a weekend in the windy city.

i spent last weekend in chicago with three of my best friends: brittany, stacey, and abby. i commonly refer to them as "my college bffs," considering that we were brought together by our beloved alma mater, taylor university. i feel blessed to live near enough to my friends to see them on occasion, but we decided that a special trip was something we definitely needed!

the view from our high rise michigan avenue hotel room:

one of our many "bean" photos at millennium park:

when we decided on chicago, i knew right away that i wanted to make a visit to the renegade handmade store in wicker park. i know a little about the renegade craft shows that go on around the country and decided that i wanted to get my hands on some handmade treasures in the windy city. 

a sufjan stevens record (michigan) was spinning during our renegade shopping time, which added immensely to my happiness. i think i picked up every item i could touch, and i noticed a few other shoppers doing the same. browsing the store made me that much more excited for homespun to open in indy. i am hoping it will be comparable to my experience at renegade!

some adorable fashions that i wish i could afford:

dinner napkins made from repurposed sheets:

my heart's desire:

journals made with oldtimey book covers:

stuffed animal taxidermy:

the store was sweet! and while i wanted to come home with one of everything, i decided to put all of my eggs in one basket and make a purchase that best expressed the depths of my soul. midwest IS best, and i have it in writing right here, folks:

we traveled all over the city on the L, walked for miles, shopped, and ate. we survived about 30 seconds of hail, 2 minutes of rain, and three days of windy coldness. overall, it was a fun, much needed weekend with three of my favorite people, and i loved every second of it. here are a few more pictures from our trip:

a yummy concoction from berry chill yogurt couture (plus a color-changing spoon!) :

black bean burger from chicago diner in the boystown neighborhood. mmmm. :

brittany at sweet mandy b.'s in lincoln park, where i purchased a snickerdoodle cupcake (!!!) :

the college bffs in the midst of a celtic festival, proms, and weddings, millennium park:

i (obviously) give chicago two thumbs up:

our triumphant return to indiana. we were asked if it was "national yellow day," so we decided to take a picture in front of brittany's yellow house, sporting our yellow shirts.