Image via
Read More
Chicago's 24th Annual Christkindlmarket is Now Open for the Season!
A Festive Chicago Tradition
As the Chicago days get colder, it’s become tempting to stay in my dorm room, turn up my radiator, and binge watch holiday episodes of Friends. However, to stay indoors this holiday season would be a mistake. Starting November 15th, Chicago opened its largest open-air Christmas market. And the festival is well-worth the trip North to Daley Plaza.
Inspired by Nuremberg, Germany’s famed Christkindlmarket (which began in 1545!), this year marks Chicago’s 24th Annual Christkindlmarket. The festival has grown over the years, to include a wide range of vendors from around the world—selling everything from fresh strudel, potato pancakes, and hot apple cider, to intricate Cuckoo clocks, pewter holiday ornaments, and Matryoshka dolls. Since I was little, I’ve loved attending Chicago’s Christkindlmarket with extended family and friends.
The Vendors: A Selection of My Favorites
To navigate Chicago’s Christkindlmarket with a to-do list of “must-see” vendors would be to miss the point. After all, the market is about more than completing holiday checklists. And while it’s undoubtedly a great opportunity for gift-purchasing and holiday photos, it’s also worth taking the time to enjoy the festive atmosphere; for a few hours in downtown Chicago, visitors feel as though they’ve been transported to a German fairytale. And the experience itself is worth pausing to enjoy.
Nonetheless, I left this year’s market with a few favorite vendors worth mentioning. And what follows is a description of a few standout vendors - although it is by no means exhaustive. The point is not to create a “must-see” list; rather, the point is to illustrate the wide variety of fun holiday goods, available this year.
Arrow Mattick: Homemade Soaps, Wickless Candles, and Natural Products from Crystal Lake, IL
Located just to the left of the Christkindlmarket’s main entrance, Arrow Mattick’s wickless candles may have been my favorite find, this year. Since moving into UChicago’s housing, I’ve really missed the scent of burning candles. And while string lights can act as aesthetic candle-replacements, I had wrongly assumed that there was no replacement for the scent of holiday candles. However, Arrow Mattick produces a wide selection of wickless candles—which smell great, without the hassle of a flame (and the fear of accidentally burning down my dorm). My favorite three scents from Arrow Mattick are Christmas Pine, Merry Mistletoe, and Berry Christmas. I opened a wickless Christmas Pine candle on my dresser, as soon as I returned from this year’s market - and now my room smells like fresh Christmas trees!
TeaGeschwendner: Premium Loose Leaf Tea from Chicago, IL and Meckenheim, Germany
It was admittedly difficult to narrow down the choices at this vendor’s stall. With teas ranging from Rooibush Eggnog, Rooibush Cream Caramel, and black Christmas, to a Tea Advent Calendar, the stall offers many holiday-inspired teas. My favorites were the Snowman Tea and the Rooibush Eggnog.
Wooden Wonders: Traditional Hand-Crafted Slavic Gifts from Eastern Europe
As a Russian and Eastern European Studies major, I always keep my eye out for this stand. The stall features a wide range of Matroyshka dolls and Eastern European holiday ornaments. And it’s especially fun to study the larger Matroyshka dolls, towards the back of the stall; they feature scenes from beloved Eastern European fairytales. My favorite Matroyshka doll (pictured above) came from this fairytale-section of the stall!
Sweet Castle
My dad and little brother love this vendor. Selling everything from lucky marzipan pigs, to gingerbread cookies, vegetarian Haribo Smurf gummies, and chocolate-filled German music boxes, this vendor is worth the wait to get inside. I especially love Sweet Castle’s Edelmarzipan Mit Kirsche (a marzipan-cherry-chocolate candy).
Chiya Chai: Delicious Chai, Pie and Donuts from Chicago, IL
Each year, the Christkindlmarket features a different collector’s mug (this year’s new designs are pictured above). Many different vendors sell these mugs, but I especially liked Chiya Chai’s stand. They sell collector’s mugs filled with hot chocolate, hot cider, or hot chai for $8.00 (which is less money than the $10.00 price nearby, so be sure to compare prices!). Chiya Chai also sells mini donuts and savory and sweet pies, among other foods. I especially liked their Kale and Potato Pie.
And a Few More Vendor Favorites, Pictured Below:
In addition to the vendors featured above, the Käthe Wolfahrt of America building is another festive market stop. There’s sometimes a short wait to get into the building, but it’s worth it; the building features everything from wooden ornaments and Christmas napkins, to German playing cards and advent calendars. It’s one of the prettiest components of the market, but photos aren’t allowed - otherwise this article would be filled with many images of Käthe Wolfahrt’s holiday goods!
The Details:
When: November 15-December 24
Hours: Friday-Saturday 11am-9pm; Sunday-Thursday 11am-8pm (with special hours on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve)
Where: Daley Plaza, 50 W Washington St., Chicago, Illinois
Free Admission!
Chicago Summer Concert and Festival Schedule
This summer, catch some of the biggest acts and most buzzed-about up and comers in the music world. Whether their headlining festivals or performing at the best venues around town, there's plenty worth seeing no matter what genre, vibe or venue you gravitate towards.
