Welcome! We’re a creative lab and shop in Porto, Portugal. Here are some of our projects:

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DJ JustForUs

Joy and sorrow. Therapeutic creativity and exhaling. Beautiful protest. Everything we do is centered around embracing truth and feeling better. 

Our loyal companion for this whole glorious, messy ride is and will always be MUSIC. What would we do without our beloved tunes?!

Therefore: check our euphoric, groovy, all-over-the-map playlists on Spotify. (And get ready to stop what you’re doing and nod. Or dance.)

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Feel Better Fashion

Us 
How are you feeling about fast fashion and the disposability of all things textile? For us, it’s pretty meh. (Or should we say scary.) What to do? How to feel part of the solution? Let’s stop making new stuff from iffy materials under very iffy work conditions and instead use what we’ve already got! Plus fix what needs it.

Here at LOONBEEK we’ve collected racks full of vibrant, whimsical, romantic, un-shy vintage items for your wearing delight. (Look closely, you might find a loving, visible mend.) You’ll also find racks dedicated to Alex Hart’s upcycled fashion. It’s hard to explain: Just come and see it. Or check her IG account @allhartfashion for a strong hint.

Our hours aren’t yet fixed. Hey, it isn’t easy being an artist and a shopkeeper. Different vibes, you know? But we love private appointments. Or catch us on a sunny day with our door wide open and DJ JustForUs music pulling you in!

True fact: We’re worth the trip. Rua do Almada, 517. (Next to the squiggly orange and green street art by @morcoizado.) Also! Também falamos un bocadinho de portuguese, um peu de français, y un poco de español. And we can count 1-10 in Chinese. Kinda.

And fiiinally, did you know our block in downtown Porto is popping with other fab indie spots? Before or after your LOONBEEK visit, check out Tia Tia for painterly, painstakingly delicious food. Or Louie Louie for choice vinyl and cassettes. Or Wild at Heart for 80s vintage fashion. And there’s more...

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Feel Better Books

Looking for stellar books in English? Come browse our shelves stacked with Alex Hart’s all-ages titles — poetry and picture books soaked with art and heart, plus early YA novels like “Mercedes,” which a recent happy reader called “the new Pippi Longstocking.” (Minus the red hair.) Grab a comfy chair and try a few pages of everything to see which one (or more!) fits your state of mind. Or ask for a suggestion!

To learn more about our small press, upcoming titles and book launches, visit our website.

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LOONBEEK
Magazine

Inside our first “book-a-zine” (can you read our title, there on those painted Porto doors?) you’ll find an embarassment of riches: botanical art, fashion illustration, old books riddled with beautiful holes, essays about the lonely pandemic streets, mending socks, whether women are witches, and much more. Come grab your copy today!

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About Us

Alex Hart is a self-taught multicreative, learning (and un-learning) as she goes. If it's something that uses her hands — writing, cutting & pasting, sewing, treasure-hunting ... arranging flowers, massaging, baking, hair-cutting, yo-yo'ing, high-fiving — she's there and up to her elbows in concentrated work. Or should we call it play? Motto: Where possible, unplug that dubious brain.
Also: Trust, and go on hoping (Edward Lear).
Some of her personal gurus: Vivienne Westwood, Beatrix Potter, Alexander Calder, Yayoi Kusama, Alice Neel, Maurice Sendak, Louise Bourgeois, Amy Sedaris, Joseph Cornell, Ray Johnson, Pee Wee Herman I mean Paul Reubens, Reggie Watts............!!!

Jon Lackman is a rock-climbing coach and writer. He’s covered politics, science, and the arts for Harper's, The New Yorker, Slate, and Wired. He completed a PhD in art history from NYU and a fellowship at the MacDowell Colony. He's represented by Mary Krienke of Sterling Lord Literistic; contact her to publish his and Zack Pinson’s nonfiction graphic novel Maria, about the mind-boggling artist’s model / con artist Maria Lani!