At Home Blog

If you haven't yet taken advantage of MoBot's Kemper Center for Home Gardening, know that they'll do soil testing, help you to diagnose weird plant diseases and help you pick out the right plants for the plot you've got. And next week, they're teaching a class on how to best save and savor those tomatoes, parsnips and whatnot growing in your garden plot through the autumn and winter by canning, drying and freezing them. All the details can be found here.

If you, like me, have been feeling guilty about not volunteering to fill sandbags in nearby flooded communities, there is something you can do instead: donate to Slow Food's Terra Madre Relief Fund, set up to help embattled Midwestern farmers, many of whom have lost their farms ... and this year's crops. Most of us are at least a little stretched after coughing up $4+ for gas, but think of it this way: by helping Midwestern farmers, we will be able to help everyone keep down food prices later this year - and that will help everyone. (If ever there was a time when it was clear that we are all connected, it's right now!) See more on St. Louis' Slow Food homepage.

This weekend, antiques dealers from as far away as Cincinnati and Horseshoe Bend, Ark. will set up tables in the Greenfelder Recreation Complex for the third annual Missouri Heritage Art and Antiques Show. Why so many non-Missouri dealers at a Missouri Heritage show, you ask? Well, the heritage part actually comes in after the money is counted. Your admission price goes to support the work of the Webster Groves Historical Society, specifically upkeep on the Christopher Hawken House, the first house in the state to receive federal funds for its restoration. The house was built in 1857 along Big Bend Road, but encroaching development threatened its existence, so in 1970 it was moved to Southwest Park. It's now a museum, open to the public, decorated to period style; they sometimes host traveling exhibits, too, like the doll exhibit that passed through this spring.

The Details:

Missouri Heritage Art and Antiques Show
benefiting the Webster Groves Historical Society
Greensfelder Recreation Complex
550 Weidman Road
Admission: $6
Times: Saturday, June 28th 10am-6pm
Sunday, June 29th 11am-4pm
www.willowrush.com/MO.html

Dana King, whose projects have appeared in our pages many times (she was on one of the designers on our Haven of Grace project, which you can read about in our July/Aug issue, which will hit stands any second now, if it hasn't already) is the creator of an ingenious concept: the Design Hop. Basically, she and fellow designer Gina Adolphson are heading up monthly in-house design clinics where they gather groups of women and then bouce from house to house, moving furniture, hanging pictures in new places and basically helping you to maximize what you've already got. If you wanna set one up for your Jet Set, Dana's blog has all the details.

As gas prices continue their upward creep, many of us are having the epiphany: Yes, Virginia, there are reasons to create dense, walkable urban communities that are built around people, not cars. But of course there are better reasons than that.

Kaid Benfield, the Smarth Growth Director for the National Resources Council, points out many of these benefits in a terrific post on Switchboard this week, wherein he lavishes praise on Old North St. Louis and its continuing renaissance. As Benfield points out, it is a renaissance that is green-minded, resident-driven and creative. Progress has been sustained and careful, with an emphasis on quality rehabs and affordable housing - it is a recovery that's sustainable over the long term, both economically and environmentally. This is in stark contrast to the Ponzi scheme approach to real estate that's gripped the country for the last several years - and we've seen what that can do, both to indvidual families and the economy as a whole.

I love this quote:

“Every now and then I run across a story that is so good, that feels so right, that I thank my lucky stars for the freedom NRDC gave me to evolve my career into working for better, more sustainable communities. This is such a story, and it reveals an historic, diverse, inclusive neighborhood that is reclaiming its identity, restoring its infrastructure, empowering its residents, and securing its future. The community wins, and so does the environment, because the Old North neighborhood in Saint Louis is the very antithesis of sprawl.”

Speaking of green … take note that the Greening the Heartland Conference kicks off next week, which is really exciting! Can’t wait to see the ripples that emanate from that. You can read their blog here. And since we began this post with a mention of gasoline, I’d be remiss in not mentioning that St. Louis Green is sponsoring a screening of the excellent documentary, GasHole, at the Hi-Pointe Theatre this weekend. Check it out.

