Ad Categories: Home and Garden

Elan Peltz, who runs an antique shop called Blackwatch68 out of his home in Wicker Park, just forwarded us a TimeOut Chicago story that blogger Tate Gunnerson of Strange Closets wrote about him. Everything in Peltz’s house is for sale, and he’s open by appointment only.

—GINA BAZER

The luxury kitchen cabinet retailer Poggenpohl has teamed up with Airoom Architects, Builders and Remodelers to make remodeling your kitchen easier. While it has always been possible to get basic kitchen elements (cabinets, appliances, and countertops) installed through Poggenpohl’s Merchandise Mart showroom, this partnership makes it easier for customers to undertake larger overhauls that require acquiring building permits, running new electrical, and opening up walls. A Poggenpohl kitchen will be on display at the Airoom showroom in mid-January.

—GINA BAZER

Lately, I’ve come across a bunch of art inspired by (or literally taken from) vintage children’s books. At the recent Renegade Craft Fair Holiday Sale, I, along with a pack of other people, was smitten by local artist Ashley Alexandar’s sweet-and-strange prints (top left); she knew we would be—her website is called imsmitten.com. Another Chicagoan whose paper goods possess a certain childhood nostalgia (some of the greeting cards and journals have illustrations taken directly from old children’s books) is Amy Rowan of Art School Girl; see her note cards and envelopes above. Finally, at Penelope’s in Wicker Park, I spotted Japanese artist Shinzi Katoh’s charming depictions of zoo animals, children, and woodland creatures.

—GINA BAZER

If you liked Loving Frank, then you’ll love Frank Lloyd Wright in Pop-Up! OK, maybe not. But if you love Frank or know someone who does, this new book from Thunder Bay Press will make a great gift. Check out some pretty impressive paper-engineered versions of famous projects like Robie House, Fallingwater, and even the Guggenheim Museum, and then put them back neatly on your bookshelf or coffee table. It’s the kind of book people can’t help but open. Available at major bookstores.

—GINA BAZER

Every now and then, I come across a “wow” piece that I have to have, budget and size constraints be damned. I can hear the conversations and jealousy that this one-of-a-kind piece will inevitably inspire—all before I even swipe my credit card. But ever since Agent Gallery Chicago opened in late October, my answer to “Where did you get that??!” has become 100-percent predictable. Owner Mariano Chavez, a graduate of the School of the Art Institute and former manager at Salvage One, fills his Wicker Park showroom with nothing but conversation pieces: vintage marquee letters, 1950s explosion-proof telephones, a cast-iron 1940s Killark lantern—even a 1969 moon globe. Chavez says he’s “usually on a chase” for one item and will find a bunch of other interesting pieces along the way. “I look for work that has very strong character and design,” he says. “A lot of the pieces are art in and of themselves.” Wow, indeed.

–LISA GARtnER

Interior decorator Anne Coyle has launched a new line of furniture that’s sure to give you a sweet tooth. Called the Candy Coated Collection, it features occasional tables and case goods lacquered in signature-Coyle colors like lavender, mint-green, lemon yellow, and coral. Yum.

—GINA BAZER