Chicago’s Most ONEderful Time of Year!

The holidays are upon us, shopping is in full swing and the stress of finding the perfect gift is alive & well. Maybe that stress can be alleviated, at least a little bit…December 6^th-9^th the One of a Kind Show & Sale Chicago returns to Merchandise Mart for the 12^th year! For unique, artisan gifts this an event you don’t want to miss. Over 600 talented artists from across North America will come together to sell their goods at this market.  Categories of what you can find at One of a Kind range from accessories, fashion & jewelry to ceramics, glass, mixed media & painting to gourmet & holiday – and many others!

The ENTIRE 8^th floor of Merchandise Mart will be transformed into its own mall of sorts (ps – the map is from last year’s show, but it’s detailed enough so you get the picture) complete with its own food court! This market will have everything, and I mean EVERYTHING…aside from the vendors and food court, there will be three distinctive areas with various attractions; a Toyota Retreat section; fashion shows showcasing items available from the vendors; and live performances from local artists – because what’s better than live music while shopping? Aside from all of those awesome things there’s also parking available at 24 garages surrounding Merch Mart (some for as low as $6!), coat & package check will be available for a nominal charge, curbside carryout is available for your convenience and if you’re not from around here, shipping is also available! Now, when I said this event has everything, I literally meant everything because fellas, if you’re dragged brought along on this little shopping trip, don’t stress – they have a sports lounge complete with comfy seating, football on TVs and bar service just for you! Like I said, they have EVERYTHING at this thing!

Entry into the event ranges anywhere from $9 to $80 depending on if you just want general admission or a special package for up to four people – which also includes a super cute reusable tote! You can get your tickets here. To get even more excited about this event (is that even possible at this point??) take a look at their pictures from last year’s market here. This is a great opportunity to support small, independent retailers & find some truly great holiday gifts.

Happy shopping friends!

-Alex Chwastek

Tags: accessories, artists, Avalon, ceramics, chicago, DIY, Etsy, fashion, fashion district, food court, football, gifts, glass, goods, gourmet goods, guys, Holiday, holidays, jewelry, market, merchandise mart, mixed media, One of a Kind, One of a Kind Show & Sale, painting, parking garage, photography, shopping, small business, special, sports lounge, tickets, Toyota, treats, Unique, vendors

CANstruction A-CAN-emy Awards & Gala

The CANstruction A-CAN-emy Awards & Gala was last night at Merchandise Mart and it was such a fun event! I attended and wanted you to give you readers a behind the scenes experience… so click away! As you know from our previous entry, CANstruction is a unique charity event that raises donations for the Greater Chicago Food Depository by having teams build amazing creations out of cans and other food items.  It is the largest donation of food in a single food drive in the city of Chicago – pretty impressive!

The A-CAN-emy Awards & Gala was pretty fabulous, I must say. I got there a little after it started so I walked around and got to see all of the incredibly creative can sculptures before it got more crowded. The sculptures were amazing, I had no idea cans could be made into such beautiful works of art (my personal favorite was “InterCANnected”), and the best part was that it was all for a great cause!  The crowd for the gala was pretty diverse, younger & older professionals who came by after work.  There was an open bar service with their very own “CAN-tini” – which was delicious & creative!  Whole Foods provided light hors d’oeuvres and delicious desserts were provided by Cacao Sweets & Treats (the chocolate champagne cupcake is to die for!)

The awards portion of the evening was the most anticipated part of the night!  NBC 5’s Natalie Martinez was the emcee for the evening and there was a panel of celebrity judges who announced winners of various awards.  The celeb judges included Windy City Live host Ryan Chiaverini, Chef Michael Kornick of mk, Chef Jared Van Camp of Nellcôte, Peter Exley from Architecture is Fun, and of course, our very own Billy Dec!  The SmithGroup JJR Team, who constructed “InterCANnected,” walked away with two awards, one for the Make No Small Cans Award and the other, the Structural Ingenuity Award.  The other big winner of the night was the KJWW Engineering Consultants-VOA-Berglund Team who constructed “A Healthy Balance” and walked away the winners of both the juror’s favorite and the crowd favorite; as part of their prize, they will be headed to the National competition in a couple of weeks!  Best of luck to them as they rep Chicago with their awesome design!

To see more pictures of the awards & gala, check out the CANstruction photo album on Facebook!

-Alex Chwastek

Tags: A-CAN-emy Awards & Gala, Architecture is Fun, billy dec, Cacao Sweets & Treats, canstruction, charity, chicago, food drive, greater chicago food depository, InterCANnected, Jared Van Camp, KJWW Engineering Consultants, merchandise mart, Michael Kornick, Natalie Martinez, Nellcôte, Peter Exley, ryan chiaverini, SmithGroup JJR, VOA-Berglund, whole foods, windy city live

CANstruction

Think about all the Diet Coke and beer cans we throw away each day- always thought they were useless trash, right? Wrong! Look no further than the work of local architects, designers, engineers and construction workers who are turning cans into pieces of art right here in Chicago! Not only are these cans art, they’re lifesavers, too! Who would have thought?!