Probably coming on this one late, but - I am in love with Shorpy, "The 100-year-old photo blog." While looking for St. Louis-related photos, I stumbled on this charmer:

My biggest beef with the modern house is the frankly fuggly design - especially those hideous faux-pine cabinets that seem to be the standard. And plastic countertops. This picture proves that less is more (at least where design, not cabinet space, is concerned). I love the white painted cabinets, the simple hardware, the porcelain farm sink. Heck, I even like that bare bulb; there's something very honest about it. It's hard to tell what they used for the countertops, but it looks like tin. I inspected the photo to try to suss out what she's cooking - I have no clue, but my guess might be cornbread or hush puppies.

The cool thing about Shorpy is they post high-res versions of photos (suitable to print 'n' frame, if you are talented) and sell fine art prints (if you don't feel so talented) from their online store. And there are some amazing images here, perfect for jazzing up a dull corner.

Last night, while watering the plants on my porch (since we're on the second floor, I use a gallon-sized glass bottle, rather than the hose) it maybe occurred to me, just for a fleeting second (as fleeting as a blink from a firefly in the catalpa tree next to the house) why people decide it's too much of a pain to deal with a garden. That hour after work that you could spend indoors, feeling the whoosh of the air conditioning as you kick back with a book, is instead spent out in the yard, where you exert energy, sweat and attract mosquitoes. I feel out of sorts when I don't garden, but for those who like posies but not the labor/perspiration/bug bite equation, here's an answer:

"Wallflowers," are polypropylene blooms equipped with hidden magnets, so you can mount them using a simple thumbtack. They remind me a little of Billie Holiday's gardenias, if a little more streamlined and less saturated with sorrow and jazz-club smoke. UMA (Urban Materials and Accessories, located downtown at 1100 Locust) carries them. They're only $37 - less than a tank of gas (unless you are one of those smart people that drives a scooter!) and last a heck of a lot longer ...

If you've seen the flush of recent articles in the New York Times and the Washington Post about the trend in urban farming, and said to yourself, "Gee - why doesn't St. Louis have something like that?" You'll be pleased to know that actually, we do have something like that. And New Roots Urban Farm and City Seeds are the main suppliers for the North City Farmer's Market, which opens this Saturday. I am going to be in Colorado for my aunt's birthday, so I'm going to miss it (which makes me sad) but I plan on making regular bike trips to the 14th Street Mall this summer to pick up produce. Last year I also bought the most delectable bean pies at the market, from Shabazz Bakery - I'm hoping they will make a return appearance.

The Market is open 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday, with health screenings, bike givaways, live music with Eric McSpadden and Margaret Bianchetta. They also have Alderwoman April Ford-Griffin doing a celebrity cooking demonstration (though what she will be cooking, I'm not sure). The market's right across the street from Crown Candy Kitchen at 14th and St. Louis - if you haven't been up North for a spell, the progress on the 14th Street Mall will blow you away. And if you haven't had ice cream at Crown Candy for a spell, it's the best ice cream in St. Louis hands down - you owe it to yourself to at least eat one tiny cone (after all, you will be picking up all those great organic vegetables, so you can cheat a bit, right?)

For the past few years, my husband and I have been looking at houses, sometimes just in a lazy wouldn't-it-be-nice way, sometimes getting about as close to closing as you can get and still back out. We looked in the city, both north and south. We saw some swell, cute houses with minor problems, some great houses with major problems and some truly horrific houses with black creeping mold on the back wall or mysteriously mushy floors. (It's amazing what people thought they could get away with in 2005, when the housing market was still flush).

