Let’s Get Ready to Jumble!

Photo: Levi Brown

The Manhattan fleas are fading fast. What does that mean for all the bin-prowling, painting-flipping, chair-testing rummagers with nothing to do on a Sunday morning? Starting April 6, it means riding the C train to a high-school parking lot (specifically, Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, 357 Clermont Ave., nr. Lafayette Ave., Fort Greene; brooklynflea.com), where a new market called Brooklyn Flea is starting. It will have about 200 vendors, ranging from tried-and-testeds like Olde Good Things to new names that have never sold retail before. Because it’s curated, the vendors are uniformly interesting and dedicated, and the treasures—like this Prague Kolektiv early-seventies Czech cocktail cart ($750, or negotiable)—are in beautiful condition. Bargaining is, of course, encouraged.

See the map of our favorite finds. >>

If a flea market sells $200 silk tops, $3,000 tables, and hot Belgian waffles, is it really still a flea market? Yes, say Jonathan Butler and Eric Demby, the duo behind Brooklyn Flea, coming to Fort Greene starting April 6. Butler, who runs Brooklyn’s crown-molding-obsessed Brownstoner blog, and Demby, a former speechwriter for Marty Markowitz, have sifted through more than 600 vendors to make sure the market’s 200 spots are diverse, yet good. “Not everyone wants to buy an old doorknob,” says Butler. “But the last thing we want is a bunch of shitty crafts lying around.”

Every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the market will occupy the 40,000-square-foot schoolyard of Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School on Clermont Avenue, hard by DeKalb Avenue’s new “brunch row.” The idea felt like a no-brainer to Butler, who once threw a “salvage fest” in Clinton Hill, inviting vendors like Olde Good Things, Demolition Depot, and Silver Fox to lay out their rescued lintels and French doors. They’ll all be on hand for the first Sunday of the season, as will transplants from Manhattan’s rapidly shrinking Chelsea fleas, like artist Joseph Heidecker, and other artisans and merchants. Click through for some of the market’s most interesting offerings.
-TM

Map by Jason Lee

1. John Murphy’s Still Lifes 2. D.J. $mall ¢hange’s LP Singles 3. Sweets From Kumquat Cupcakery 4. Boat Sail Totes From Reiter8 5. Taliah Lempert’s Bicycle-Inspired Art 6. Birch Handmade’s Jewelry 7. Chairloom’s Restored Furniture 8. Finds From Ornaments and Objects 9. Reprodepot’s Vintage Print Patterns 10. Local Fixture Eddie Hibbert’s Finds 11. Embellished Linens From Lotta Anderson 12. Silver Fox’s Stained Glass 13. T-shirts From Good Shape Design 14. Treats From Brown Bag Industries 15. Celle Adore’s Vintage Fragrances 16. Clothes From Heartisans 17. 3G Kicks’ Sneaker Collection 18. Retro Timekeepers From Watchismo

Photo: Levi Brown

Philadelphia artist John Murphy wraps his pigment-print still lifes in painted frames ($150).

Photo: Levi Brown

D.J. $mall ¢hange has a weekly show on WFMU, gigs at APT, and now runs his own flea-market booth (LP singles, from $10).

Photo: Levi Brown

Kumquat Cupcakery turns out chocolate-raspberry, apple-cinnamon, and chocolate-peanut-butter versions for $1 a pop.

Photo: Levi Brown

Carry your newly acquireds in this Reiter8 tote made out of old boat sails ($65).

Photo: Levi Brown

Taliah Lempert loves bicycles so much she uses them exclusively as studies for her posters and paintings (Amy’s Bike 1, $400).

Photo: Levi Brown

Sarah Stoudt is bringing housewares and jewelry from her Birch Handmade shop in Catskill (silver peony necklace, $125).

Photo: Levi Brown

Philadelphia’s Chairloom rescues and restores pieces like this Queen Anne chair ($850).

Photo: Levi Brown

One of many mid-century finds from Brooklyn Heights–based Ornaments and Objects ($225).

Photo: Levi Brown

Reprodepot specializes in vintage print patterns like the Unikko ($42 per yard), Animal Circus ($12.95 per yard), and Dorothy Ribbons ($8.95 per yard).

Photo: Levi Brown

Clinton Hill fixture Eddie Hibbert (he of the Greene Avenue furniture garage) will haul out this mantel ($300).

Photo: Levi Brown

Everyday linens like this apron are embellished by Scandinavian-born Lotta Anderson ($74).

Photo: Levi Brown

Albany’s Silver Fox found this stained-glass wall-hanging in an old New York synagogue ($200).

Photo: Levi Brown

Good Shape Design goes all squiggly on posters and T-shirts (Looped Black shirt, $25).

Photo: Levi Brown

Brown Bag Industries’ treats come wrapped (as expected) in brown paper ($2.50–$3).

Photo: Levi Brown

Celle Adore carries vintage fragrances as well as its own scents (Déshabillé, 8 mL bottle, $65).

Photo: Levi Brown

Scarves, shoes, tees … stuffed squirrels? All are sold by Heartisans, which commissions cooperatives in Guatemala ($28).

Photo: Levi Brown

A trio of sneaker-loving friends formed 3G Kicks to sell off their collection (Nike Dunk, $200).

Photo: Levi Brown

Wind back the clock on the digital age with a retro timekeeper hawked by Watchismo (LIP LED Diode, $320).
WG

Let’s Get Ready to Jumble!