From Our Neighborhood to Yours: Why We're Proud to Support Frisky Girl Farm

Some of the best things we encounter in our work aren't homes that need a fresh coat of paint - they're the people behind those homes. This post is about one of those people. Or rather, two of them. Meet Frisky Girl Farm: a certified organic CSA farm run by a small, passionate team in the Snoqualmie Valley, and one of the businesses we at Phinney Ridge Painting are happy to call neighbors, customers, and community.

What Is a CSA - and Why Does It Matter?

A CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture, is a direct partnership between a farm and the people it feeds. Instead of buying produce at a grocery store - where the supply chain can span thousands of miles and dozens of middlemen - CSA members buy a share of the farm's harvest upfront and receive fresh, local food throughout the growing season.

It's farming the way it used to work: the community invests in the land, the farmers grow for the community, and everyone shares in both the abundance and the risk. For farmers, it provides crucial early-season income. For members, it means a direct connection to the soil, the seasons, and the people who grow their food.

CSAs are also one of the most effective ways to support sustainable agriculture in your region. When you join one, your money stays local, your food travels fewer miles, and the farmers you're supporting are more likely to take the long view - caring for the land, not just maximizing yield.

There's also a practical quality difference that's hard to overstate. Produce from the grocery store often spends days or weeks in transit from growing regions like California's Central Valley - picked early, shipped long distances, and stored before it ever reaches your kitchen. Locally grown food is harvested closer to peak ripeness, which means better flavor, more nutrients, and longer shelf life once it's in your hands. For a lot of people, that's where the real value of a CSA hits home. And beyond the personal benefit, food grown in the Snoqualmie Valley and picked up in Seattle doesn't require the same fuel inputs to get to your table - a meaningfully smaller carbon footprint compared to the industrial supply chain most of us have come to accept as normal.

Who Is Frisky Girl Farm?

Frisky Girl Farm is a certified organic operation with roots going back to 2016, when founders Ellen and Ashley started growing food together at City Grown Seattle - a half-acre urban farm right here in the city. From there, they expanded to five beautiful acres in North Bend, where Frisky Girl Farm became a full-fledged CSA.

When wind and elk (yes, elk) made farming in North Bend no longer viable, Ellen and Ashley did what good farmers do: they adapted. In early 2025, they joined forces with Ryan of Steel Wheel Farm, who had been growing vegetables and grains in Fall City since 2013. Together, they now steward 30 acres of land in Fall City, combining decades of farming experience into one unified operation.

The result is what they call the "Greens to Grains CSA" - a partnership between Frisky Girl Farm and Steel Wheel Farm that brings together organic vegetables, fruits, grains, eggs, flowers, and mushrooms from the Snoqualmie Valley into a single, customizable weekly share.

A Farm Share Built Around You

What makes the Frisky Girl Farm CSA stand out is its flexibility. This isn't a mystery box that shows up on your doorstep - it's a debit-style account where you choose exactly what you want, week by week.

Here's how it works:

• 23 weeks, running from the first week of June through the end of October
• You choose your items each week from what's available and in season
• They pack a bag just for you and have it waiting at your chosen pickup location
• Every pickup site has a refrigerator, so your share stays fresh even if you're a little late
• You'll receive a weekly digital newsletter with farm updates, a featured Veggie of the Week, and recipe ideas to help you use everything you get

Members buy in upfront (with payment plans available), and your account is debited each week after you place your order. No set box, no wasted food, no obligation to pick up something you won't use.

Seattle Pick-Up Locations

For Seattle residents, the CSA is more accessible than ever. Frisky Girl Farm has pickup spots at:

• U District Farmers Market - Saturdays, 9 AM–2 PM
• Mt. Baker (South Seattle)
• Wedgwood

There are also pickup locations in North Bend, Fall City, and Issaquah - including at The Well and Table restaurant, where members get a discount on their pick-up day.

Sign up at friskygirlfarm.com

Why Phinney Ridge Painting Supports Them

Our business serves Seattle. Frisky Girl Farm sits squarely at the intersection of both - a Snoqualmie Valley farm feeding a Seattle community.

When we talk about supporting local, we mean it practically. Frisky Girl Farm is growing certified organic food for the same neighborhoods where we work every day. Their pickup spots in Mt. Baker, Wedgwood, and the U District are the same communities that call us when it's time to repaint a house, replace a fascia board, or refresh an exterior before listing a home.

We also have a personal connection. Not only do Nik and Sam, owners of Phinney Ridge Painting, purchase their produce from Frisky Girl Farms, but Ellen, one of the owners of Frisky Girl Farms, is currently working with us on a project at their own home - replacing fascia board and soffit on their eaves. That's the kind of overlap that reminds us why relationships matter more than transactions. We're not just service providers to each other. We're neighbors.

There's also a shared value that runs through everything they do, and everything we try to do: doing the work right, with care for what you leave behind. For Frisky Girl Farm, that means selecting the most well-adapted crop varieties for the Pacific Northwest climate, caring for 30 acres of land for the long haul, and building a food system their community can count on year after year. For us, it means showing up prepared, treating every home like it matters, and standing behind the work we do.

How to Get Involved

If you live in Seattle and you've been thinking about joining a CSA, this is a good one. Shares for the 2026 season are open now, running June through October. With pickup spots in Mt. Baker, Wedgwood, and the U District, there's a good chance one is close to you.

You can learn more and sign up at friskygirlfarm.com. You can also visit them at the U District Farmers Market on Saturdays from 9 AM to 2 PM - it's a great way to meet the team before committing to a full share.

And if you're curious about Steel Wheel Farm's grain operation or their Tollgate Barn store, check out steelwheelfarm.com and tollgatefarmstore.com.

At Phinney Ridge Painting, we believe the best communities are built by the people who show up and do the work - whether that's painting your neighbor's house or growing their vegetables. Frisky Girl Farm is doing the work. We hope you'll support them.

Ready to give your home the same care? Get in touch with our team for a free estimate.

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