Lillia barn means "little child" in Swedish. but they don't sell children's clothing exclusively. The store has an interesting backstory. The owner makes the clothes she sells in the studio at the back of the store. She began doing so when she was pregnant with her own child years ago and calls herself a "color equity ambassador" according to the website, which I can get on board with: When she was pregnant, she could only find stereotypical boy/girl colors in clothing. I can confirm! It is a struggle to find baby clothes that aren't in the "blue for boy, pink for girl" camp (did you know that pink was once associated with boys, and the gendering of colors is a relatively new phenomenon?). During my own pregnancy a few months ago I had a hard time with this as well, and the inventory at the stores I visited tended to have a lot of blue or pink rather than gender neutral selection.
What began as an online store finally grew into a physical location in late 2022. The clothing for both children and adults feature bold, gender neutral patterns. They feature an artist in residence, who at the time of this writing is Adria Green. Although they now have a physical location, they still participate in some local craft shows (they were at Renegade this weekend). The store also features like-minded brands in addition to its own. I purchased something from a brand called Earth Cadets, a local Chicago company that sells durable goods. Another of the brands they carry, Gunner + Lux, actually has a pop-up on their site asking you to confirm you agree with their equity principles or they can't take your money. I love that she supports and provides an outlet for other eco- and socially-conscious brands. The next step (according to the email list that I was apparently added to) is inclusive sizing, which I can definitely appreciate as a plus-size woman.
Usually when I go to The Understudy, I park on the Gregory Street side. For that reason I never noticed this shop until today. I'm glad that I did and was able to stop by, and hope this shop thrives in this location. read more