Better Than Jam Co-Op » Markets of New York

It’s Fleet Week: Market Picks for May 28-29

It’s Fleet Week!

So in honor of our sailors and marines visiting the city, we New Yorkers have arranged for splendid weather and some wonderful market events. This weekend already feels like summer through and through!

Two very special events this weekend:

The Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit (Pictured Above): Back for its 81st year, this market was originally founded by Jackson Pollack and Willem DeKooning in 1931. Both were strapped for cash, and they brought a few paintings down to the street to sell to passers by. Today, the exhibit features fine artists and artisans from around the world, all showing their work on the sidewalks of Greenwich Village. This is an event not to be missed! It runs this weekend (Sat – Mon) and next weekend (Sat- Sun).
Better Than Jam Pop-Up Shop on Governor’s Island: While not exactly a market, this pop-up shop is an extension of Better Than Jam Co-Op in Bushwick, which features fine, fun, high quality handmade items from The {NewNew} Etsy Artisan Group, who sell at the markets all over the city. Better Than Jam is sponsoring these artisans in the Pop-Up on Governor’s Island. Grab a free ferry ride to Governor’s Island and visit this very special shop in Historic Home 6B, Nolan Park, on Governors Island. The shop opens today and runs every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through September 25.

Other picks for the weekend:

Hester Street Fair: Hester Street is hosting members of the Japanese Folk Dance Institute, who will be selling kimonos, obis, fans, cards and more to raise funds to help the people of Japan who struggle to rebuild their homes, communities and cities after the earthquake and tsunami. Our awesome friends from the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck will be there too, providing Salty Pimps and Bea Arthur in a cone to hot, hungry people. Last week the BGICT helped raise over $2000 for Doctors Without Borders with Ottavia and Anthony Bourdain. Good karma, good eats, and good fun all around this weekend!
The Market NYC/Young Designers Market in the Meatpacking District: Find the latest trends in clothing, jewelry, and accessories at this market. Its regular location is on Mulberry Street, but this weekend they will be opening up shop on 328 West 14th St. between 8th & 9th Ave. There is no doubt that you will find something to impress your friends with at this market.
Madison Square Market Eats: This food extravaganza is running every day from 11AM – 9PM through June 3rd. It is a great place to grab lunch in the shadow of the Flatiron Building. At night, it is a charming spot to grab dinner and a beer with friends under the festive twinkly lights. Check out some of my favorites, including Bar Suzette, serving delicious crepes, P&H Soda Co. for refreshing artisanal sodas, Cookie Panache (try the almond curry cookie – seriously delicious!), and NuNu for handmade chocolates and craft beer.

It is also the second weekend for Smorgasburg on Saturday, so maybe, just maybe it will be a little less crazy crowded. And show some love to the Essex Street Market, which is in peril from developers. Pick up some delicious cheeses, seafood, handmade chocolates, any kind of international ingredient, and please sign this petition!

On a personal note this Memorial Day weekend, my dad, aka Captain Marvo, enlisted in the Army at the tail end of WWII as a tender teenager. He later transferred to the Navy to attend Annapolis. At local Memorial Day celebrations, he would stand for both the Army and the Navy anthems, which is such a great memory for me and my sisters. He was as crafty as my mom, making his own fly rods and flies, brewing his own beer, and even making wine from exotic things like artichokes and watercress. No gourmand was he though. In college, I’d meet him for lunch in his biology lab, where he’d cook us up some hot dogs in a dented pan from the Salvation Army over a Bunsen burner, washed down with day-old coffee from an old thermos. Lunch never tasted better.

Have a great weekend! Don’t forget your sunblock outside and sobriety behind the wheel!

The Renegade Craft Fair Will Rock Your Crafty World

Well, folks, they’ve done it again! The craft fair wizards of Renegade are putting on an incredible event in McCarran Park this weekend. We spent a lovely afternoon strolling among the colorful tents, marveling at the beautiful, creative, witty, clever, and superlative designs. There are over 300 independent artisans from around the country, and I guarantee that you will be amazed by many-if not most-of the people you meet and the things you see.

