Annette B

My trip to Hawaii was imminent. I needed a bathing suit cover but didn’t want the traditional generic wrap-style sarongs that Target and other mainstream stores sell. Annette B clothing boutique offers hip clothes for full-figured women, those expecting a baby and those who have just had one. Since I needed the top only for a two-week trip, I hit the sales rack. A sweet shirt (on sale for $49 down from $79) caught my eye. Orange and cream swirled together in the semi-sheer, loose fitting garment. Perfect, I thought. A drawstring that sat right below the waist gathered in for a fun flounced look. Sleeves were large and flowed to just past the elbow. The deep V-neck was trimmed in brown lace as were the sleeves. Alas, I had to pass. The chest portion of the shirt was made for a much better endowed girl than I.

Annette B also offers jewelry, belts, necklaces and other accessories as well as stylish pants with adjustable waistbands, shirts, skirts, and dresses made from great stretchy materials in hot patterns that move with you for a flattering look regardless of your size.

[Annette B, 2712 N. 21 St., Tacoma, 253.761.0984, www.annetteb.com]

Meier’s House of Clocks

As part of a half-hearted and half-formed New Year’s resolution I’m hatching, I need a timer/stopwatch. And since hell, high water or wild horses couldn’t drag me into a shopping mall at this time of year, I moseyed over to Meier’s House of Clocks on Sixth Avenue in Tacoma. Meier’s is one of those ultra-specific shops that one never sets foot in until the need arises for the exact thing it sells.

So there I am in the clock shop feeling a bit foolish looking at beautiful, hand carved German cuckoo clocks with little birds that shoot out of the tiny window when the bells chime the new hour. The clocks range from four-inch by four-inch to more than a foot tall and wide ($199 to $499). The smaller ones are so precious with brightly painted flowers and trim. They remind me of my grandmother so much that I smile through tiny joyous tears that I hide from the nice salesman. The big ones are boldly impressive. An exquisitely carved stag with a delicate rack of antlers sits upon the corner point of the house’s roof while each side of the cuckoo’s window is braced by fierce looking squirrels. Are they standing watch as sentry or ready to attack when the clock strikes 10?  Needless to say, Meier’s is not the place to find the clock I am looking for, but I do believe I’ll be the proud owner of a cuckoo clock all my own once payday rolls around again.

[Meier’s House of Clocks, 2712 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.6428, www.meiershouseofclocks.com]