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H eading towards 20 fruitful years in business, Abejas owner Christina Mitchell wanted to shake things up. So she tapped interior design consultant Barbara Hill to help renovate a 3,000-square-foot mid-century modern building on South Boulevard into a new boutique. The new concept, which Mitchell envisions as both shop and com- munity gathering space, has an industrial art-gallery vibe with concrete floors, ex- posed ceilings and beams, and white walls. "The space has the feel of a great friend's fabulous home. You won't want to leave," she says. The new Abejas is stocked with the trademark cross-generational clothing, shoes, jewelry, and accessories, which we love. But it's the store's design and aesthetic that feel so fresh. A gravel patio with seat- ing nooks encourages friends to relax over a glass of wine. Mitchell has even added an urban chicken coop. Three hens — Ruby, Pearl, and Opal — are already hard at work laying perfect eggs. Abejas, 2517 South Blvd., 713.522.3025, abejasboutique.com. Anne Lee Phillips ABEJAS Redux 22 OBSESSIONS. DECORATIONS. SALIENT FACTS. Silos, Portals, Shipping Containers: It's all about place. Houston's second-ever sculpture month takes over venues citywide (the last one was back in 2000, and still a benchmark). Volker Eisele, Sean Rudolph, and Antarc- tica Black of Rudolph Blume Fine Art / ArtScan Gallery and Tommy Gregory of the Houston Airport System co-curate. Top two stops among the nearly 40-some exhibitions are the agrarian-cool The Silos at Sawyer Yards and the orga- nizing gallery with its must-see group view (through November 19) … It's a Faustian fall for Rome Prize painter Earl Staley. His set designs, originally commis- sioned for Faust in 1985, re- turn to the s t a g e i n Houston Grand Opera's latest pro- duction (through November 11). Staley also considers the opera's character Marguerite — specifi- cally, her garden — via canvases on view at Zoya Tommy Gallery featuring abstract portals through which lush landscapes and blossoms flourish (through November 12). It's full circle, as the artist's first opera was Faust in 1943, when as a five-year-old he ART NOTES T he Galleria announces new tenants opening 2017 in the former Saks Fifth Avenue space: Ted Baker, Massimo Duti, and AG Adriano Goldschmied, among others, while Loro Piano opens its first Houston boutique near Neiman Marcus ... River Oaks District welcomes Oroa, next to Steak 48. Contemporary women's brand Joie also opened in ROD, with its signature collections … It's getting closer: The first Forty Five Ten outside of Dallas is scheduled to open this month in River Oaks District, stocking men's and women's designers JW Anderson, Ellery, Marc Jacobs, Rosie Assoulin, Marc Cross, Sacai, and more. Jailyn Marcel Retail RAP XOXO, AVF watched mom Mildred Staley perform the role of Martha, Marguerite's maid, for the Chicago Opera Company … One highlight of Houston Cinema Arts Festival is the screening of Five in Houston, short docs produced and directed by 14 Pews film- maker Cressandra Thibodeaux. Sub- jects include 2016 Texas Artists of the Year Terrell James and Jesse Lott, and Nestor Topchy of the visionary shipping containers HIVE (Saturday, November 12, 11 am, at Sundance, houstoncinemaarts festival.org). Catherine D. Anspon L ongoria Collection has more Alexandra von Furstenberg to love. Von Furstenberg's signed '70s-inspired limited-edi- tion acrylic bowls, trays, and vases in neon and black-and-white hues flew off the shelves last fall, so the haven for home has added AVF's Lucite acrylic furniture to their lineup. As von Fursten- berg told PaperCity last fall, "I consider my pieces to be functioning art. People collect art; they collect beautiful handbags. You can do the same with furniture. It is a collector's mentality. It has to speak to you." We covet the clever XOXO table with its X base and O top. Made exclusively in rose for Longoria Collection, it retails for $7,200. Longoria Collection, 1101-02 Uptown Park Blvd., 713.621.4241, longoriacollection.com. Anne Lee Phillips COURTESY THE ARTIST AND ZOYA TOMMY GALLERY Earl Staley's Portal Series #59, 2016, at Zoya Tommy Gallery Dylan Conner installs his sculpture, Conversation with Gravity, 2016, at The Silos at Sawyer Yards' SITE Gallery Houston COURTESY THE ARTIST. PHOTO JUAN ALONZO. 14 Pews' Nestor Topchy: The Documentary, screening at Houston Cinema Arts Festival Alexandra von Furstenberg XOXO table in rose COURTESY THE ARTIST AND 14 PEWS