As I scanned the headlines this morning, I found this totally inspiring story about artist and fashion designer J. Morgan Puett. Ms. Puett has created "her own world" out in the Pennsylvania wilderness with the help of a troupe of collaborators, a sort of artist's farm they call Mildred's Lane. It's an ongoing project, with the goal of living intensely and with a total sort of wakefulness:

"Toward the back, in the kitchen and dining area, there are hand-hammered metal tables and chairs covered with old flour sacks. Cowhides have been stitched together as floor coverings. Stacks of antique white china fill the metal shelves and the floors are made from smoothly polished concrete. High narrow windows on either side of this space make it feel like an old church.

Ms. Puett’s vision reaches even into the refrigerator, which she has transformed into a strange, constantly shifting vignette of fresh food, old textiles and unusual scientific vials. 'I buy beautiful and grotesque foods and try to put them in a new context,' she said. A broccoli floret sits on an antique candlestick, a pomegranate and brown eggs in a glass vase, carrots in ceramic pots. All liquids are decanted into glass measuring vessels."

The thought of withdrawing from the Pergo-and-spackle world, like Ms. Puett, would be my Lotto dream (though apparently, when she first bought the property, she couldn't afford a $99,000 mortgage and had to buy with three other people - so she's done all of this on a budget). When I read this story, I realized, ah, this is the problem - I've been trying to insert myself into a collective dream that I don't understand, don't buy into and doesn't suit my nature. I have realized that it's not going to be an issue so much of "finding" as "making" a house, in the manner of Ms. Puett. Perhaps we'll find an old Northside beauty that we can gut to the studs and make our own. However ... I'll draw the line here: I just don't have the kind of chutzpah it takes to name a child "Grey Rabbit."

Generally, I am super suspicious of the "green consumerist" impulse, but the other day, while in Target (shopping for something practical, I'm sure, like Kaboom cereal) I drifted past an end-cap and saw some flowerpots that caught my eye. They had an unusual silhouette and were brightly colored, but not in a sickly, chemical, 1960s way. Upon further inspection, I discovered that they were made of rice husks and claimed to be biodegradable! How you prevent the things from just dissolving in the rain, I'm not sure, but there must be some trick to it. I tried to find images of these puppies online, but Target.com doesn't seem to carry them. Although I suspect that good old terra cotta pots are also "biodegradable" and cost a fraction of the amount, some people find their appearance too rough-hewn (or boring). If you're looking for something that's a bit more refined in appearance but NOT made from a petroleum product, these little guys (well, actually, they come in several sizes, including not so little) may be worth looking at. One step better, of course, is to try to seek the same from a mom and pop store like HomeEco rather than Target, and do the local economy a good turn, too.

As my little seedlings wilt on my porch (I'll be potting up some herbs tonight!) the unnaturally cool mornings remind me that spring is not over, and there's still time to get some beds planted. Take a peek at this really inspiring urban gardening story from the New York Times, if you haven't already (I'm also looking forward to this book being released). Though urban homesteading and permaculture have dovetailed, I've been sad to see that the native plant movement has not been folded into the mix more than it has. As urban gardening (and gardening gardening) gets more popular due to rising food prices, I'm hoping that people will plant some indigenous flowery plants for the bees and birds along with their dinner lettuce. MoBot's annual Plants of Merit list is an excellent source for sourcing native plants that are currently available. Go with the perennials (plumbago rhymes with lumbago, but it's awfully pretty) and you'll have perhaps the most low-maintenance garden you can keep ... aside from just letting the weeds run wild, that is.

I’ve alluded to the fact that I've moved recently, but haven’t dropped any details, other than our new place is on the smaller side. My husband and I now live on North 19th in Old North St. Louis, on the top floor of a rehabbed two-family. My landlady brought two gutted LRA buildings last summer and slowly brought them back to life—she has redone the sash and pulley windows, not replaced them with vinyl ones. She has sanded and sealed the original floors. She has refinished, stained and re-hung the doors, recycled drywall and board, rebuilt walls and made wall brackets by hand. Though we are still waiting for some little touches, our not-quite-finished apartment feels like one of Apartment Therapy's smallest, coolest apartments--warm, lovely and livable.