JUNE
6/1 - Depeche Mode - United Center
6/1 - 6/2 - Taylor Swift (with Camila Cabello and Charli XCX) - Soldier Field
6/3 - Bon Iver - Jay Pritzker Pavilion
6/5 - Post Malone (with 21 Savage) - Huntington Bank Pavilion
6/5 - Shawn Mendes - American Family Insurance Amphitheater
alt-J; image via
6/7 - alt-J - Huntington Bank Pavilion
6/8-6/10 - Chicago Blues Festival - Millennium Park (FREE)
6/8 - 6/10 - Spring Awakening Music Festival - Addams/Medill Park
6/15 - Top Dawg Entertainment: The Championship Tour (Kendrick Lamar with SZA, ScHoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab Soul and Sir Lance Skiiiwalker) - Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
6/22 - 6/24 - Country LakeShake Festival - Huntington Bank Pavilion
Harry Style; image via
6/22 - 6/24 - Ruido Fest - Addams/Medill Park
6/23 - 6/24 - Mamby on the Beach - Oakwood Beach
6/29 - Halsey - American Family Insurance Amphitheater
6/30 - Harry Styles - United Center
JULY
7/2 - Paramore (with Foster the People) - Huntington Bank Pavilion
7/6 - 7/7 - Radiohead - United Center
7/6 - 7/8 - West Fest - Chicago Ave between Wood St and Damen Ave
7/8 - Arcade Fire - American Family Insurance Amphitheater
7/13 - Imagine Dragons - Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Paramore; image via
7/14 - Kesha and Macklemore - Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
7/17 - Panic! At The Disco - United Center
7/20 - 7/22 - Pitchfork Music Festival - Union Park
7/23 - Sylvan Esso - Riviera Theatre
Sylvan Esso; image via
7/27 - The Beach Boys - Ravinia Pavilion
7/27 - Animal Collective - Vic Theatre
7/28 - Chris Brown - Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
7/29 - 7/30 - Foo Fighters - Wrigley Field
7/31 - Charlie Puth - Huntington Bank Pavilion
AUGUST
8/2 - 8/5 - Lollapalooza - Grant Park
8/3 - Shakira - United Center
8/10 - 8/11 - On The Run II: Beyoncé and Jay-Z - Soldier Field
8/13 - 8/14 - Smashing Pumpkins - United Center
8/15 - Sam Smith - United Center
8/18 - Beach House - The Chicago Theatre
Jay-Z and Beyoncé; image via
SEPTEMBER
9/8 - Childish Gambino - United Center
9/8 - 5 Seconds of Summer - Aragon Ballroom
9/14 - Maroon 5 - United Center
9/23 - 9/24 - Leon Bridges - Aragon Ballroom
9/29 - Dark Star Orchestra - Vic Theatre
Childish Gambino; image via
Feature image via
I Went to Holland for the Weekend!
If you're not from the Midwest, I'm referring to Holland, Michigan, which is only a 2.5 hour drive from Chicago and home to lots of Dutch culture and lots of tulips. I rented a Zipcar, picked it up in the Ratner parking garage, grabbed some friends, and made myself a day in Holland!
Windmill Island Gardens via.
Despite the temperamental Spring we have in this region, Holland does everything it can to make sure the tulips are primed for showtime. Rumor has it they have workers keeping the tulips warm with hairdryers (!!!) when it's especially cold.
I visited the Tulip Time fair/festival (which is rated as the best small town fair in the U.S.), where I bought some locally-made jewelry, looked at a variety of tulips, and ate a traditional Dutch fatball! A fatball is fried dough filled with basically anything sweet, though ours was filled with stewed apple and vanilla custard.
Apple Dutch fat ball via.
Afterwards, we went to the Windmill Island Gardens to look at more flowers and meet many Dutch leather-crafters and clog makers. I talked to a kind woman dressed in traditional Dutch clothing and clogs. Turns out, when she's not living and working on the farm, she's a nurse who attended Loyola University nearby!
It was refreshing to get away from campus for the day and at very little cost. Aside from food (which you can pack yourself) and car rental, the only thing we paid for on the trip was entry to the Windmill Gardens ($10 and well worth it).
Do yourself a favor next Spring and see what else the fly-over states have to offer!
Community members dancing the Klompen in the city center via.
Feature image via.
For the Best Festival Fashion, Look No Further Than AFROPUNK
The AFROPUNK Fest held in Brooklyn last weekend was a joyful, stunning and politically charged celebration of black beauty, fashion, music and heritage. An official statement from the festival's website claims "AFROPUNK is defining culture by the collective creative actions of the individual and the group. It is a safe place, a blank space to freak out in, to construct a new reality, to live your life as you see fit, while making sense of the world around you."
All above images via NBCNews
A desire to express and pay homage to the diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds of those in attendance was on full display, from kaleidoscopic Kenté cloth tunics, to elaborate body art, looks no doubt inspired by the Lemonade visual album, and natural hair peppered with flower crowns, daisy chains and more.
An article on Teen Vogue notes the meteoric rise of the festival in just twelve short years, and its corresponding social and political relevance over time; "[AFROPUNK] started as a gathering for black people with a love for punk music, and it still remains a safe space where we can sing, dance, revel in our heritage, and celebrate our culture." This years' festival fashions felt particularly on par with the current political and racial climate, showcasing T-shirts with slogans such as "F--- Alt Right" and Colin Kaepernick jerseys.
All above gallery images via Man Repeller
The festival has grown to encompass much more than an initial celebration of alternative black music, becoming an important collective representation of black culture, empowerment and defiance, as well as the social and political movements concert-goers care most about. In an interview with NBCNews, one attendee explains "we're literally wearing our movements on our chest." From the magnificent array of artistic and sartorial statements made both on and off the stage, it's safe to say the festival and those in attendance have fully embodied this mission.
All above gallery images via GQ
Feature image via Man Repeller