CANstruction is a unique non-profit food charity that holds annual design and build competitions where teams have to construct imaginative, life-size structures entirely out of cans or canned food. By imaginative I mean, pharaoh heads, venus fly traps and even hatching raptors!

Lucky for us, this organization has made it’s way to Chicago’s Merchandise Mart! When CANstruction comes to town, thousands of hungry people are fed- After the 21 competing teams build their crazy designs and a champion is selected, all of the cans will be donated to The Greater Chicago Food Depository (I wonder how many cans it takes to make a giant pharaoh head, hmm).

The grand opening for the CANstruction competition starts tomorrow on the first floor of the Mart. Grab your friends or kids and head over to the event- who knows what weird creations there will be this year!

Admission to the exhibit is free but I suggest you check out the Awards Ceremony Gala on May 10th where an exhibit winner will be chosen by a panel of celebrity judges (including Billy!) and a great party will follow. To enter to win tickets to the Gala, click here!

- Lauren Neuschel

Tags: art exhibit, billy dec, canstruction, chicago, donation, family event, fighting hunger, fundraiser, greater chicago food depository, Lauren Neuschel, merchandise mart

Who do you think is best in Chicago!?

Just voted for the Chicago Reader “Best in Chicago” awards online! Figured I would share my answers since everyone asks me on Twitter and Facebook about my Chicago favs! (BTW, sorry did these fast, was in a rush, sorry if missed anyone!) You should vote too! (Especially for my places! haha) Voting ends this weekend so go to http://bestof.chicagoreader.com/ now!

Tags: alice in wonderland, amc on illinois, andrew lee, andy lee, arthur murray, ashkenaz, assault.it, avenues, back up, best of, bill and phil movers, billy dec, binny's, carrie seacrist, chicago reader, conan o'brien, connie's, dance center chicago, dj rock city, dr. wax, el tapitio, elevation, equinox, golden triangle, hero fitness, house of blues, house of glunz, hubbard, improv olympic, jim bean club, joe's, kanye west, kinsella landscaping, kith kin, lolla, lookingglass theatre, loveabulls, lovehammers, medinah country club, merchandise mart, metro, niketown, paws, plain white t's, que rico, reeza's, richard's, riverside cafe, rockit bar and grill, rockit wrigley, second city, skinny cows, smart rooms, south of 80, sue, sunda, the peninsula, trex, u of i, u2, underground, vermillion, village cycle, whole foods, wiener circle

CANstruction for Greater Chicago Food Depository

Tags: architecture, bill zwecker, bravo, canned foods, canstruction, charity, design, donation, greater chicago food depository, merchandise mart, philanthropy, radhika desai, soup kitchens, sun times, top chef

Art Chicago at Merchandise Mart

Here’s something for all my fellow chicago art lovers out there who love to wander, absorb, and enjoy creative wonderful thoughtful things! Art Chicago, one of my favorite art events of the year, takes place at the Merchandise Mart from April 30 – May 3, with an Opening Preview on April 29th. This celebration has been a mainstay in the art community nationwide w/ 30 editions over the years… bringing together the most passionate artists, collectors, curators, and people who just simply love to enjoy an awesome visual show. It ranges from contemporary to modern art, from galleries all over the world, new and established, coming together to preview art in a variety of different forms. Paintings, photography, video, sculptures, cool instillations and more…there is something for everyone.

Another super cool element of Art Chicago, in my opinion, involves added expert panel discussions and seminars taking place on site for all attendees, provided by Converge Chicago. The Converge Chicago advisory committee includes Franklin Sirmans, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; James Rondeau, Art Institute of Chicago; Julie Rodrigues-Widholm, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; Hamza Walker, Renaissance Society; and Anthony Huberman, Contemporary Art Museum Saint Louis.  Some local galleries of note that will be exhibiting are Judy Saslow Gallery, Ken Saunders Gallery, Packer Schopf Gallery , Linda Warren Gallery, David Weinberg Gallery, Roy Boyd Gallery, Russell Bowman Art Advisory, and my personal favorite, carrie secrist gallery!

You must wander, absorb, and enjoy… check out .. www.artchicago.com for more info!

Tags: anthony huberman, Art, art chicago, art institute of chicago, art show, carrie secrist gallery, contemporary art museum saint louis, converge chicago, david weinberg gallery ro, franklin sirmans, hamza walker, james rondeau, judy saslow gallery, julie rodrigues, ken saunders gallery, linda warren gallery, los angeles county museum of art, merchandise mart, museum of contemporary art, packer schopf gallery, renaissance socity, roy boyd, russell bowman art advisory