Dog Days of Summer

Dose Market this Sunday !

This week, I've been busily / excitedly prepping for one of Chicago's best food & fashion (& art!) markets, Dose ! Dose is highly curated and the bar is set really high so it is always an honor to be included amongst such talented vendors.

Hope to see you there this Sunday! I'll be the one selling big posters, prints and postcards with Glazed and Infused doughnut remnants all over her face.

Past Miscellanea

For some reason I was clicking through my flickr last night and found these gems from three years ago that made me smile and laugh.

Drawing & collage by DH

While I was away, Mei tried to add a bookmark, opened my downloads folder and the browser's find function, adjusted the contrast on my monitor & took a screen capture. This image was found on my desktop.

This green tea twist cone I had in Japan may actually be more perfect than the perfect twist !

Japan was also where I had my shlumpiest soft serve cone.

A picture of my dad in a golf ball on a pedestal.

LIFE!

Studio Tour: Doug Johnston & Tomoe Matsuoka

Last October, Doug Johnston started a shop on his site to sell some of his rope vessel creations. Since then he has had numerous blog and magazine features, both national and international.  Compared to most people, who build that kind of demand and following over a period of years, his popularity has pretty much exploded overnight.

While in New York in June, I got to meet Doug and his wife Tomoe when they stopped by my booth at Renegade Craft Fair. I asked if they would be willing to show me their studio in Brooklyn and they said yes !  A couple of days later, my band of friends and I made our way to Ditmas Park.  He took us through the space, shared his process with us and even gave us a little demo.

Doug's wife, Tomoe Matsuoka, shares the studio as well and her work deals in conceptual, performative, interactive structures / wearables and furniture design. It is fun and full of child magic which is a quality I love.

Also, hello cute clothes. Can I have you?

He ended our tour by showing us the amazing rooftop space with a 360º view of the neighborhood. We could even see the  One World Trade Center being built in the distance.

Enjoy !

View images on my site or on Flickr.

AHC Shop Update

Some new things @ AHC this week!

Large Agate Relic Necklaces

The ITAL

The Montserrat

The Steppe

&

Polka Dot and Confetti Jade Rings 

Farmers Market

This kind of thing just happens in nature. 

Little else makes me feel so good about the world than a trip to the farmers market. Its the combination of natural beauty, bounty, nourishment and a sense of community. This year we signed up with a CSA program with a local farm (local as in across the street from our house) so we haven't been going to the farmers market as much. This morning I decided to take a morning walk to the one in Wicker Park. It makes me feel like I should go more often, even if I don't buy anything <haha>. Its just nice to be there. 

Minneapolis

Seems like all I've been doing on this blog lately is massive picture posts about my travels. I have been in and out of town since May (Seattle, NY, MPLS). Its been great but now I'm really looking forward to being back in Chicago for awhile.

Earlier this month, DH and I hopped on a Megabus and made our way from Chicago to Minneapolis to visit my brother and his cat. It was a trip for pleasure but also to work on an exciting new project (announcements coming soon!) but I must admit we mostly just did fun things. Like what? Like exploring the city, taking the tram to the Mall of America, eating tons of delicious food, berry picking, canoeing the St. Croix, boat and cabin time on Lake Minnetonka, super sweet bead shopping, and visiting a Hmong Market!

Here are a lots of pictures !

Eating a Wendy's meal on the Megabus is a careful balancing act.

My brother welcomed us with watermelon slices, and rum & cokes!

 

Some of the best Vietnamese food I've ever had at Pho Tau Bay

Hand studies on a boat

Typical DHC Summer foot tan

& of course some other things on instagram:

• Crossing the Mississippi into Minnesota
• On the heritage trail to St. Anthony falls
• Dinner @ Brasa was incredible
• You are allowed to talk to this dolphin at the Walker Art Center
• A tall glass of cold brew at Bull Run Coffee Bar became a daily thing
• Best postcard ever, found at one of the many Minnesota stores I walked into at the Mall of America
• Pages of the mysterious new project taped to the wall
• OH HAI SPAM MUSUBI (=^_^=)
• DH & DCjr on the St Croix
• Ancient magic tree at the Arboretum
• Sweet ass raspberry sign
• Raspberry cobbler we made from the berries we picked! EATEN ON BOAT
• Books at the Hmong bookstore
• Flowers for your hair at the Hmong Market

Studio Tour: The Post Family

The Post Family makes me proud to be living and working in Chicago.  Super talents who are also kind, generous,  encouraging and will do a lot to promote the work of artists they like, which is something surprising and awesome especially when it comes to the art world.


The Family is comprised of a group of young designers -- Rod Hunting, Alex Fuller, Chad Kouri, David Sieren, Sam Rosen, Davey Sommers & Scott Thomas -- who all have day jobs , regular freelancing gigs and their own projects going on. But at the end of the day, the members come together in The Family Room for the joy of going back to basics to make some beautiful things. They have gotten a ton of attention and were even recently featured by the BBC! You can also see an older video of them here.

Last May, Alex asked me to shoot some images of the show that was opening in their art gallery attached to the studio.  He was gracious enough to let me get some shots of their workspace for my little Studio Tour series. Their studio is comprised of four areas -- an office, three work rooms and the art gallery. It is full of little (and big) surprises and, being designers, everything is arranged just so.

Enjoy !

View images in Flickr

Back from BK RCF

Last last Thursday, Lilian Martinez, Daniel McKee, Devin Higgins & I got up at 5 am, packed up a station wagon to the brim with goodies and set off for the Brooklyn Renegade Craft Fair! Highlights from the fair included: Meeting Teresa from Stone and Honey, Kelly McGehee, Doug & Tomoe, Mallory from Look At These Gems, old internet friend (and real life friend) Milan Zrnic and everyone else that stopped by the booth. Despite the heat and my posters being constantly under threat of being blown over, it was so fun and I can't wait to go back to do it all again! 


I would also like to apologize for my face being a fountain of sweat. It could not have been helped. 

Here are some shots from our booth:

       

* * *  Many things happened along the way which were captured on instagram:

• A pit stop in Cleveland to go crazy on some fried chicken at Hot Sauce Williams.

• Getting stranded for a few hours just outside of the Cleve due to some car troubles so we killed some time eating ice cream at Handel's & thrifting. 

• Celebratory dinner @ Rosarito Fish Shack Sunday night after the fair.

• Momofuku Milk Bar! Dreams do come true. Loved the cornflake cookie way better than the compost cookie. Like way.

• Had the pleasure of meeting up and dining with my cousin Jenni and her fiancee Stewart. They took us to the most amazing Chinese restaurant, I'm not even kidding. I also out-drank everyone. Wu Liang Ye is totally my drink now!

• Our posse invaded Doug Johnston's studio. Studio tour pictures coming soon !

• We go crazy on some NY pizza at Lombardi's. We made the trek to Di Fara's but they were closed T_T

• Amazing night hanging out and eating and drinking with Milan Zrnic.

• Last day in NY included eating hot dogs, biryani cart & ice cream sandwiches.

• 2 hour gridlock trying to get out of the city meant sticking fruit labels on your knees.

• Car troubles = getting stranded in NJ for two nights.

• Car troubles = getting stranded in PA for a night.


NY SEE YOU SOON!