02/05/08
Uptown Girl Simone Gensburg has opened a suburban boutique for women who want to standout. Simone’s (1060 Gage St., Winnetka; 847-446-9966) stocks only one to three sizes of each piece, “so women won’t see themselves coming and going,” she says. Specializing in top-of-the-line, hard-to-find designers, she says “everything in the store is classy, chic, and timeless.” Gensburg, an Israeli émigré and former model, was a full-time mom for 17 years before opening the boutique, and modeled the elegant, monochromatic space after her own dressing room. Look for a beautiful black satin coat with pink trim ($1,895) from Ruffian, or a simple, flattering Audrey Hepburn-esque dress from Alessandro Dell’Acqua ($1,190). She also carries pieces...
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01/29/08
Lovely and Amazing Anyone who has walked away from a cosmetics counter wearing three layers of foundation and clown lips will appreciate the focus on natural beauty at Amazing Cosmetics (601 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville; 847-680-3917, amazingcosmetics.com). “Our philosophy is less is more,” says co-founder Lisa Thurman. The line, which has been successfully selling through Ulta, Sephora, and its Web site, opens a small storefront boutique in Libertyville on Feb 1st. The company was started in 2000 when Thurman and Sue Katz, who were friends and, at the time, stay-at-home moms, launched the line from their kitchen tables. The business grew largely through guerilla word-of-mouth marketing. The pair put the product into the hands of celebrity makeup artists, which led to celebrity devotees such as Naomi Watts and Cindy Crawford. The line also won spots in the makeup rooms of Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada. Sandy Incardona, the company’s sales and marketing guru, says, “This little company in Libertyville is making Hollywood gorgeous.” The line focuses on...
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01/22/08
Marc Time A year after it was first announced and five months after it was originally scheduled to open, Marc by Marc Jacobs (1714 N. Damen Ave.; 773-276-2998) has arrived. Arguably the biggest shopping story of the past year, the opening of the boutique has inspired nervousness among local shop owners and residents who feared a chain invasion, curiosity about the company’s choice of Bucktown over the Gold Coast, and anticipation about when the store would finally open. The sleek, 4,000-square-foot space—which, together with the BCBG Max Azria next door, transformed a drab brick block into a bastion of polished newness—has exposed ductwork and light blue walls. The line has a younger, more affordable bent than its brother brand, Marc Jacobs, offering the designer’s sense of high style mixed with whimsical exuberance...
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01/15/08
Très Chic
Is your kitchen lacking a certain je ne sais quoi? Newly opened Genevieve Lethu (900 N. Michigan Ave.; 312-423-9948) can help. The luxury housewares store is the first U.S. outpost for the French tabletop-and-textile company. Located in the 900 Shops mall, the store is full of bright, fun tabletop items such as tablecloths, napkins, and plates and flatware sold by the piece or by the set. The company releases four to six tabletop collections a year that coordinate with previous collections, “treating housewares like fashion,” says Michaelene Nichols, the company’s manager for U.S. operations. For instance, the dinner-plate pattern called L’Amour ($25 a plate) matches a set of dessert plates ($66 for six) whose...
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01/08/08
Clean and Cozy It’s rare for a bath and body store to so effectively blend the masculine and feminine, but the newly opened Wicker Park boutique Pour Vous (1750 W. Division St.; 773-698-6024), with its brown and blue décor, flat-screen television, and river rock fireplace, somehow manages it. Owner Tonja Legittino left a corporate job as an insurance broker to open her relaxation haven, stocked with soaps, lotions, bath bombs, robes, and pajamas. Soaps from Splash come in enormous slabs that she cuts down to individual bars. The brand’s light soufflé body lotion ($16.95), shower gels ($9.25), bath bombs ($2.95 to $6.95), bubble bath in grown-up scents such as lavender or “island fever,” and massage bars ($8.95) are reasonably priced because of the no-frills packaging. Or try the Oliba organic soaps ($6.25) and lotions ($6.95) in lovely scents such as papaya mango and ginger pear, or the powder soaks from Biggs and Featherbelle; Legittino discovered both lines at the Renegade Craft Fair last summer. Try the sugar and salt exfoliation scrubs in...
