Seattle Culture
Hotspot Fire Pits Amp Up Outdoor Gatherings
Welder Tim Odell's fire pits and detachable grills are great for evenings outside
By Jennifer McCullum August 10, 2016
This article originally appeared in the September 2016 issue of Seattle magazine.
You could say welder Tim Odell’s Hotspot fire pits and detachable grills were inspired by the way the wind was blowing.
“I live in the Methow Valley, and in the spring, the wind would blow from one side of my house and in the fall, from the other,” he says. Tired of gusts extinguishing his outdoor grilling attempts, Odell determined that he needed a portable grill so he could shift his cooking location with the seasons. His steel fire pits, with shallow bowls that range from 24 to 48 inches in diameter and are topped by adjustable grills, offer just that. They can be rolled on their sides to any designated grilling area.
Odell assigned Spanish monikers to the pits (the largest is called the “Jefe”) to honor the Mexican tradition of outdoor cooking. “Cooking outside, it just draws people in,” he says of the fireside gatherings around his Hotspot pits. “Everybody can be in the ‘kitchen.’” Available online at hotspotfirepits.com.
Follow Us
Underground Overhaul
Going low solves couple's woes
The Seattle underground is alive and well and living in Montlake, a close-knit community in more ways than one. Dense suburban charm is what lures many families to Montlake. Dense suburban charm is also what forces many families to leave Montlake. “The lots here are very small, with setback and height restrictions,” says architectural designer…
Not Flown, Grown: The Slow Flowers Movement is Having A Moment
New book — The Flower Farmers — promotes the use of locally grown, seasonal, and sustainably harvested flowers
A few years ago, Debra Prinzing — speaker, podcast host, outdoor living expert, and founder of Slow Flowers — and her business partner, Robin Avni, pitched an idea to an editor at Abrams Books. The editor passed, but quickly came back with another offer. They didn’t have to think twice about it. Prinzing had extensive…
Where Function Meets Finesse
Without the use of a single brick, Little House turns the tables on the Big Bad Wolf.
Texas residents John and Julie Connor had spent many summers visiting family near Seabeck, an unincorporated waterfront village and former mill town in Kitsap County. They loved the wildness of the southern Hood Canal and imagined a small retreat here of their own, so they purchased a large lot with lush second-growth trees on a…
Master of Transparency
Award-winning architect Eric Cobb’s work seamlessly meshes glass, space and light
Noted architect Eric Cobb is collaborating on a second-home project near The Gorge Amphitheatre with a former junior high school soccer teammate, embodying a classic Seattle story of connection. The new Cliffe Pointe at the Gorge project located within the Cave B Estate grounds features 60 second homes surrounded by vineyards, natural sage, and rolling…