If you’ve been reading this blog for the past year or so, you’ve seen my posts on Blairmont, the company that has been buying up large chunks of North St. Louis real estate but never revealing its intentions for doing so. Of course, now that I am in the area (and have been lovingly welcomed by neighbors as far as five blocks away) I feel more concerned about the future of the neighborhood than ever. If you are not familiar with the basic facts, a great place to get up to speed is the Blairmont page on Michael Allen’s Ecology of Absence blog—he was the first to suss out the fact that Blairmont and the dozens of shell companies connected to it all led back to one person: WingHaven developer, Paul McKee.

Quoting Mr. Allen:

“This is a compendium of information on the real estate companies controlled by developer Paul J. McKee, Jr. known widely by the name of the first of his holding companies to buy a north side parcel, Blairmont Associates LC. Through these companies McKee has purchased over 700 parcels located in an area roughly bounded by Delmar Boulevard on the south, Grand Avenue on the west, Palm Avenue on the north and I-70 on the east. The purchases began in 2003 and continue to this day. Many of these holdings are adjacent to city-owned real estate or in the path of infrastructure projects. The purchases are in the 3rd, 5th 6th, and 19th wards of the city. Included in the inventory at least 150 historic buildings. This ownership has significantly damaged historic buildings through acute neglect, and has lowered the quality of life for many of the people who live near their purchases. Overall, the holdings have perpetuated the neglect of one of the city's most hopeful areas.”

Rob Powers of Built St. Louis has done an excellent job of documenting Blairmont’s effect on the neighborhood through his photographs, which reveal at a glance how these buildings have deteriorated after being purchased by Blairmont or one of its associated shell companies. (See his “Daily Dose of Blairmont” for a quick, eye-opening tour.)

As Powers points out, the company’s early real estate purchases were limited to lots and abandoned buildings, but more recently the company became more aggressive as it began to buy up “houses that were very recently occupied … Word has spread of strong-arm tactics, of tenants forced to vacate before the sale.” Those who remain in the neighborhood found themselves living next to unsecured, neglected and unboarded buildings. In one case, an unsecured building was used to dump asbestos waste; in many cases, what seem to be deliberately unsecured buildings have been magnets for drug dealers and prostitutes. Grass is left uncut and McKee is apparently in arrears several thousand dollars because the city has been cutting the grass on his properties—and, as the RFT revealed last week, participants in a federally-funded youth work program will now be utilized for this purpose too. (see the RFT’s recent piece, “Mow Your Lawn, Mister?”) Powers also points out that Blairmont properties are “subject to destruction by brick rustlers with uncanny frequency.” See more on that here.

Blairmont also owns the historic James Clemens mansion—which is significant both architecturally and historically (it belonged to Mark Twain’s uncle). This weekend, the chapel adjacent the house suffered a partial roof collapse (see Claire Nowak-Boyd's report, including photos, here) an event that was covered by both KSDK and the Post-Dispatch. Here is Michael Allen’s report, including some mysterious allusions to a potential buyer for the mansion; apparently Blairmont was doing some quickie maintenance, sans city permits, a few days before the incident.

Though reading about brick rustlers, the Clemens mansion and taxpayer-funded lawn maintenance is unsettling, you don't know the true meaning of that word until you wake up in the middle of the night to see that buildings a few blocks away from you are burning. The first weekend we spent at the new house, 11 arsons occurred a few blocks away in St. Louis Place. Eight of them were Blairmont buildings. Barbara Manzara has created a Google Map that plots out each fire and the circumstances behind it (note that one of these fires resulted in a death). Also check out this eyebrow-raising post from STLDotage, who had a very strange conversation with a St. Louis City detective after the arsons. Claire N-B has posted first person accounts of the fires here and here.

