Best of Brooklyn Flea

There is nothing I love more than a good flea market, and one of my absolute favorites is Brooklyn Flea. It takes place every single weekend. In the winter it is indoors at Hanson Place, the building directly next door to the every-single-train stop at Atlantic Terminal. In the warmer months it moves outdoors and turns into a sort of block party, at Fort Greene on Saturdays and Williamsburg waterfront on Sundays. If you're looking for something original, vintage, hand-made or delicious you're in luck.

Over embarrassingly many trips to the Flea (I'm there just about every other weekend) I've found a few amazing vendors for home goods. The following is a short list I recommend to anyone visiting for the first time:

Hunters and Gatherers
Most of their wares fall under the two main categories: 
1) Vintage brass accessories such as trays, candlesticks and vases or 2) animal remnants and taxidermy (antlers, porcupine needles, turtle shells). This vendor has absolutely mastered the art of styling, and the displays leave you feeling like you absolutely must have that alligator skull.

photo courtesy of Octavia-Brown

Octavia & Brown
A beautiful mix of mod, Hollywood Regency and vintage barware accessories, including lucite trays, glass decanters, milk glass dishes and Art Deco glasses. Liz is amazingly sweet and has a killer eye and everything here is the perfect gift for every occasion. (You know, the kind of gift that you end up keeping for yourself.)

Anthony Franck's Rugs
The proprietor is a man of few words but many rugs. His booth is literally just piles of rugs: both vintage hand-knotted wool and more modern kilims in bright patterns and colors.

Have a favorite vendor at Brooklyn Flea? Let me know.