Take a look at some of the creations that caught my eye, listed below and in the photo gallery above (all photos by James Wesolowski):

Delicate ceramic figures by Michiko Shimada, sharing a tent with ceramicist Beetle and Flor
Soft and funny handmade dolls with great expresses and even mustaches by Pinkypunk
Rustic birdhouses made from reclaimed wood by Eric Erf Wood Design out of Chicago
The Better Than Jam Co-Op features handmade fashion and accessories by local designers
Knitsybitsy works with Ecuadoran artisans to kit their hysterical sea creature toys
Ornamental Things brings her handmade jewelry all the way from Austin, TX (and the recent Renegade Craft Fair there)
Gold Teeth Brooklyn makes great and unusual gold teeth jewelry, and other cool things like pistachios, not to mention greeting cards featuring Peeps (and more)
Clay, Wood & Cotton has a collection of beautiful home decor items under their red tent, which they’re sharing with the super cute and clever KnitKnit Knits
Shara Porter prints lovely and familiar items, from hedgehogs and guinea pigs to bicycles and horseshoes, on leather handbags, wallets, and purses, many of them vintage
If you’re looking for chalkboard bedside tables to remind you of your To Do list every morning, check out Scraptones, who is also selling very cool decorative wooden blocks with architectural images printed on them
Illustrator Virginia Kraljevic’s “tent” is actually a small boutique full of wit and charm. She’s right next to the ever talented members of The {NewNew}
I picked up the cutest octopus necklace from Destroyed By Design. I may need to get that kiwi too. This artisan is sharing a tent with her fabulous sister and clothing designer AngelRox
Moth Written is selling really fun t-shirts with sayings like “I Love Brooklyn,” or “Kiss Me I’m Irish,” except written in Arabic, the idea being to foster a dialog between East and West. I almost got a “Peace” pin, but I opted for “Breakfast,” because nothing fosters dialog like toast and eggs (only not with your mouth full).

These are just a few of the thousands of handmade items at the Renegade this year. Put on your walking shoes, grab your sunblock and water bottles, and enjoy a day of inspirational shopping!

There’s a New Jerk In Town: New Jerk City

I started seeing the buzz about New Jerk City a few weeks ago on Facebook. And then we tried their Queens and Brooklyn flavors from the Brooklyn Indie Market at my birthday party. The savory bits disappeared almost faster than I could snap a photo of them. I wanted to know more about jerky maker Gordon Lingley, who, in my humble opinion, deserves an award just for coming up with such a great name for his handmade, artisanal beef jerky.

Markets of New York: How did you become a jerky maker?

Gordon Lingley: I became a jerky maker primarily out of my own selfish needs. A few years ago I set out looking for some decent jerky in this city and the only thing close were the few jerky makers in Chinatown. But what I found was a far cry from the jerky I was used to as a kid, and a far cry from what I was looking for. It was then and there that I started attempting to make my own versions at home. Ultimately I did come to find a few more jerky makers. Obviously there are many others who felt a jerky void, yet none of these jerky makers produced what I was looking for. The only solution: to make it myself.

MNY: What is the story behind your perfect brand name? How did it occur to you?

GL: My perfect brand name? (Thank you, by the way.) It’s just one of those things that occurred to me in a flash of brilliance. It also lends itself to my brand strategy of having a flavor for each borough. Admittedly, New York City is the only place that brand name really works. But it works perfectly. Whenever I tell people the name, it always elicits a smile.

MNY: Whenever I mention the name, people say, “No way – that’s hilarious! I want a tee-shirt.” What are your plans for new flavors, and will you make other kinds of jerky?

