PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARIA PONCE, PONCE PHOTOGRAPHY
CREATIVE DIRECTION BY D. GRAHAM KOSTIC | WRITTEN BY ELLE EICHINGER
Haute Closet founder/stylist and Dose Market maven April Francis is all tough-girl chic: she arrived to our photo shoot in a leather biker jacket, studded red leather booties and her signature I-don’t-care-what-anyone-else-thinks demeanor. She’s direct, honest, and doesn’t sugar coat things; and—whether it’s because of or despite these traits—she’s also probably the most authentic person we’ve ever met. But—we’re going to take this style metaphor one step further—just like the soft floral blouse she rocked underneath her tough jacket, April has a soft, sincere soul; she’s the type of friend you go to for advice. But it isn’t just her friends she lends a hand to. At Dose Market—the monthly gathering of all things awesome in Chicago, from artisan foods to locally designed clothes—April donates table space to a cause she feels passionate about. In the past she’s supported the Honeycomb Project, Hand and Cloth, Seer Outfitters, Girls Rock (“Young and teenage girls are my favorite [demographic] to help,” she says), and a dozen others. She also brings in artists from the community, giving them a platform from which to show their work to the world, from writers to painters and beyond. In fact, April is the perfect example that giving back or being philanthropic doesn’t come down to who throws the most money into the pot. As a young, urban girl, she doesn’t always have the budget to support a cause with her wallet (or, for that matter, buy the latest designer bag—one more reason to go vintage). But she does all she can to bring attention to what each cause is all about, and give each an opportunity to publicize itself through Dose. “I have a bleeding heart for this,” she says. “If I could do more, I would.”