December » 2009 » Markets of New York

There’s A Giant Pink Squid Under the Christmas Tree

What happens when artisans sell their creations at the markets or pack them up and ship them to all corners of the world for the holidays? They never get to see where their handiwork ends up or who opened the packages on Christmas morning. After talking to artisans at the holiday markets recently about this subject, I decided to show them where the gifts I bought ended up.

We spend the holidays with my husband James’ family, and I can honestly say that every single gift from a New York City market was received with much happiness. One particularly special piece was placed at the top of the tree.

I picked out Squidfire’s hot pink giant squid T-shirt for myself, and James wrapped it up for me. I loved the way it glowered up from underneath the tree. Dainty earrings made by Martin Lopez at AdornmentsNYC from vintage beads and findings got placed immediately in my sister-in-law Judy’s ears. They make a faint hypnotic jingle for her ears only. She also adored the tiny sandalwood candle in a gold pressed glass vase from Lovely Day Designs.

For my nephew, I chose one of my favorite T-shirts to add it to his growing collection of Gnome Enterprises designs. It’s the one where the tree gets its revenge on the lumberjack. My lucky husband got the fluffy black sweatshirt from Fleisher’s Grassfed Organic Meats that says, “Bacon: The Gateway Meat.” It’s a classic.

James made all the holiday cookies this year. (Tip: He added bergamot oil to the icing – amazing!) Anyway, he burned his hand several times taking them out of the oven using our pitiful oven mitts. So I gave him a gorgeous handmade oven rack pull from Meb’s Kitchenwares. It’s in the shape of a fish, and it was a bit of a mystery to everyone until I explained what it was. They all agreed it was brilliant.

Speaking of brilliant, the crayon apron from Pickleboots was the runaway winner with my two-year-old niece, although the pink handbag with a furry mouse in the pocket got a lot of love too.

And finally, there were two piéces de resistance for my brother-in-law Thom. The four of us recently went on vacation to Paris. All Thom wanted was unusual French salts, but he didn’t get any. So when we saw this beautiful collection of salts from Gneiss Spices at the Brooklyn Lyceum, we thought of him. The cute jars are magnetic, and you can store the salts (3 of which are French, and 2 of which are pink) on your fridge.

We also gave Thom a beautiful sign from Yee Haw Industries that says, “Carve that Possum.” He placed it at the top of the tree. We’ll frame it for his workshop after the holidays.

This New Year’s Eve brings us a full moon, a blue moon, a partial lunar eclipse! A lot of great things are going to happen with the Markets of New York blog in the new year, and I am already excited about the book’s release in June. Visit often!

Have a safe and happy new year. And don’t forget to look up!

Brooklyn Lyceum Holiday Craft Market – A Procrastinator’s Paradise

Yes, I left some of my shopping until this weekend. But I totally scored at The Brooklyn Lyceum Holiday Craft Market. In addition to cupcakes, chocolate, and sandwiches that kept me going, the handmade merchandise was impressive. The Lyceum is an excellent space for a market, and I heard a lot of people saying that they liked the way the crowd could easily flow through the aisles this year.

To see all the wonderful exhibitors, you’ll have to brave the snow yourself on Sunday. But I’ll give you a few examples of some of them.

Lovely Day Designs has hand-poured soy candles in vintage teacups, pressed-glass votives, and porcelain gravy boats, and other decorative items as well. One of the more unusual things I came across was the living jewelry from McFlashpants, tiny plants rooted in eensy vials hanging as pendants on a necklace. McFlashpants also makes unique jewelry made of vintage cutlery. Everything Tiny creates laser cut accessories using bright colors and fun images like dinosaurs, Leggos, deer, and (my favorite) dachshunds. Fortunately for my little nieces, I came across Pickleboots and got some really great kid things for them.

I really liked the graphic images printed on pages torn from unusual books by Girls Can Tell. The soaps from Nordea all smell divine, and her felted scrubber soaps in bright colors would be great stocking stuffers. The framed prints from Raw Toast Design are colorful, skillfully drawn, and darkly funny, like the “poor calamari” being eaten by seagulls. For really great T-shirts, I couldn’t resist the bright pink giant squid from Squidfire. And Miss Wit lives up to her name with some really great shirts, like the one that says, “I can’t stop googling myself.” For the nostalgic people on your list, definitely stop by Another Work In Progress for handmade spiral notebooks made from vintage board games, like Candy Land, Bingo, Monopoly, and more.

