It’s no news that I’m a vintage lover and collector. I’ve mentioned it more than a few times that I’ve been selling vintage threads for the last decade online. Started out on eBay but I’m thrilled to be on Etsy now selling under iKonic for the last year. I also am a founding member and currently sit on the board of the Vintage Fashion Guild. I’ve always lived the vintage lifeetyle, long before it was hip.
So I’m thrilled that it has become such an accepted form of style and fashion over the last few years and I love that it has really flourished right here in my own backyard. The fact that probably at least 60% of my sales are to New York and probably 40% of those sales within walking distance of my house goes to show that living here has helped me in my business to pick out what my customers will like.
And I’m positively ecstatic to hear that Artists & Fleas is opening The Vintage Market this weekend!
ARTISTS & FLEAS GOES VINTAGE
Successful Williamsburg-Based Artists & Designer Market Adds Vintage Market Next Door
The Vintage Market Set to Open on April 11th and 12th from 12NOON-8PMWILLIAMSBURG, NY, April 8, 2009 – Artists & Fleas (http://www.artistsandfleas.com/), the successful Williamsburg, Brooklyn-based artist and designer market, announced today that they will be expanding and opening The Vintage Market. Part showroom, part pop-up-shop, 100% vintage wonderland, The Vintage Market will showcase the wares of 15 collectors and dealers of vintage clothing, jewelry, home decor, furniture, accessories, nostalgia, maps and more.
The Vintage Market is set to open on Saturdays and Sundays from 12-8pm beginning April 11th. The Vintage Market will be located directly next door to the 6 year-old Artists & Fleas market in an inviting and stunning showroom at 125 N. 6th Street (btwn Bedford & Berry).
As a value-add to the Vintage Market, Artists & Fleas will have Brazilian-born, Brooklyn-based clothing designer and seamstress Vania Alves on site for those who find a treasured garment but are concerned about the fit. Alves, who works with vintage materials and fabrics to create new clothing pieces and restores vintage pieces to their original splendor, will be on-site to make alterations. Similar to the current artist and designer market, The Vintage Market gives collectors the opportunity to have a store/outpost in Williamsburg without the hassle and overhead. New vendors are always welcome and will be arriving over the coming weeks.
“The Vintage Market arrives just as demand for vintage is growing and people are looking for unique, affordable and one-of-a-kind alternatives to what mainstream, mass market retailers are selling,” says Ronen Glimer, co-founder and creator of Artists & Fleas. “Additionally, as awareness grows about recycling and saving our environment, buying vintage is an un-ironic way to look cool and be socially conscious at the same time.”
“The Vintage Market is our first significant expansion effort and represents the fulfillment of a long-time desire that was carefully and steadily fed by hundreds of customers and vendors over the year … the desire to have a space within a broader collective of vintage vendors in the heart of one of New York City’s most vintage-obsessed neighborhoods,” says Amy Abrams, co-founder and creator of Artists & Fleas. “The Williamsburg community has been so supportive of Artists & Fleas over the years and we are thrilled to provide a new place for collectors and shoppers alike to connect.”
Some of the artists who will be featured on opening weekend include:
– Magic Vintage, Jennifer Church-Beckett’s collection of men’s and women’s vintage clothing and accessories, from 1940s noir to 1980s pop, with an emphasis on haunting and avant garde pieces;
– Epoch Beads, sellers of vintage jewelry and jewelry supplies from the late 19th Century to the modern era, including plastic and glass beads, metal charms and pendants, jewelry findings such as clasps, jump rings and chains;
– SERA, an art, interiors and design company, showcasing pristine pieces of modern mid-century home furnishings, housewares, lamps, accessories and fine art;
– Kings County Salvage, sellers of carefully selected items for the home, including primitive furniture and farm/industrial salvage items that focus on wood and metal pieces;
– Blue Canary Vintage, sellers of classic vintage staples, including shoes for women and men, dresses and separates for girls and some curiosity items including collectible trading cards;
– We Wuz Framed, sellers of vintage silk scarves from some of the leading fashion houses from around the world in pristine condition and framed as works of art, as well as a wide collection of vintage maps, posters and adverts from early to mid-20th century.
Established in 2003, Artists & Fleas is a weekly, year-round Williamsburg, Brooklyn market that gives emerging designers, local artists, collectors, DIYers and funksters the opportunity to set up shop and where consumers-with-a-good-eye-and-a-need-to-buy can meet and purchase directly from the source. It’s an experience where the thrill of discovering something new, unique or different happens every week. Located in a large warehouse in the heart of Williamsburg’s North Side, Artists & Fleas provides an ever-changing rotation of talent and merch in what has become a unique, unconventional retail destination.