Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek
Back in December the handbag and accessories shop Toss Designs opened a temporary popup location in Broadway Plaza where the skincare shop Aveda used to be in downtown Walnut Creek and they have now closed.
Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek
Back in December the handbag and accessories shop Toss Designs opened a temporary popup location in Broadway Plaza where the skincare shop Aveda used to be in downtown Walnut Creek and they have now closed.
1928 Oak Park Blvd, Pleasant Hill
I can’t remember the last time I visited a video rental store. With Blockbuster gone, and being able to rent movies online, I haven’t been to one in over 10 years. Recently I was checking out the soon-to-open Wisegirl restaurant in Oak Park Center in Pleasant Hill when I passed by a bonafide video rental store (originally based in Lafayette) called Take One Video. Feeling nostalgic, I decided to check it out and realized that not only do they carry uncommon out-of-print films not available on Amazon or Netflix but actually carry blu-ray new releases for $5/week with a $1 discount if it’s returned within 2 days. This is cheaper than renting online at Amazon or Apple!
Not only are the video rentals reasonably priced, but the employees are super-knowledgeable and make great recommendations as well. Having two kids five years apart I was wondering whether one movie was appropriate for my younger child when one employee I talked with steered me away from it and instead recommended a great movie that our whole family enjoyed. I returned it the same weekend so ended up with a $4 rental which isn’t even available to rent online. Check out their website here.
Rethinking Plants: Choosing Multi-function Plants:
Rodgers Ranch Heritage Center
315 Cortsen Rd, Pleasant Hill
Saturday, February 13, 2016
10:00 AM – 12:00 PM | $35 (bulk discount available)The quality of soil makes or breaks any garden. Anyone can improve their soil with just a little time and effort – and it doesn’t have to cost a dime. Plus, the healthier your soil, the more you save in amendments, your garden blossoms and you spend less time weeding and wondering why your garden isn’t thriving. Participants will be able to: indentify soil characteristics based on texture, structure and types of plants growing in it; know what turns soil into dirt; understand basic plant biology (and why never to buy petrochemically-based fertilizers again); know how to compost and vermicompost; understand the importance of organic matter in soil (hint: more is better!).
2070 Salvio St, Concord
Last November we learned that CREAM would be opening in Concord near Todos Santos Plaza and since then lots of progress has been made. For upcoming updates on the opening date check out their Facebook page here and check out their menu here.
354 Park St, Moraga
Marina Vintage Boutique is “coming soon” to Moraga right next to the Rheem Movie Theater. You can see part of the amazing art deco movie theater styling right above.
Lesher Center for the Arts
1601 Civic Dr, Walnut Creek
Friday, February 12th – Sunday, February 14th, 2016
$49 – $54Gilbert & Sullivan’s comic masterpiece melds the world of Jane Austen with a good old-fashioned English ghost story – spiced with just a dash of Wuthering Heights romance – in a gothic tale of upright Regency youths and maidens kept apart by propriety, social convention, and a ghastly witch’s curse.
Follow sweet Rose Maybud, her painfully shy suitor Robin Oakapple, brash Dick Dauntless, wicked baronet Sir Despard, crazy Mad Margaret, and an enitre chorus of ghostly bad baronets through the twists and turns of Gilbert’s topsy-turvy plot set to Sullivan’s unforgettable score. Will Robin be forced to commit a deadly crime every day and lose Rose’s love forever? Come and find out!
1932 Oak Park Blvd, Pleasant Hill
Thanks to a reader for sending word that Wisegirl Ristorante Italiano & Cocktails will be having a ribbon cutting on February 18th in Oak Park Center in Pleasant Hill where Dallimonti’s Italian Restaurant used to be. According to a city architectural memorandum, “the remodel proposes to establish a “speak easy” design theme, harkening back to the Prohibition days of the 1920’s/1930’s for a new restaurant”.
Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek
Over the summer we learned that the fashion store Vince Camuto would be coming to Broadway Plaza in downtown Walnut Creek and it’s getting closer to opening as you can see the outside signage is up.
Vince Camuto was a footwear designer who previously co-founded the women’s fashion brand Nine West and passed away last year. More about him in this Wikipedia article here.
Valentine’s themed Aloe Tours:
Ruth Bancroft Garden
1552 Bancroft Rd, Walnut Creek
Saturday, February 13th, 2016
11:00am & 1:00pm | $10 admissionThe Ruth Bancroft Garden’s Valentine’s Day Aloe Tours, an all-day event focused specifically on the Garden’s dramatic Aloe collection. The Garden has an unparalleled collection of aloes, including hybrids not found anywhere else in the world. These winter bloomers put on a stunning show with colorful, dramatic flower stalks.
The Garden is open 10am – 3pm.
Garden is open for regular admission visits with self-guided Aloe tours and docent led tours at 11am and 1pm.
Special selection of aloes will be available for purchase at the Nursery.
A selection of dish gardens, aloe books, and other garden inspired gifts will be available.
Get a free burrito from Chipotle by texting RAINCHECK to 888-222 by 3pm today, Feburary 8th. For more info click here.