Brooklyn Lyceum: Saturday and Sunday, December 19 – 20, 11A – 7 P

Tomorrow is the last weekend day to shop! So pull on your ear grips and mukluks and hit the markets!

Last Minute Market Shopping

I wish us all great courage as we face the final weekend of holiday shopping! In addition to the big, traditional holiday markets at Union Square, Columbus Circle, Bryant Park, and Grand Central, there are multiple indie markets that are in full swing this weekend.

The Makers Market at the Old American Can Factory

The Makers Market is has artisans and fine artists selling high quality handmade items. Meow Meow Tweet sells great smelling natural handmade soaps. ANgeLRoX Apparel has design for comfort, versatility and style, and I love the signature wings that emblazon the back pockets of their jeans and undies. May Luk Ceramics will be there with fine, fun, useful and quirky ceramic plates, cups, vases and more. I’ll bet the man who has everything doesn’t have a hand-stitched leather briefcase from MOS Atelier – and he definitely needs one. If you missed getting a beautiful graphic T-shirt from Parable Ink at the Grand Central Holiday Market, you can catch up with them here.
The Makers Market: Old American Can Factory, 232 3^rd Street, Gowanus, Brooklyn, in the garage. Open this weekend Saturday and Sunday 11AM – 6PM.

Brooklyn Lyceum Holiday Craft Market

The Brooklyn Lyceum is hosting their two-day holiday craft market this weekend with almost 70 exhibitors. Many of them will be there for just one of the days, so if you are tempted to visit this market on both days, go right ahead because you will find different things on both days. There will be a DJ and plenty of “crafty” food to keep you energized. The event organizers have created wider aisles this year to make it more comfortable to wander and browse on the last shopping day of the weekend. You can make it a day for the whole family with lunch at the Lyceum Café, now serving Inteligentsia Coffee, and a show at the Children’s Theater.

Brooklyn Lyceum: Saturday and Sunday, December 19 – 20, 11A – 7 P

Our Lady of Pompeii Market on Bleecker Street

This is the last weekend for the flea market/artisan market on Bleecker Street sidewalk next to Our Lady of Pompeii Church in the Village (between Carmine and Leroy Streets). You can find some great vintage hats and jewelry, as well as hand-knit hats and scarves, vintage Bakelite pieces, and much more. The market will reopen in April when the weather warms up a bit.

Jingle Xmas Xtravaganza at Chelsea Market

Chelsea Market has a pretty much everything you will need for your holiday feasts, and it also hosts the Jingle Xmas Xtravaganza! This market has 17 nice-sized boutiques, all selling unique designs and many beautiful gifts. It is a happy market where you can chat with the designers about their work and the kinds of things you are seeking. I am hoping for two farmers market posters by Yeehaw Industries, and maybe, if I’m lucky, their sign that says, “Carve That Possum.” Elements/Jill Schwarz designs gorgeous “vintage groove” jewelry, picture frames and more. For modern jewelry designs, stop by and see sterling silver and recycled coconut shell jewelry with semi-precious stones from Ayala Jewelry. There is a full list of the vendors with photos and links on Facebook.

Jingle Xmas Xtravaganza: Mon – Fri 10:30A – 7P, Saturday 10A – 7P, Sunday 10:30 A – 6P

Midtown Holiday Markets – Bryant Park and Grand Central Terminal

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The holiday markets at Bryant Park and Grand Central Terminal make for a great way to spend an entire day in mid-town Manhattan.

The Holiday Shops at Bryant Park is a wonderland of shopping, skating, eating, and drinking. Modeled after the traditional European holiday fairs, this market has over 100 merchants from all over the world. It feels like you are walking through a wintery village as you wander down the lanes lined with brightly decorated shops.

I am excited about the artisanal and design vendors participating in this year’s market. The first thing I did was race to find New West Knifeworks, whose “fusionwood” knives are handcrafted in Japan with beautifully colorful wooden handles. (I know that a chopper will be under the tree for me, but I don’t know which color!) Mr. Ellie Poo sells 100% recycled paper products made with 25% post consumer paper and 75% (wait for it) elephant poo. New York jewelry designer Shaya makes beautiful geometric earrings, necklaces and rings. Buy crayon soaps, alphabet soaps and math soaps for your babies at Just Bubbly. It is impossible to mention all of the wonderful things at this market; you’ll have to go find out for yourself.

