"Just think of it as a more curated collection, an edited version of what it used to be," co-chair Laura Senner told The Record in August. She was describing the Community House's fall fundraiser, which opens Friday, Nov. 6, under a new name.
For more than half a century it was the Antiques+Modernism Show. On Nov. 6 and 7 it debuts as The Winnetka Edit, timed to the show's 54th anniversary. The name is the smallest change. The show used to be built around rare inventory brought in from far away. Now it is built around the people who design and furnish rooms here, and around one question: what makes a home hold its value?
From Dealers Who Flew In to Designers Who Live Nearby
The Woman's Board described the 2024 edition, the show's 52nd year, as a three-day event that drew "preeminent dealers from across the United States and Europe" specializing in home furnishings, fine art and jewelry. Senner told The Record that sellers used to fly in from as far as France and England. Over time, she said, prices got too steep for many shoppers.
The other reason for the change was who showed up. According to The Record, the Woman's Board saw a younger crowd at last year's show and decided to rework the event. Senner said the plan was to keep "quite a bit of the things that everyone loved" and add "a little bit more fun new stuff."
Here is how the two formats compare:
| Antiques+Modernism Show, 2024 | The Winnetka Edit, 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | Three days | Two days, Nov. 6–7 |
| Exhibitors | Dealers from across the U.S. and Europe | 22 vendors, a smaller footprint |
| Pricing | Prices had become too steep for many shoppers | A wider range of prices |
| Centerpiece | Antiques, fine art, jewelry | Interior Designer Showcase and a panel on lasting value |
With fewer booths, the space goes to things that are hard to experience online. Senner put it plainly: "This is a place where you can just touch and feel the things. You don't have to look at them online and try to figure out what size they are."
The Showcase Is the Main Event
Senner called the Interior Designer Showcase the main new attraction. She told The Record that several of the participating designers have worked with the Woman's Board on its Home Tour. The Community House vendor page describes the showcase as "beautifully curated spaces" whose furnishings and decor are for sale, so the room in front of you is also the shopping list.
The five showcase designers:
- Emily Sturgess Design
- Jen Marie Interiors
- Lee Thinnes Antiques & Interiors
- Sarah Vaile Design
- White Couch Design
The remaining booths are in two groups. The decor and art dealers are Ashley & Sloane, Betsy Jane Candles, Gerchardt Art, Katie Westgate Ceramics, Leighton Fine Art, Loana Marina Purrazzo, Marona Studio, Martha Nippert, Pink & Tan, Sundays Art Advisory, Tiered & More, The Vault Creative and Vivid Art Gallery. The vintage fashion and jewelry section is curated by Melissa Carter of Kameo Vintage and includes Choice Edition, Kameo Vintage, Schlesak Vintage and shopNov.
Carter has shops in Highland Park and Winnetka and has come to the Antiques+Modernism Show for the past five years. She told The Record the show matters because it lets the neighborhood see local businesses, and called it "a great reintroduction to what I do." The old show brought specialists to Winnetka from abroad. This one introduces Winnetka to the people already working nearby.
The Panel Asks What Makes a Room Last
The panel is where the idea behind the new format is most explicit. At 11 a.m. Saturday in Matz Hall, Dustin O'Regan, editor-in-chief of Sheridan Road Magazine, moderates "Beautiful by Design – Creating Spaces that Add Lasting Value." The session covers how to add value to a home and the latest design trends. Panelists include Scott Byron of Scott Byron Landscape and Design, Lee Thinnes of Lee Thinnes Antiques and Interiors, and Valerie and Bob Compher of C&P Remodeling.
That lineup covers the whole property: the landscape around the house, the remodeling that changes its structure, and the antiques and interiors that finish the rooms. Senner connected the panel to what's for sale on the floor:
"People that are coming to the show can learn something about what these professionals in the industry are doing currently to maintain value in our homes. And that ties into the pieces that you're purchasing that you want to live with and that you feel are beautiful."
She said this to The Record, and it shows how the format works. You hear about lasting value at 11 a.m., then walk into the showcase rooms and see it in practice.
Friday Night Gets a Theme of Its Own
The opening-night party sets the tone for the weekend. Co-chair Sharokina Pazand, a professional event planner, started themed party nights last year with Roaring '20s. This year's theme is A Night at the Estate. "Think Ralph Lauren, think equestrian, think moody vibes, whiskey lounge," Pazand told The Record.
The event's ticket page lists dueling pianos, craft cocktails and elevated bites. The Record adds that guests get first access to the shopping floor. That matters at a show with fewer vendors and many one-of-a-kind pieces. Friday guests see the showcase rooms before anything has sold.
Planning the Weekend
Here are the details from the Community House and the event's ticket page:
- Friday, Nov. 6, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. A Night at the Estate. Tickets are $200 and include Saturday admission.
- Saturday, Nov. 7, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. General admission is $25 and includes the panel.
- Saturday at 11 a.m. "Beautiful by Design" in Matz Hall. Arriving at the 10 a.m. opening leaves an hour to see the showcase before the panel.
- Getting in. Use Entrance 1 on Lincoln Avenue or Entrance 4 next to the Village Parking Lot. Parking is available at the Community House, in the Village lot and on the street. From the Union Pacific Metra line, the building is one block east and two blocks north of Winnetka Station.
- Refunds. All ticket sales are final.
The Community House directions page has an attendee map of both entrances and the parking areas.
What the Weekend Pays For
The cause hasn't changed. The ticket page says all proceeds from The Winnetka Edit benefit the Community House, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The Woman's Board, founded in 1976, says its fundraising goes directly to the Community House operating budget, which gets no tax dollars.
You can see that budget at work in the building's calendar for the rest of the year. The Community House events page lists:
- Nov. 12, 10 a.m. A Master Your Apple Watch lecture
- Nov. 13, 10 a.m. Holy Cannoli, a cooking class
- Nov. 19, 6 p.m. A Make and Take Charcuterie Board workshop
- Nov. 19–22 The Children's Theatre of Winnetka's fall show, Annie the Musical
December starts with a busy weekend. On Friday, Dec. 4, the Winnetka-Northfield-Glencoe Chamber of Commerce lights the holiday tree in Dwyer Park, near Elm and Birch behind the post office. The Chamber's event page is the place to check the date and program before you go. The next morning, Saturday, Dec. 5, from 9 to 11:30 a.m., the Community House Junior Board hosts Winter Wanderland, a walk through holiday scenes the board members design and install themselves, ending with a visit to Santa. Those proceeds also go to the Community House. That afternoon, Toby Nicholson and Robert Bowker's A Christmas Carol begins its run, with shows at 1 and 4 p.m. on both Dec. 5 and Dec. 6 and a cast of professional actors alongside local performers from the North Shore.
So the new format is about more than shopping. The money raised on Nov. 6 and 7 goes to the operating budget of the building that hosts this season's classes, kids' theater and holiday events.
Saturday's panel on lasting value covers the same ground we work through when we prepare a home for market. If you come home from the show wondering how your own rooms would show today, The Kasey Group would be glad to walk through them with you. Refine Your Life Story — Request a Complimentary Home Valuation.
