Finding Home & Community in Chicago -At Home with enid & Yard Sale
On a hot summer afternoon, we arrived at Ali Romero’s apartment with Cafe Tola empanadas in tow. She buzzed us in and we climbed the hard wood staircase, where Ali waited for us at the top. Greeted with hugs, we removed our shoes and gathered around her dining room table, where we unwrapped our empanadas and shared a conversation on the ideas of home, community and of course, metals.
We originally had the idea to feature Ali in our bedroom series back in 2024 at the very beginning of our showroom. Since then, both enid and Yard Sale have evolved and grown, but our shared intrigue for the home and creativity has stayed true. In those 2 years, Ali has explored Chicago and made many homes for herself - first with friends, then to a solo studio apartment, and fast forward to now to cohabitation with her partner Tommy and their precious kitty, Puddle.
If you haven’t gotten the chance to meet Ali (you may know her online as Yard Sale), she has an undeniably warm energy and her home is no different. You instantly feel welcomed and comfortable. The space is cozy and filled with layers of character that have been developed for decades. There’s history and a story in every piece - and Ali remembers it all. “I definitely took on the collector role from a young age… and I’ve had a lot of these pieces since college, some family heirlooms,” Ali shared. And Tommy’s no different - carrying mementos and more from his childhood bedroom into his previous home and now into their shared space.
Cherish Pillow, brought from Tommy’s childhood home when moving out.
Thinking Chair, Tommy’s grandad’s old desk chair that was passed down to Tommy in high school. Tommy tagged it “thinking chair”- a place where he often completes creative tasks.
Ali shares more about finding their current apartment and the shared love at first sight. She laughs mentioning how neither of them took a single photo during the tour. They just knew!
The apartment features a sunlit bedroom, a “nap-friendly” living room with an extensive vinyl collection, a cozy kitchen filled with special dining wares and hand-made ceramics, a dining room (and workspace), and my favorite - the sunroom and balcony.
Ali’s favorite album, Tender Buttons by Broadcast. She started listing to Broadast in college and this album is a go-to no skip favorite. She could listen every day and never get sick of it. Favorite songs off the album: Corporeal and Black Cat.
One of Ali’s most prized possessions, her mobile - Made by Ali in the Self.IMG Mini Mobile Workshop at enid with Karla Gisel. The mobile is filled with memorable charms and mementos.
Plates that have been in Ali’s family since 2001. Made by Amy, a close friend of Ali’s family and talented artist based in Minnesota.
A stained glass piece by Olivia Chasteney, a close friend of Ali’s and fellow Chicago artist.
A family heirloom from Ali’s grandparent’s on her father’s side from their travels in Africa.
Figure of Puddle gifted by Ali’s mom
Their kitchen stereo, which was rescued from a dumpster by Tommy. A perfect addition to their kitchen.
To Ali, her home is for hosting and gathering with the ones she cherishes most. Her love for hosting began in Gainesville, Florida where her home and the outdoor spaces surrounding it became a central place where friends gathered. Moving from the green lush of Gainesville to Chicago took time to transition. Hosting looked different. “My first couple of years here, I feel like I didn’t host in the way that I had been doing in the past. I was adjusting to city life,” Ali shared. Now in her new home, she finally feels ready. This time, opening up her space to “people who are important to [her], like friends visiting, or parents,” making this new space truly feel like home.
After our tour of Ali and Tommy’s apartment, we were able to hop on the Ashland bus and take a quick peak into her studio. There, we got to see her second home - her bench and the silver that surrounds it. When Ali’s not hosting at home or spending time with friends and family, she’s right here, working on the pieces you love and cherish most.
But for someone who values community, metals have always posed a bit of an adjustment. The process “has a tendency to be so individual,” she explains. “I’m the one who's in charge of everything that goes on with the pieces,” she shared. “When I first started, I didn’t really feel like [metals] were as conducive to collaboration….” It wasn’t until she settled into Lillstreet Art Center and a shared artist studio space where she realized she could create while sharing space with others. It’s “a collaboration in itself!” she says. The studio has been a way for Ali to expand outside the home and learn from other seasoned metalsmiths. “I'm not in high school in my bedroom anymore. I'm in a genuine space, which is so great…”
What’s now an almost-full-time career as a metalsmith and artist, once began in her bedroom, with a ring, a desk, and a dream. Ali reminds herself and us to always “keep going,” to keep believing, and to keep dreaming. Those little ideas that come to you in bed, in a passing thought, a dream, a memory… can always become so much more.
To learn more about Ali, you can check out https://www.yardsalejewelry.com/.
To shop Ali’s pieces in person, you can visit enid.
Photography by Anja Balle
