Graffiti Culture

I've always been drawn to graffiti art and Portland has plenty of it. We've got your average tagger but Portland is home to some really talented artists that take it beyond tags.

 Friday afternoon I took a short walk and stumbled upon this awesome graffiti mural. This wall has long been an eyesore and hangout location for drinkers and drug dealers who frequent the convenience store around the corner, but it is now a work of art to be admired. 

Funny how people from all walks respect art. An old ugly wall can be a hangout spot for those up to no good, slap some art on that bad boy and they find somewhere else to do their dirt. Absolutely amazing!

Website listed on the mural is http://www.ariserawk.com/ check it out!

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A quick trip to China via Lan Su PDX

I haven't visited Lan Su Chinese Garden since it opened back when I was in high school. At the time everything was brand new and the plants had not yet matured. If you're in Portland and desire to visit China but don't have the budget, drop by Lan Su. 

Lan Su is a very traditional garden smack dab in Old Town China Town in downtown Portland Oregon. Lan Su garden has several pagodas, lotus flowers in a beautiful lake that's filled with koi fish. They even have a beautiful waterfall and tea house. There's calligraphy everywhere and lots of beautiful molding in every nook and cranny. 

The garden is simply amazing. The architecture has been preserved so well, and the plants have matured since my first visit. On any given day you'll see all sorts of wildlife. Dragonflies, butterflies, and even a beautiful heron make guest appearances regularly. 

The garden is also host to artwork, calligraphy demos, and live music. The garden smelled heavily of gardenias and sweet ripened fruit. 

I really enjoyed my time here, and look forward to regular visits throughout the summer. I really would like to see more dusting take place. I understand that the garden is outside but it appears some regular dusting has taken a backseat. 

I'll be back soon Lan Su!

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Salt and Straw Portland OR

Alberta street is the place to be if you want to sit and watch hipsters be "cool".  I do remember a time when Alberta street wasn't like that, oh the memories…

Ok so on with the review. After having dinner at a local food cart (which I'll also review), I decided to take a nice stroll. As I as continued to walk, happy smiling faces licking ice cream cones were everywhere, and then it hit me. I want ice cream!

Salt and Straw is a local spot boasting unusual flavor combos.The first thing I noticed was the line trailing out the door. I wasn't phased, I needed that ice cream, so I joined. The line moved quickly and I had a delish cone in my hand in no time. 

I had the almond brittle with salted ganache. OMG! One of the tastiest flavors I've had in a long time. Love love loved it. 

I can't wait to go back. My only complaint is that the little paper menu was confusing to read. The new flavors with beer immediately stick out while the others (beer free) are in the back. I was a little confused and ordered the first flavor without alcohol in it, which ended up being AMAZING. Once inside, the menu on the wall makes a lot more sense. 

Customer service is excellent. Price is what I expected $4.75. Oh, and did I say that ice cream was amazing? Yes, it was. 

• Salt and Straw gets a 9 out of 10 in my book. 

Stumplings Food Cart Portland OR

I'm a gigantic fan of Asian street food. Dumplings, bao, tea, and whatever else they can steam I'm game for it. Stumplings food cart is located in a small pod with three other carts in the Alberta Arts district in NE Portland. I originally found them on Facebook. 

Stump comes from "stumptown" one of Portland's many nicknames, and lings because well…they serve dumplings. 

This review is just after my most recent visit (it was my third). I keep coming back because I love the food, and the service is good. There is another local dumpling business called Steamers, the food is mediocre and their customer service sucks big time. But this review isn't about Steamers so let's proceed. 

I ordered 9 dumplings (6 spicy chicken, and 3 spinach), one coconut custard bao, creamy peanut sauce, and a Thai iced tea. I once tried a tandoori chicken bao they made but they didn't have it this time (it was super salty anyway). It took less than 10 minutes for fresh hot food. Whoo hoo! 

First thing I noticed as I bit into a chicken dumpling. Filled with juice, not something that happened the first two times I ate there. It was really hot juice. Not a big deal, they are steamed so…

The spinach dumplings were meh, no hot juice in those. I probably won't have the spinach again. Nothing wrong with them per se, just not right for my taste buds. Everything else was perfect. Bao steamed to perfection, and Thai tea on point. The chicken dumplings were not over cooked, steamed just right, and very tasty. Unlike steamers who seems to over cook their dumplings to rubber, but again this review isn't about sucky Steamers. 

I decided to sit and eat at the shared outdoor dining area. Well…out of the four  food carts in the pod, someone needs to pitch in and clean daily. Food on the tables, flies because there's food on the tables, dead leaves around (it's summer, sweep already), storage for art (not what that area is for), and storage for a late 90's model big screen tv (really? Come on). I won't sit and eat again. 

The Stumplings food cart is really clean and professional looking, that's a bonus. So my recommendations…please serve edemame instead of cabbage as a green, warn about the hot juice in freshly steamed dumplings, talk to your neighbor carts about keeping the dining area clean for customers, and please keep up the good work. I'll be back! 

Prices are very reasonable. Total came to $10.75 for my very filling tasty meal. This visit gets an 8, and one bonus point for having compostable containers. 

Henna Party Floral Design

I know how much you love tutorials. Here's another video with a design perfect for henna parties. This design looks really cute embellished with glitter and rhinestones (after the henna paste has been removed).

As always, thanks for watching. If you haven't done so please subscribe to my youtube channel. If I reach 14,000 subscribers by the end of July I'll host a massive giveaway.

All content copyright 2013 Free Hand Mehndi

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14,000 YouTube subscribers? Giveaway?

I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would get to this number. I started the Free Hand Mehndi YouTube channel in February of 2008. It started off slow, my designs were awful, and I wasn't sure where I was going with it. 

This month I decided to return to YouTube after an almost 2 year hiatus. Videos are a form of therapy for me, and of course over the years my skill has improved. I'm thankful to all of you who subscribe to my channel, comment, rate, and encourage me. Without your support I wouldn't have the following I have. 

Today my YouTube channel sits at 13,866 subscribers. If by the end of July 2013 I hit 14,000 I do a special give away in August. I know this is totally possible. Thank you again subscribers for believing in me. 

Please share my channel with your friends and family. Pretty pretty please.

Challenge your henna artist skills

Every once in a while I randomly select a henna design book from my collection. Then I randomly turn to a page from this randomly selected book and I apply the first design I see. This helps me to keep my skill sharp and perhaps try a design I've never attempted. 

This week it was Zury by Heena Patel. I rarely apply designs from this book so it was a nice change. Zury is a pattern book of mainly Arabic style designs which means thicker lines and large florals. 

All images copyright Free Hand Mehndi 2013.