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Category: Locals We Love

Don from Cascadia Blade Works being interviewed
Sep 11 2019

Cascadia Blade Works puts an end to dull moments with sharp tools

One of the real joys of our work is bringing an exciting venture to life, and Cascadia Blade Works has excitement going for them in spades. Connecting with them was a learning experience not only in the technicalities of blade sharpening, but also in the power of connecting with your values, and following the path […]

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Dec 07 2017

Creating Better Together

Team Upswept Loves Local Businesses If you follow us on social media, then you probably already know that we love partnering with and supporting other local businesses. We feel so grateful to work in this diverse community of Portland creatives, and we hold a deeply-rooted belief that if the service or the product doesn’t already […]

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Aug 17 2017

Put the “Pro” in Creative Professional

At the beginning of August we introduced Janet Price, a Portland makeup artist we love. Janet had so much great advice for achieving professional success that we thought it deserved more than one blog post! Process and technique can sometimes be hard to communicate to the average person, when you work in a creative field. […]

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Tori in her home workshop cutting material for a scarf.
Jun 22 2017

Local Business Spotlight: Tori Tissell

Tori Tissell, founding owner of Storiarts, maker of literary soft goods, has the kind of internet success story that entrepreneurial dreams are made of. It started with a personal project. For holiday gifts in 2011, Tori created her first run of book scarves — an excerpt from Pride and Prejudice silkscreened onto a square of […]

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Katie Proctor Headshot
Apr 13 2017

Portland Business Spotlight: Katie Proctor, Owner, Books with Pictures

Portland’s Katie Proctor is on bold mission to bring comics to everyone. Her nearly year-old shop in the Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood, Books with Pictures, has quickly become a community hub with an explicitly inclusive mission: to be a space that is welcoming to people who love good stories without regard to age, race, sexual orientation, gender […]

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Apr 02 2015

When April Fool’s Jokes Become Smart Branding

Business branding may seem like an odd stage for pranks, but I can’t help appreciating the creativity that April Fool’s Day seems to bring out in some parts of the internet–especially now that businesses are taking part in clever ways. Instead of being a terror-inducing and mean-spirited occasion, it can become a neat project for the business and a smart […]

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Dec 26 2014

Doing It!: Catching up with Portland’s ethical jeweler Valerie Kasinskas

An interview with Valerie Kasinskas from VK Designs I’m a big fan of VK Designs–in fact, I look at something Valerie made every single day. How come? She made the wedding rings for my wife and I! Valerie’s unique style really resonated with my wife’s elegant and naturalistic style, while being simple enough for me. We […]

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