

CORE meals Sunflower Carob Bars
1.4 ounces of almonds = 186 gallons of water to grow, 1.4 ounces of sunflower seeds = 39 gallons. Plus they're pretty tasty. Not so tasty you'll be tempted to eat them as a treat, but tasty enough that when you're hungry they taste pretty good.

Thanks for the CORE meals link. It's great that they are an Oakland based, not-for-profit business committed to having positive social and environmental impacts.

[Darcy]

Currently enjoying...

Floracopeia's Pinon-Juniper essential oil.

CORE meals Sunflower Carob Bars
1.4 ounces of almonds = 186 gallons of water to grow, 1.4 ounces of sunflower seeds = 39 gallons. Plus they're pretty tasty. Not so tasty you'll be tempted to eat them as a treat, but tasty enough that when you're hungry they taste pretty good.

[backpack]

And now I know the name of what I do with scarves. Someone showed me that one and I'm afraid I'm not creative enough to branch out aside from just wrapping the durn thing around my neck and calling it a day.

Worse is that I've started knitting shawls obsessively and am so not a shawl person.

Gifting or selling them to women who will be enrolled in wedding duties: bridesmaids, mothers of the brides, guests and brides themselves could be a way to get more money to grow your yarn stash, unless, they have sentimental value for you.

I do hope that, this time of years, knitters who could use the extra income, are thinking of starting a thread in Ravelry.

The shawl would be a lovely heirloom for the bride and her nice , lightweight, reusable and useful memento for her guests, what's not to like?

[backpack]

One of my favorites is a French Knot. But I also just love wearing it open or a simple neck wrap.

13 Super Stylish Ways to Tie a Scarf | Different Ways of Tying a Scarf


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is a wonderful site Pokilani, thank you so much.

Darcy, like you I was hopeless with scarves until I decided to use the classic pull through, just like French people do, but wear the v area lower than the way it is in the blog's picture.

It is very simple and you can make the loop, first, then put the scarf around your head and tighten or loosen the pull thru to change the look, it has changed the way I view scarves.

I have always collected them to use around the brim of my hats (winter hats, spring hat and wide brimmed summer hat)

My first wide brimmed sun hat was an expensive finely woven straw hat in black, so I needed color to brighten it up.
It is now dark grey and still going strong but it is not packable, so 10 years ago, an expensive light pink cotton hat replaced it.
I need the scarf to fight the wind.

I think the key to successful scarf management is to have a scarf that is long enough.