One of my family's Mother's Day traditions is a trip to Swanson's Nursery [0] in Ballard to help my mom choose plants for her garden.
Swanson's is a lovely nursery with an easy-to-navigate layout and a great selection of plants perfect for a Seattle garden. Nestled in the center of the nursery is a beautiful, soaring glass greenhouse that houses a newly renovated café, a pond filled with fat, friendly koi and the Urban Living boutique.
Urban Living is a gem of a shop that focuses on feminine and fragrant nature-inspired gifts and accessories for the home and body. On a recent visit, I was most impressed by the shop's selection of perfumes and room sprays, some of which I had never smelled before.
My favorite was the home-fragrance line CB Experience ($65-$75) created by New York-based perfumer Christopher Brosius, who started the popular Demeter line, which features scents like Tomato and Dirt. With fragrances like Burning Leaves, Gathering Apples and In the Summer Kitchen, the Experience line brings the best smells from the garden inside the house.
Other highlights from Urban Living include robes, shawls and throws made from bamboo fabric ($90-$125) that are just about the softest things I have ever felt, as well as the ingeniously ergonomic ceramic Buddha Bowls ($20) and Udon Noodle Bowls ($28), which are designed to fit perfectly in the palm of your hand.
With an extensive selection of jewelry, home accessories and kids' stuff, there's a lot to choose from at Urban Living. It's well worth a trip, whether Swanson's is part of your Mother's Day tradition or not.
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