The Material Review
Issue 084: The Grand American Resort, Honesty Bars, The New Epicenter of the Biking World, Losing a Hobby, Hardanger Boats, Spotlight On: Métier and Sperry x J. Crew.
Stories worth reading. Stop indexing the internet.
The Grand American Resort Is Making a Comeback—Just In Time
“From sea to shining sea, lavish renovations have brought historic hotels back to their former glory.” [Bloomberg]
Why I’ll always believe in an honesty bar
“Nothing says ‘home’ like helping yourself” [FT]
Floating Lines
“Witnessing the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge via pack raft” [Patagonia]
How an Arkansas City Became an Epicenter of the Biking World
“Buoyed by the interests of the family behind Walmart, Bentonville has become an unexpected hub for cycling.” [NYT]
What We Lose When We’re Priced Out of Our Hobbies
“For a lot of people, it’s getting too expensive to knit or fish.” [The Atlantic]
Crafting a Hardanger Boat
“On the Norwegian coast, a tree is transformed into a boat the old-fashioned way” [Aeon]
A shortlist of things we’ve got our eye on.
American Trench The Triple-O Pant
Asahi Deck Shoes
Fishing: The Ultimate Book
J Mueser Waverly Wool-Hopsack Blazer
Kelty Window Seat
Sperry x J. Crew
Authentic Original Boat Shoes in Rughout Suede
Signal Flag Jacket
Métier
Racer 53
Racer Tote
Closer All Day Briefcase
Nomad All Day
Racer 40
Classifieds
Welcome to our weekly “Classifieds” section of the newsletter. The idea is to find an easy way to promote things happening in our ecosystem. Think of this space to promote your eBay shop, event, newsletter, app, book, tool or your personal brand (if you must). Drop us a line at if you’re interested in buying an item in an upcoming issue. Price: $200 for four ads. Maximum 280 character per ad.
🛒 imogene + willie Another Backyard Market
Saturday, April 26th — 11am-4pm. 2601 12th Ave S. Nashville, TN
Join us in the backyard of our 12th south shop next saturday, april 26th, for a market with our friends at @lagniappe.market — featuring local small businesses, and music DJ’d by our friends at @wnxpnashville.
🛒 Shop Small Greenpoint: Spring Crawl 2025
May 3 - May 11. Greenpoint, BK, NYC
Shop Small Greenpoint promotes the neighborhoods independently-owned small businesses to create visibility, engage our community, and share resources among business owners. By curating various events and highlighting Greenpoint’s diverse retail experiences, we rise together!
Find more info HERE & check @shopsmallgreenpoint for all crawl updates during the event.
🎉 Battenwear Loves Topanga: A Goodbye Gathering
Thurs. May 8 - Sat. May 10. 1111 N Topanga Canyon Blvd. Topanga, CA 90290
Shopping. Hanging Music. Special Guests: Hightide DTLA, Yoka Good Things, Minor Planet.
Bummed we won't be able to make the I+W market this round. It's such a good time!
J.crew crawling out of the grave of Hedge Fund Hell, especially in this day and age, is truly awe inspiring. I typically don't believe most CEOs or other well compensated management is worth the cost, but sometimes we do witness the power of inspired leadership. Libby Wadle and Brendon Babenzien really have righted the ship.