Brooklyn Flea

We never close, so we'll be open as always Saturday and Sunday this weekend, 10am to 5pm. See you at the Flea!

The Hunt just gets better. Scavengers will likely abound; come quick.

When you find one of the items above (click to enlarge), which can be hidden in any vendor booth, it's yours, absolutely free! Then we post your photo with the generous vendor here on the blog on Monday. Only one winner per calendar month. Items posted every Friday around Noon.

From left:

1. Yellow Submarine Blue Meanie collector doll: plastic, movable, and of course, lovable. Designed by cartoonist Todd McFarlane. Vintage (Saturday)

2. Polaroid 900 "Electric Eye" camera, circa 1960's. Vintage (Sunday)

As One Hanson cruises on, quite a few new vendors have climbed aboard the good ship Flea, in addition to the regulars you know and love. Many of them are serious vintage/antiques dealers, and we're proud to have 'em. (Booth numbers refer to the vendor layout + map we post every Friday. Know it, learn it.)

Sunday Love is Greer's Grand St. Williamsburg vintage shop, with a focus on repurposed furniture. (Their most popular item is an anatomy table created from a repro print of an old biology poster.) Cool stuff. #3/Sun

Rhianna sells Fleaster Nina Z.'s awesome Swedish clogs, cute plants and flowers from Fort Greene's Stem, and Rhianna's own tightly curated selection of vintage homewares. Great booth! #63/Sun

Maurice is an old-school antiques dealer who returns to the Flea fold this weekend after a hiatus. Expect big to small, furniture to knick-knacks, and tall tales from Monsieur Maurice. #4/Sat+Sun

Elizabeth Benjamin has done the Pier Show for years, and she debuts at the Flea this weekend. Full case of sterling flatware, unusual smalls, vintage kitchen items, embroidered sheets and pillowcases, art glass, cashmere sweaters, all kinds of funky-fun stuff. Primo! #35/Sat+Sun

We get a lot of applicants in the realm of Chika's Mercato biz—head scarves, totes—so we really liked her style and professionalism and love having her at One Hanson. (She started up at Gifted and kicked ass.) Nice as can be too. #49/Sat+Sun

Woody's Cabin is Merrie's vintage biz: postcards, bric-a-brac, hi-fi's, small '50s furniture, and the like. Yum. #80 (vault level)/Sat+Sun

Andy and Chery are Mix Gallery, dealers of Mid-Century and Deco lamps, furniture, and art par excellence (above). Their little nook on the vault/lower level to the right has been a haven for serious collectors and shoppers. Check 'em. #83 (vault level)/Sat+Sun

Is Five is Keith and Sonal's young collectors' biz, with a focus on rare and antique decorative books. They brought some stunning Danish Modern furniture to the Flea in 2008, then reassessed and are honed in on the beautiful book thing. They have a great eye together. #40/Sun

And you thought tacos were always the answer...

What: By now, you know you can find the best mahi mahi tacos at Choncho's, but the tamales are babies not to be put in the corner. Above are the smoked jalapeno pork tamales, with shredded spicy pork and corn meal, wrapped in corn husk, steamed, and topped with sour cream, cilantro, red cabbage, lime, and spicy chipotle hot sauce (optional, but recommended). Also try the verde (mild pork), mole (Chicken), and raja (poblano pepper and cheese).

Tasty with: Lime or grapefruit Jarritos for 2 bucks a bottle.

Where else: Choncho's tamales and tacos can also be found at The Loading Dock on Tillary Street in Brooklyn for lunch and dinner.

Cost: $5 well-worth bucks.

City Owl, Ashley and Jim's phenomenal vintage and repurposed-goods biz, got the vaunted Design*Sponge treatment today, to which we say kudos! City Owl teamed up with interior designer Christine Dalsass on the offices of the open planning project (topp), a cool mapping and geography nonprofit, and the results are kind of astoundingly gorgeous in a minimal/modern/industrial/green way.

Railroad-cart coffee table? Yup (above). Plant walls? Yeah. Framed vintage subway scrolls (a City Owl Flea staple)? Uh huh. Check the pics yo!

