fashion

Stylish Thanksgiving Woman, by Flickr user Insomnia Jones, J.D.

Ah, Lincoln Park. Home of frat daddies and beachcombers. Diversity! 

As I strapped on my stalker camera I thought to myself, of all the glorious Chicago neighborhoods, what better place to spot sexy shoppers and post beach hotties working it in the summer's breeziest trend?

“Why have you not been making dresses?”

That was the incredulous question a friend asked Kahindo Mateene.

Three of her friends were standing in the middle of Mateene’s Edgewater apartment, looking at and trying on an assortment of clothes designed by Mateene.

“I’m wearing Kahindo,” Silvia Kariuki said, coining the designer’s first name as the label for the orange and green halter dress she had been reluctant to take off.

Jessa Brinkmeyer said customers find that going green can be gorgeous in her eco-smart fashion boutique.

"When you walk in, you realize you don't have to sacrifice anything in terms of style or fashion in order to be green," she said. "People are pleasantly surprised and shocked about what is being done with these fabrics. It's not boring and basic or uncomfortable and ugly - it's beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. It's like walking into any other boutique."