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Randolph Street Market: Vintage cool, amazing deals and entertainment!
The Randolph Street Market Festival is home to the world-renowned Chicago Antique Market, Indie Designer Market, Modern Vintage Chicago and the Holiday Market. As seen in Travel & Leisure, the NY Times, Lucky Magazine and featured on TV news shows and web casts, the Randolph Street Market Festival is considered “a mecca of cool”, “the best hot spot for antiquing”, “the best Chicago venue for people watching”, and “the Barney’s of Vintage”. Celebrity designer Nate Berkus says, “I love this market…the quality is incredible!” As one of Chicago’s most happening monthly parties, Randolph Street Market has become the summer destination!
This European-style, indoor-outdoor urban antique market in the historic West Loop neighborhood features 200 select purveyors of high quality, amazingly priced “finds”, offering unlimited creative inspiration and hours of fun. Shoppers can find furnishings, vintage clothing, jewelry, collectibles, etc. Visit randolphstreetmarket.com for more information.
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Check Out Chicago From The Water Aboard Shoreline Sightseeing!
Sailing Chicago’s waterways since 1939, Shoreline has been family owned for three generations and today operates Chicago’s largest and most diverse boat touring fleet with nine major touring vessels and 11 water taxis.
We delight in showcasing Chicago’s vibrant history, famous architecture and breathtaking skyline on a variety of cruise and tour products. Shoreline offers classic Skyline Tours on Lake Michigan, guided Architecture Cruises on the Chicago River, dramatic Fireworks Cruises, guided River Ride/City Walk Architecture Tours and special events such as our popular Brew Cruises and Wine Tasting Cruises. Shoreline Water Taxis make fast, fun connections between Chicago’s major touring destinations including Navy Pier, the Michigan Avenue Bridge, Willis Tower/Union Station and Chicago’s Museum Campus. You can also call on Shoreline Charters for memorable events from casual get-togethers, to corporate meetings, to special celebrations for family and friends. We invite you to explore our website and we look forward to welcoming you on a Shoreline Sightseeing cruise or tour! Visit shorelinesightseeing.com for more information.
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Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair
The Ebony Fashion Fair began in 1958, and over the next 50 years the traveling fashion show blossomed into an American institution that raised millions for charity and helped Johnson Publishing Company reach audiences.
Show organizers overcame racial prejudice to bring the pinnacle of Europe’s premier fashion to communities that were eager to see, in real time and space, a new vision of black America that was the hallmark of Ebony and Jet magazines. Eunice Johnson took over as producer and director in 1963, and under her direction, the traveling show took on new heights as she expanded her cachet and power within fashion circles.
Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair recreates the experience of the Ebony Fashion Fair through the story of Mrs. Johnson and more than 60 garments from icons of the fashion industry such as Yves St. Laurent, Oscar de la Renta, Pierre Cardin, Emanuel Ungaro, Christian Lacroix, and Patrick Kelly among others. Click here for more information.
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Fire ’em up at Iwan Ries, the most cigars, pipes & tobacco in Chicago!
Since 1857, Chicago has been home to Iwan Ries & Co., the oldest family-owned tobacconists in the country. Now in our 5th generation of hard work and commitment to service, we are striving to ensure that we continue in the tradition of making customers our #1 priority!
In the world of e-commerce it seems that selection is often void of service. At Iwan Ries & Co. we offer both. A practice th
at was started with tobacconist Edward Hoffman, and passed on from generation to generation. While browsing our site, please keep in mind that this is a only a fraction of what we have to offer.
We have over 15,000 pipes in stock, the largest selection of pipe tobaccos available, hundreds of cigars, and countless accessories. Please call us if you don't see what you're looking for. Chances are we have it. If not, and its available, we'll get it for you. Thanks for visiting and smoke in peace. Visit iwanries.com for more information.
at was started with tobacconist Edward Hoffman, and passed on from generation to generation. While browsing our site, please keep in mind that this is a only a fraction of what we have to offer.
We have over 15,000 pipes in stock, the largest selection of pipe tobaccos available, hundreds of cigars, and countless accessories. Please call us if you don't see what you're looking for. Chances are we have it. If not, and its available, we'll get it for you. Thanks for visiting and smoke in peace. Visit iwanries.com for more information.
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Luxury Garage Sale: costume jewelery & the coolest vintage finds!
Luxury Garage Sale is co-founded by partners Brielle Buchberg and Lindsay Segal. Childhood friends, Brielle and Lindsay always had a love of collecting; beginning with stickers and erasers, evolving to shoes and handbags. However, over the years their assorted collections soon overwhelmed their available storage space. 
