Fun Finds for our Holiday Market!

In a meeting earlier this year we started talking about how many creative local designers we were happening upon. It occured to us that it would be fun to invite similiarly minded creatives to get together for a holiday market and provide a venue for all of our customers to shop for unique holiday gifts. So this fall we sent out applications for our first annual LILL Holiday Market that will be held at our Chicago warehouse on Saturday, November 14th.

We are thrilled with the collection of applications that came in. They are brimming with beautiful products and business concepts.... it was fun to review, but also tough to decide! We only have room for 20. We met yesterday and made some decisions. Here are some pics of products from companies we invited. We'll post the full list of vendors on our website as soon as everyone is confirmed. Mark your calendars now and get your whole list taken care of in one day!

Pics from:

www.orangyporangy.com

www.circlestreet.etsy.com

www.uncharted.etsy.com

Jen Velarde

2009... SO FAR...

I don't quite know where January went, but as February begins, I realized I haven't posted a blog yet in 2009. And,...as one of my New Year's resolutions was to get a bit more tech-savvy and participate more in the blogging community. I guess it's about time for me to get started. Here's a quick catch up on the highlights of my year so far....

New Year's Eve with Friends..... I toasted at midnight to being pregnant on New Years (again) and to a happy and health year ahead.

Family trip to Mexico...... My mother-in-law plans a trip for my husband and our kids each year. Usually it is in March, but with the pending arrival of her 3rd grandkid, she planned it earlier this year. What a wonderful getaway (and mother-in-law)!

Returning to sub-zero temps in Chicago was not fun, but our month of snow and frigid temps has provided for some cute shots of my "snow bunny" and some fun indoor projects for Joey....learning to bake cookies at Nana's, and several nights of "pirate ship building" in our living room.

January at LILL is full of planning for the year ahead. My favorite project for the month was our Spring/Summer fabric buy. At times this month Winter has seemed relentless, but with beautiful fabrics arriving daily at our production offices, Spring is definitely in the air at LILL! Look for them to arrive shortly on the web, in our stores and with our reps.

We've also been working on a number of new style introductions and the implementation of new technology systems aimed at enhancing the shopping experience for our customers as well as the management and marketing tools for our internal team. All of the projects have our team excited about the prospects for the year ahead.

Our team at LILL HQ watched the inauguration of President Obama together. No matter your politics, it was a historic moment and you couldn't help but feel proud to be an American. Witnessing such history with our team was something I won't soon forget.

We have a monthly potluck lunch at our LILL HQ offices. It is something everyone looks forward to. At our January potluck, we also announced the winners of our 2008 LILLies Awards for everything from Team Member of the Year to Most likely to end up with 7 kids. Our internal "social committee" makes these potlucks so much fun.

As January ends and February begins, I'm looking forward to being a month closer to better weather, longer hours of daylight, new spring fabrics, new spring styles and a new baby. I can't wait to spend more time outside (seriously suffering from cabin fever) and generally be renewed by a fresh new year and the forthcoming change in seasons. Happy February!

Jen Velarde

Founder / President, 1154 LILL Studio

Meet LILL's "Models"!

LILL's current home page features 3 lovely ladies from LILL's HQ and one special little lady, Jen's daughter - Hadley! There is a sweet story behind this "feel good, warm and fuzzy" home page.

The shoot took place in Jen's home. During the photo taking Hadley awoke from her nap, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. So sweet, how could we not want to take some fun practice shots with her in it? Turns out, Hadley is a natural - mom must take lots of pictures of her! Hadley really helped to bring the feel good feeling we were looking for to life. She's just like her mommy, so into fabrics and colors. There's no doubt she will be a mini version of Jen someday.

Although the shoot was not tremendously long, it was hard for our models to smile for such long periods of time. In order to loosen up those smile muscles they could be found doing the "Super Model" look or as we like to refer to is as "The Zoolander Look". It helped to have a bit of silly time between shots.

Now get to know our models:

Meet Robin N., LILL's Vice President

Favorite Style: "I am loving the HADLEY right now – it’s big enough to throw stuff for my kids into it, including an extra diaper and sippy cup, but it’s still definitely a “purse” vs. a diaper bag. Plus it has these great pockets for my blackberry, digital camera and CONNOR with my business cards."

What do you love about working at LILL? "Having been involved with Jen’s dream for what would become 1154 LILL from the very early stages, I don’t feel that this is a job, but instead, simply a part of my life. I can’t imagine doing anything else and I feel so lucky to be involved with something that is so important to me. It’s thrilling to help someone design a bag that is perfectly her or hear a customer talk with excitement about the bag she designed herself. It’s rewarding to collaborate with so many talented people here at headquarters to shape and direct what LILL is now and what the company, the brand, the product and the experience will become in the future. And finally, I am inspired and proud of my friend for building all of this. She is so strong and brave and always sees the best – both in possibilities and in people."

Meet Laurie C., LILL's Creative Services Associate
Favorite Style: "SUSAN! Over the weekend I stuffed my laptop, an extra pair of shoes, my makeup, clothes for 2 days, a book, and a freezer bag full of cookies in my SUSAN."
What do you love about working at LILL? "I love my coworkers and the sense of community that exists at LILL. Oh, and there is always candy somewhere. I like that, too."

