Design*Sponge regularly accepts submissions for their series of city guides.
There isn't one for Cincinnati, so I thought I'd go ahead and write one
and submit it. I worked about a month on it. When I was satisfied, I
sent an email to Design*Sponge letting them know I'd like to submit it.
What do you know, someone beat me to it by a few days! Argh!
Anyways, here it is. Enjoy.
DOWNTOWN AND OVER-THE-RHINE
The
fastest growing area of the city, the neighborhoods of downtown and
Over-the-Rhine to the north, are booming with new condos, shops and
restaurants. Over-the-Rhine has the largest collection of Italianate
architecture in the U.S., which is one of the largest historic
districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
City Roots
This
urban garden shop "sprung" up because of the rising interest in urban
living. The city-centuered garden shop sells flowers, house plants,
small trees, potting soil, lights, garden decor as well as offering
services such as landscaping and design.
Designsmith Gallery
Showcasing
an interesting mix of mid-century modern, art deco, and "decorator"
modern design Designsmith gives particular focus to obscure designs,
whether by well-known or lesser-known designers. You can fine classic
mid-20th century vintage modern furniture, lighting, ceramics, glass,
rugs, and decorative objects. Their website sells to international
collectors.
High Street
"Gorgeous
things for clever people" is High Steet's tagline... you can see why
when you walk through the front door... The shop itself is almost a
piece of art, unlike anything in the region. High Street sells
furniture, gifts, books, clothes from such companies as Gus* Modern,
Designers Guild, Cole & Son and Lexon.
Joseph Williams Home
Down
the road from High Street, newcomer Joseph Williams Home calls itself a
"urban lifestyle furniture store." The store sells classic furniture
such as George Nelson benches, Eames wooden chairs and loungers. The
store's design studio is busy with work from downtown and the wealthier
suburbs.
Mainly Art
Cincinnati's
largest vintage modern furniture and lighting store, Mainly art sells
designs by Paul McCobb, Eames, Nelson, Hans Wegner and Knoll, among
others. The shop sells it's products at shows across the country,
including Miami modernism, Palm Springs, Chicago, and New York shows.
MiCA 12/v
Their
second store in the city, MiCA 12/v features an ever changing selection
of hand-made fine craft and gift items from American, British and
Canadian craftspeople like items designed by local designers Three
Sheets 2 the Wind (http://threesheets2.com/) and Wire & Twine
(http://wireandtwine.com/).
Park + Vine
Offering
environmentally friendly and ecologically minded merchandise from
suppliers in Cincinnati and elsewhere, the hugely popular Park + Vine
sells everything from home furnishings and personal care products to
home improvement items and apparel and footwear. Featured product lines
minimize the use of natural resources, toxic materials and animal
by-products.
Vintage Poster Bank
Sells
19th century items through 20th century American posters to
contemporary European kiosk posters. They have one of the more
far-reaching collections of printed Americana and European subject
matter, including advertising displays, calendars, labels, and pinups.
Favorites are airline posters from the 60s and 70s.
Other highlights you should check out are Findlay Market which is Ohio's oldest continuously operated public market, Shanghai Mama's which serves up noodle dishes until 3am on the weekends, and the internationally known Contemporary Arts Center whose building was designed by Zaha Hadid, Cincinnati Art Museum, and the Pendleton Art Center
which is the largest collection of artist's studios in one building.
There is just too much in Downtown and Over-the-Rhine to cover here.
These areas are changing so rapidly, it seems like a new shop or
restaurant is opening each week.
HYDE PARK, MT. LOOKOUT, OAKLEY and O'BRYONVILLE
High-end
boutiques, sidewalk cafés and old, giant homes fill the tony east side
neighborhoods of Hyde Park, Mt. Lookout, Oakley and O'Bryonville. Each
area has it's own shopping street and European-like square, uncommon in
the Mid-west.
Denim
Yes,
you guessed it- Denim sells jeans. The more expensive kind of jeans,
like True Religion, Rock & Republic, Ksubi and Kicking Mule
Workshop. They also sell tshirts and accessories from local companies.
Jack Wood Gallery
This
gallery carries posters and "graphic art" from the late 19th century
and early to mid-20th century. Whenever I drive by their shop, which
sits on a busy street, I almost always wreck my car from craning my
neck to see what cool 100 year old posters they have in their windows.
Marble Hill Chocolate Lounge
Opened
buy a NYC transplant, Marble Hill works with chocolatiers from around
the country, customizing chocolate and wine pairings for gifts or to
sample in their lounge.
Margot Madison Stationery
This
fun stationery shop caries various lines of creative products and
designs original custom invitations for clients like Colin Cowie
(wedding planner to the stars). Go to their website to order custom
stationery for an inexpensive $36.
MiCA
The
O'Bryonville shop is the original of two shops with the same name. Like
it's sister shop in Over-the-Rhine, it carries one of a kind hand-made
fine craft and gift items. Both shops carry different, but similar
products like rugs by Angela Adams and bags and ties by Marimekko.
Modology
This
internet based company has an appointment only showroom that offers
modern furniture, some that has been updated in their on-site studio.
Taking an original piece that needs some love, their designers will
often strip down the piece and rebuild it into something new. Check out
their Ebay store.