Utilizing their backgrounds in fashion and sales, Brielle and Lindsay began selling their unwanted items. After realizing that their friends had the same predicament as well, a light flashed and voila... Luxury Garage Sale was born!
Luxury Garage Sale is an upscale consignment service that specializes in selling new and gently used contemporary, designer and vintage clothing and accessories. Visit luxurygaragesale.com for more information.
Utilizing their backgrounds in fashion and sales, Brielle and Lindsay began selling their unwanted items. After realizing that their friends had the same predicament as well, a light flashed and voila... Luxury Garage Sale was born!
Luxury Garage Sale is an upscale consignment service that specializes in selling new and gently used contemporary, designer and vintage clothing and accessories. Visit luxurygaragesale.com for more information.
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Stand in the sky! Unforgettable Chicago views at The Willis Tower!
Where can you stand on top of $150 million dollars at 1,353 feet in the air, while overlooking four other states and swaying back and forth by six inches? Answer: The Willis Tower Skydeck .
The Willis Tower and its new and improved observatory atop it all has been taken in with loving arms. The Skydeck’s new addition is called The Ledge and that pretty much says it all. The Ledge consists of all glass and stands over the city of Chicago for those who dare step into its case. From there it extends 4.3 feet from the Skydeck leaving guests on top of the world. Click theskydeck.com/ for more information.
Insider Tip: The Willis Tower, as it has always been, is a major hotspot for visitors in Chicago- and the long line reflects that. Skip the hours wait by paying 30 bucks for the express ticket and go straight to the elevators and up, up, up. Trust us, it’s money well spent.
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Dive right in! Penguins, otters, whales & more at the Shedd Aquarium!
The John G. Shedd Aquarium, a not-for-profit institution dedicated to public education and conservation, cares for more than 32,500 animals representing nearly 1,500 species from around the world. Beautifully situated on the shores of Lake Michigan, Shedd Aquarium welcomes more than 2 million guests annually.
Animals connect you to the living world, inspiring you to make a difference. From whales to snails, tarantulas to turtles, you’ll meet creatures from aquatic habitats around the world. Explore Shedd’s Abbott Oceanarium, where you can get face to face with beluga whales, dolphins, sea otters, sea lions and penguins. Polar Play Zone is a permanent exhibit where kids and their families can play, pretend and discover through hands-on activities. See the aquatic show, starring the dolphins, belugas and more, and don't miss the "Jellies" special exhibit. Then meet some of Shedd's critters up close during live animal encounters in the Waters of the World galleries, talk to a diver in the 90,000-gallon Caribbean Reef, take a walk through a flooded forest in Amazon Rising and watch sharks overhead in Wild Reef. And visit Granddad, the oldest fish in any aquarium or zoo! Two million annual visitors can’t be wrong: Shedd Aquarium is the "must-sea" destination in Chicago! Click sheddaquarium.org for more information.
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Check Out Nature’s Wonders At The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
Food The Nature of Eating
Harvested from the minds of our spectacular design team, our newest self-curated exhibit Food: The Nature of Eating goes beyond your plate to bring you a farm-fresh perspective on how food connects us to family, friends and ultimately back to the people who produce it.
Join us on this interactive journey from the 19th century to the present day as we show you how our relationship with food has impacted the land, the environment and our society. Along the way, you'll discover how food travels the world before it reaches your home and learn how millions of acres of fertile Illinois prairie were changed to farmland in less than a century by a tiny technological marvel called the plow.
Judy Istock Butterfly Haven
Get up close to more than 75 species of exotic butterflies and stunning bird species from the Southern hemisphere in a 2,700 square-foot greenhouse filled with pools of water, flowers, tropical trees and 1,000 butterflies, including those never-before-seen in our region.
Click naturemuseum.org for more information.
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“Legends, Myths, And Truths,” At The Millennium Park Boeing Gallery
As a pioneer in the field of monumental ceramic sculpture, Jun Kaneko has played with scale and proportion. Visitors to Millennium Park will be able to see his work displayed in the Boeing Galleries, beginning April 12 through November 3.
The installation Kaneko has created for Millennium Park’s Boeing Galleries is representative of his past and present artistic practices. Works presented in the South Boeing Galleries feature Kaneko’s signature Dangos (meaning “rounded form” or “dumpling” in Japanese). These ceramic steles, covered in a variety of vibrant shapes and patterns, allow viewers to examine their environment and focus on a sense of scale and place.
