Photo courtesy of Three Potato Four

We first heard about Three Potato Four in the February/March issue of ReadyMade magazine and just spotted them again in the latest Real Simple. We’re thrilled to learn of this Reston-based antique store with a great online selection run by husband and wife Stu Eli and Janet Morales, self-proclaimed collectors with objectively great taste.

When ReadyMade talked to Stu and Janet, they shared their favorite places to eat, shop, and explore around the DC area. Well-known spots such as Taylor Gourmet, Pitango Gelato, and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History made the list, but they also cited places and events we had never heard of—Lucketts Store looks amazing, as does the upcoming Summit of Awesome.

What really impressed us, though, was the incredible inventory available at Three Potato Four’s online shop. We could spend hours perusing their collection of reasonably priced antiques—everything ranging from old PepsiCo soda crates to a card catalog side table to colorful enamel mugs. Whether you’re in the market to accessorize your own place or pick out a gift for a friend or newly married couple (it’s wedding season!), you’re bound to find a variety of great options.

For updates to the store’s inventory, make sure to follow them on Twitter. If you’re interested in great photography, Stu and Janet also keep a great blog that gives readers a glimpse into the happenings of their family, including their two kids (the third and fourth potatoes). We think we might throw a Willy Wonka-themed party for some of our friends, too.

But with June just around the corner, it’s hard to deny that summer is here.  We’re taking this week – and the arrival of Memorial Day – as a cue that it’s time to shake off work obligations and winter blues and instead, reconnect with good friends, soak up some sun, and start enjoying all our city has to offer.  Consumed.DC will be back in action to bring you the latest on where to go and what to do this summer.

Look for more posts from Consumed.DC soon… and send us your suggestions!

Cork Market Opens

The long awaited extension of Cork, Cork Market, is set to open this Friday and we couldn’t be more optimistic about its potential.

Set to open on popular 14th Street, the market is billed as serving as a food and packaged goods market, but also a community gathering spot. In addition to selling the wines featured at the main restaurant across the street, local producers will showcase jams, dairy products and desserts.  Carry-out dishes will also be available, with nightly specials prepared by Blacksalt sous chef, Kristin Hutter.

We’re excited about the combination of goods offered at Cork Market, as well as the additional loft space they plan to make available for meetings and special exhibits.  While restaurants like Tryst and Busboys & Poets (and even Whole Foods to an extent) have tried to fill the role of community hub in the past, they seem to fall short in their ability to attact patrons who are interested in spending time there on a regular basis.  Maybe it’s our busy schedules to blame – or simply the nature of living in a bit city that have made it difficult to achieve such an organic environment.

Despite these challenges, we can’t help but think that with the right combination of features and the ability to manage crowds efficiently, a place might be able to fill this void and truly become a meeting and gathering place for neighborhood friends.  We’ll see if Cork Market holds that potential this Friday.

Cork Market’s hours will be: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.

Lands' End Canvas

There’s something to this season’s fashion trends that we find intriguing.  Lately, it seems that in some way or another, everything old is new again.  Maybe its the recession that has lead to consumers reaching into the depths of their closets for forgotten, but once loved items.  Or maybe it’s simply a nostalgia for days of old and for the promise held by generations past?

Either way, Lands’ End is the next company to pick up the current trend by reinventing their clothing.  The company that once began as a supplier of sportswear and accessories for sailors, but which lately has more often resembled a frumpy cousin of J.Crew, has debuted a new line called Canvas.

In the company’s words, the Canvas collection features apparel, swimwear, outerwear, shoes and accessories for the modern lifestyle.  The store’s ‘heritage pieces’ that have been a staple of the company’s sales since its creation in 1963, have been slimmed down with new fits and fabrications intended to give them new life as ‘go-to favorites.’  Add in a savvy marketing plan – and Lands’ End appears to be off to the races.

Men’s oxfords run for $29, jeans for $39.  Women’s oxfords are $37, jeans $49.  And as with all their products, the Lands’ End unconditional product guarantee and return policy applies.

Turning House Furniture

Turning House Millworks may be new to the party (just launched this spring), but they’re already generating a buzz of excitement among both contemporary design enthusiasts, as well as traditionalists.  And at a time when the recession is giving new light to reducing and reusing, this eco-conscious furniture company from southwest Virginia is hitting all the right notes.

And it doesn’t hurt that the company’s owner, Spencer Morten III, appears to have furniture-making in his blood – he’s the great-grandson of American furniture pioneer J.D. Bassett.

While their prices may not quite be in line with the state of the national economy, Turning House has stumbled upon something unique and limited and, by extension, inherently valuable.  The company identifies abandoned or unused warehouses – many of them southern tobacco warehouses or distilleries – and salvages the now-rare woods often used in their construction a century or more ago.

Three distinct furniture styles are available to feature the reclaimed woods, ranging from Summer House, a casual, rustic collection; Fresh Heritage, a traditional line; and finally, to Belgian Modern, the industrial, contemporary style.  Truly, there seems to be something for everyone with every taste.  Goods available through the company’s catalog and website primarily include side tables, dining tables and chairs, buffets and cabinets.

But the best aspect may simply be the wood itself, which in many cases is rare or nearly extinct varieties including the Long Leaf Pine of North Carolina, beautiful Black Walnut and Fiddleback Maple, which takes its name from the musical instruments traditionally made from it.

As Morten notes, these factories stand now as “aging monuments to an industrial era that gave way to new economies and changing tastes.”  But it’s even nicer to realize that now at least a small part this history will continue to live on in homes across the country.

