Remodeling shopping in SODO district, Seattle

On Friday last week, I spent the day in the SODO area in downtown Seattle, meeting with a number of store owners and managers. If you haven't gone there before, it's a cool shopping area for home remodeling needs. You can find a little bit of everything - including the kitchen sink! First, I went to Seattle Door and met a really friendly sales associate named Ryan. Seattle Door carries both wood and fiberglass doors and windows from companies such as Simpson, Marvin, and Thermatru. Seattle Door has recently started opening on Saturdays to help homeowners who can't get to their showroom during the week.

At Tile for Less, there is really great heated countertop just inside the door. Inspired me for my next luxury! They also rent tools if you are daring enough to try tiling on your own.

Allied Marble's owner, Jimmy Mai, is a third generation, highly experienced marble fabrication expert. His family has owned the business for over 30 years, and Jimmy grew up learning everything about marble, granite and other popular stones. His showroom has some gorgeous transparent stone to view and touch.

Bamboo Hardwoods is a locally owned store with four locations - three in Seattle and one in Redmond in the Whole Foods complex. The main warehouse and showroom is where I visited and found some really nice accessories for my home as well as interesting information on bamboo floors, poles and veneers.