MORE DOS & DON'TS OF LUMENOCITY

Recently, Lumenocity posted a cheeky Dos and Don'ts list with tips for attending the multi-day festivities. I have a few more to add:

DO remember that you're in a neighborhood. Conduct yourself as if you were on your home street, being considerate that residents may be asleep when you leave Lumenocity.

DON'T litter, pee in stairwells, walk through flowerbeds, or congregate in doorways when others are trying to enter/exit.

He's about to step on some plants...

DO use designated crosswalks as there will be extensive traffic and motorists unfamiliar with navigating city streets.

DO take the bus, as parking will be at capacity during the event. If attending Lumenocity on a weekday, Metro*Plus has a 30 minute journey from Nordstrom at Kenwood Mall to Downtown, dropping you off within walking distance of the event.

For both weekend and weekday, if you live near:
I-75 (between Downtown and Springdale): ride Route 78
Northside: ride Route 17 or 19
Westwood: ride Route 64 or 21
Mt. Lookout: ride Route 24
Each of the above also drop off/pick up within walking distance of Lumenocity. Roundtrip cost: $3.50 per person.

If you choose to drive, DO remember to use the pay-and-display machine if you don't see a parking meter. Street parking is enforced until 9:00pm.

If you park in a garage, DON'T take up multiple spaces. Check to make sure all four tires are inside the lines.

A crowd queues at a parking lot after Lumenocity.

DO visit a new or favorite local restaurant.

DON'T put your name on six restaurant waitlists, take the first available, and forget to cancel the rest.

DO wear practical walking shoes. Ladies, leave the stilettos at home.

DO keep track of your handbag. This is an urban area with an event attracting thousands of people. There will be pickpockets. I recommend a crossbody bag with zipper closure.

DON'T forget to pack some bug spray or lemongrass oil to ward off insect bites.

DO check out the historic Cincinnati LEGO displays at Music Hall.

DON'T bring your iPad to film Lumenocity. The people seated behind you bought tickets to watch the show, not to watch it through your glowing, 12" screen.

DO wear your salmon shorts, the OTR trend of the summer.

DO pick up after yourselves. Or you may become b-roll in an indie film:

BEST OF CRAFTY SUPERMARKET

Local holiday shopping kicked off on Saturday with the Crafty Supermarket Holiday Show hosted inside Music Hall. With over 90 vendors and hundreds of new items, shoppers were sure to find something for everyone on their list.

 
Of course, considering that this year was also Crafty Supermarket's largest-ever turnout at 4,000+, attendees may have missed an item or two. Worry not! CincyWhimsy perused every aisle and created a collection of 15 favorite finds, many of which are available online from the retailer.

THE BEST OF CRAFTY SUPERMARKET

1.) AROMI BEAUTY

Formerly a chemist for Bath & Body Works, Hannah Follis has developed a line of fragrances, eye shadows, and lipsticks that are cruelty-free and look and smell amazing. Unlike standard vegan-friendly cosmetics, which tend to be crude or have limited appeal beyond the environmentalist crowd, Aromi is a beauty line that everyone can love. With a dozen luscious scents, 15 bold shades of lipstick, and even a line of colognes for men, Aromi provides a polished look with the quality of a national store, but with your dollar instead going straight to an entrepreneur.

2.) STEAM WHISTLE LETTERPRESS

Not one, but two unique gifts caught my attention at Steam Whistle Letterpress: a customizable leather notebook and a rubber stamp set featuring Cincinnati landmarks, like Music Hall, Union Terminal or historic row houses. Located in Over-The-Rhine, owner Brian Stuparyk prints everything using old-fashioned letterpress machines, giving everything from greeting cards to book covers a crisp, historic finish. For the event, Brian used a foil press to create lettering on the leather notebooks.

3.) JESIIII

Capturing nostalgia and the imagination, artist Jesiiii uses wood (sometimes with bark attached) as her canvas. Bright colors and darling characters compliment the punny phrases scribed around them, such as "To gnome you is to love you," or "It's meow or never." Cheer up any room with one of her portraits, or make friends with a Pocket Pal: a quarter-sized, egg-shaped wooden charater that slips right into your pocket.

