Pop-Up Shops Invade Cle
By Claudia Taller
Find unique holiday gifts and enjoy eye-candy shopping at pop-up stores this holiday season. Temporary retail shops are showing up all over Cleveland and other metropolitan areas as artists and designers take advantage of empty storefront space. In Cleveland, with creative entrepreneurship and influence from the Cleveland Institute of Art and KSU’s School of Urban Design, innovative energy brings premier apparel, jewelry and home goods. In many cases, there’s also a party.
Sculptor Steven Tatar, owner of Ohio Knitting Mills, is back again this year with Ohio Knitting Mills (OKM) at 1983 W. 28th Street in Cleveland. The richly-textured virgin vintage clothing crafted during the post-World War II area through the early 1970s was previewed at the Pop-Up Shop Party last Fri 11/18 @ TWIST Creative, 1983 W. 28th Street. The store opened on Sat 11/19 and closes on Sun 1/8; shopping hours are Tues through Sat 12-8PM and Sun 12-6PM. Celebrate Cleveland’s heritage as one of the country’s largest knitwear producers by purchasing a sweater or fleckware as a gift during the holiday season. When I interviewed Tatar last year he said he’s passionate about the “combination of gorgeous clothing and soulful history of a family that employed thousands of hopeful people, the American dream.” Once you watch the video about Tatar and his vision, you’ll want to visit the shop just to experience it.
In Rocky River’s Old River Road shopping district, the Evie Lou boutique has opened up inside Embellish Accessories at 19055 Old Lake Road. The contemporary clothing boutique with a store at 2153 Professor Avenue in Tremont will operate at Embellish from 11AM-7PM Tue through Thu, 11AM – 5PM Fri and Sat, and 12-4PM Sun through Sat 12/31. In addition to women’s clothing in sizes 2-2X, Evie Lou offers a collection of jewelry and accessories for customers who want to be distinctively adorned. “At Evie Lou, we don’t sacrifice comfort for style or style for comfort. Neither do our customers.”
Some retailers call their pop-ups “holiday shows,” as is the case with Bazaar Bizarre, which has announced two holiday shows this year. The vendored craft fair holds forth at its usual Westside location at 78th Street Studios, 1300-1301 West 78th Street (Gordon Square) on Sat 12/10 from 10AM-9PM and on Sun 12/11 from 10AM-6PM. This weekend, find their Eastside show at 13006 Larchmere in Cleveland, Fri 11/25 and Sat 11/26 from 10AM through 9PM. This event may be better characterized as a craft show, but Bazaar Bizarre takes their crafts seriously and makes it a mission to offer one-of-a-kind shopping options.
Made in the 216 Holiday Shop is a pop-up just for the holidays, but it’s better stuff than you find at the usual mall and strip plaza holiday pop-ups. Danielle DeBoe gets credit for staging events that present an assortment of goods chosen from over 60 Cleveland-based creative businesses. From Fri 11/25 through Sat 12/31, Made in the 216 Holiday Shop will take up space INSIDE Room Service, 2078 W. 25th Street. The shop will be open from 10AM – 9PM on Black Friday (Fri 11/25) with entertainment by DJ Pleasure Cruise. Kegs O Beer starts at 4PM and the after-party takes place at Market Garden Brewery from 9PM–2AM.
The Plenty Underfoot pop-up pearl is the Collective Upcycle boutique. Collective Upcycle is at Shaker Square and shows off recycled art and goods crafted by 35 local and regional artists. Nicole McGee’s creations — like the flowers she makes from castoff vinyl flooring, as well as other holiday gifts — will make your season, and that of your gift receivers, merry. You’ll also find stationery and jewelry.
Cosmic Bobbins has popped up at Tremont West Development Corporation, 2406 Professor Avenue, Tremont. The store is featuring new works by Dana Depew and other local artists. Cosmic Bobbins will be open through Fri 12/23; Wed-Thu from 1-7PM, Fri-Sat 1-9PM, and Sun 12-4PM. Purchase sustainable and imaginative recycled goods and accessories made by underserved populations using fair-trade employment practices. [Pictured at top: The process of making Cosmic Bobbins coasters.]
At nearby Gordon Square, Double Feature, an eclectic pop-up gallery, opened on Fri 11/11. The gallery of fine art was created by four people who originally came together in Ctownartparty. The group, founded by Rachel Hunt, plans to be at Gordon Square for two months and is incorporating events like children’s workshops and a sweater show into its stay. The shop not only shows off local artists but brings national art into the foray of the 2-room space. A post on Facebook reads, “EL GRANDE HISTORIA DEL ROCK will be playing our Critical Mass Party along with Hope Memorial. Two awesome Cleveland bands + bike art and crafts = CCM invasion!” The Critical Mass Party is Fri 11/25 at Double Feature Gallery, 1392 W. 65th Street, Cleveland.
Yellowcake Pop-up Store located at 6500 Detroit Avenue, is initially open from 11-9 Mon-Fri, 11-7 on Sat, 12-5 on Sun. Valerie Mayen’s pop-up store highlights, according to Valerie, “coats and fall winter pieces in my most sophisticated space. I put a lot into the store, which has a different vibe than other stores — modern vibe with urban woodsy touches like tree trunk tables and hangers of tree branches.” The store will be open for four months and will sometimes have cupcakes, as well as a customer awards program, monthly giveaways, and a competition to choose a Cleveland dress. Valerie also intends to host monthly events past closing time.
And let’s not forget the ArtCraft Building Open Studio Holiday Sale, essentially a Pop-Up Shop in disguise, taking place on Sat 12/3 from 11AM to 8PM and Sun 12/4 from 11AM to 5PM at 2570 Superior Avenue. This year, Pulsar Paper Products will feature their annual sale, and you can bring canned or dry dog food to help feed the 150 homeless and rejected dogs at the Cleveland Kennel. Dozens of resident artists will show works for sale in a variety of media: furniture & wood, metal, hand-crafted confectioneries & soap, clothing & accessories, glass, clay, painting, photography, mixed media and, of course, jewelry.
It’s shopping time, so get out there and have fun shopping the eclectic mix of shops. The people you love will love the original clothing, accessories, jewelry, and artwork you will find at the pop-up stores all over Cleveland. Plan a day of shopping followed by a night out at a local restaurant, catch a movie at the historic Capitol Theatre, or plan to see “Oliver,” which is playing at the Near West Theatre until Sun 12/4.
Claudia Taller’s book Ohio’s Lake Erie Wineries was just released by Arcadia Publishing. Find out more about the book by going to http://OhioLakeErieWineries.blogspot.com and order it through Claudia by sending an e-mail to claudia.taller@yahoo.com.