The Dango form links Kaneko’s work to minimalist sculptors who played with simple and large forms, while at the same time, the pattern overlays show formal aspects – in repeating geometric shapes – similar to those of minimalist painters.
The North Boeing Gallery features a new body of work by Kaneko, drawing upon the myths and legends of the Tanuki figure. From ancient times, the Japanese have expressed the Tanuki in a variety of ways, for it is considered to be a trickster who causes trouble and mayhem in both the human and supernatural worlds. In our modern era, however, the figure is most commonly portrayed as a large, stout badger. The Tanuki is not only a creature found in mythology, but a small, nocturnal mammal native to East Asia. Click here for more information.
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Exciting Exhibits Now At The Field Museum!
Remember capturing fireflies on a warm summer evening? Its light seemed rare and magical, and yet there are thousands of other living things that blink, glow, flash, and flicker. Creatures of Light delves into the mysterious world of bioluminescence – from the glowworms dangling from the ceiling of New Zealand’s famous Waitomo Caves, to the deep-sea fishes that illuminate the perpetually dark depths of the oceans. Discover the variety of ways in which light is used to attract a mate, lure unsuspecting prey, or defend against a predator, and see how scientists study this amazing ability to glow. Immerse yourself in these magical environments and revel in the beauty of this remarkable natural phenomenon, only at The Field Museum.
Discovered by chance in 1940 by four teenagers, the Lascaux caves in southern France have inspired and awed anthropologists, pre-historians, scientists, and artists ever since. Beautifully subtle paintings and engravings of animals line the deep cave walls – sophisticated artwork created at the hands of our early ancestors nearly 20,000 years ago. In an effort to preserve their fragile existence, the caves have remained closed indefinitely, denying us even a glimpse of their shadowed majesty.
But now, during its North American debut, you can experience your own thrill of discovery in the new exhibition, Scenes from the Stone Age: The Cave Paintings of Lascaux. Walk through exact cave replicas by flickering light, marveling at full-size copies of the paintings—including some never before seen by the public—and see them through the eyes of ancient artists. Deconstruct the paintings' many layers of complexities, meet a lifelike Stone Age family, and discover why the true meaning and purpose of the caves remain a mystery even today. For a limited time, uncover the birthplace of artistic creativity, only at The Field Museum.
Check out fieldmuseum.org for more information.
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Major League Baseball at Wrigley Field and U.S. Cellular Field
It’s spring time again, which means the Chicago's two baseball teams are suiting up for an exciting new season. Get into the baseball spirit by visiting either of Chicago's two Major League Baseball teams. The Chicago Cubs play at the "friendly confines" of Wrigley Field on the north side. The White Sox play at U.S. Cellular Field on the south side. Both teams have excellent players and are looking to have great seasons. No matter what team you root for, it’ll be a great time.
Click here for information about the Cubs. Click here for information about the White Sox.
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Skating in the Sky
Enjoy the gorgeous views of the John Hancock Observatory while skating to your heart’s content at Skating in the Sky. Overlooking picturesque Lake Michigan, this 99 square foot ice staking rink is a fantasy come true. Not only are the views spectacular but the temperatures are too! Loose your winter coat and skate in comfort.
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Picasso is Back at the Art Institute of Chicago!
A century ago, in 1913, the Art Institute of Chicago became the first art museum in the country to present the work of a young Spaniard who would become the preeminent artist of the 20th century, Pablo Picasso. This February the museum celebrates the special 100-year relationship between Picasso and Chicago by bringing together over 250 of the finest examples of the artist's paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, and ceramics from private collections in the city, as well as from the museum's collection, for the first large-scale Picasso exhibition organized by the museum in almost 30 years.
The show runs from February 20, 2013 through May 12, 2013. The exhibit shows such diverse and significant works from the museum's own exceptional holdings and from collections throughout the city, Picasso and Chicago not only charts the full gamut of Picasso's artistic career but also chronicles the growth of Chicago as a place for modern art and the storied moments of overlap that have contributed to the vibrant interest in Picasso from 1913 to today. Visit artic.edu for more information.he Art Institute is celebrating a 100 year relationship with the artist by bringing together over 250 of Picasso's finest works of Art.