Meet Amy F., LILL's Web Store Manager

Favorite LILL Bag Style: "JACK and SOPHIE, I love the convenience of both and especially because they are both named after 2 of my favorite people! Although I have had my eye on SUSAN for quite some time now."

What do you love about working at LILL? "I've been with LILL for almost 6 years now. Before that, during college I interned at Jen's small studio apartment where it all started - 1154 LILL St. in Chicago. It's been so amazing to see how much we've grown over the years and I'm so happy and proud to be a part of the growth. And of course, the people that work here are the greatest. They are truly like my family. I've seen so many girls go through weddings and babies. It's nice to "grow up" with a wonderful bunch of people."

We hope you enjoyed the outtakes of the shoot and getting to know our models/team members a bit more!

-Lilly S.

Team Member of the Month!

November’s Team Member of the Month is….Alex A.!
Yes, LILL does have some male employees!

Alex has been a tremendous help in so many projects and in every department of LILL HQ and beyond. He is known for being innovative in his thinking of project solutions especially to make them time efficient. Alex has always been distinguished by his great work ethic and willingness to help even when extremely busy. Kind, knowledgeable, even tempered, patient (especially for working in an environment of mostly women), consistent and positive are some of the things that were used to describe Alex in the votes submitted. He has done an outstanding job!

Alex is originally from Fresno, CA and has been with our Tech Team for the past 1 and ½ years.
Let's get to know Alex, you can see why we here at LILL enjoy working with him.

Favorite style: HADLEY

Top 3 fabric picks:

Hitchcock Roses, Bubble Gum Linen, Manatee Faux Suede

What do you love most about working for LILL?

The people I work with, a fun bunch of funny bunnies

Nickname? Al (short for Alex)

Favorite type of music: Every type of music, viva eclectica!

Where did you last go on vacation? Berlin, Germany.

Have a fun story you'd like to share?

My name in Latin means leader of man, which can't be true because I get lost all the time. Once while camping I went wandering and couldn't find my way back, so was forced to sleep outside the whole night, like a failure. I woke up in the morning about 6 feet away from my tent.

Thanks, Alex! You are truly a joy to work with.

-Lilly S.

Meet LILL! See why we love it.

For this upcoming holiday season, we know how important it is to find the perfect gift. That mixed with the economy and the state it's in, we know how important to spend wisely and put your earnings towards something you believe in. As you know, you can design the perfect handbag, accessory or pillow with LILL, however there is something more that you are giving when you are giving the gift of LILL. All LILL products are created right here in Chicago. When you buy LILL, you support a local, woman-owned business, employed by team members who also stand behind the LILL product and philosophy.

Your LILL Bag, accessory or pillow is hand-cut, hand-sewn and shipped to you by a special individual. We’d like to introduce you to these dynamic team members that make the LILL product, and company, personal and unique.



Meet Kari, Mandy and Alexandra. (Featured in picture, from left to right) You may recognize these girls as our models from our current home page on our website. Each girl is as sweet and unique as a LILL Bag. Get to know the girls that work to make your LILL experience and product so special.

Meet Kari O, Cutting Team Member
Favorite Style: ANDI
"I love being a part of the LILL team because I love getting to look at pretty fabric all day."

Meet Mandy L., Design Department Director
Favorite Style: ERINN
"I love being a part of the LILL team because I get to work in a collaborative environment with the greatest people."



Meet Alexandra A., Cutting Team Member, Junior Fabric Associate
Favorite Style: HADLEY
"I Love being a part of the LILL team because I am surrounded by creative problem solvers, and I learn something new about my job everyday at work and look forward to expanding my skills of this profession."

Check back often as we will be featuring the lovely people that make LILL the wonderful place it is. Feel good about the gifts you give.

-Lilly S.

'Tis the Season - Make it Personal

I hope you all are getting into the swing of fall and looking forward to some of the upcoming holidays. This year, I know my 4 year old son, Joey, has given me a renewed enthusiasm for Halloween. Since the first week of school he has been bringing his "Oriental Trading" magazine that is full of Halloween supplies for his "reading material" during nap time. It has been taped back together several times to ensure he is still able to peruse the selections and dream about how great all of these decorations would look all over our house. To appease his need for immediate gratification one night last week, we made some paper towel ghosts and hung them throughout the house. It reminded me of the simple pleasures that come from making something from essentially nothing. The ghosts aren't as "fancy" as some of the ones in Oriental Trading, but to me, they couldn't be any better. Joey couldn't get over how "smart" I was to think of making these ourselves. I'm sure I'll save a couple to remind me of the fun evening we had together making them and... of course, to remind Joey of the days when he still thought his Mom was so "smart." :-)

As I was recounting my fun evening with Joey to a friend, I realized it is very similar to the experience we offer at 1154 LILL. Often our customers are shopping with friends and family and are looking for ways to create memories and share time together. Now more than ever, they are looking for ways to spend their money wisely on items that are personal and hold significance to them and the recipient. I know this season, I'll be looking to give gifts that fit these ideals. Really this should always be the case, but sometimes it just takes a reminder from someone small - when you add a little of your time and creativity, you can give a gift worthy of warming a heart. Happy holiday hunting!

Jen Velarde
Founder - 1154 LILL Studio