We had an amazing time at the 8th Annual Guerrilla Truck Show on Tuesday, a one-night design extravaganza on Fulton Market that brings the entire Chicago design community together. Local designers retro-fit truck beds into galleries, installations, and statement pieces that represent their work. Morlen Sinoway, the host and organizer of the Show, asked us to do a window display in his Shop/Atelier. We were honored, and thought it was the best spot on the street!
Meeting with Morlen SinowayThe window he gave us to useWorking out the measurementsChoosing color combinations
Arranging the direction of the triangles at Sergio's StudioWe thought the varying direction of the stripes brought a nice dimensionElectric Blue sideAnd the Sailor Charcoal side that will be visible from the inside of the shopInstallingInstallingWe chose yellow to play off the stunning tiling outsideUnison pillows sit on a Missoni couch inside the shopWe love the army truck parked out frontThe show begins. Inside view.DJ Friar Tuck posted right out front. Great placement, right?
We were next door to a fantastic INDO window display
There was a great crowdAnd food trucks galore!And the night ended with a flame thrower!
Thanks again to Morlen Sinoway Atelier, who did a fantastic job bringing Chicago’s design community together for an inspiring and energetic event! Our installation will be up for the next week. Located at 1052 West Fulton Market. Be sure to come to next year’s show!
Our Summer Warehouse Sale is already this weekend! There will be plenty of deals to be had, but come early for best picks! Bonus: Meatloaf-A-Go-Go Food Truck will make an appearance on Friday and Pleasant House Bakery Food Truck will be parked in our lot Saturday 11-2 so come hungry!
We’ve had the pleasure of working with Gauthier/Stacy over the past few months on an Oyster Bar Restaurant in New England called Cru. We weren’t totally sure how they were going to use our Sailor pillows, but when Project Manager, Winter Canavan, sent us these photos, we couldn’t have been more pleased! The pillows pick up on the brass hardware of the leather straps holding them in and bounce your eye across the room to some amazing brass bar stools. We love how the sailcloth works with the white canvas chairs to enhance the nautical theme. Well done! Can’t wait to try those oysters!
In March of 2010, Dwell Magazine featured the home of Art Jackson and Chelsea Kalberloh Jackson. It was their modernist kitchen that got the cover, but we were more excited about their bedroom, for it included our Pinstripe Gray duvet and Static Yellow pillows. Great! Let’s scan this and add it to our press kit!
Little did we know that this dynamic duo would open Pleasant House Bakery, a bakery/cafe in Bridgeport that fills savory pies with locally grown produce from its family farm affiliate, Pleasant Farms. Operated by Chelsea’s brother Morgan, the farm is split into three locations, one in Pilsen, one in Bridgeport (down the street from the bakery) and one outside city limits. Veggies and greens from the farm go to the bakery and money from the bakery goes back into the farm. A self-sufficient operation indeed!
The humble facade of the bakery on 31st Street makes you wonder if there’s really a business in there. Sure enough, you walk into a small 5-6 table cafe with an open kitchen revealing fresh produce, big ovens, smiling faces (some wearing Unison aprons!) and a chalkboard menu of delicious eats nodding to Jackson’s British roots. In fact, Pleasant House is the name of a house in Yorkshire, England, that Jackson’s grandfather fixed up and where Jackson’s father was born.
On Saturday, June 9th, Pleasant House will park their Food Truck outside of our Summer Warehouse Sale from 11-2pm. Please come by!
One of my favorite things to do in the summer is picnic or dine outside, and the Koppel melamine bowl is just the item to inspire one to do so. It can take your simplest salad or lowly chip to a higher level. Designed by Henning Koppel, legendary Danish silversmith and designer, whom I would say is my pick as instigator of modern Danish design. He started creating exceptionally new and modern designs back in 1946 for silver company Georg Jensen, and continued in glass and other materials for various Danish companies. These bowls were designed in the mid-60’s for Torben Ørskov, creator of Ørskov & Co., one of our favorite Scandinavian manufacturers and long time friends.
Ready to grow plants from Christy Webber LandscapesMess Hall & Co tea, bar cherries and spicy mustardCeramics by Up In The Air SomewhereBareknuckle Farm Eco Totes + T-shirtsNew pillows + garden belts from UnisonMore plants from Christy Webber
Support locally designed, made and grown! Join us for a local market in our new Studio+Store, celebrating Earth Day with our neighboring businesses. Mess Hall & Co. will be here offering their delectable preserved goods including mustard, jams and bar cherries, Up in the Air Somewhere will be selling their amazing hand built vases, Bare Knuckle Farm (the Midwest’s best CSA!) will be here offering totes, t-shirts and investor dollars, plus Christy Webber Landscapes will be offering beautiful pre-potted tomato plants and herb gardens ready to grow and a selection of hearty fruit trees. Plus, bring your own shopping bag and get 20% off any Unison product! We’ll be selling a limited run of special garden belts, floral pillows and some very special imported gardening tools!
Join us this Sunday at Dose Market and shop our new limited edition summer pillows! Fresh flowers hot off the printing tables + customer favorite bedding. Come by and get 20% off your purchase.
Even though Chicago is experiencing record breaking temperatures this spring, it is still worth taking a stroll in one of the nations oldest greenhouses, the Garfield Park Conservatory. It recently reopened it’s doors after near tragic destruction from a hail storm last summer. I credit their amazing outreach and the sincere love of the parks that Chicagoans have for their speedy rebuild. Built in 1908 and designed by legendary landscape architect and pioneer conservationist Jens Jensen, it truly is a treasure in the city. The Fern Room provided great inspiration for me, full of ancient plants and old world naturalistic settings.
Some areas are still under repair, like the Desert Room, so it’s not too late to help out!
What a blast! Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate the opening of our Studio+Store! Lively libations by L&E and delicious eats by Marianne Sundquist of Mess Hall & Co made it all the better. Thanks to Brian Guido for documenting the fun.