The Sartorialist, for Burberry

We may be well into November, but it seems someone forgot to tell Mother Nature.

With unseasonably warm temperatures and tropical storms a brew, we’re taking our style cues this week from the Sartorialist (Scott Schuman) and his photographs for a new series from Burberry.

Entitled, The Art of the Trench, Burberry and Schuman have captured rare moments that we’ve always found difficult to achieve – exemplifying style on a blustery fall day.

In the conservative, ultra-professional environment that is the DC style scene, most fashion trends usually fall by the wayside, having been deemed too brazen or suggestive.  But the trench is one of those iconic pieces that is at once both seasonless, yet always ‘of the moment.’  It may vary in color and lengths, but a classic is always a classic – particularly when its by Burberry.

We’re much appreciative of the comments on his photos that Schuman has shared to complement the full series from Burberry.

The Sartorialist on the Trench

Burberry’s The Art of the Trench

Photo from The New York Times

Maybe its our traditional mindset, but we’re a bit horrified by a recent article from the New York Times, detailing a recent change in social habits of young adults.  The question at hand: what kind of restaurant is appropriate for a date?

No, we’re not talking about favorite venues for married couples or long-term cohabitants – we’re talking about the first date in a potential relationship – when that initial impression is very influential in moving a relationship forward and getting to know someone a bit better.

According to the Times, more and more young adults are scaling down their dates to more approachable and less costly venues such as tapas bars, burger joints and even pubs.  Disappearing are the white tablecloths and napkins and shared bottles of wine over romantic candlelight, and in its place are bare tables and shared plates of comfort food favorites.  They may be high-quality dishes, but also low-cost.

Those in favor of the shift argue that with today’s broad accessibility to celebrity chefs at home and through shows like Top Chef, diners are less impressed with formality and are instead seeking straight-forward food, but approachable and made with local and organic ingredients.

Regardless, we’re a bit dismayed by the apparent change.

While it may be limited mostly to New York and is almost certainly linked to the recession – the first date is a critical event and one that deserves careful consideration.  Certainly, it would be a bit over-the-top to book a corner table at a Michel Richard restaurant or the likes of CityZen, but isn’t much of the point of a first date to make it a special event?  One that sets the evening apart from an ordinary outing with friends and helps to make a lasting impression?

For the time being, at least, it seems that DC is not in danger of going the way of bar food and ramen noodle bars – a fact for which we’re thankful.

The New York Times, “Tater Tots for Two: It’s a Date!”

Poplar Forest

It’s still a few weeks off, but now is the time to make preparations to attend the first-ever Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival hosted by the lovely staff at Poplar Forest, Jefferson’s second Virginia home.

The festival will be held on Nov. 21 and will feature eleven Virginia wineries as well as crafters, food vendors and entertainment throughout the day. “Thomas Jefferson” will even be on hand to mingle with guests and offer a little bit of background on Jefferson’s own adventures in wine-making.

Located about 3.5 hours southeast of Washington in Lynchburg – we think Poplar Forest’s festival is best attended as part of a romantic weekend retreat in the Virginia foothills.  The festival will kick off at noon on Saturday and run until 5pm.  Local accommodations are available through Poplar Forest at Craddock Terry in downtown Lynchburg as well as at the Carriage House B&B in nearby Daniels Hill.

The Deets:
Poplar Forest’s Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival
Saturday, Nov. 21st
Noon – 5pm

Accommodations:

The Craddock-Terry Hotel: Just two years old, this incredible restored warehouse turned boutique hotel is located on the riverfront in downtown Lynchburg.  If you’re hoping to see more than just the festival, this is the spot for you.  There are two restaurants attached to the hotel, including a micro-brewery.  Package includes two tasting tickets to the Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival and two nights at the Craddock-Terry Hotel, starting at $140/night with two night minimum stay. Contact the Craddock-Terry at (434) 455-1500 or go directly to the website at www.craddockterryhotel.com.

Carriage House B&B:  Located in historic Daniels Hill, this 1878 Italianate mansion has been authentically restored to its original grandeur.  The B&B offers the same two package with complimentary tickets to the festival at a rate of $190 per night.  Call 434.846.1388 or visit www.TheCarriageHouseInnBandB.com for reservations.

While there are several places in town that we love to hit for stationery and invitations, including PaperSource in Georgetown and The Written Word in Logan Circle, we’re intrigued by a new online source of personalized invitations.

Picking up on the ease of email and the sophisticated look of an engraved invitation is a startup named Paperless Post.  The company makes Evite look sooo 2005.

Paperless Post delivers a personalized email to each recipient and catalogs their responses for you in a similar way to Evite, but provides stunning, customized invitations that look so much like a beautiful one you might receive in the mail that you might forget you didn’t!  Your first 25 invitations, or “stamps,” are free.

Check out the beta service and their designs here.

Norwegian Sweater at L.L. Bean

It may have taken nearly 100 years in the following example, but we think it proves the point that everything old is new again.  And when it comes to style, what could be better than vintage being chic?

Building on the current trends of skinny jeans, Tretorn sneakers and Mad Men – GQ is reporting that L.L. Bean is bringing back one of their classics – the Norwegian Fisherman’s Sweater.  This iconic piece dates back 96 years and, being made from naturally water-resistant unscoured wool, its sure to keep you warm and dry all winter long.

GQ advises, “style-wise it’s tough to go wrong here, whether your tastes tend toward the urban haute bourgeoisie or something more like Richard Proenneke’s “Alone in the Wilderness.’”  We can’t help but agree.

Available now at $129.00.