After a three-week renovation hiatus, revered boutique p.45 re-opened as a space transformed. Gone is the signature rubber flooring, giving way to pewter-stain sugar maple and a reconfigured layout that makes the space look twice as big. An authentic arbiter of style (remember, p.45 was a Bucktown pioneer!), owner Tricia Tunstall put together the ultimate design collab. With Michael Koehler leading the design-build charge, his vision was complemented by interior designer Jordana Joseph and fashion designer Shane Gabier, who designed the dressing room curtains-beautiful swaths of color-block fabric that hang like a Mondrian art installation. Against a backdrop of eco-friendly grass wallpaper, Koehler's extra- long, uber-sleek cash wrap-so bright and white it nearly glows-is a showstopper in its simplicity and form. "We wanted to let the personality of the clothes come through," says Tunstall. The clothes definitely pop, but design this good is impossible to ignore.

p.45 was one of the first trendy boutiques to open in Chicago's Bucktown district, an edgy part of town that's lately become H.Q. for local artists. Founded in 1997 by Tricia Tunstall and Jessica Darrow, p.45 led the charge, stocking their racks with hip local designers and up-to-the-minute New York and Los Angeles styles hard to find anywhere else. To mark their ten-year anniversary, Tunstall (Darrow left the shop in 2004) tapped interior designers and fellow Chicagoans Michael Koehler and Jordana Joseph to revamp the store from the inside out. They laid down pale sugar-maple flooring and wrapped the walls in grass wallpaper. The highlight-literally-is a gleaming white checkout counter. p.45's bright spare ambience plays off of the subtle styles Tunstall markets: minimalist dresses from places like Breed and Development and simple geometric jewelry from Bing Bang. Like the neighborhood it anchors, p.45 has matured from a gritty, underground design mecca (it used to have industrial strength rubber floors!) to a sleek new home for consistently classy fashion.

The pioneer and anchor of the trendy Wicker Park boutique scene stays fresh by introducing new designers. Reported by Gretchen Wahl.

"To mark its 10th year in business, this Bucktown fixture is planning a renovation to lend its industrial interior a dose of organic warmth. In addition to a physical transformation, it's pushing to bring in new labels: Established indies Ya-Ya and Lyell are joined by rising names Lorun and Marlova," writes editor Gigi Guerra.

At trendy Wicker Park boutique p.45, "Wicked" star Kate Reinders scurries from rack to rack, examining pageboy hats and blue Rebecca Taylor pumps. Holding up a sleeveless black and gray V- neck top plucked from the sale rack, Reinders says to her friend, "This is sex-o-matic!"

Maggie Gyllenhaal and native Liz Phair love this funky Buck-town boutique that spotlights local designers writes Aimee Agresti.

Written by retail reporter Amy Merrick.

This hip Wicker Park shop-our favorite Windy City boutique-stocks sleek, satement-making separates from designers both established (Rebecca Taylor, Ya-Ya) and emerging, as well as pieces by local talents Lara Miller and Sarah McGuire.