ESC has been on the road quite a bit this year and we aren’t done with our travels just yet. Elizabeth and Ally recently took on Chi-town this July, along with Philip and his colleague Mo, to showcase their jewelry and art at III Forks, located in downtown Chicago.
Elizabeth and Philip met Jeremy at the III Forks restaurant here in Jacksonville several years ago, and through their friendship also came a connection for work once Jeremy relocated to the Chicago location. As one of the managers of III Forks, and previous customer of Elizabeth and Philip, Jeremy had the idea to host a private wine tasting event featuring a pop up show, which turned out to be one of our most fun and engaging shows yet.
It worked out perfectly that this show was going to happen around the same time as Elizabeth and Philip's annual trek to their family's lake home in Wisconsin, and that Chicago is right along their route. Ally was also able to hit the road after our stay in Chicago and see the town Elizabeth grew up in after moving from Chicago in middle school.
Elizabeth and the team all arrived in town early Thursday morning at Elizabeth’s brother’s home in Wicker Park. With enough time to catch up and settle in before setting up for the big night we were able to learn a bit about the neighborhood history and what Brian and his girlfriend Lauren had in store for us as their guests.
Once the crew was ready it was game on and we hit the ground running. Starting with our famous ritual of a “good luck” tequila shot that we have before every show, we also have a chant that Elizabeth starts to get us amped-up for a big night of slingin' bling. We're definitely a little superstitious when it comes to our pre-show tradition, and think a little good juju goes a long way.
Having spent part of her life living in Chicago, Elizabeth’s local friends and family came to show their support, including her best friend Amanda, who used to help her sell jewelry back in their days of living in Aspen.
The event was held in one of the beautiful dining rooms of III Forks, and dozens of people came to sip, shop and mingle. We made plenty of new friends through our clientele as well, and hope to continue these relationships even when we are back home in Florida. Once the show was over the team enjoyed a late dinner on the rooftop. The food and drinks, along with the view of the Windy City absolutely blew us away.
After recovering from a busy day, Brian and Lauren took us out and about on Friday, introducing us to their favorite restaurants and hopping around from rooftop bars to their neighborhood block party, and ending the night of course with deep dish pizza. On Saturday we said goodbye to Chicago and hello to Powers Lake, where more of Elizabeth's family was awaiting our arrival.
Throughout the weekend we spent plenty of time enjoying the lake, playing with the nieces and nephews and going on the pontoon boat. We ended our weekend with a tour around Lake Geneva, and had many meals filled with fried cheese curds while listening to live music.
Without the good faith and support of Jeremy and the III Forks staff this wonderful event wouldn’t have been possible and we look forward to future shows in Chicago. We are also humbled by the hospitality and love that the city had to offer and plan to return as soon as possible.
Would you travel to see your favorite ESC Pop-Up?
