May has been a month of ups and downs within Milwaukee's closely-knit indie crafter community. The start of the month found Fasten Collective closing its boutique and the end of it marks the final day of Faythe Levine and Kim Kisiolek's Paper Boat Boutique and Gallery.
Those are the downs; but here is the up.
The new Sparrow Collective Gallery is picking up where both Bay View boutiques left off and promised to fill the void -- and then some -- left by their absence.
Co-owner Lisa Wierzbinski began selling her vintage-meets-modern clothing line, MoshiMoshi, at Fasten in 2007. When she learned that owner Janelle Grambling wanted out of the boutique business to focus on her growing family, she knew she was ready to take it on.
"As I sold items, I started to get more motivated and with that eventually became an involved member within the collective," she says. Because Fasten's boutique was run as a collective, participating artists received a great consignment rate in exchange for their time spent working in the store at 2224 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. Wierzbinski knew it was too important to see die.
"Sparrow was born because there needs to be a place where artists and designers can showcase their works and be supported by the patrons of the city," she says. "It would have been a real shame to see both Paper Boat and Fasten close. These small shops and others like it are what shape Milwaukee's personality."
Wierzbinski and business partner Jessica Franzen (whose accessory line is called Papavier) opened Sparrow May 1 in Fasten's former Bay View spot as an evolution of the original artist-supported collective. Whereas Sparrow will continue to sell and promote one-of-a-kind hand-sew fashion from local designers and support the community with events, craft nights, and monthly gallery artists, it also has expansion plans.
While at least half of the merchandise will be locally made, Wierzbinski and Franzen are working to attract likeminded DIY artists and designers from across the country, much like Paper Boat did.
The majority of the collective's Milwaukee-based artists -- Madame Chino, Owl Eyes, Little Ocean, Becky Tesch, Miss Miso, V-Gear -- plan to stay with Sparrow and sell their wares.
Sparrow is now open Wednesday through Saturday, 12-7 p.m. and Sunday, 12-6 p.m. The owners have a grand opening party planned for Saturday, May 16 and invite the community to check out the new store and join them for a cookout and free goodies.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.
As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”
