Life is full of unexpected events that can both be traumatic and hilarious at the same time. Meet Rosalie Gale, the owner and founder of Ugly Baby and Monster, a gift shop where she and her husband create delightfully quirky Shower Art to inject a good dose of humor into daily life.
Opening the Ugly Baby retail storefront in the Pike Place Market was not part of their original plan. Rosalie and her husband were merely looking for a new studio and thought of checking for spaces at Pike Place Market. They found a charming two-story building and knew they had found the perfect space. Pike Place Market required them to open to the public in order to lease the space; hence, their little pretend store – initially a mere front for the studio – eventually evolved into a booming spot that is open seven days a week with a team of six employees staffing the space.
The duo understands humor on a visceral level. Ugly Baby was named after Rosalie’s husband, Douglas Gale, whose initial baby picture left something to be desired. Their logo is a picture of Douglas on the day he was born.
Once Ugly Baby was established, an opportunity to purchase another gift shop came about. The shop was called Monster and it had been owned by two other independent artists in its lifetime. At Monster, Rosalie got to organically grow her clientele and provide other artists with a platform to showcase their personal styles and unique art. Today, the couple hosts regular art classes and DIY projects at the store.
Ugly Baby and Monster carry products made by independent artists – many from the Pacific Northwest area. Aside from the Shower Art, both stores carry a variety of bespoke merchandise like apparel, original art, DIY embroidery kits, and paint-by-numbers kits.
If you are looking for unique artwork, click here to visit their website.