Faire Play

Dose Market

Sarah West Ervin, Brian West, and Laura Bock at Chicago's Dose Market

If Chicago feels like a dark, dead wasteland of misery in the winter (I exaggerate a bit), then I’m happy to say it really comes alive in the summer. There are more festivals and markets than you can shake a stick at. Brian and I have finally been taking advantage of these exciting outings, with some help from a few friends. Last month, our buddy LB (pictured above right) was able to drag us out of our apartment to visit the Dose Market, which happened to be celebrating it’s first birthday. If you’re not awares (as we, ourselves, were not), Dose is a monthly, indoor market, with an impressively curated list of food and fashion vendors (aka Dosers).

coffee at Dose Market

After arriving, we decided to fuel up with some horchata from Crop to Cup. I think my love for horchata is rivaled only by my love for chocolate milk.

upcycled speakers at Dose Market

We then started winding our way through the crowd, the tables, and the impressive displays. We were quite impressed with Gentleman’s Boombox, which wins the award for most creatively repurposed object.

yummy treats and sweet kicks at Dose Market

LB and I drooled over some treats from Bake and Brian drooled over some finely handcrafted leather shoes from Oak Street Bootmakers.

handmade leather goods at Dose Market

There was some more fine leather work…

camping supplies at Dose Market

And some vintage camping gear from Camp Wandawega.

Laura Lombardi's handmade jewelry at Dose Market

Then I noticed one of my favorite local jewelry makers, Laura Lombardi. It’s always such a treat to see her work around town.

handmade jewelry at Dose Market

peanut butter! at Dose Market

We then made our second purchase: some chocolate peanut butter from Yumbutter. Yum is right!

handmade scarves and other accessories at Dose Market

fresh berries at Dose Market

handmade clothing at Dose Market

After we enjoyed our complimentary drinks (beer from Goose Island and cocktail creations combining whisky from  Spicebox Whisky and snow cone syrups from Jo Snow), I grabbed a bottle of  smoky heirloom tomato catsup from The Scrumptious Pantry (lord knows I love my condiments!).

Laura Bock & Sarah West Ervin at Dose Market

We also took full advantage of the Smilebooth before we headed out.

being silly at Dose Market

We even got Brian to join the fun. And you know how much he hates fun….

goodbye, Dose Market! we had a blast ;)

All in all, it was a wondrous adventure!

Maker's Remarks

Arlie Trowbridge of Urban Revisions

Oh man. I’m excited. Why? Because I’m about to share my mini interview with Arlie Trowbridge, the stupidly talented woman behind Urban Revisions. I’ve loved her work for ages now! Arlie was sweet enough to answer a few questions — some silly, some serious — for the latest installment of my Maker’s Remarks series. And the timing couldn’t be better, because she’s just released her Spring/Summer 2012 collection. Oh how these sherbet colored pieces make me wanna run outside and chase an ice cream truck!

handmade glass and leather purses by Urban Revisions

How did Urban Revisions start? Did you have a “quit your day job to start an Etsy shop” sort of moment?

Urban Revisions started in early 2009 by accident. I had just started getting into reading fashion blogs and the DIY shredded t-shirt craze was in full effect. I gave it a try and was immediately addicted to the process of “revising” the most basic article of clothing – a tee. My friend started modeling them in “urban” settings around Richmond, and the Etsy shop was born. Shortly after my first couple of sales, I was awarded a fellowship by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Couldn’t have been better timing. This allowed me to “quit my day job” and really pursue selling my work.

Arlie Trowbridge of Urban Revisions

Your shredded T-shirts are so unique, and it seems like your beautiful glass jewelry requires a lot of skill to create. What’s the inspiration for your pieces and the process for making them?

There’s no doubt that I love things with an organic feel to them. Almost anything that I’ve ever created and really loved came about by accident… there’s something really special about working with glass and distressed fiber. You can melt and shred forever until something amazing comes about. In the end, everything always has this delicate look but in actuality, cotton and glass have really strong qualities.

shredded cotton scarf in orange sherbet

Would you say you’re more of an urbanite or a nature-lover? Or a perfect mixture of both?

