Despite rain and an unreliable G train, neighbors and tourists poured into the Greenpoint Loft this past Sunday for our biggest event of the year — the Polar Vortex Holiday Market. The halls were decked with an ice castle created by Mano-a-Mano while scents of mulling spices wafted in the air.
The Manhattan skyline the Loft usually bestows was clouded by the dismal fog, but the inside stayed bopping thanks to Love Always band jamming with an upbeat live performance and Pink Slater singing dreamy mellow tunes. Continue reading →
You could call Jill Folino and Wven Villegas handy people — their company, after all, is named Mano-A-Mano. Folino and Villegas have crafted bespoke signs for Citroen and holiday decor for our holiday market — to name just a few recent examples of their work around the nabe — but it is their communally-sustained relationships they seem to prize most. As our interview illuminates, the crafty mavens behind Mano-A-Mano not only support each other but local establishment after local establishment. They see their projects as a way to artfully represent a company’s vision while also planting themselves knee-deep in the ethos of all they collaborate with. Below, we caught up with the two artisans to discuss their creative backgrounds and favorite projects.
Greenpointers: Introduce yourselves!
Jill Folino: I work with a partner, Wven Villegas, and we created Mano-A-Mano. Our work varies from mural and sign painting, sculpture, woodworking, type and creative direction. We model building and anything else we can conjure up. Together we share a tool box of skills that we are constantly juggling.
Do you both reside in Brooklyn? Wven has lived in Greenpoint for over 13 years, while I was born and raised in Staten Island where I once again currently reside. We work out of a three-car garage we converted into our studio behind my apartment so we have more than ample room to spread our creative wings. It’s also enough space to build some sizable pieces. It’s our creative lab we dubbed “Pop Art Garage.”
Let’s dig into what people might be most familiar with: your work at the Polar Vortex Holiday Market. How’d that come together?
When we were asked by our good friend JD to lend some props for decor at the market, we didn’t hesitate. We love that this market is a platform for artisans and other creatives like ourselves to present their creations. We hope to be vendors at a future market.
The castle was created a few years back for a children’s birthday party, but we gave it an icy makeover, changing it from it’s original cream colored/pink and Disney-esque paint job. The snowman on the other hand, has been around for more than 20 years. He’s been a fixture in our studio, just hanging around changing hats and costumes. We felt it was time for him to get out into the world and get a real job, hehe. The Out Snapped photo booth was his first modeling gig!
The turkey’s been carved and the first snow has fallen — now we look forward to our Polar Vortex Holiday Market! Join us on Sunday, December 2 from 1 to 7 PM for an an immersive Winterscape inside the cozy Greenpoint Loft (67 West St) and unique locally made gifts for all your holiday shopping needs.
To recap, 60+ talented makers & crafters will have beautiful creations ready for sale and there will be no shortage of FREE things to do throughout the day including an interactive hologram experience, digital Photo Booth, massages, henna tattoos, nail art, ornament making, and more! We will be serving warm mulled wine and refreshing locally crafted Greenpoint Beer & Ale. Plus there will be live musical performances by local bands Pink Slater and Love Always!
Shop and support local! Our vendors are local artisans, makers, and independent small businesses who craft high quality items. Get a glimpse of some of our featured vendors and hope to see you this Sunday!
A ceramist and crafter based in Brooklyn, Mariana Silva’s website boasts a number of hand-spun goods. She hand makes a range of one-of-a-kind porcelain creations — from earrings and mugs to pipes, plates, and cups — that astound in their uniqueness and delight in their charm.Follow Mariana and her porcelain beauties on Instagram.
Prune & Plum Prune & Plum believes that the pot of your cactus or succulent should be as gorgeous as the plant itself. The local company defines itself as indoor-plant stylists as they merge design and art with urban plants.
Kitchen Ink Kids, a staple at our seasonal markets, boasts a presence on Etsy but come see their hand-made products in person at our market! Made in the owner’s kitchen here in Brooklyn, Kitchen Ink Kids creates hand-dyed, 100% organic cotton children’s materials.
PRESTIDGE beauté Active Organics PRESTIDGE beauté Active Organics are lovingly made in a Brooklyn-based home-lab employing Reiki techniques. They are carefully crafted by hand with the finest ingredients, inspired by a desire to create a line of organic skin care products that yield stunning results.
Who in Greenpoint can deny a pierogi? Since 1991, Stanley’s has been providing a delectable line of delicious pierogis to both retail and food service industries, and all of their products are homemade using only the highest quality ingredients.
Fabalishemploys inventive, creative, fun ways to eat chickpeas. Offering baked falafels, chickpea blondies, and sauces with an aquafaba base. Enjoy good eats from natural foods chef Jessca Gebel. “Faba” means bean in Latin — and the “lish” is simply for delicious. Come try these vegan and gluten-free light delights!
This Sunday, December 2nd from 1–7 PM, enter our immersive Winterscape inside the cozy Greenpoint Loft (67 West St) that will be donned with an ice castle, snow, snowmen and polar bears thanks to designs by scenic artist extraordinaire Art of Mano. 60+ talented makers & crafters will have beautiful creations ready for sale and there will be no shortage of FREE things to do throughout the day! RSVP on Facebook and stay updated!
The upstairs mezzanine leads out to the roof deck with views of the East River and Manhattan skyline as well as a number of FREE fun activities including: Continue reading →
We've been feeling a lot like this lately. Photo via @troutfishininamerica
Dear Daniel,
Can you offer some tips for folks who are feeling perpetually ‘down in the dumps’ due to winter weather/lack of sunlight/freezing cold temps? I do my best to exercise regularly, eat well, and sleep enough, but sometimes those tactics just aren’t enough to beat seasonal blues.
Dear Winter Blues,
This winter has been particularly challenging for all of us. Grey, freezing cold days and endless snow, ice, and dirty frozen Brooklyn streets are certainly not a recipe for igniting a joyful spirit. Continue reading →
Prune & Plum believes that the pot of your cactus or succulent should be as gorgeous as the plant itself. The local company defines itself as indoor-plant stylists as they merge design and art with urban plants.
PRESTIDGE beauté Active Organics are lovingly made in a Brooklyn-based home-lab employing Reiki techniques. They are carefully crafted by hand with the finest ingredients, inspired by a desire to create a line of organic skin care products that yield stunning results.