Nest
"Urban
chic with a vintage twist," Nest offers a mix of home accessories. They
recently announced a new goal of having over 50% of merchandise from
local vendors and/or made of recycled materials.
Poeme
Stationery
with style, hand-made paper, unique gift items for any occasion and
custom invitations or personalized stationery. Poeme carries Kate
Spade, leather goods designed by Tricia Guild of Designers Guild,
letterpressed stationery by Elum and Julie Holcomb.
Suki
Japanese
for "I like," fashionistas LOVE this shop for the range of prices and
styles. Shop owner Summer, carries clothes you can't find anywhere else
in Cincinnati. Dries Van Noten, Vanessa Bruno, Rogan, Prudence, and
Vivienne Westwood are a few of the brands she sells.
Voltage
"Vibrant
colors. Classic architectural form. Design that makes a statement now
and for years to come." Voltage sells modern furniture, lighting and
accessories from Europe. Brands include B&B Italia, Cassina,
Kartell, and Alessi.
Other places to see in this part of Cincinnati include old-timey ice cream parlor Aglamesis Brothers, one of the best restaurants in the city called Boca, Bonbonerie filled with pastries cakes and cookies, super cool Cumin serving Indian fusion and Essencha Tea House.
UPTOWN AND NORTHSIDE
This
area is dominated by the University of Cincinnati with it's world class
design, architecture and music programs. Be sure to check out the campus itself, covered with buildings designed by Frank Gehry, Peter Eisenman, UC alum Michael Graves, among others.
The
historic and walkable Clifton Gaslight District is a welcoming,
artistic neighborhood lined with original gas lamps. Ludlow Avenue is a
true gem in the region because of its locally owned shops, restaurants,
independent grocer, banks, pharmacy, coffee shops, bakeries and art
house/independent movie theater all on one street.
The bohemian,
gay and hipster neighborhood of Northside is home to a great "main
street" with quirky shops, fun restaurants and cool gay/straight bars.
Ali's Boutique
This
Northside shop fits nicely into the bohemian nieghborhood selling belly
dancing items, kung fu shoes and feng shui incense sticks, among other
free-spirit-loving items.
Feralmade
A gallery in Northside which describes itself as being "deep, real deep," is next door to the hipster bar The Comet. Feralmade organizes art shows, maintains a silkscreen print shop, and sells products they create.
Mustard Seed Boutique
Located
in a tiny little shop on Ludlow Ave., this cool consignment shop
carries designer men's and women's new and used clothing. The owner, a
San Francisco transplant, moved to Cincinnati to open the shop after
working at similar consignment stores in the bay area.
Paolo, a Modern Jeweler
Specializing
in modern jewelry design, Paolo, named after one of the owners, sells
unique jewelry including platinum, 18k colored gold, diamonds and
gemstones. Paolo's staff includes a master jeweler/metalsmith, a
graduate jeweler, several design jewelers and a graduate gemologist.
Shake It Records
Locally
owned CD and vinyl record shop, Shake It has over 38,000 titles and a
well-stocked used section. This great store specializes in the
independent and obscure.
Shoetopia
"Shoetopia
is a dream, a concept, a mission (a boutique). We believe that everyone
needn't be resigned to the same cookie cutter shoes."
Toko Baru
This
shop, along with Clifton, has a new age/hippy feel selling clothing and
small furniture. Items tend to be multicultural and/or handmade. Think
tie dye and batik! Their sister shop across the street, Toko Kids,
sells toys and kids clothing including Paul Frank.
When you are uptown, make sure to check out Habanero which is a nice alternative to national burrito places, locally-owned-but-national Dewey's Pizza,
Sitwell's coffehouse where the neighborhood hangs out, several
whole-in-the-wall diners and bars like The Proud Rooster, Blue Jay
Restuarant and the Gypsy Hut, Cincinnati (and Oprah's) favorite Graeters ice cream, the historic Esquire Theatre, Northside Tavern
is the family room/pub for the neighborhood usually with local music
and a great patio, and national, college friendly chains like Urban
Outfitters and American Apparel.
ON THE WEB
Check out these local websites and blogs...
Buy Cincy
"Local Shopping. Local People. Local Flavor."
Handmade in Ohio
"A
group of designers, coders, screenprinters, photographers, artists,
moms, dads, and down-to-earth people — and we like to make things."
Space 513
"Cincinnati's best places."
Drew, that was me!!! How crazy is that? I collaborated with Sean Fisher of BuyCincy. Ours is more extensive [maybe too much information?] and, I think, better organized for a pedestrian exploring each neighborhood, but yours and ours overlap pretty much perfectly. We must all truly be of one mind.
Maya
Posted by: visualingual | 04 June 2008 at 05:54 PM
you missed a store in hyde park - starts with LIT and ends with WIN.
Posted by: liz | 07 June 2008 at 03:29 PM
Drew, here is our guide:
http://www.designspongeonline.com/2008/06/cincinatti-design-guide.html
Posted by: visualingual | 25 June 2008 at 11:13 AM
Great article, really appreciate the look into your build style.
Posted by: website design nyc | 02 February 2010 at 06:38 AM