Rebecca Zemans Jewelry Blog — Store Stories

Established in 1985, the Illinois Artisans Shop was the first gallery of its kind in the state. It showcases one of the most diverse collections of handcrafted work in the Midwest.  The Illinois Artisans Program focuses national attention on the rich heritage of the fine crafting that exists in Illinois. Juried artists participate in art sprees, craft festivals, exhibitions and other events held at three locations throughout Illinois.   llinois Artisans, Chicago,  James R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St. Suite 2-200, Chicago, IL 60601. Open Monday - Friday 9AM-5PM by the Clark/Lake EL stop. The Museum Store, Illinois State Museum, Springfield: Museum Events Dickson Mounds...

Citywoods is a beautiful little gallery located in downtown Highland Park, IL and specializes in unique handmade pieces from all over the country. This gem of a shop first opened in 1988 and is still run by its original owner, Diana and Robert Schaps. Citywoods showcases a vast variety of art pieces ranging from beautiful wooden furniture and room decorations to fine handmade jewelry and clothing. Nearly five years ago, at my first One of a Kind Show, a buyer from Citywoods came by my booth in the emerging artist section and bought an original Luna Pendant with peridot for...

The Denver Art Museum, which is one of the largest art museums between Chicago and the West Coast, was founded in 1893 as the Denver Artists' Club and today features a collection of more than 70,000 works of art. One of the Denver Art Museum's more well-known pieces is 'Linda', the sleeping, life-like sculpture of a woman by John DeAndrea. Linda is made out of polyvinyl and human hair (on head and arms) in an effort to make her look as real as possible. While Linda is always a massive attraction, she only comes out periodically, in an effort to...

As some of you may remember, in the beginning of 2012 I created a jewelry collection for Mark Shale, a Chicago-based department store that opened its doors in 1929. The store is known to greatly value design, craftsmanship, and individuality as well as care deeply about the environment, the city of Chicago and the way women dress. Last December, the Mark Shale team decided to showcase a few local designers and singled my work out. We then met to create a customized exclusive collection just for the store. The pieces were elegant, simple and made out of sterling silver and gold-filled. Most...

Embellish was one of the first stores to carry my jewelry and has been one of my most exciting collaborations. We started our businesses around the same time and it's so exciting for me to part of what has become a fixture of the neighborhood. The space is warm and inviting and Barb is so awesome that I just want to stay there for hours to chat. The story with this fabulous boutique in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, started through a mutual friend, who told Barb Skupien, the owner of Embellish, about my jewelry. Barb then took a...