4.) KATE FUNK

Kate Funk loves to dress up her cat, in a way that takes "crazy cat lady" to a new level. From iPhone covers to throw pillows and holiday cards, her feline muse, AC, shows off his personality on every form of medium that Kate can think of. Forget the birds; let's put a cat on it.

5.) BURNING RIVER CANDLE CO.

It's the candle shop that will catch even a man's attention. Outfitted in you favorite craft beer bottle, Burning River Candle Company features uniquely scented soy candles use natural wax and their own hand-cut and polished recycled glass bottles.

6.) JODI LYNN'S EMPORIUM OF DOODLES

Scientists and Motown; two topics rarely to be crafted, and even more rare to find as a combination in one shop. Jodi Lynn's Emporium of Doodles has all your nerdy obscurities covered, including hand-etched magnets and keyrings of anything from Smokey Robinson to Schrodinger's Cat.

 

7.) STATE OF SHOCK

Pop art sensation Darin Shock not only draws; he also creates hand-carvings of his illustrations. This weekend he showed off his Cincinnati Flying Pig and Pete Rose figures. With many other sports stars and music icons in his collection, State of Shock is the place to snag that special gift for the collector who thinks he has everything.

8.) BEARMOJO

Pillows, plush toys, and even wallets, the Bearmojo factory is cranking out the cutest monsters in the world. Bright and furry, these creatures immediately caught my eye from across the room. Crafted for the "UnGrownup" yet perfectly suitable for children, any present from Bearmojo is guaranteed to steal the show this holiday season.

9.) WHOLLY CRAFT!

A real-life Etsy storefront in Columbus, Wholly Craft! is a retail shop for all Cbus creatives who need a place to sell their wares. Some of the selection was brought to Crafty Supermarket, including this little gem, a "Killer Nightlight" which features a kitten holding a gun. That will keep the monsters away!

10.) ALISON ROSE

Speaking of cats, we fell in love with vendor Alison Rose for a second year in a row after spotting this shirt: a cat created out of many miniature cats! You may remember CincyWhimsy swooning over her fortune holder wallets during the previous holiday season, and yes, she still has those available too.

11.) FABRICATE

But wait...there's even more cat stuff!  Located in Northside, Fabricate is Cincinnati's version of a retail Etsy store, selling the wares of many crafters in a brick-and-mortar shop. One of their many selections includes these knitted caps with kitten ears. There are many different breeds of hats, such as black cat, Siamese, orange tabby, or grey tabby. Super soft and warm, these hats are the next best thing to having a cat on your lap to stay cozy.

11.) BROADHOPE ART COLLECTIVE

Looking for a retail Etsy store on the West Side? Broadhope Art Collective has you covered! Located across the street from Westwood Town Hall, Broadhope features dozens of local artists and crafters merchandise with convenient parking and shopping hours. They also host crafting classes, like the make-your-own-button demonstration at Crafty Supermarket.

12.) ART 2 THE EXTREME

Long before Pinterest, Nicole Lewis was recycling her own crayons. Melting down old nubs of Crayolas to make a new, big rainbow crayon became her passion. Her business, Art 2 The Extreme is the original creator of the recycled crayon, and offers over 100 shapes and sizes of her colorful creations, including icons ranging from fortune cookies to Lego bricks.

13.) SARAH HORN CERAMICS

Making another exciting return to the blog are the Cincinnati neighborhood ornaments by Sarah Horn Ceramics. These charming dangles of hometown pride topped CincyWhimsy's list last year as our favorite holiday present. Now they're back and in more variety than ever, featuring all 52 neighborhoods plus your favorite places in Northern Kentucky and Indiana.

14.) MUSIC HALL BAR

Taking a different approach to the word "craft," the Music Hall Ballroom Bar was serving up cocktails all day during Crafty Supermarket. From mimosas to martinis, the jovial bartenders kept everyone in good spirits throughout the afternoon.

