12 Months of “Me” Time: Kiss my Antiques

My neighborhood in Chicago leaves a lot to be desired. The closet busy street to my home is loaded with vacant storefronts, and there’s nary a coffee shop or decent place to eat {unless you count the numerous fast food joints}. Save for, the only shining redeeming quality of my quiet bedroom community:

killer antique and vintage shoppes

This past weekend, while I was bloggy sabbatical, I stole a few hours of alone, kid and husband-free time, and visited some of my favorite haunts.

First up, What Knots, a new-to -the-scene shoppe filled with amazingly curated items and many a local artist’s ware.

My next stop, A Niche in Time, located in “The Circle”, which is one of the most desired neighborhoods in Chicago, filled with gorgeous Victorian homes and lot sizes to die for.

This shoppe has a shabby-chic feel, and is spacious to shop in {unlike many in Chicago}. I never fail to find amazing vintage suitcases there, for very reasonable prices.

A mere $16. She came home with mommy. Given my love of vintage suitcases that I’ve scored for $2 and repurposed as a home office, my collection now is at 3, and growing…

This 60s Barbie head almost came home with me too. I could have some fun with this in my “boudoir”. But, given my lowly budget for the day {$30}, I passed.

One of my near and dear favorites that has been written up,all over Chicago, The Antique and Vintage Resale Shoppe. I never knew the real name until this post, as I refer to it as that-cool-shop-on-Harlem and-Touhy-with-the-neon-lip-sign-in-the-door.

This place feels like your grandma’s closet, but perfectly curated so everything is gorgeous and timeless.

A vintage jewelry lover’s dream.

They have the best organization I’ve ever seen, and I always leave inspired.

Hmm. This may have inspired a DIY…

Given the skull trend mentioned at Made by Girl, I thought these bedazzled skulls were keepers…

Every day is Halloween there…

The displays at this shop are so inspiring…whenever I am in a creative rut, a half an hour here recharges me.

I fell in love with this necklace, but it fit all wrong.

For now, I will chalk it up as inspiration for the future etsy shoppe.

I loved these beads as well…

The last leg of my grand tour, is always Kouks. I just adore Kouks {I could not find a site for them, so here’s the Yelp reviews}. They have tons of teas, amazing coffee, and enough local neighborhood flair to keep me coming back. They had an apothecary chest I was salivating over, but at $225, it was out of the budget.

I just wish they were open til 10 at night.