Your itinerary for a rainy weekend
Spend it at our favorite galleries, new restaurants, and the coolest food and shopping pop ups!
This week we’re sharing ways to get creative with cool gallery shows, featuring new shop and restaurant openings, highlighting weekend pop-ups, and introducing you to our cool friend: Meghan Kreger or Phthalo Ruth.
Rough Trade Below
The legendary British-based record store family, Rough Trade, is expanding it’s footprint in Rockefeller Center just in time for Record Store Day! A few years ago when the shop moved from it’s gargantuan Williamsburg space to Manhattan, people wondered how they would have the same selection – well the considered answer is here. The new, additional space will offer a selection of records curated by moods like “New York Classics,” even more used records, and exciting partnerships with like-minded indie companies in the video space: A24 and Criterion Collection. There’s so much to be excited about with the new Rough Trade Below, but for now – we just encourage you to shop, where something can be found for every taste.
Manjul Coffee
This newish coffee shop on Soho’s sceney Howard street seems to have one goal for their patrons: hanging out over a cup of coffee. Manjul’s modern, friendly design approach to their cafe is on trend with the best new coffee shops we’ve been seeing popping up in the city. Leave your laptop at home when you visit and instead opt to share a latte with your friends!
Fedora
In March of 2020, many neon signs turned off only to stay that way forever…but thanks to the team behind St. Jardim, the light’s on the West Village’s old Fedora sign are turning back on. The new restaurant, opening next week, will be the kind of place where you’re just as comfortable taking a date as you would be having a casual weeknight meal. This cozy space is ready to serve you starting April 15th!
FRAME SHOP, the BK-based custom framing workshop and multidisciplinary design studio by Noah Neary and Grace Han, is opening their doors for OPEN HOUSE. Next Saturday at 28 Locust Street, you can shop a fun mix of art, decor, ceramics, clothing, jewelry, and curated vintage. Refreshments courtesy of Brooklyn Cannery, LIMO, and Visitor. Drop by April 19th from 11a-4p, located at the edge of Bushwick and Bed Stuy.
PS - The studio is also available for photoshoots, workshops, dinners, and parties. Reach out with your framing and collaboration ideas!
The Warren Street Hotel is back with another amazing Private Art Walk led by Firmdale Hotels’ art ambassador and design director, Willow Kemp! This tour will take you through the hotel’s vibrant and eclectic art collection followed by a short walk and tour of a new show by Antonia Showering at the Timothy Taylor Gallery. Afterwards, you’ll return to the hotel for afternoon tea or a two course lunch at the fantastic Warren Street Restaurant and Bar. This perfect afternoon is happening on May 10, and tickets ($125 inclusive of the tour and meal) will go fast, so book now!
Meet Meghan, the co-Founder and designer of Phthalo Ruth. We’ve long been fans of Meghan’s illustrative style that manages to fall somewhere between a narrative and objective work. In other words, her illustrations tell a story. We caught up with Meghan to hear how she began her career as an illustrator and how Phthalo Ruth took off!
How did your career as an illustrator begin?
I studied fine art in college and took myself quite seriously. I never could have imagined I would become an illustrator! I started teaching myself graphic design after school and eventually landed a job on the product design team at a stationery company. There, I developed an appreciation for illustrations that were simply pretty and fun.
After a long hiatus in my personal art practice, I decided to try my hand at illustration. I grabbed my crayons and started loosely sketching some of my favorite things: prosecco, a croissant, a coffee, etc. It was so freeing and fun! My first art print was born.
I started creating my first collection of prints and posting on instagram in hopes to make some side income. The side hustle has now turned into my full-time career!
Tell us about how you came up with the name of your design studio, Phthalo Ruth!
I knew I needed a pseudonym so I could post incognito. Identifying too much with my work can be stifling and, in the past, has prevented me from putting myself out there. I wanted something that I wouldn’t outgrow, so I started with my middle name, “Ruth”. Then, my husband and I brainstormed different colors and words to pair with “Ruth”. “Phthalo” comes from the paint pigments phthalo blue and phthalo green. We thought “Phthalo Ruth” had a nice ring to it!
What’s your favorite part about the New York creative community?
I love the creative community in NYC! Most people you meet are doing something cool and inspiring. Many of my friends are creative business owners and it’s invaluable to have a community to share in the ups and downs of this world. People here take their creative lives seriously and work hard to make their dreams a reality. I feel a sense of belonging that I haven’t found anywhere else!
Do you have a favorite spot in NYC for sketching in the wild?
I love getting cozy in any neighborhood cafe to people-watch and sketch. As much as I want to gate-keep, my favorite spot is Ché in Bed-stuy. The baristas are the sweetest, the coffee is great, and it’s the perfect pace for a day of sketching. They also have some outdoor seating for those gorgeous spring days that will be here soon!
Are there any cool Phthalo Ruth projects or brand collabs in the works that you want to share about?
I just launched my art prints for wholesale on Faire! So many people who visit NYC ask where they can find my prints, so hopefully we will be in some local shops soon!
Our invitation collaboration with Paperless Post just launched recently as well.
Follow Along:
www.phthaloruth.com
@phthaloruth
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