Tempting edibles are carefully interspersed among the boutiques. Food options range from The Sweet Shop’s caramel apples and Kettle Corn NYC, to the Dumpling Soup House and Crepe Café. Don’t miss a sample of delicious chocolate truffles from No Chewing Allowed or a bonbon from Max Brenner, Chocolate By the Bald Man .

After your first hot chocolate, go for a spin on The Pond, a 170’ x 100’ skating rink in the center of Bryant Park. Rent skates or bring your own. If you want to sit inside and have a meal or a “real” drink, definitely step inside Celsius, a full restaurant offering lunch, dinner, and drinks.

By now you are probably freezing, so head East on 42^nd Street to the Grand Central Holiday Fair. This market is held in historic Vanderbilt Hall with almost 70 vendors selling a wide range of wonderful gift items. Parable Ink Apparel sells fine graphic T-shirt designs. We picked up a nostalgic architectural ornament of the West Village at Hut Studios; they have ornaments with your favorite New York neighborhoods and iconic buildings. The market is indoors, so you can really take your time and look in every shop.

Step back into the holiday fray in the grandiose Main Concourse; but this time look up to see the holiday light show up on the famous constellations ceiling. Visit the New York Transit Museum’s Holiday Train Show too. There are countless options for food, be it a snack, a complete meal, or something delicious to take home from the Grand Central Market.

The Holiday Shops at Bryant Park: Open Through 1/3/10, Extended Hours 12/14 – 23, 10AM-10PM

Grand Central Holiday Fair: Extended Hours starting 12/21: 10AM – 9PM

Two Downtown Holiday Markets

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There are two great handmade holiday markets just a block from each other downtown: The Bowery Bazaar and Brooklyn Flea’s Gifted Market

The Bowery Bazaar is a collection of designers and artisans selling their wonderful wares from small boutiques. An intimate shopping experience, the Bazaar is a good place to find many special gifts for the people on your shopping list. One of my favorite little shops features the playful and remarkable knit jewelry of KnitKnit Knits; fun throw pillows from Alexandra Ferguson with appliquéd messages like, “Be Nice or Leave,” and “Let’s Make Out”; and the colorful dresses with unusual screened graphics by Better Than Jam. Look up, and you’ll see embossed pinholes of light shining through lampshades by warpeDesign. There are a lot more boutiques chock-full of beautifully made gift items.

Just around the corner on E. 4^th Street is the Gifted Holiday Market, Brooklyn Flea’s home for the holidays until the locations at Fort Green and Brooklyn Bridge reopen in April.

The second you walk through the door of the former Tower Records store, the energy of this market gets you in the mood to jump right into the crowds flowing up and down the aisles. The first thing I did was pop a delicious chocolate cupcake with lavender icing from Kumquat Cupcakery. I picked up a really great T-shirt for someone on my list at Gnome Enterprises. The New New’s space is shared by several different and talented artisans. AdornmentsNYC helped me cross several challenging types off my shopping list. To save our skin from winter, I picked up a jar of Balm of Gilead from australianScent for my mom and myself. This concentrated face and body moisturizer smells divine. And there is so much more to see and buy.

Both markets have convenient hours, and many of the vendors accept credit cards. So head downtown and check out these two markets. Maybe you’ll cross everything off your shopping lists too.

Bowery Bazaar at 351 Bowery between E. 3rd & E. 4th Streets: Friday & Saturday 12P – 8P, Sunday 11A – 6P

Brooklyn Flea’s Gifted Holiday Market at 20 E. 4^th Street at Lafayette: Every Day December 16 – 24, 12P – 7:00 PM

New Amsterdam Market Presents Wintermarket

This Sunday is the final New Amsterdam Market for the year. It looks like it is going to be as amazing as the other three were.

For the uninitiated, The New Amsterdam Market is held under the FDR elevated highway in the South Street Seaport. The market features food purveyors who source their products and ingredients directly from local farmers and producers. Hopefully this market will find a permanent home in the currently empty Fulton Fish Market. For now, though, it takes place periodically each year. (Check their website for a calendar of events.)

Not only is the market quite beautiful, with its clean white and black banners indentifying each vendor, but the quality of products there is superb. I try and listen to people in the crowd because I hear about wonderful things that I had walked right by, like the bean-to-bar chocolate bars from Mast Brothers. At the November Market, I went immediately to the Basis table for a jar of golden honey and dozen free-range eggs as they sold out quickly in October.