So what is Blairmont up to? Well, it’s probably not surprising that there are large sums of money at stake. Specifically, a $100 million tax credit known as the “Distressed Areas Land Assemblage Tax Credit,” which will be awarded to a developer who has amassed more than 75 acres of land. (See Michael Allen’s recent Vital Voice column on that topic here). Interestingly enough, this bill was penned by Steve Stone, McKee’s lawyer. It was modified only after the P-D published that fact on the front page of the Sunday paper; though McKee does not have enough acreage by himself, many have noted how his properties are located adjacent to city LRA properties, and when all of this real estate is accounted for, it’s more than enough acreage. As a commenter on the Ecology of Absence blog noted a few days ago, “on KMOX today, in the middle of a shouting match between Charlie Brennan and Slay-ite Jeff Rainford, Rainford drops the bomb that if everything goes right there will SOON be an announcement of the largest redevelopment that North St. Louis has seen in 50 years.” Though McKee has denied that there are specific plans in place, that is not the word on the street—I have heard rumors from several sources that there are actual hard copy blueprints, and have been for some time.

Powers continues:

“Evidence supports the notion that the Blairmont companies typically sell their properties back and forth to one another at inflated prices. See 2532 Hebert for a typical example of this tactic.

“If all these purchases are leading up to a project funded by tax credits, the inflated sale prices are a scheme to blatantly rob taxpayers. It costs McKee nothing, as he's essentially moving his own money from one pocket to another, but it creates a record of a higher price which would be credited to McKee under the Distressed Areas Land Assemblage Tax Credit—a Missouri state bill which McKee apparently had a very heavy hand in creating.”

Here is another big picture—an at-a-glance map, created by Barbara Manzara, with map pin icons indicating Blairmont’s holdings:


On the most basic level, people should be concerned that a huge chunk of their tax dollars are being funneled directly to one private developer—one who has, it should be pointed out, more than enough capital to fund his own projects. This is also a developer who has actively contributed to the deterioration of a living neighborhood in order to further his own business interests. Rob Powers points out that “Just as Old North is truly coming into its own, just as the revival of this area is showing signs of spreading into adjacent communities, just as awareness of the housing stock of this area is growing .. Blairmont's actions are both blocking the revelopment of many vacant properties, and allowing those properties to deteriorate.”

What will McKee do with a $100 million dollar tax credit? If he were interested in stabilizing the current neighborhood, why would he actively seek the deterioration of the historic buildings, many of which were occupied when he purchased them? Logic suggests (and rumors have alluded to) the current area being erased to make way for suburban-style homes; one reliable source has told me, though I have not been able to substantiate this, that there are no plans for residential construction, only commercial.

This is why I find articles like this WUSTL alum mag piece so perplexing:

“McKee is something of a philosopher, constantly working to integrate his ideals with his work. He's distilled much of his philosophy into a single term: LifeWorks, a trademark owned by McEagle Development.

“We create the space where community takes place” is one of our mottos,’ he says. ‘We really believe in community. LifeWorks means living, learning, working, and playing in the same place so your life works better … All of these companies have very strong core values … things like integrity, doing what you say, being involved with the community. Having the right people with the right core values permits us to do great things for our customers and partners.’”

The name of McKee’s St. Charles development, WingHaven, is a registered trademark. Residents are forbidden to have yard sales, or hang their wash out to dry. Though it’s good to see that there are some independent businesses around the complex, a good number of them are chains. A quote from WingHaven’s home page:

“We will create the space where business and community take place. The innate, human purpose of the villages as a gathering for all people will be re-discovered. Whether newly created or in response to the needs of existing urban areas, we will pursue these Integrated Developments to the betterment of our customers and the community. In the end, the impersonal division of Industrial Age development will be transformed into the interactive, mixed communities of the Information Age, where all have the opportunity to Live, Learn, Work, Play and Pray. The freedom and stability that comes from strengthening communities will prove that Life Truly Works.”

I am a big believer in that old saw about actions speaking louder than words. If Mr. McKee truly believed the above, he would, at the very least, secure his buildings, because the Northside is one of the richest, most vibrant communities in the City of St. Louis. I have heard people describe Old North as a small town within an urban environment; this is why people from five blocks away welcomed us when we landed in the neighborhood. It is a place where people come together organically and holistically despite differences in age, race or points of view. Where people share shovels and sugar, advice and hope. In direct contrast to many planned communities, people generally don’t move to the Northside because they are intent on gettin’ theirs, but because they want to give back and be part of something larger.

