Brooklyn Flea

Pumpkins! This weekend will finally feel like fall, and it'll look like it at the Flea too. Young Farmer Sam is coming down to Fort Greene from his Poorfarm Farm in Central Vermont with a truckload of pumpkins for your stoop/Halloween/pie needs, as well as the last of his yum maple syrup. You can also email him to pre-order farm-fresh organic eggs and yogurt. Welcome Sam warmly! E7+8, FG/Sat

Paul Samulski is gonna be worth a perusal. Among his items: toys (Paul's former industry); classic video game machines and games (his other former industry); autographed football helmets and baseballs; old Rolling Stone mags, records, books, and clothes. Good pickins! W45, FG/Sat

Lisa Fernandez is cleaning out her house, as well as a friend's mom's in Bayonne. Bric-a-brac, small furniture, some vintage clothing, and all that kinda stuff. V5, FG/Sat

Have a feeling Demetris Pantopoulos is gonna become a regular. He's a friend of Michael from Adelaide, the posh West Village antiques shop, and he's bringing a mix of Art Deco objects and American Folk antiques and collectibles (right). C6, FG/Sat

Matt Hranek is a local fella, convinced us with his mention of "elevated bric-a-brac," American folk, and furniture pieces, along with some men's vintage including WWI and WWII military garments. Check Matt's blog for a sampling of his aesthetics. High hopes. TBD, FG/Sat

Abe Renko is a painter and designer who co-founded a three-person design collective called Four Desks that produces pieces like the "Recession Chair," which is a found chair with a seat replaced by glass. They also make handbags out of firehose. Cool peeps, psyched to see their setup. E25, FG/Sat

David's online biz is The World's Best Ever, which is making its offline/real-world debut at the Flea on Saturday. New art, 'zines, prints (right), small-edition books, a bit of funky furniture, all kinds of sharp-eye shenanigans. Worth a peek. C13, FG/Sat

Sonya Topolinsky was sharing with awesome Hideya Sagawa until he got a full-time job, so she's on her own with a mix of '30s-'60s dresses, shoes, and jewelry, plus Marimekko textiles and old magazines and stuff. Sonya's also a contributor to the cool vintage site Worn Fashion Journal. E30, FG/Sat

Forgotten Language is Lodz's collection of handcrafted metal fine art from Haiti, including masks, mirrors, and bowls, many of which reference voodoo and Rara. G-12, 1H/Sun

Old-school foodies returning to the fold after a summer hiatus:

Bedford Cheese Shop, E8, FG/Sat

Early Bird granola, E7, FG/Sat

Kumquat Cupcakery, E3, FG/Sat

Liddabit Sweets, E10, FG/Sat

Nunu Chocolates, E2, FG/Sat

What: Make your own McClure's Pickles at home with McClure's Brine! This is the exact recipe they use for their delectable garlic and dill. Fancy the spicy variety? Just add some habaneros. Or, get inventive and brine pork chops or chicken, create the dirtiest of martinis, or offer a "pickleback" with your Russian vodka.

How much: $8 for a quart.

What else: McClure's regular pickles are hardly a "what else"—they're amazing. Their Bloody Mary Mix has become a hit, as has their whole-grain mustard, flavored with a beer local to the geographic market.

When and Where: Every weekend at both markets—E4 in Fort Greene, G-6 at One Hanson—or online at mcclurespickles.com.

Exciting news from the world of publishing! Fave Flea vendors Erica and Stephen of Brooklyn Brew Shop are authoring a home brewer's guide, set to come out through Random House in Spring 2012. Their Better Beer Handbook will feature 52 greenmarket-inspired, seasonal beer recipes, and if they're anything like Brew Shop's Chocolate Maple Porter or Rye Pale Ale, this one's gonna be a doozy. Congrats guys! (Find 'em at the Fort Greene Flea every Saturday.)

Cute winners and vendors. As always.

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

From left (click to enlarge):

Saturday: Kaori (left) lives in Manhattan but is moving back to her native Japan soon. She will have a belt buckle to stash her MetroCard until then, and perhaps her Suica or PASMO card if she's headed back to Tokyo. She was psyched to find this quirky item.

