Portland: Part Two

Here are a few more highlights from Portland:  During our stay, we were lucky enough to stay at The Benson Hotel.  We stayed in one of the Penthouses (!) and really loved it.

The hotel lobby was gorgeous, but I felt a little strange taking a bunch of photos.  I decided to play it cool and just take one.

Have you ever heard of McMenamins?  It was new to me, but you can find them throughout the Northwest.  They take an existing building and turn it into a destination. 

The one in Portland was once a school (Kennedy School) and has been converted to a hotel, theater and also has a couple of restaurants on site.  I think I even saw a community garden on my way in.  The decorations are definitely quirky, but I love that they left the school house charm throughout the space.

It was really hard to capture the place throughout the narrow hallways.  If you're interested in seeing more of what the Kennedy School looks like go here.

We ate in the family restaurant (once again, kids too squirmy for me to get a good shot), but I thought the bar area was really cool.  They turned the boiler room of the school into the "Boiler Room Bar."

And, last but definitely not least, I had the chance to stop in at a little letterpress shop called Oblation Papers & Press.  You may have seen the shop featured in a write-up by Carina Murray on Oh So Beautiful Paper recently.  I did, and it made me want to go!

Armed only with a phone and being too busy looking at all the lovely paper, I never took a photo inside..  If you want to see what it looks like you can go here.  In addition to their own work, they sell products from a lot of different presses.  I could have spent a loooong time there.  When my husband (holding a very curious 15 month old) accidentally knocked down a big display I knew it was time to go. 

But I did pick up a few goodies on my way out:

I'll be back later with some thoughts for your Mother's Day!