True community doesn’t require a trademark. True community is generous. It is open-source. It is open, period—it dies by hermetic secrecy. It is its own reward, and thus does not spring from a profit motive. True community grows on the street level; it flourishes in the small, the detailed, the slow and the painstaking. It wants to do things right for the sake of the common good and quality of life, rather than seeking the quick fix in order to bolster one’s own bottom line. Like anything real, it has to grow over time, through countless microscopic day-to-day interactions between real people just living their lives—not the two-dimensional visions of developers and city planners who think they have all the answers. To attempt to create it using a large-scale, fast food approach is folly. Jane Jacobs knew this, and time has proven her theories to be correct, which is why the Robert Moseses of the world now spout watered-down versions of her theories even as they take out whole neighborhoods. It’s not popular or political correct to bulldoze someone’s house for private development, which is perhaps why Blairmont leaves their buildings unsecured ... leaving the brick rustlers to do the dirty work for them.

So, there may be actual blueprints and plans up McKee's sleeve, but the final sentence of this drama is still unwritten. We can only hope that when it is put down on paper, it is a poetic line penned out of hope and imagination--rather than another statement that it's business as usual in the city of St. Louis.

There's nothing I love more than book sales, although in this case, because we were moving to a much smaller house, I ended up donating about 7 boxes of books. Still, though it sounds ridiculous, I may go and bring home a box of someone else's books! I will tell you, too, that having personally donated to this sale, there are some really nice art and history books in the mix, as well as lots of literature and literary theory, if you're into that kinda thing. Here's the details, per the ReHabber's Club list:

Thousands of used books, most a dollar or 50 cents, this weekend at 1912 Cherokee Street (at the eastern end of Antique Row). In addition to a large collection of fiction, books are divided into the following
categories:

Architecture/Urbanism
Art
Antiques and Collectibels
Gardening/Landscaping
Cookbooks
Travel
Music
Crafts
GLBT
Children's
Graphic novels and ocmics
Business and Management
Mysteries
Film and TV
lots of VHS tapes
...and a whole lot more.

The sale runs Saturday May 17 from 10 - 4 and Sunday May 18 from 12 - 4. Sunday is a bag sale.

This is the second annual Rehabbers club used Book Sale to benefit ongoing restoration work at the Chatillon-Demenil Mansion (www.demil.org). It's just part of the annual Cherokee Street History Fair; the DeMenil Mansion will be offering Free tours all weekend, and there are all kinds of other activites (tours, music, classic cars, authors, sales, scavenger hunt, and more.)

Oy vey! Apartment Therapy reports that Arthur Rimbaud's petulant mug is being splashed across rugs and wall hangings. Not sure what to think about this - I love it when the incendiary infiltrates the decorative. On the other hand, seeing my favorite poet turned into a textile is a little disturbing. But for a poet who colored in the vowels, perhaps it's not all that inappropriate...

Tower Grove Farmer's Market, the precursor to the excellent Local Harvest Grocery, kicks off their third season starting this Saturday! I remember their first season - people called them idealists and groused and grumbled that they would never get this thing off the ground because no one would pay more for local organic produce when they could get the cheap Produce Row stuff at Soulard. As this smart crew has now proved, there was a huge untapped market here, and people hit both markets, albeit for different things (I have yet to see live chickens in Tower Grove Park).

Here's the info:

This Saturday!
2008 Kickoff Celebration
8:30am - 2:30pm

It's finally here! On May 10 we will be celebrating the start of the third Tower Grove Farmers' Market season!

Come join us this Saturday in beautiful Tower Grove Park for a day of fun, food, and music. Fresh spring produce, including asparagus, will be on sale, as well as locally raised meats, local baked goods, and artisan wares. There will also be plenty of prepared foods on hand, including lamb gyros, barbecue, crepes, veggie wraps, and coffee. There will also be organic treats for the dogs!

