Last week, I took a quick trip back to Chicago for an exclusive Design Immersion tour of some of The Mart’s fabulous showrooms. I always find so many home design ideas and inspiration when I visit The Mart, and it was so fun to be back in Chicago again!
Here’s a peek at some showrooms we visited, favorite finds, the hotel I stayed at (the perfect location if you visit The Mart!) + an exquisite Italian restaurant
For those not familiar with The Mart, it is the largest center for design in North America and has over 250 showrooms. Thank you to Scalamadre, The Shade Store, Sub-zero and Wolf, Romo Fabrics, Wells Abbott, Dacor Kitchen, Ethnicraft, David Sutherland, and J Marshall Design for hosting us for this tour ~
One of the best parts of the trip was seeing old friends again and making new ones. This was such a great group, traveling from all over the country, even Hawaii.
Here are a few favorite design and decor finds ~
Scalamadre has the most beautiful patterns and prints on the fabric. I’ve seen these ball pillows before but learned they are called Cocktail Pillows, because you rest your arm on them while you are drinking a cocktail. How fun is that? I thought they were just fun for the kiddos to throw around hah!
My dress fits in so well here~
Another favorite find was at Ethnicraft, which had this wall when you walked into their showroom. I thought it was just an accent wall but every square opens up to storage. This would be so great for a playroom or office space.
And their hot cocoa station and gifted Anthropologie Chicago mugs were much appreciated. For my Chicago friends, these mugs would make a great holiday gift!
Sub-Zero and Wolf is always a fun stop. They have over 250 hidden appliances in their showroom, and air purification systems in their refrigerators, so your food lasts much longer. Lettuce that usually would last a few days can last up to 2-3 weeks in their refrigerators.
We also had the best homemade pumpkin spice cinnamon rolls that I am still dreaming about. I will be recreating a similar (but easier) recipe on Instagram stories this week for Thanksgiving break. I tried it yesterday and it was so good. Stay tuned for the recipe!
Dacor has impressive refrigerators too, with ambient lighting and a built-in camera that takes photos of the contents inside, so you can check the app at the grocery store. How convenient is that?
We got to test out the durability and washability of Perennials fabric at David Sutherland. You can spill red wine, coffee, etc. on this fabric and it bubbles up making clean up a breeze. If you’d like to watch the demo, I saved it in my Instagram highlight bubble “The Mart”, along with more video snaps.
Wells Abbott has beautiful fabrics and lighting, but the highlight of our visit was Charlie dog. Isn’t he the cutest? His scarf even matches the table fabric ~
The lighting options are stunning too ~ I loved every single one, especially the center one!
Romo Fabrics has beautiful prints as well for upholstery, wallcoverings, blankets and more. I loved all their cozy textured options for fall and winter.
Our last stop was the J Marshall Design showroom, where we played a round of putt putt while drinking champagne. It was so fun and I ended up winning the contest! Maybe it was the champagne or just pure luck 🙂 Finding this Charleston Forge leather chair (below) in their showroom was also a favorite of the day. It is so comfortable, a beautiful blue, has a metal frame, and is a traditional chair with a modern twist with the metal accents on the side. You can see more here!
And that’s a wrap for photos from the tour! I took more videos than photos this time and shared on Instagram @shiningondesign. I stayed at Voco Hotel, right next door to The Mart, which was so convenient. Dinner at Nonnia was delightful, and I highly recommend dining there if you are planning a trip to Chicago. I can’t wait to go back for the Tortinio Di Cioccolato!
Thank you to Embello for inviting me on this tour ~ Can’t wait to visit again!
