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Against the Grain: From Global Commodity to Local Staple
Read more: Against the Grain: From Global Commodity to Local StapleWhat comes to mind when you imagine your local farmers market? Those first sweet, hand-picked strawberries in April? The late summer arrival of apples, mounds of vibrant heirloom tomatoes? Even in winter colorful veggies greet the shopper. Mai eventually landed in Sonoma County, leasing multiple parcels, setting up their own flour mill, and selling directly…
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The Classic
Read more: The ClassicJuilliard: The Grand Dame of Santa Rosa’s Urban Parks Photo: Ranch7 Creative Sometimes in a world of shiny new things, we forget to appreciate the old gems. The gem in this case is Santa Rosa’s Juilliard Park. Set on nine acres near downtown, Juilliard is one of Santa Rosa’s oldest parks and is steeped in…
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Locavortex Events
Read more: Locavortex EventsMarch 2026 Lake Sonoma Steelhead Festival Saturday, March, 7 10AM-4PM A free, family-friendly event featuring environmental education, food trucks, beer/wine, and activities celebrating the steelhead trout return. Milt Brandt Visitor Center 3288 Skaggs Springs Road, Geyserville steelheadfestival.org California Artisan Cheese Festival March 20–22 Farm tours, cheese tastings, and a marketplace featuring local cheesemakers taking…
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Monoprint Mastery
Read more: Monoprint MasteryHarry Frank and the Process of the Monoprint by Lisa Ludwigsen The art of monoprinting is akin to watching bioluminescence, where something wondrous presents itself seemingly out of nowhere and then disappears. Monoprinting is as ephemeral as this, but miraculously, it can be captured on paper. For Sonoma County artist Harry Frank, monoprints are a…
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Letter from the Editor
Read more: Letter from the EditorA while back, I was complaining about the dark, cold month of February to my friend Harry Frank. He stopped to say, “You’re wrong. February is the yellow month. The light returns and the daffodils, acacia, and mustards bloom.” Of course he was right, and if February is the yellow month, then March and April…
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Panoramic Preserve
Read more: Panoramic PreserveEnjoy the 5-mile stretch of trails available in the new Estero Americano Coast Preserve. New public spaces should always be celebrated. The Estero Americano Coast Preserve is a new and significant 547-acre conservation area near Bodega Bay that is now open to the public. It protects a critical stretch of coastal landscape, encompassing coastal prairie, grasslands,…
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A Season of Celebration
Read more: A Season of CelebrationSonoma County is never at a loss for inspiring happenings, but the holiday season kicks it into overdrive with events, performances, and fairs to fuel the holiday spirit. Here is a sampling that caught our eye. Sonoma County Beekeepers Association Holiday Boutique Saturday, November 22 | 10am-4pm Many local vendors and crafters. The perfect event…
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Not a Stranger Any Longer
Read more: Not a Stranger Any LongerArtist KAJSA LOVE writes secret love letters to anyone who requests them. My sister discovered it in a flower bed. A small particolored sign, staked among the blooms of multicolored zinnias. In small and curious capital letters, the small poster read: “What message do you need? ASK FOR IT. Ask for it! A lamp for…
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Acorn Harvest
Read more: Acorn HarvestSonoma, Mendocino, and Lake counties share the ancestral territory of Pomo, Miwok, and Wappo Peoples. Today, we are working to reclaim the health of our people and homelands through the food sovereignty efforts of cultivating and harvesting our traditional foods. Food sovereignty is the inherent right to access traditional foods and resources, without any GMOs,…
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Jardín del Pueblo: The People’s Garden – Farmworker families grow food for themselves and those in need.