There will be over 75 food purveyors at this weekend’s markets. On Sunday, I will definitely stop by Fleishers Grass Fed and Organic Meats because I am giving the gift of bacon this year. There is always a lovely selection of artisanal breads and cheeses, including Hotbread Kitchen and Saxelby Cheesemongers. There are wonderful representatives from regional creameries, vinyards, farms and much more. I strongly advise that you bring your holiday food shopping list because the vendors are prepared to help you with anything you plan to serve your families and guests.

You can also pick up some great things for the foodies in your life. The gift of pickles is just below bacon on my list, especially the extremely creative varieties from Rick’s Picks. We gave a jar of Mother-In-Law’s Kimchee to the right person and made him very happy. Caramels, lollies, and “slurtles” from Liddabit Sweets make great stocking stuffers (just keep them away from the fire!).

To round out your shopping list, stop by and visit Little Bookroom, publisher of beautiful, delightful and extremely informative travel and food guides. I’ll be at this table, wearing 10 pairs of socks and every pair of thermals I can dig up. Please come and say hello!

Welcome to Markets of New York City

Welcome to Markets of New York City!

I visited the amazing, fun, gritty, tasty, and incredibly rich markets of New York City over the past year, took 6,000 photos, and wrote a guidebook, “Markets of New York City; A Guide to the Best Artisan, Farmer, Food and Flea Markets,” coming June 2010 from The Little Bookroom. I have launched this blog to accompany the guidebook, and also to continue to support the markets every day by sharing information and experiences with fellow market enthusiasts.

And there are a lot of wonderful markets in the city!

There is a growing passion for handmade, locally grown, and repurposed/reloved items these days, and I daresay New York is at the epicenter. The Council on the Environment of New York alone holds over 50 farmers markets each week in the five boroughs. There are flea markets selling unusual treasures in parking lots and garages. As for artisan markets, I can barely keep up with the new ones that are opening all over town.

A lifelong market shopper, I aim to provide a place where people can find out about these markets, go enjoy them, and tell their friends all about them. The blog features the markets themselves and the individuals at the heart of the markets, be they beaders, butchers, beekeepers or Bakelite experts.

I am thrilled to be launching the blog during the holidays! I made a commitment to buy all my gifts at the markets, and I have never had more fun during the insane and crowded holiday shopping season. Please sign up for the forthcoming newsletter emails and follow Markets of New York City on Facebook and Twitter too!

Thank you and Welcome!

Karen Seiger

Market Enthusiast, Author, Blogger

Holiday Markets – Union Square

Holiday Markets – Union Square

I am so happy to be launching this blog during the holidays because there are so many wonderful markets to visit!

The first sign of the holidays for me is the red and white striped tents going up in Union Square. (Holiday items appearing in the “Seasonal” aisle at Duane Reade just doesn’t get me in the spirit.) And there are wonderful markets wherever I go! Besides the diversity of the products, the New York holiday markets seem to be getting better food options! Mozzarepas, soups, waffles, crepes, cookies, cupcakes, artisanal chocolates – you can have quite a snack, or even a meal as you browse. The other good thing about the big holiday markets is that a lot of vendors take plastic.

This year’s market at Union Square is chock full of amazing things. It’s easy to breeze through and say to yourself, “Earrings, necklaces, scarves, soaps. Check.” But I advise that you take your time to linger and admire the beautiful things you can find there. Adel Chefridi makes gorgeous, dainty earrings and necklaces with rich colored stones. Last year, my favorite Secret Santa gave me a string of labradorite beads from Adel. Then I found Karma Living and decided to write a Yoga Gift Guide. (see below) I got my hands scrubbed, rinsed and moisturized at Lotus Sea Scrubs and bought a mini- Ganesha necklace with amethyst beads from Astrid Schumacher. I’d been eyeing this necklace since I first laid eyes on it at the summer at the Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral Market. All in about 20 minutes.

On the outskirts of the market are the “usual” amazing artisans who set up their tables in Union Square all year long. I met Danny, who makes keychains, rings, and beautiful mobiles out of old cutlery. He turns forks into tiny dancing people. Don’t tell anyone, but Santa is putting spoon keychains in everybody’s stocking this year, engraved with their initials by my friend Joseph Callari at Your Name Here Inc. on 14^th and 9^th. Tell him I sent you, and he’ll give you a 20% discount on your holiday engraving! He is amazing and can engrave anything, from an iPod or a $150 bottle of champagne to a rock (the champagne and the rock went to the same couple, but that’s a story for another day).