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Explore the Majestic Agora (in Grant Park)
Located along the southwest side of Grant Park, Agora is one of Chicago’s most recent and important sculptural installations. Comprised of 106 nine-foot tall headless torsos made of cast iron, the artwork derives it name from the Greek word for meeting place. The figures are posed walking in groups in various directions or standing still. Internationally renowned artist Magdalena Abakanowicz donated the sculptural group along with the Polish Ministry of Culture, a Polish cultural foundation, and other private donors. Born into an aristocratic family just outside of Warsaw, Abakanowicz (b. 1930) was deeply affected by World War II and the forty-five years of Soviet domination that followed. In her journals, she writes that she has lived “…in times which were extraordinary by their various forms of collective hate and collective adulation. Marches and parades worshipped leaders, great and good, who soon turned out to be mass murderers. I was obsessed by the image of the crowd… I suspected that under the human skull, instincts and emotions overpower the intellect without us being aware of it.” The sculptor began creating large headless figures in the 1970s. Initially working in burlap and resin, she went on to use bronze, steel, and iron. Although Abakanowicz has frequently exhibited in museums and public spaces throughout the world, Agora is her largest permanent installation.
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Millennium Park
Many observers consider Millennium Park to be the city's most important project since the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. It far exceeded its originally proposed budget of $150 million. The final cost of $475 million was borne by Chicago taxpayers and private donors. The city paid $270 million; private donors paid the rest, and assumed roughly half of the financial responsibility for the cost overruns. The construction delays and cost overruns were attributed to poor planning, many design changes, and cronyism. Many critics have praised the completed park.
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Museum of Contemporary Art thinks outside the box, and onto the plaza
Art isn’t meant to be kept inside the box, or on the canvas for that matter. At Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, the curators try to put their chosen pieces in context, as much as the sculptures, video, balloon art, and other abstract expressions can be.
The abstract space constantly evolves as new pieces come in and out of the Streeterville location on a regular basis. But one thing is a constant at the MCA: abstract art that helps you look at the world in a very different light. Whether its an art project out on the plaza, or a display inside one of the U.S.’s biggest modern art museums, the Museum of Contemporary Art knows how to push boundaries.
Admission is $12, except on Tuesdays, when it’s free for Illinois residents. MCA is closed on Mondays.
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Ride the rails during Chicago ‘L’ Tours
The Chicago ‘L’ system has long been the way tourists and locals alike have travelled miles across the city, whether it be to Wrigley Field or downtown for work. Since 1999, there’s also been another use for the elevated tracks: as a way to learn about Chicago’s rich history. Chicago-L.org hosts tours via the ‘L’ tracks through various institutions, including the Chicago History Museum and the Chicago Architecture Foundation. No matter what the tour or what ‘L’ line your guide will take you on, each tour offers tidbits of history and architecture lessons as you ride the city’s public transportation system. While tour fares typically aren’t expensive (usually around $11-$16, and that includes the ‘L’ pass), be prepared to walk.
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Brazil in Chicago: é ótimo!
With Brazil in the spotlight for its booming economy and upcoming major events: World Cup 2014 and Summer Olympics 2016, there's never been a better time to tap into your inner Brazilian. Plus it makes you super sexy of course.
Nestled in a cozy home in the German 'hood of Lincoln Square is the oh-so Brazilian abode of Brazil in Chicago. Here Windy City residents can tap into their inner Brazilian by taking Portuguese lessons which are even offered for native French and Spanish speakers and kid's classes. In addition, cooking classes and dancing lessons (samba anyone) are available. Muito obrigada to Marcelo Jarmendia, the brains behind this recently booming school.
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Hemingway Foundation: Read All About It
Just a quick and easy ride on Chicago's CTA Green Line westbound to Harlem will bring you to the idyllic suburb of Oak Park. Here you may feel you're walking on a movie set as the brick streets, mansions and adorable eateries seem too cute to be real.
This suburb defies the word by being anything but cookie-cutter and is packed full of culture. It is home to the Frank Lloyd Wright Museum and the somewhat lesser known Hemingway Foundation Exhibit. Yep, it's right here in Oak Park. The celebrated author is originally from this cute town and thus Chicagoans and tourists can enjoy anything from wine auctions at the Foundation to tours, lectures and educational programs.
Afterward, head across the street to ponder life at Hemingway's Bistro.
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Chicago Botanic Garden: A Theraputic Oasis in the Windy City
When Chi-towners are in need of some fresh air, green pastures and loads of flowers, they head to the Chicago Botanic Garden. A hidden oasis just 30 minutes from downtown in Highland Park (an easy Metra ride), the garden boasts paths that allow you to peruse the place as if it were your own.
From Japanese and English gardens, isles reached by arched bridges and a tropical garden with orchids dangling from palm trees, perhaps the best feature of the Chicago Botanic Garden is its full calendar of events from educational programs to social mixers. Classes they offer range from cooking classes, gardening, kids programs, horticultural therapy and wellness programs. In a nutshell - this place is Chicago's therapy.