Read more: Jardín del Pueblo: The People’s Garden – Farmworker families grow food for themselves and those in need.Pants freshly stained with grape juice after a long night harvesting a nearby vineyard, a worker arrives to a farm just outside Healdsburg. After an exhausting shift, he should be heading straight for a shaded hammock for some much-deserved rest. Instead, he walks between towering banana plants and a greenhouse strung with drying hibiscus flowers…
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For the Love of Oysters
Read more: For the Love of OystersOysters bring the winter magic. Like a universe of twinkling stars illuminating a dark winter sky, a plate of freshly harvested oysters invites us to consider the world of possibilities. Served with an ice-cold martini or glass of fizzy bubbles or other libation, oysters ignite the excitement of the season, especially in winter. Though we…
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Hidden Gems: Gifting Local
Read more: Hidden Gems: Gifting LocalBrick Chicks All the Brick-heads in your life need to know about California Brick Chicks. This Lego emporium is tucked into a small building on Main Street in Penngrove. Now entering its third year, Brick Chicks offers an astounding array of new and retired Legos. There really is something for everyone here, and owners…
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Local Same-Day Delivery Enters Its Prime
Read more: Local Same-Day Delivery Enters Its PrimeIntroducing Trellus: The E-Commerce Marketplace with Same-Day Delivery. Made Local Magazine’s parent organization, GO LOCAL Sonoma County Cooperative, is excited to partner with a new local shopping platform: Trellus. This innovative e-commerce site, launching November 11, offers same-day delivery on local purchases—a refreshing alternative for shoppers looking to break away from the online giants. How…
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Bubbly Bliss: Breathless Wines’ Sharon Cohn and Penny Gadd-Coster
Read more: Bubbly Bliss: Breathless Wines’ Sharon Cohn and Penny Gadd-CosterThe holiday season finds its perfect liquid accomplice in the effervescence of sparkling wine, and in Sonoma County, this pleasure is elevated by the region’s long-standing tradition of producing world-class bubbles. There’s an undeniable joy in the lively cascade of tiny bubbles that instantly transforms any gathering, from a casual family brunch to a sophisticated…
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Good Gray
Read more: Good GrayA Mother/Daughter Commonplace Shop Bringing Art and Beauty to Everyday Life. photos by Paige Green When Laural Reid was opening her shop back in 2013, she took inspiration from the early 20th century hobby of creating commonplace books. Kind of like the Pinterest of their time, commonplace books were a type of journal used to collect and organize…
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The Best of Both Worlds
Read more: The Best of Both WorldsAn Immigrant Legacy of Entrepreneurship. Surrounded by succulents, snake plants, and philodendrons in her downtown Santa Rosa shop, Ana Prado describes herself as “Con el nopal en la frente,” which translates to “with a cactus on the forehead.” For the founder of a new plant boutique on Courthouse Square, this might seem an apt if…
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Community Scene
Read more: Community ScenePetaluma’s El Día de Los Muertos Celebration Marks 25 Years of Honoring an Ancient Tradition. Petaluma’s El Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead celebration marks its 25th year, honoring a cultural tradition that’s been practiced for centuries. Each fall, the city comes alive with color, memory, and reverence as community members gather to pay…
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Medicine Meal
Read more: Medicine MealMedicine Meal explores the intersection of food and herbs as medicine. The name comes from the Japanese Yakuzen culture, which is about creating delicious, healing meals using traditional Chinese medicine herbs and principles. Take a Breath Traditional Chinese Medicine to Nourish the Lungs. Sonoma County in the fall brings crisp air, golden light, and community…
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Natural Magic: Buckeye Botanicals Herbal Body Care Flows with the Rhythms of Nature.
Read more: Natural Magic: Buckeye Botanicals Herbal Body Care Flows with the Rhythms of Nature.There’s a quiet alchemy unfolding in the gardens and kitchens at Buckeye Botanicals. This small-batch herbal body care line by Natalia Bertotti features handcrafted soaps, salves, and creams that are as poetic as the landscape where they’re made. “The name Buckeye Botanicals took a lot of thought and feeling to come to,” says Bertotti. “The…
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Standing Ovation
Read more: Standing OvationFor a joyful fusion of Broadway-caliber talent with the natural beauty of wine country, check out the Transcendence Theatre Company’s legendary productions. Founded by Amy Miller and Brad Surosky, the Transcendence Theatre Company has spent over a decade building a reputation for unforgettable performances—and for cultivating connection. Transcendence is perhaps best known for its signature…
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The Artistry of Agriculture
Read more: The Artistry of AgricultureFarming, Found Objects, and Creative Ingenuity with Paul Wirtz of Paul’s Produce. Cover photo by Lauren Papalia Lauren Papalia is the Cooperative Engagement Coordinator at FEED Cooperative, part of their marketing team, and a sometimes writer. She met with FEED Cooperative producer-member Paul Wirtz this summer at his farm . . . On a pleasant…
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Zin Wins: Santa Rosa’s St. Francis Winery & Vineyards
Read more: Zin Wins: Santa Rosa’s St. Francis Winery & VineyardsSanta Rosa’s St. Francis Winery & Vineyards. Even if penitence isn’t your gig, there’s a Sonoma County winery where you’ll certainly want to bow your head and say, “Bless me father, for I have zinned.” Welcome to St. Francis Winery & Vineyards, Santa Rosa’s mission-style oasis of wine off Highway 12 in Santa Rosa. Named…
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