After much anticipation, Wisconsin's first Crate and Barrel store opens Wednesday at Mayfair Mall in Wauwatosa.

Tuesday night, the Chicago-based contemporary furniture store teamed up with the Milwaukee Art Museum to host a special preview party for customers to eat, drink and get a head start on their shopping.

A percentage of the proceeds from purchases made at the party, as well as from sales continuing through Sept. 11, will be donated to the Milwaukee Art Museum.

"This is an exciting opportunity to show Milwaukee our passion for high quality design in cooperation with an institution of world class art. There couldn't be a better partnership," said Gordon Segal, founder and CEO of Crate and Barrel.

"Events like this allow us to connect with an essential part of the city and help support an organization that values community enrichment in terms of culture and quality of life."

According to Crate and Barrel media representative Lisa Ridolfi, Milwaukee was a perfect choice for the store.

"Milwaukee has a booming economy right now, and being Chicago's sister city, we thought it'd be a great fit," she says. "Milwaukee's market is growing and it's exciting."

The store, which is sleek and contemporary, is filled with tempting arrangements of clean, crisp and chic items cozy and classy enough to complement your own style, while emphasizing an element of cool.

Out of Necessity ...

Crate and Barrel's humble roots stem from the optimistic vision of husband and wife duo, Gordon and Carole Segal, determined to duplicate in the States the type of unique, functional and affordable furniture they had found while traveling in Europe.

In 1962, they converted an abandoned elevator factory in the Old Town section of Chicago into their first store. Having no money to fix up the deteriorating interior, they literally stacked shipping crates and lined up barrels to create "shelves" to showcase their gourmet cookware and contemporary housewares. At this point, naming the business seemed a no-brainer.

What started as a three-person company inside an old warehouse in Chicago has since grown into 130 stores nationwide. Along with Milwaukee, recent locations include Indianapolis, Columbus, Geneva, Ill., and Hingham, Mass.

Customers can help support MAM through both in-store and online sales via a special link on the MAM Web site, mam.org.