We're excited about starting our third season and having fresh, local foods back in our kitchen. We hope you will be there on Saturday to share in the celebration.

We have some great music lined up for the day to kickoff the return of the Harvest Sessions Music Series:
• 9:30 – 10:45 Swing DeVille
• 11:30 – 12:45 PIK’n LIK’n
• 1:30 – 2:30 Bernie and Barbara McDonald

Free Yoga! Please note the new start time this year! The yoga classes will start at 9am instead of 8:30. The first class is Saturday, May 10.

We will be welcoming back our 2007 vendors and introducing a few more, as well:
• Companion Baking - bagels, pastries, breads, rolls
• Live Springs Farm - in-season produce including strawberries, asparagus, blackberries, and raspberries
• Centennial Farms - in-season produce, veggie and herb plants, flowers, preserves, honey
• 4 Seasons Baked Goods - from scratch baked goods, cookies, tarts, breads, biscotti, muffins, scones, granola
• Local Harvest Grocery - prepared foods, vegetarian wraps
• Three Rivers Community Farm - in-season produce, including many heirloom varieties
• Prairie Grass Farms - naturally raised lamb, eggs, in-season produce, Lamb Gyros
• Hinkebein Hills Farm - naturally raised beef and pork, Barbecue
• Show Me Fresh Farm - hydroponic gourmet lettuce, specialty greens, cut herbs, home grown vegetables, gourmet doggie biscuits, specialty jams, jellies, and butters
• Our Garden - in-season produce, goat and cow cheeses, plants, jams, pickles, goat soaps and salves, goat meat
• Kimker Hills Farm - in-season produce, including heirloom varieties, eggs, organic grains, flours and mixes, salsas, preserves, pickles, soaps
• Biver Farms - in-season produce including heirloom varieties
• City Seeds Urban Farm - in-season produce grown in mid-town
• New Roots Urban Farm - in-season produce grown in north city
• Kuva Coffe Company - locally roasted fair-trade and organic coffee
• Oh! Crepes - sweet and savory crepes
• Sunflower Savannah - cut flowers, in-season produce, herbs, potted plants, granola, jams, salsas
• Greenwood Farms - all natural chicken, beef, pork, lamb, & raw-milk
• And All Things Nice - Cookies and candies
• Ozark Forest Mushrooms - locally raised mushrooms, fresh and dried
• Chameleon Arts - handmade natural soaps, skincare, handwoven scarves, hats, placemats, belts, original notecards
• Ten - bags, purses, baby items, furniture, all handmade using re-purposed materials
• Haley's Handmades - handmade greeting cards, postcards, prints, beaded bookmarks
• Morgan's Naked Soaps - handmade artisan herbal organic soaps, soy candles
• Irie Star - candles, soap, lipbalm, massage oil, natural anti-bug spray, perfume oils
• R.Evolution - handcrafted aromatherapeutic products for body, butters, powders, sprays, bath teas, sachets, seeds
• Jazz's Homemade Dog Biscuits - homemade all natural dog biscuits
• Earth Tribe Collective - art prints, wood cut designs, stationery sets, aprons, cloth grocery bags, pottery, purses, clothing, jewelry, herbal products, children's toys, bug boxes, bird houses
• Scarlett Garnet Jewelry Designs - handcrafted jewelry using semi-precious stones, found and vintage materials, handmade beads, and other natural materials
• Peter's Card Shop - handmade cards
• Orient Express - handmade Chinese crafts, shoes, purses
• Stellar Batik - one of a kind handmade batiks using local beeswax
• St Louis Craft Mafia - handmade, locally made jewelry, clothing, baby items, accessories, recycled fabric housewares
• Beqi Clothing/Jane Linders/Houseshoe Mamas/Kelly Hoags Bags- women's and infant clothing, jewelry, accessories, purses, photography, visual art, diaper bags, hand bags, all handmade in St. Louis.

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• Preserving the Harvest
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