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12/31/07
Tickle Your Fancy
Need a last minute New Year’s Eve dress? You’re in luck. Recently opened Veruca Salt Fancy (1921 N. Damen Ave.; 773-276-9888), the sister store to the more casual Veruca Salt Fun (1937 N. Damen Ave.) down the street, carries cocktail dresses, trousers, and shoes that skew, well, fancy. Find a stunning Susana Monaco black leather cocktail dress ($449) and pair it with leather opera gloves ($145), or a silver pleated mini-dress ($350), or a sparkly gray holiday dress from Collective Clothing ($69.99). Dressy favorites from Rachel Pally and Sunner mix it up with more work-appropriate attire such as the classic trouser from Raven Tailored ($212), a big, buttoned white coat from A.B.S. ($349), and gorgeous cashmere from Emma & Posh ($130 for a striped sweater.) Also find jeans with a sequin clasp from Rich & Skinny ($220), and shoes from oh . . . DEER! and Sam Edelman, such as...
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12/18/07
Kick Up Your Heels
New shoe stores are sweeping the city and a recently opened Pilsen boutique fills a West Side void. Zapatillas (1421 W. 18th St.; 312-226-4040, zapatillasinc.com), or “slipper” in Spanish, emphasizes adorable affordability, with prices ranging from $24.99 for flats up to $199.99 for boots from the brands such as Nine West, Chinese Laundry, and Madden Girl. Unlike many ballet flats that don’t allow for a bend in the foot, the ones here from Me Too ($69.99) are actually comfortable; we also liked the Anne Michelle tweed pumps ($29.99) and the trendy oxford heels ($92.99). The store also carrries a few Mexican imports such as the purple suede heel from Via Libera ($74.99) and beautiful ostrich leather boots in colors from muted tan to festive red ($169). The purse selection is also worth a look, including...
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12/11/07
Art, Smart
The new Andersonville Galleria (5247 N. Clark St.; 773-878-8570) lets you shop local with less legwork by combining the wares of more than 40 artists in one three-floor, loft-like space. Here you’ll find stall after stall of everything from fine art to T-shirts to toffee. The nice selection of artists and designers also includes many that are usually only available online, such as world-shoppe.com. Hand-printed tees from Novem Studios include a black one with a graphic silver el ($25). You’ll find vases and sconces from the Streeterville florist City Scents; antiques, such as the fun and kitschy assortment from Vintage Swank; Chicago-themed coasters from Denise Riesen ($35 for four); and fine art from boldly graphic oils to photography. This one-stop shopping galleria is so inspired, we hope it catches on in other neighborhoods. The top floor is scheduled to open, with 45 more stalls, in...
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12/04/07
A Little June in December
Finding a gift for that discerning person on your list just got a little easier. June Blaker (870 N. Orleans St.; 312-751-9220), who has owned Chicago stores on and off over the last 30 years, opened an eponymous River North boutique a block away from the location of the store she shuttered in 2001. Stocking an eclectic mix of high-style novelty home accents, jewelry, and purses, Blaker defies the usual gift store bric-a-brac mishmash. Gorgeously sculptural graphite objects (such as lips, flowers, and animals) can be used as paperweights or writing utensils (hands are $65; feet are $58 for the pair). Mounted insects and butterflies, one of her trademark objects over the years, defy creepy and use nature as art form ($125 to $1,500). Also check out the...
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11/27/07
A Touch of Whimsy
“Happywear for women and men” is the motto of the new Lake View boutique P + L (2956 N. Clark St.; 773-248-3758), and true to its slogan the shop stocks graphic-print tees, chunky jewelry, and outerwear that blends style with a sense of humor. Husband-and-wife owners Leena and Paul Chicmmongkoltip scoured her native Bangkok for innovative designers, hard to find elsewhere in the U.S. Kitschy “feel me” tanks ($26) hand-stitched with fuzzy animals such as a rabbit with an eye patch from Zavonna, graphic tees from Cisse, and a skirt with a delicate flower cut-out along the hem ($75) from Keven are all unique Thai finds. Those who have shopped in San Francisco may recognize Cop-Copine, a Paris-based line well-loved on the West Coast, such as the gorgeous white turtleneck with lace embellishment ($158). Menswear veers graphic, such as printed tees from Brownsound ($28) and MomiMomi ($46) and a messenger bag ($50) from Goorin Bros. Among our favorites are...
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