Up-and-coming Chicago neighborhood Pilsen homes a handful of off-beat boutiques and restaurants, fitting right into this eclectic, far-flung landscape.
1. Golden Age, 1744 West 18th Street; www.shopgoldenage.com
Raw wood and white walls create a beautifully simple platform for the graphic limited-run prints adorning the walls here, but it's all the rare and unexpected zines, artist books, CDs, and periodicals that could have kept us here for hours. Look for titles like The Incredible Journey to Consciousness, Hamburger Eyes 12, and Greek Daddy. Basically, if you're in the market for some stunning works to make you think, this is your destination.<
Focusing on ridiculously cheap but good-quality vintage, Knee Deep is a great stop if you need a little retail fix without the buyer's remorse. Extra Credit: The shop-keeper's angelic pup Auggie, and the spectacular—but gone by the second—estate pieces like a vintage Anne Klein corset skirt.
To our delight, her soothing boutique felt like an Adirondack oasis amid the big city outside with pretty tree-branch displays and cozy lighting. Of course, the real draw here is Novotny's sustainable designs (she spent time studying with designer Gary Graham and it shows). Dreamy sheer silk tights and the kind of organic cotton trousers we could wear until the end of time really impressed. In fact we have a pair of those cloudy gray tights on order!
