Isabel Bloom – the company that makes unique sculptures handcrafted in the Quad Cities – is marking its 60th year in business.
The company has plans to host several events throughout the year to honor this milestone.
To kick things off – and with February being namesake Isabel Bloom’s birthday month – the company will host a four-day event beginning Friday, Feb. 17, through Monday, Feb. 20, at the Isabel Bloom Tour Center and Showroom, located at 736 Federal St., Davenport.
The event will include door prizes, special promotions, free shipping as well as a sneak peek at new 2023 designs. These in-store events will be held during regular store hours where customers can register to win daily giveaways and a $60 Isabel Bloom shopping spree. Store hours are: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday; and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, according to the company’s website.
The Quad City Chamber of Commerce will host a brief ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 17, to present the company with a special plaque followed by a behind-the-scenes tour of the production process.
Also, birthday cake will be served throughout the day on Monday, Feb. 20, commemorating what would have been founder Isabel Bloom’s 115th birthday.
A limited edition “Anniversary Owl” will also be introduced at the February celebration and only available in 2023.
“Owls were one of Isabel’s favorite subjects to sculpt, maybe because their large eyes and feathers gave Isabel lots of opportunity to stylize,” said Donna Young, Isabel Bloom co-owner and artist. “My design was inspired by Isabel’s Night Owl, which is no longer in our line.”
Isabel Bloom opened her first shop in a rented house located in the Village of East Davenport in 1963. Notably, it was the first gift shop in the village. A few years later, she purchased the house next door at 1109 Mound St. and, with the help of her father and her artist husband John, converted the space into her sculpture studio and showroom. It was there that she devised the unique technique for casting her sculptures in concrete and finishing them with green-tinted cement to resemble weathered-bronze garden sculptures.
Ms. Bloom passed away May 1, 2001, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.
Today, the handcrafted sculptures are designed by her protégé, Ms. Young, and produced and sold at the Isabel Bloom Tour Facility and Showroom. In addition, the company has a showroom/retail store in the Historic Valley Junction in West Des Moines.
For more information, visit ibloom.com.