GL: Right now I’m working on perfecting the Queens flavor, which will most likely be a curry flavor, as well as the Brooklyn flavor, which will most likely be a beer-infused flavor. Manhattan is difficult because there’s a little bit of everything, like Queens, but I initially thought I might make it out of a nicer cut of beef, like tenderloin, and marinate it in something fancy, like balsamic vinegar or truffle oil, but that’s still undecided. As for the Bronx, I’ll most likely do something Italian, in honor of the shops on Arthur Ave. The real question mark is Staten Island. I have to take a few field trips out there to get a feel for the flavor of the borough. I’m also taking suggestions.

MNY: What is your favorite thing to drink with jerky?

GL: I’d have to say beer. No specific beer in mind, but I feel like the two compliment each other well.

MNY: Where can we buy New Jerk City products?

GL: Currently the only place New Jerk City has been available is at the Brooklyn Indie Market, but I’ll also be at on Friday and First Friday at The Loom, and Crafts in Chelsea with the NewNew on Saturday. That’s bound to change in the near future. I’ve already been approached by a deli in Bushwick interested in carrying my products, but I need to finalize packaging, pricing, and permits before that happens. I hope to have it available in a number of bars and grocery stores throughout Brooklyn, eventually expanding into the other boroughs. And eventually, online sales.

Meet Gordon and New Jerk City:

Friday, May 7: First Friday at The Loom (with the fabulous Better Than Jam Co-Op)
Saturday, May 8: Crafts in Chelsea with the NewNew
Most weekends at the Brooklyn Indie Market.

Better Than Jam Co-Op: Entrepreneurs Thriving in the Markets and Beyond

The markets of New York not only offer shoppers the rare opportunity to meet the people who make the things that we love; they also provide a place for creative people to meet, become friends, and start getting really big ideas. The Better Than Jam Co-Op in Bushwick, Brooklyn is one such idea. It is an exciting example of the entrepreneurial and creative spirit that takes root in the markets and grows into an innovative enterprise.

Printmaker and clothing designer Karin Persan opened the co-op just a few weeks ago, and she carries the designs from many of the talented artisans and designers who sell their products at markets such as the Brooklyn Indie Market, the Makers Market, the Brooklyn Flea, and others. The design quality and craftsmanship is outstanding, and Persan also aims to keep prices affordable. This shop is open 7 days a week, so if you can’t make it to your favorite market on the weekend, you can always stop by and do some shopping at the co-op on weekdays.

The current designers include Persan’s brand, Better Than Jam, as well as Joann Berman’s seriously fun and funky high-fashion pieces inspired by “green, hip-hop, skateboard culture, graffiti, Bushwick.” At the other end of the spectrum are the dainty and feminine handmade dresses of Melissa Bell NYC. KimmChi’s silk-screened apparel and the handmade clothing from the Soft Movement are stylish and comfortable.

Designs by Himane are about as environmentally conscious as any I’ve seen. The one-of-a-kind clothing is made from “hand-picked, locally-sourced, recycled clothing, donated fabrics, and broken umbrellas.” I actually recognized the fabric on one of their clever bag designs from an umbrella decorated with photo images of blue glass beads that I gave my sister Andrea. What, I ask you, are the odds of that?

There are also several wonderful jewelry designers, some of whom are featured in my upcoming guidebook. Caja Jewelry makes clean and clever hand-cut jewelry designs, including name plates ála Sex in the City, puzzle pieces, kitties, florals, or lungs. Knitknit Knits has whimsical felted and knit necklaces, earrings, and brooches. My mother loved the necklace from Andy’s House of Design that I got her for her 29^th (ahem) birthday.

The BTJ Co-op is in the up and coming Loom Building shops. The Loom is just getting going, with BTJ, a welcoming knitting cafe, an antiques shop, and some art galleries, with more to come.

Better Than Jam Co-op: 1095 Flushing Ave. (corner of Porter Ave.), a few short blocks from the Morgan St. stop on the L Train. Open every day from 12:00 PM – 8:00 PM.