And find the City Owls in booth #26 every weekend at One Hanson (except this weekend actually, on vacation).

Imagine you're in an old vaulted bank with 63-foot ceilings, shopping for deer heads and antique lace, and a white-bearded man starts playing the electric organ of a most glorious sound. Welcome to our BFF of the Week: John. And find a deal on this Clavinova at Olde Good Things (#56) this weekend.

What was that song you were just playing?
Ooh, it could have been one of mine. I've been playing a lot, since sitting here.
Where did you learn to play?
Oh gee, I started when I was 4 years old, and here and there along the way, ya know.
Where do you find your musical inspiration?
I'm a jazz brat, so Ornette Coleman, Monk, Coltrane of course, Byrd, Billy Strayhorn.... But then there's Brahms!
Aside from playing this beautiful Clavinova, what else do you do?
I cook, I do tilework, carpentry, I sculpt, paint in an abstract way. I do what I have to do, put it that way.
How did you arrive to the Flea today?
I took the 2 train! My daughter sells here [Maya Coppola, Very Cool Jewels, booth #61], and it's my wife's birthday tomorrow, so we are going to go home together to surprise her.
Do you play anything besides the Clavinova?
The flute, sax, but really I play the piano. I don't necessarily play the Clavinova.
Is this a good one?
Yeah! It's a very good one. I might have to get this!
Thanks John!

Nice local TV segment from the Brooklyn Independent Television folks, which is a community media program of BRIC Arts. See Senor ramble on about the economy, Jean-Paul talk about how nice One Hanson is, and more. Fun.

Check out Kevin's deals on funky furniture and homewares a the Flea, or take a day trip up to the Hudson Valley for some higher-end pieces. Either way, you'll be supporting his beloved pastime of shopping just for you. (Booth #21 at One Hanson.)

What's your name and company's name?

Kevin Regan, and it's Regan + Smith Antiques.

And what's your hometown?

I'm originally from Providence, Rhode Island, and I live in Hudson, NY, now. It's a destination place with like 60 antique shops on one street, an old fishing town. It takes about 2 hours to get there.

What do you sell and how long have you been selling it for?

We have a shop in Hudson where we sell more designer furniture and decorative. What I bring here is hip, cool, less expensive furniture, quirky home accessories, glassware. Anything that appeals to me that seems fairly priced, I buy it— it also allows me to feed my addiction. I'm just addicted to buying, so I need to keep selling.

What's your most memorable sale?

Does it have to be a sale? There was the lady that fell asleep in our chair in the heat of the summer last year in Fort Greene. That was funny! [Last photo of that week's slideshow.]

What keeps you coming back to the Flea?

I'm getting old, and it keeps you young. It's fun! And it's a really good place to shop.

What do you do for fun, besides shopping?

That's it. Shopping.

And do you have a website?

Yes! It's reganandsmith.com.

Thanks Kevin!

Ponder has a gorgeous closeup look at some of the vintage beauty on offer at the Flea at One Hanson, in the kickoff gallery for its new "Visual Inspiration" series. Ponder as you gander!

Photos by Yang-Yi Goh.

Saturday was a super-early winner (first hour), Sunday's happened later, despite a feverish Hunt. Both Scavengers were seemingly euphoric at their find. The Hunt was as it should be.

From left:

Sommer found the vintage bulldog framed photo within moments of the market opening—and it was well-hidden under a table on a side aisle. Kudos to Sommer the Scavenger! The providing vendor goes only by Sea Hair @ AOKNY and prefers to remain anonymous. You can find him in #15 every weekend, or here.

Abbey became a Flea Facebook fan over the weekend, saw the Pyrex dining set, and as a plate collector she was on the Hunt. Abbey entered the room on the mezzanine (booth #67), stopped, took a deep breath, and, stunned for a moment, asked Carmella "Is that it?" Carm said yes, but Abbey had to ask again since it was so late in the day. She was very excited!

Carmella is Mama Can't Sing, and she's got a great mish-mash of clothing, jewelry, housewares, and everything in between—vintage and self-designed—up on the mezzanine every weekend. A sweetie too!

Check back at noon Friday for this weekend's items.