• Relish

    Mi Tocaya

    “I don’t give people what they want. I give them what I want to give them and what I want to share,” said Chef Diana Davila, who is the mind behind Mi Tocaya Antojeria, a renowned Chicago antojeria, Michelin Bib Gourmand selection, and 2018 semi-finalist for the James Beard Foundation’s award for Best New Restaurant. Upon opening in 2017 in…

  • Featured,  Form

    Layer and texture

    Amy Kartheiser, principal designer at Amy Kartheiser Design in Chicago, Illinois, discovered a love for design while working on a personal project. Though her background is in business, Kartheiser grew up with design in her blood and when working on her first condominium—involved in designing an entire interior from floor to ceiling with the help of her mom, who is…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured,  Print Edition

    Precious bonds 

    There is something both timeless and romantic to the narrative of precious stones and metals. It is an industry that has transcended as its artisans and designers instill their skill and passion into every polished diamond and each finely wrought metal. There is a story to be told, one of nuanced characteristics that make each stone and metal unique, and…

  • Architecture,  Featured,  Form,  Print Edition,  Residential,  Spotlight

    The beachfront aerie

    In renovating this waterfront aerie, nestled between waves and ravines on a mid-bluff along the shoreline of Lake Michigan, the collaborative team of Rock Kauffman Design, New Urban Home Builders LLC, and Bradley J. Boyer Design sculpted a 1950s-built cottage into an open and bright modern beach home in respectful interpretation.   There is a tendency toward clean, minimal lines…

  • Architecture,  Featured,  Form,  Print Edition,  Residential,  Spotlight

    Building a snapshot

    A Traverse City-based contracting and construction firm strives to frame each home by capturing the hidden treasures in each client’s lifestyle. “I have always had a drive for building things: building tree forts or building bridges through swamps,” said Dean Adams, owner of Bay Area Contracting, Inc. and BAC Design Group. “I was always so intrigued about it.” While Adams’ family may have had an affinity for the…

  • Featured,  Travel

    Public space, reimagined

    In recent years, there has been a growing initiative in urban landscapes to look beyond the imminent tomorrow and reimagine the next generation of public spaces. It is a movement encouraging cities, architects, designers, and urban planners to reclaim underutilized infrastructure and transform it into hybrid spaces of both city and greenspace: parks that also serve as public squares, gardens,…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured,  Travel

    Building Harley-Davidson

    For more than a century, the Harley-Davidson Motor Cycle Company, a subsidiary of Harley-Davidson Inc., has been an icon of American motorcycle design, both classic and innovative, with the company’s upcoming—and long-awaited—release of its first electric motorcycle, the LiveWire, being no exception. Harley-Davidson is also known as one of the only American motorcycle manufacturers still in existence from the industry’s…

  • Featured,  Print Edition

    Great Lakes By Design: In Scene

    Contents: Design Corner Thea | the artistic and minimalist table designed by Versteel in collaboration with Roberto Lucci Epoxy tables | 
a series of custom coffee tables from repurposed, fallen beech and oak trees Design Spotlight Behind the camera | 
in conversation about craft with some of the photographers in the region Julia Auerbach Photography Ashley Avila Photography M-Buck Studio…

  • Featured,  Form,  Travel

    Idyllic island retreat

    Within its approximately eight-mile circumference—contained by the limestone bluffs of Lake Huron—Mackinac Island holds a bounty of original and inspired Victorian-era architecture. The historic state park is as famous for its architectural details as its primary methods of transportation—bike, horse, and buggy—and each building on the island maintains characteristics of the era’s many popular stylistic movements, from the shingle and…