Results tagged “americangirl”

Vanessa French of St. Charles has won the next best thing to actually living in American Girl Place - a ridiculous playhouse the size of many Chicago studio apartments. For several months, a replica of American Girl Kit Kitteredge's home ("Kit's Home On Abbot Place") was on display at the John Hancock Center and fans could purchase raffle tickets to win the house. The French family spent $20 on tickets and out of the 3,500 tickets sold, 2 year-old Vanessa's name was chosen. Raffle proceeds supported Project Playhouse, an event conducted by Home Aid that raises money to build homes for local homeless families. The 15-years-ago me would have been so jealous. Present day me would be annoyed at having to special order a semi-truck, operate a forklift and build a foundation for this 7,000-pound prize to be functional. Ah, the things parents do for their child's American Girl needs...[S-T]

About 40 local Red Cross volunteers are in California helping evacuees.

The Sensuous Woman: Margaret Cho

There's about to be some empty spaces on North Michigan Avenue, the likes of which haven't been seen on the Magnificent Mile for 15 years. Lord & Taylor will soon shutter the doors at its Water Tower Place location, and it will be 2008 before American Girl Place moves from its current spot on Chicago to take over a portion of the space. With CompUSA closing up shop on Chicago as well, retail vacancy for...

We know that our nostalgia over the former FAO Schwarz on Michigan Avenue is probably matched by the tortured remembrances of those we dragged into the store as a chorus of terrifying little voices sang "It's a Small World After All." Even so, we maintain that the American Girl Place is 100 percent more aesthetically upsetting than any other toy store that has ever existed. That's why we have some sick, sick pleasure in hearing...

Because Chicagoist is tired this morning, and because despite what some people think, we can't get up every single morning and just magically bring the funny, we're going to piggyback off this Sun-Times piece about Chicago's "scariest" places so we can whore for comments. We'll give this the old college try and make a brief stab at trying to disguise it as media criticism anyway, because the piece is really no less lazy than what...

Chicagoist believes there’s no glory in picking a fight with a bunch of little girls—and fictional ones at that. But apparently the Chicago-based Pro-Life Action League disagrees.

What can you say about Pilsen? That it’s the largest Mexican-American community in Chicago, and one of the largest in the United States? Check. That it’s home to a decades-old, well established arts scene and some of the finest galleries in town? Check. That’s it a vibrant place to raise a family? Well, for the folks that produce mind-numbing, ubiquitous American Girl dolls, that may not be so.