Lindsay Swearingen was introduced to needle and thread at 8 years old, when her mother taught her how to cross-stitch. She was young and didn’t stick with it, but “about eight years ago, I picked it back up around when there was a resurgence of embroidery and fiber art,” she says. 

As west Roseville’s residential communities have rapidly developed in recent years, spreading farther toward the western border of Placer County, there have been few commercial amenities while developers have waited for a critical mass of population that could support new shopping centers.

Sparrow 5 owner Marsha Taylor, who has a background in interior design and art, has operated her 2,100-square-foot shop in Roseville for seven years. Besides selling furniture and home accessories, Sparrow 5 carries the work of more than 70 local artists.

Between 2000 and 2010, Lincoln quadrupled in size from roughly 10,000 residents to 40,000. But revitalizing the city’s downtown and growing its economic base has been an ongoing work in progress.

Comstock’s publisher Winnie Comstock-Carlson on downtown Sacramento’s attempts to reinvent itself and how retail shopping was — and still is — one key element in its rejuvenation. 

Zahna and Harley Smith showcase paintings, homemade jewelry and other artwork at the Wandering Gypsy Artistry art gallery and tattoo studio in Isleton.

When Simon and Kelly Holland launched the Etsy shop for their business, Sassy Squirrel Ink, in March 2015, they had about a half-dozen sign designs available to print photos on slate. They’ve been expanding their product line ever since.

Mary Ellen Sorci, who opened Foggy Mountain in 1975, was raised on music. She moved to Grass Valley after her mother retired and relocated there from the Bay Area.

In 2016, during the early days of Birdies Slippers, the two-person company based in San Francisco worked with a small public-relations firm to identify their ideal brand ambassador for what they hoped would become the go-to slippers for women seeking comfort and fashion. Their selection: Meghan Markle.

Kurt Spataro has shopped at the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op in three different locations since the 1980s, but he sees “a lot of new things to discover” at the co-op’s bigger and brighter new home at 2820 R St.