Colorado’s do-it-yourself groundswell — mixing old-school handicrafts with cutting-edge organic materials and design — is propelling a surge of innovative galleries, stores, classes and blogs. “I can’t believe how much the scene has exploded since we started the Fabric Lab,” says Tran Wills, co-owner of the edgy Colfax Avenue boutique that exclusively features Colorado designers, along with The Shoppe, a cupcake/cereal/design emporium.
“The Fabric Lab would not be what it is if it weren’t for all the great designers who’ve become friends and created a community that has an art scene, a music scene and a fashion scene.”
Sometimes all three simultaneously, like last December’s Frock Out collaboration between Wills’ East Colfax Avenue businesses and Fresh City Life, the Denver Public Library’s new venture. Modeled after TV’s “Project Runway,” local designers strutted their work on a catwalk in the downtown library’s main hall.
“We had an unprecedented number of people attend Frock Out,” said Fresh City Life co-director Audrey Sprenger.
“There is a lot of resistance to taking a space that’s traditionally quiet, where you’re supposed to behave, and saying let’s make some noise in here. But we see the library as one of the rare public spaces where you can experiment with cultural programming.”
Learn more about a few of Colorado’s scenes and be-scenes:
Edifice Gallery
325 N. Tejon St., Colorado Springs; 719-434-4866, and
Edgy clothing and art prove that Colorado Springs isn’t entirely consumed by conservative Christians. “Fashionista,” an exhibit of fashion-influenced art, opens Friday, featuring giclèe prints — a printmaking method using an ink-jet printer — and singular creations. Check out the blogs for groovy links and videos.
Fancy Tiger
1 S. Broadway, Denver; 303-733-3855,
This DIY handicraft-supplies store emphasizes fabric, with a vast stock of gorgeous (and eco-friendly/sustainable) yarns, fibers, wool and needles for felting toys, retro-print fabric in the incredibly hip colors and patterns that non-scene- sters find visually painful. The friendly staff offers lots of DIY classes. Each Tuesday from 6 to 9 p.m. is open-crafts night, and Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. is open- sewing night, with sewing machines available to rent by the hour or evening.
Fresh City Life
10 W. 14th Ave., Denver; , 720-865-1206
This 3-year-old program turns conventional library culture on its ear, bringing in food, music, performance and idiosyncratic fashion shows. The recent “Wild Wilde West” series centered on Oscar Wilde’s exploits in Colorado that brought in American Indians, cowhands, an Asian- American cowboy singer, and a bean dinner that drew “Iron Chef” devotees.
JoyEngine
2037 13th St., Boulder; 303-449-1967,
JoyEngine is a boutique and gallery of local street clothing and art, and also a phenomenal blog and website. The physical facility in Boulder is where irony cultivators come to shop after outgrowing Hello Kitty and anime. Its website has a stunning assortment of downloadable, free desktops; a rich archive of past exhibitions; an up-to-the-second events listing of scenester-friendly happenings and stuff.
The Lab at Belmar
404 S. Upham St., Lakewood; 303-934-1777,
“Part art museum, part lab, part of the problem” is The Lab’s motto. It’s known for witty, unconventional art exhibits, like last year’s paired display of grinding stones and the poems they inspired. The Lab is celebrated for its eccentric Mixed Taste series that combines tag-team presentations on two diverse topics. Upcoming lectures include “Sun Ra and Southern family restaurants” and “Maya astronomy and Stanley Kubrick.”
Plastic Chapel
3109 E. Colfax Ave., Denver; 303-722-0715 and
In 2005, owners Deanna Webb and Dave Wendt opened the Plastic Chapel as a limited-edition designer toy store specializing in the Asian action figures exemplified by Hikaru Iwanages’ Bounty Hunter brand. Most are limited-edition and imported toys designed for collectors hoping to snag the next Captain Bounce or Kid Hunter, originally $50, and now up to $500 on eBay.
The Shoppe
3103 E. Colfax Ave., Denver; 303-322-3969,
Come for the cupcakes, stay for the zines and graphic design works. Then come back again, maybe after clubbing, for a bowl of the hyper-sugary cereal that your mother never let you eat. It’s a happenin’ scene from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
– Claire Martin