15.) INNAD

One of the most practical and much-welcomed gifts of the season is that of a new wallet. Let's face it; they wear out every year or so and as the owner, we get so attached to our comfortable, familar wallet that it's challenging to find a replacement that matches up. When gifted from a friend, however, the new wallet comes with sentiment; a fond memory of a loved one every time you reach for your credit card. To help with your transition, Innad designed a series of sleek, durable wallets and check book covers, such as the always-handy transit map.

LEGO MY MUSIC HALL

Brick by brick, a new version of Music Hall was constructed over the past eight months. Made entirely out of LEGO pieces, model builder Mark Clark erected a built-to-scale model out of over 100,000 plastic building blocks. Encompassing every detail of the Cincinnati landmark, the mini Music Hall is 1/50 of the actual size and measures 42 inches high, 100 inches wide, and 106 inches deep.

Clark gathered most of his materials from standard LEGO sets, and only had to special order 10% unique parts for the build. Some of the details included 310 windows and 960 seats in Springer Auditorium. As the model is built to reflect Music Hall's heyday in the late 1800s, Clark included the Miami-Erie Canal in the rear of the building, which consisted of over 10,000 transparent blue dots.

Like every LEGO creation, there are hidden details in the project that will make you smile. Look for a skeleton under the stage in the auditorium. One may also spot a ghost riding the infamous haunted freight elevator.

Visitors can view the model in the foyer of Music Hall for free from 10:00am to 6:30pm. The display will be on exhibit through Friday, August 9.

LUMENOCITY

Over 35,000 people flocked to Washington Park during the weekend for a first-of-its-kind sensory experience. As part of One City, One Symphony, the community-wide LumenoCity combined a live orchestra concert with elaborate electronic visuals for a mind-blowing 40 minute performance.

Music Hall twinkles with delight for LumenoCity.

 
In honor of Louis Langrée, the new music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, all five of Cincinnati's fine arts groups took part in the event as well as the venue itself. Music Hall's facade served as the canvas for the light show. Visual elements were laid out on a grid and projected from two semi-trailers opposite Music Hall on Race Street. The aesthetics portrayed the building to be dancing along to the music by highlighting its curves and crevasses. A variety of vibrant patterns were also illuminated as well as a story about the seasons of life. Silhouetted dancers used the facade's balcony and horizontal peaks as a stage.

Louis Langrée conducts the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra at LumenoCity.
Photo by Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

VIDEO: Introducing LumenoCity

 

Saturday's turnout of over 15,000 people filled the event lawn to capacity over 2.5 hours before the show began. The enormous popularity led spectators for Sunday's show to begin staking out spots as early as nine hours before the show. Good thing too, as the final performance drew a crowd of 20,000, many of whom were repeat visitors from Saturday. To accommodate the masses, Cincinnati Police closed both Elm and 14th Street adjacent to Washington Park. Still, the overflow managed to exceed these boundaries, as the gathering pushed as far back to Republic Street on the east side of the park. Cincinnati is one of only 13 cities in the United States to offer all five fine arts including. Cincinnati Pops, Symphony, Opera, Ballet, and May Festival Chorus.

Spectators began arriving at noon to secure a spot for the 8:30pm LumenoCity show.
Photo by OTR Matters

By 6:30pm, not a blade of grass was seen on the Washington Park lawn.

One hour before showtime, the crowds overflow Washington Park as far back as Republic Street.
Photo by John Yung, UrbanCincy

Over 20,000 people in attendance at Washington Park for LumenoCity on Sunday.

Photo by Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

Prior to the light show, John Morris Russell and the Cincinnati Pops warmed up the crowd with Broadway hits from Hairspray, Oklahoma, and selections from one of my favorites, Les Miserables.

VIDEO: "Do You Hear The People Sing?"  - Les Miserables

VIDEO: "At The End Of The Day" - Les Miserables

LumenoCity's glistening finale included audience participation as gigantic glowing balls were volleyed across the crowd. After the performance, I met a little girl who caught one of the balls. "I'll sell it to you for $5.00," she smirked. Prosperity is alive and well in Over The Rhine.

VIDEO:  LumenoCity Finale

The little girl with the glowing ball, amongst the exiting crowd on 14th and Elm.