Hand-drawn hometown collection
A hand-drawn celebration of La Grange, available exclusively at Blackberry Market.
Directions to Blackberry Market15 oz ceramic mugMicrowave safeDishwasher safe
Community
La Grange is a welcoming village with a beautiful historic core, active local businesses, and traditions that bring generations together. The theatre, Stone Avenue station, Gordon Park, and the beloved Pet Parade give the community a distinctive hometown spirit residents are proud to share.
The collaboration
My connection to La Grange reaches back to childhood. I spent my elementary years in nearby Brookfield, and La Grange was where our family went to the movies and enjoyed time downtown. Those memories made it a natural community for me to celebrate through art.
I loved drawing the downtown clock, fountain, and theater, especially the character of the theater marquee. Walking through downtown La Grange still feels beautiful and inviting for our family.
It has been great collaborating with Bree at Blackberry Market. She has always been so kind to our family, and I absolutely love the shop and the welcoming place it has created for the La Grange Mug.
The story behind the mug
After the first release sold out sooner than expected, a new run of The La Grange Mug returned to Blackberry Market.
Inside the illustration
Stone Avenue Station is one of La Grange’s two Metra stops, connecting the village with Chicago by commuter rail.
The La Grange Theatre opened in 1925 and has remained a moviegoing landmark on South La Grange Road.
La Grange Village Hall anchors the historic downtown, where civic life meets a business district with buildings dating to the 1890s.
The La Grange Pet Parade welcomes summer with a long-running community procession celebrating pets and their people.
Gordon Park sits along Ogden Avenue in La Grange, providing neighborhood recreation space managed by the local park district.
Downtown La Grange combines historic commercial buildings with shops, restaurants, and gathering places around Village Hall.
The launch
The first release moved faster than expected, selling out even though Ashley had planned enough mugs to last through Christmas. A new run was made, and The La Grange Mug returned to Blackberry Market in December 2023.
Ashley remains deeply grateful for La Grange’s overwhelming support and for the way the community embraced a mug filled with its own familiar places.
Journal · Behind the drawing
The mug brings together a town I knew growing up and a shop that welcomed the artwork.
Read the story