She's with Scott Behr of Total Metal Resource (TMRnyc), who first did the Flea when GreenJeans curated the Fall Furniture Festival in 2008. TMR makes handcrafted metal furniture, much of it from re-purposed materials, in their Greenpoint studio, as well as these snazzy MetroCard belt buckles, small lamps, and cool hanging light pendants—or is that TMI on TMR? Scott is a newcomer of late, so check the vendor layout on Fridays to find him on Saturdays and Sundays.

Sunday: Josh (left) lives in Greenpoint, and made his first Flea foray on Sunday. His wife grew up with Russian rug tapestries just like the bear one he Scavenged and won. The work of art will be placed above the TV in their living room—so cute we can't bear it!

Awesome Briana, self-proclaimed "Curator of Junk," bases her vintage Pigeon Chest operation in Providence, RI, a town we dig. (Briana was featured in the August half-page Flea photo in The New Yorker—second in this slideshow.) Best online place to see B's '60s tunics, floral dresses, jumpsuits, and violin pencil sharpeners is her Etsy site. Best real-life place is the Flea: G-56 every Sunday.

What: Chery and Andy of Mix Gallery will keep you entertaining in style with these big gorgeous wood plates. Start your fall menu right!

What else: Chery and Andy offer a real cross-section of vintage home objects, all with a super-smart design eye: glassware and knick-knacks, high-design chairs and furniture at great prices, handbags by many a famous designer, unique floor and table lamps, all of it Midcentury, much of it more modern than classic.

How much: You can have the whole set of 8 for 95 bucks.

When+Where: Every Saturday in Fort Greene (W30), every Sunday at One Hanson (G-36), and online at mixgallery.com.

We were gifted with perhaps the last sizzling hot weekend to Flea. Did ya make it out?

This week a mix of old and new, utilitarian and plain ole purty. Hunt.

Note: The Fort Greene market happens every Saturday outdoors; One Hanson is on Sundays indoors on 3 floors. Both are open 10am-5pm.

When you find one of the items above, 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 or Tuesday. Only one winner per calendar month. Items posted every Friday around Noon.

From left (click to enlarge):

1. Saturday: MetroCard belt buckle: holds your MetroCard! New/Handmade

2. Sunday: Bear tapestry, made in Italy. Vintage

The Superstar DJ Record Fair was a smash hit on Sunday, with more vinyl than mere mortals' fingers are capable of perusing and all sorts of folks including the lovely lady above fiending for Miles albums. The Times' Guy Trebay was there making the scene, and he waxes poetic in his Gimlet Eye column in today's Styles section about the mining mentality of record collectors. It's an interesting takeaway from a room full of records.

A few random notes: The guy quoted in the story is named Josh, not John, and he's a Flea pal and regular. Other Music is on E. 4 St. (between Broadway and Lafayette), not Bond St. And the adorable little girl in the Times photo is Lola Byrd, daughter of Flea vendor Cornelius of 3Free Design. (She scored a copy of "Borderline" for $1, which she was looking for all day.)

What: Passionfruit Mint Limeade from Whimsy & Spice: it's homemade, it's fresh, it's tart, it's sweet, it's thirst-quenching, and gosh darnit—it's good for you! A sort of secret perfect beverage at the Flea.

How much: $3 for a 12oz cup.

What else: The Limeade is Mark and Jenna of Whimsy's only drinkable treat, but come cooler weather it'll switch to Earl Grey Infused Hot Chocolate, and every once in a special while, White Hot Chocolate. Deliciously decadent, although not as sweet as you may think! While you're at it, try the flavored marshmallows, Everything Cookies, or the Concord Grape and Apple Streusel Bars.

When and Where: Most Saturdays in Fort Greene (check the Friday vendor layout), or online at whimsyandspice.com (Jenna's blog is awesome btw). Yum!

We're big tap-water fans, so we invited this slightly bizarre but also awesome City program called Water-on-the-Go to set up at the Flea this weekend. A project of the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), it's basically a public water fountain connected to a fire hydrant. Refill your water bottle or just grab a quick drink, but either way we hope you'll pick up on how tip-top our hometown tap is.

To wit, a few facts: bottled water sales have doubled nationally over the past decade; it takes more than 3 liters of water to produce each bottled liter of water; only 20% of water bottles are recycled in America.