Staying at The Grand America was an awesome experience.
* I could press a button in the morning, make a request, and by the time I got out of the shower a Nutella banana crepe and a pot of coffee would magically appear at my doorstep.
* I had more sinks than one person staying in one room could possibly need.
* I fell in love with a toy store.
JouJou at the Grand America is the coolest toy store that I’ve ever seen. It’s beautifully designed (by StruckAxiom) and filled with awesome toys, fun play areas, and vintage-inspired candy.
The window displays are amazing. I fell in love with the orange monster and his jeune garçon pal. There’s even more monster coolness inside the shop, where visitors can actually interact with the wall of “living” monster portraits.
There’s a candy organ that you can play with your feet by dancing (or, if you absolutely must, by walking) on the lighted floor, and an adorable dress-up room with tiny mushroom stools (guarded by a cool metal owl) so your little princess, bug, or robot can try on costumes and twirl in front of the mirrors.
Watts Architects was the architecture firm for JouJou. I was lucky enough to have lunch with founder Kevin Watts himself during Alt Summit. He and his team are going to be expanding their blog soon and were there to learn some new tricks. Note: Kevin is super nice, and he liked my chocolate.
I wish Nathaniel could have seen JouJou! He would have loved it. I mean, the kid shrieks when he sees a non-fabulous stuffed animal while we’re waiting in line at the drugstore. He would FLIP OUT if he walked into this place. He and Drew may have to come to Alt next year. It would be worth it just to see his face light up and hear him squeal. Nathaniel, I mean…well, Drew would love it too, so maybe…
If you’d still like more, here’s a cool teaser for the shop.
[vimeo 32231654 w=601 h=338]
That’s all for now, but I’ll be giving you a peek into…wait for it… the patisserie soonish.