////

Drexel student turns passion for sustainability into full-blown candle business

With tuition bills looming, Drexel student Janyah Green launched her own candle-making business last year, vending online and at local events under the name Monae Designs. Selling scents such as peppermint and eucalyptus, as well as seasonal specials, the 22-year-old, fifth-year architecture student has successfully created her very own Black-owned, Philly-local brand while studying and

More
4 mins read
///

Ten years into his photoblog, Conrad Benner reflects on its genesis, evolution and future

Fishtown native Conrad Benner was in community college, working at a gelato shop in 2011 when he started capturing Philadelphia’s street art. Connecting his love of photography and writing, Benner began what is now Streets Dept, a full-grown photoblog and community news source that documents street art and artists. From WordPress to TikTok, Benner has

More
6 mins read
///

Philadelphia novelist Joan He previews her second novel—and how she used science fiction and climate change as an important backdrop for questions about humanity’s morals

From oil painting to storytelling, native Philadelphian Joan He has dedicated herself to creating art in all forms since childhood. Currently living between Old City and Fishtown He is getting ready to release her second novel, The Ones We’re Meant to Find, on May 4. In this work, she introduces her readers to “cli-fi”— a

More
5 mins read
///

Family-run baking company captures customers’ hearts and taste buds

In 2020 sisters Rhonda Saltzman and Mercedes Brooks turned their lockdown restlessness into a blossoming business with their online store, Second Daughter Baking Co. After years of experience in restaurants, bakeries and the hospitality industry, Culinary Institute of America graduate Saltzman had an excellent résumé. But at the beginning of the pandemic she lost her job

More
4 mins read