I Like Stuff. Wild Stuff.

My apartment is a collection of stuff. Of stuff I've made. Of stuff I've found. Of stuff that's been given to me. Of stuff that I've take with me. It's like a museum in some ways.

(Or maybe I'm a hoarder. Just the other day my friend Lindsay told me that watching Hoarders makes her think of me.)

Either way, I appreciate stuff, especially one-of-a-kind finds. As I'm trying to consume fewer things this year in an effort to save some money, when I do buy something it has to be unique. And unique things were the flavor of the day at Wild Stuff. Through March 31, Wild Stuff - a collaboration between Wild Card, Zombo Gallery, and Botero Development - will set up at 4300 Butler Street with a collection of items large and small and wholly unique.





Though I did not take home the very awesome and absurd "Guide to Bodily Fluids" (and honestly, I may have to go back and buy it on another Saturday...), I did find an amazing pillowsham that had all of the Canadian provincial coat of arms painted on it. It was something I would never find again and something that HAD to come and live on my wall.

While the cold is here and upon us, Wild Stuff is a great winter alternative to flea markets or yard sales. Find a Saturday before April gets here to get there and do some digging.

Things I Wanna Buy: January 2012

We've a new theme here at EverythingBetterPGH and it's called "Things I Wanna Buy." One of my personal goals for 2012 (and hopefully beyond) is to live a little cheaper in order to start saving for a home. It's a crazy idea to me that one day I will be a homeowner. But, I'm sure that this is the place I want to be, so I might as well shoot to make a place within that place a perfect resemblance of me.

This means: I can't go around buying every odd little awesome thing I see. Every now and then I will treat myself, but it will have to be something incredible and unusual that I may never be able to find again. (Case in point: later this week I'll be posting about Wild Stuff where I found an amazing pillow sham with all of the Canadian provincial coat of arms painted on it.)

So, enjoy my replacement for purchasing. Maybe you'll find something suitably odd, little, or awesome and you'll know just where to go to get it. I'm already jealous.

Awesome thing: Zombie Nesting Dolls
Where to buy: Divertido, Lawrenceville, 3609 Butler Street
I'd love to use these to decorate my mantle, which already displays a mini-zombie/monster collection.

Awesome thing: Bicycle Matchbook
Where to buy: Pavement, Lawrenceville, 3629 Butler Street
These would find a home next to my "success" prayer candle, also on the mantle.

Awesome thing: Outpost Journal: Pittsburgh
Where to buy: Wildcard, Lawrenceville, 4209 Butler Street
Confession: I actually did buy this. I went home and used some of my PayPal earnings from my Etsy shop to buy this from the Outpost Journal website. I couldn't resist.

New Hair for a New Year: Pageboy Salon and Boutique

I'm not one to cut my hair with any sort of frequency or regularity. Normally I wait until the mess on top of my head is finally too unruly to do anything other than throw it in a ponytail. And then, it's time to suck it up and go to a salon. Around the middle of December, I realized I was at the end stages of acceptable appearance. At the same time Allie and I had lunch and she mentioned that she was going to make an appointment at Pageboy in Lawrenceville. They had just been voted Best Local Salon in the City Paper, and so, with this bit of serendipity, I asked Allie to book me one too. Which she did, side-by-side in mid January. After another month of disaster-hair, I went with Allie to Pageboy, where I received something very rare for me: a haircut I really liked and wanted.

I've never really had a consistent salon or hairdresser. It's probably the result of that whole putting it off as long as possible thing. But, leading up to my appointment, I had done a little reading up on the salon, and found the following description on the website:

"Pageboy Salon offers a fun environment where you can have a great conversation, laugh a little, and still enjoy a totally personal and professional experience."

This hits the nail right on the head. Allie and I sat through each other's appointments, hanging out with Dana and the other ladies working that afternoon. When I described what I had in mind for the cut that day, I basically described a trim. Nothing new. Nothing out of the ordinary. But, as Dana started cutting away, I felt more and more comfortable with taking a little bit of a risk and eventually told her to do what she thought best. She kept in mind what I had told her about my lifestyle (wear a helmet almost daily, don't have a lot of time to spend on it, etc.) and gave me a cut that looks great and will work for me. I love it, and I'll be back - sooner, rather than later.


Pageboy isn't just a salon, it's also a shop full of great new and vintage pieces. There are plans of expanding the salon and tightening the space and collection of the boutique, but I expect it will retain all the charm and chic that it currently has now. I explored the shop during a bit of Allie's appointment and found a great number of things I knew I could provide a good home for.

It was incredibly difficult not to take this home with me. This is going on a wishlist. Immediately.

Pageboy is easy to describe, but it would be hard to imitate. It is wonderful and well curated. It is sophisticated and comfortably homey. It's the kind of place I'd recommend to anyone. So - if you're looking for a new haircut or to add to your own personal style, visit Pittsburgh's best, Pageboy Salon and Boutique.