by Toby Cooper
Special to the Sounder
Sallie Bell sits comfortably in her customary chair, tucked behind the tiny table that serves alternately as welcome mat, cash register and customer-centric conference center. The table itself is almost an afterthought, surrounded as it is by the sheer fascination of Monkey Puzzle’s colorful, multicultural inventory.
“Eclectic”, says Sallie, who founded Monkey Puzzle over two decades ago in “uptown” Eastsound where an imported Patagonian tree of the same name once grew. “People love to call us ‘eclectic,’ but here is what I say – ‘Keep it Simple, but Dare to be Different!’”
To the delight of her customers, Sallie does not let simplicity undermine the choices they seek. There are shoes and hats, reversable scarves, beads, and wine glasses in the corner. You want a lamp? Bookends? How about one hand-carved rabbit from Indonesia? And Indigenous art from the shores of the Salish Sea. All these and more are here for the asking.
She loves reversible items, “Two-for-one,” she beams.
But, it’s her signature offering – impeccably styled, color-matched, richly-textured ensembles of Tibetan vests and associated garments – that has made Sallie Bell an Eastsound institution. “We can create something eminently wearable for you,” she says, holding up a phone-picture of a recent customer (‘Monkey Puzzle, head-to-toe’) in full presentation-mode. The entire outfit is elegant, composed, and most of all, one-of-a-kind.
Sallie backed into retail after seeking a career in medicine. “I was a pre-med Latin major,” she said, tacitly affirming the aforementioned label of “eclectic.” But someone gave her a vest that had belonged to a High-Tibetan Lama – of whom she remains a practitioner – which she replicated into original creations that have lasted to this day. Moreover, Sallie is an accomplished silversmith, crafting her own bold designs to complement the textured vests.
The result is tasteful elegance throughout.
During her business days, Sallie is rarely alone. “This is the most magical place on Orcas,” says Jan Harlan, an island resident who winters in the desert Southwest. For her, the shop and Sallie’s friendship have become a refuge from tough times and a vortex of intellectual stimulation. “Every time I come in here, I always seem to engage in the most interesting conversations. There have been artists, astrophysicists, Pulitzer Prize winners, and more. There was a carpenter from Antarctica. It’s Orcas Island-authenticity, every day of the year.”
For the balance of 2022, Sallie is planning outreach to help Monkey Puzzle with post-COVID recovery and the disruptions from Eastsound’s Prune Alley reconstruction. There will be a Monkey Puzzle “pop-up” on Bainbridge Island and another in the Madison Park district of Seattle. After that, she has her sights set on Palm Springs and San Francisco.
But no conversation with Sallie is complete without recognition of her gift of perceptive insight into human nature. By the time a customer has walked through Monkey Puzzle’s door, Sallie is already composing a vision of that person’s unique qualities and preferences. “I see what they are wearing – style and color – and I work forward from there,” she says without an ounce of pretense. “If I see that someone is attracted to something not quite right for them, I steer them to what works.”
By combining artistry and entrepreneurship with boundless energy, Sallie Bell has brought originality and value to the Orcas community. “Bespoke,” says Jan Harlan, reflecting on Sallie’s flair for all-things-custom. “We love that word. It’s Sallie all the way.”