Both! I’ve lived in or very close to a city the majority of my life. I need to be near the sound of people’s hustle and bustle but I also need our long camping trips in the middle of no where and our afternoons hanging down by the James River.

shredded cotton t-shirt from Urban Revisions

What’s a typical day in the life of Arlie Trowbridge? Take us through a brief snapshot of your day, from morning to night?

Wake up, stumble to the coffee pot, fill the largest mug available, stumble to the studio and slowly open my eyes over emails and blogs.
Thats the first step, and then it’s either …

a. start shredding
b. start torch working
c. start dyeing
< or >
d. start day dreaming

I’m really all over the place, and it feels awesome.

handmade glass cluster rings from Urban Revisions

Would you rather have the ability to breathe underwater or the ability to fly? Explain.

Breathe underwater!!! In fact, this is something I’ve dreamt about many times. I spent many days at our local pool pretending to be Ariel from The Little Mermaid when I was little. Some people have commented on my cluster rings and leaf earrings, saying they remind them of coral. I love that. Marine life is fascinating.

handmade shredded t-shirt from Urban Revisions

What’s your favorite part of creating & selling your handicrafts?

The people I have had the pleasure to “meet”! The internet is such a powerful tool. Knowing that there are ladies all over the world wearing Urban Revisions is incredible to me.

handmade glass cluster ring from Urban Revisions

BTDubs, if you’ve read through this interview, you’ve got a special treat coming. You can enter Arlie’s giveaway on Facebook to win the spectacular glass cluster ring pictured above. Get on over there and enter!

A Westervin Wedding

A Westervin Wedding: Barrel Maker Printing

There are some people you should know. Especially if a) you live in Chicago, b) need something screen printed, or c) like nice, friendly folks. Say hello to Justin & Erin of Barrel Maker Printing. They printed our wedding invitations, and the experience couldn’t have been more pleasant. We don’t wanna give away our finished invites just yet (we haven’t put them in the mail yet, sheesh), but we did want to let you in on the process. Not only do they have a cool workspace that they let me photograph, but they’re laid back and their services are very affordable (and worth the price). Thanks, Justin & Erin, for being yet another lovely, hassle-free vendor we’ve worked with in planning our wedding. Maybe we’ll see you at the farmer’s market in a couple of weeks?

Shopping Sherpa

The Shopping Sherpa: Goldenrod Galaxy

handmade art & craft from etsy

Clockwise from top left: Block Party Necklace from Peeko Apparel; Spin the Bottle Mixed Media Print on Wood from Retro Whale; Swirly Wordbubble Card from Monkey Puzzle Press; Organic Cotton Finger Puppet Friends from June Craft

A Westervin Wedding

A Westervin Wedding: Sweet as Honey

beard & beehive illustration by Kim Baise

{ Butterfly Beehives and Beards by Kim Baise }

Though the B-bops and I haven’t set a date yet, my head is buzzing with wedding plans.  And because I’m really good at forgetting things, it’s a well developed skill of mine really, I’m turning each idea into a blog post!  This will create a permanent record that we can look back through when the actual planning occurs, which will probably be a couple years from now if we don’t win the Crate & Barrel Ultimate Wedding Contest*.  So what’s my first idea, you ask?

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Shopping Sherpa

The Shopping Sherpa: I’m So Edgy!!!

JK.  I’m actually more like the opposite of edgy.  I’m a big proponent of hugs and baby animals… and hugging baby animals.  But that doesn’t mean I can’t look edgy right?

P.S. I realize that some of these items, a ceramic mug, for instance, may not appear “edgy” to some.  Just go with me on this.  It’s all about the color scheme here.  K?  Thanks.

handmade art, craft and design from Etsy

ROW 1:  Organic Black Hair Triangle Tee from Coma and Cotton; Dreamcatcher Necklace from Erma; Paisley Drums Hair Clip from Paisley and Brass by Ashaloo

ROW 2:  You’re a Winner Pennant Necklace from Super Duper Things; Magic Triangle Magnetic Necklace from Color Blind Smarties by Tamé; Triangles Unisex Crew from Jessalin Beutler

ROW 3:  Arctic Series Moleskin Notebook from The Blackbird Sings; Neighborhood Mug from Dovetail; Black Lace-up Rain Boots from Vim and Vigor Vintage