June 24, 2013

Weekend fun at West Elm Chicago


I spent Saturday afternoon at the Etsy pop-up shop in the Lincoln Park West Elm. The store looked fantastic — West Elm did a beautiful job of choosing a location for each artist and integrating their products within the store's layout. I enjoyed wandering around meeting all the local artisans. Man, what a nice bunch of people. Above is Susan from Up in the Air Somewhere.


Kristin from Toast and Jam DJs provided tunes for shopping. I'm not sure who her friend is, but he has an awesome face.


Here's Angela of CircaAD putting something in a tiny bag. Perhaps a necklace with angel wings; they turned out to be a curiously hot item on Saturday.


These laser-cut brooch ladies looked on, modeling fashionable dresses.


Shoppers could purchase wood-block artwork from Lucius Art.


Or Chicago screen prints from Hiroshi Ariyama.


Meg from White Nest displayed her beautiful cushions and had the advantage of a comfy spot for a nap if needed.


Parched shoppers refreshed themselves with all-natural sodas from Seasons Soda.


Hungry shoppers fortified themselves with cocoa orange ice cream cake provided by Salted Caramel. "Hey, see that guy? He needs cake."


Here are Shawna X and Emily from Kissen Studio offering good-looking stationery and pillows.


Jack of Ethically Engineered told us all about making soap in his solar-powered studio. See that fellow with the orange purse? That's my husband Alex, to whom I owe a huge thank you for carrying my stuff all afternoon. A secure man is not afraid to be seen with a handbag.

Thank you to West Elm, Etsy, everyone who came out to support the work of independent craftspeople, and all 12 terrific vendors:
Nourishing Notes
Isette
Virtuality Studio
Second Chance Ceramics
White Nest
Shawna X
Up in the Air Somewhere
Lucius Art
Ariyama Studio
CircaAD
Ethically Engineered
Kissen Studio
Keep making wonderful things!

17 comments:

  1. Love that guy with the orange purse! I recognize his shirt, too. :) They must be discussing things 'one engineer to another', huh?

    Looks like a great event!

    Mum

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, man. This looks amazing! Wish I didn't live in the middle of nowhere and could actually make it to an event like this sometime.

    ReplyDelete
  3. so jealous. love west elm and love etsy so it is perfection!

    ReplyDelete
  4. So much fun, wish I lived 1000 miles closer!
    --tuulikki

    ReplyDelete
  5. Looks like too much fun. And that orange purse goes well with the um...jeans

    ReplyDelete
  6. Where is a picture of you and your goodies????

    ReplyDelete
  7. loved your DIY tutorials....!!:)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Denette, I wasn't selling anything at the event. And I totally forgot to go back to the photo booth after I got done meeting all the vendors!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Way to go Alex! Secure AND courteous. :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Jessica! It was so great meeting you and loved hanging with you and your hubs. :) Thanks again for including me in an awesome event...it was a dream come true seeing my things in my fav home store! Good luck with the move...Evanston will miss you! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've been following your blog now for a few years and I absolutely LOVE your ideas. You are truly an inspiration and wanted to thank you for sharing these creative artists and their Etsy shops. I get overwhelmed sometimes searching on Etsy so I always love hearing of awesome shops. Thank you !! ♥

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wow!!! This all looks amazing and wonderful. I like the cream cake and necklaces. I think it is really a great and joyful weekend for you. Thank for sharing with us.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ooooh this was such an awesome event!! I loved seeing all the artists, I wish I had more money on me! I didn't get to meet you, sadly :( Next time!!

    Mackenzie
    www.heybirdfriend.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Mackenzie, so sorry to have missed you!

    ReplyDelete