Maya Romanoff’s newest design, Puzzle, is the third pattern in the David Rockwell for Maya Romanoff Collection. It consists of hand-dyed paper that resembles fine lacquered leather, which forms the backdrop for a curvilinear tone-on-tone jigsaw pattern.

—JAN PARR

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Maya Romanoff’s newest design, Puzzle, is the third pattern in the David Rockwell for Maya Romanoff Collection. It consists of hand-dyed paper that resembles fine lacquered leather, which forms the backdrop for a curvilinear tone-on-tone jigsaw pattern.

—JAN PARR

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Maya Romanoff’s newest design, Puzzle, is the third pattern in the David Rockwell for Maya Romanoff Collection. It consists of hand-dyed paper that resembles fine lacquered leather, which forms the backdrop for a curvilinear tone-on-tone jigsaw pattern.

—JAN PARR

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Puzzled

Maya Romanoff’s newest design, Puzzle, is the third pattern in the David Rockwell for Maya Romanoff Collection. It consists of hand-dyed paper that resembles fine lacquered leather, which forms the backdrop for a curvilinear tone-on-tone jigsaw pattern.

Crafts and Cocktails

It’s going to be a couple months before the summer art fairs get going, but in the meantime there’s March’s Handmade Market this Saturday at the Empty Bottle bar, 1035 N. Western, from noon until 4:30. Thirty-two vendors are showing wares and demonstrating crafts, ranging from jingly-jangly jewelry to cards ‘n’ candles, scarves woven from handspun wool, Megan Lee’s sock dogs (above) and even bedazzled hula hoops (no kidding), all made with loving hands at home. The overall vibe is hipster/rocker, with lots of repurposed vintage items and affordable prices—a perfect spot for last-minute Pi Day gifts for your mathlete team. Empty Bottle opens at noon, so (if you’re 21+) you can grab a bloody mary, shop around, then go next door to Bite Café for brunch.

Views on a Vessel

Interior designer Laura Soskin, whose home was featured in our magazine in Winter, 2006, loves a good vessel. She also loves collaborating with her many artist and designer pals. So she came up with a concept—an exhibit revolving around a huge 300-year-old Mediterranean olive storage-jar that for a long time stood in her dining room (see above). She asked 16 talented cohorts—her husband/artist Dave Soskin, sculptor Lucy Slivinski, lamp-maker extraordinaire Ted Harris, local shop owners Michael Del Piero of Good Design and Larry Vodak of Scout, to name a few—to create something, anything, inspired by this vessel. “The results are so diverse, it’s amazing,” says Soskin. The show, called “The Vessel Magnifique,” opens this Friday, March 13 (reception is 7-11 p.m.) and goes through April 12 at Las Manos Gallery in Andersonville. Check out the cool promo video one of the participants, artist Chuck Meyers, created for the show here. Of course, the original muse—the vessel magnifique of which we speak—will be present, in addition to a couple others that Soskin has picked up.

Smart Bed

The Museum of Science and Industry tapped Sawbridge Studios to provide the bed and end table for the master bedroom in the Smart Home: Green + Wired ’09 exhibit, which opens March 19. Artists/designers Margaret Taylor and Simone Wilson of Chamblee, Georgia, created the bed and table, part of a line carried exclusively by Sawbridge in the Chicago area. Stay tuned for more on the Smart Home.

An Auction, Sales, and Table Manners

Sean Susanin is having a big sale this Saturday at his cavernous Clinton Street auction house, with close to 700 items on the block, including this asymmetric Harry Bertoia chaise manufactured by Knoll, estimated to sell for $1,000 to $1,500. The eclectic sale also includes a nice selection of rugs, paintings, jewelry, silver, rare books, sports memorabilia—everything but kitchen sinks, really (unless I missed that aisle). Since opening in 1994, Sean has been into making the auction process fun, comfortable, and a piece of cake, especially by developing sophisticated, searchable online viewing and bidding systems. Every Friday morning is Discovery Day, by the way, where potential sellers can bring in up to three items or photos for free appraisal, consignment, and maybe even an outright purchase.

Scentimental Second Home

   

Consignment for the home, edited and plucked—even “re-fluffed” with a designer’s eye?  Most finds vintage and antique? Count us in. SG Too in St. Charles is a new division of Scentimental Gardens that sweet spot for one-of-a-kind finds, design ideas, and garden plans. Stop by for the gently used home finds and garden accessories (stylish bargains include a Henredon cabinet circa 1940s in putty grey with a quilted paneled front, an ornate French gilt mirror, a bamboo armoire with chicken wire detail, or a cane topped table with glass insert). Even the cleverly styled vignettes are inspiring. Every quarter the owners will donate five percent of the sales to a charity. Hop on the site or ring to arrange for a consignment appointment.

At Home Finds

Jill Maremont over at Susan Fredman’s At Home in the City sent over a few fun new items the store is carrying. The Akira dog, 20” x 11” x 15”, is handcrafted of papier mache wrapped in abaca fiber. The porcelain Boot vase by Maxim Velcovsky for Qubus is 10.5 inches high. And the Pigeon Light, by Ed Carpenter for Thorsten van Elten, is made of acrylic and attaches to a wall mount with the clothespin. It’s 9 inches by 9 inches and includes a 25-watt euro-base lamp. Jill has a fun blog, find it here.