Coffee & Creativity

Everyone has their own place that they go to be "inspired." For some, it's their room or the outdoors, but for me, it's a cafe. Starbucks is usually where I go for my caffine fix, but not really the best place to be for sketching...Now that I'm working on my fashion project for FIDM, I'm in need of a "creative environment" (my brown couch just isn't cutting it). So, here's a list of my favorite cafes. I definitely encourage you to check them out when you have a chance! 1. SOLO CAFE - TEMPE, AZ Solo Cafe uses mostly local, organic and fair-trade vendors. The interior is beautiful, and they have books, movies and records for you to use while drinking some java. Not to mention, their drinks are sooooo smooth!

2.  GOLD BAR ESPRESSO - TEMPE, AZ Gold Bar is celebrating their 15th year in the valley as a locally owned, independent coffee house. All espresso beverages and house blends of coffee are from Allann Bros. in Eugene, Oregon. They have a very ecclectic interior and offer some great jazz music in the evenings.

3. COFFEE RUSH - CHANDLER, AZ Coffee Rush is situated on a little man-made lake with tons of ducks every where. A lot of people bring their dog and sit outside. They have free internet, which is always a plus, and little computer room if you need to do some heavy homework. Their raspberry mochas are AMAZING!

4. XTREME BEAN - TEMPE, AZ I used to go to this cafe on the weekends because they are open rediculously late and they have live music. In fact, Mat Weddle's "Hey Ya" remix that got so popular on YouTube.com was filmed here. It's definitely frequented by ASU students, which means it's not the quietest place, but it's definitely entertaining!

5. LUX COFFEE BAR - PHOENIX, AZ Definitely a place for artists! Lux not only makes amazing coffee, but they always have great art from locals displayed. Plus, they do some beautiful designs in your foam. They make their own chai tea...Mmmm...so good! Their espresso blend is 100% organic, and you can even find their coffee served at Phoenix hots spots such as pizzeria bianco, rancho pino grill, carly's diner and the welcome diner.

A couple other that I want to check it out are Royal Coffee Bar and Fair Trade Cafe. If you've been let me know what you think! If you have any other cafes to share, please do!