Five Points Biergarten

Saturday will certainly get its own post but we also wanted to show some love to another rad event that went down this weekend.

In a space behind buildings and down alleys that was neglected for years a pop-up biergarten took place that marked the end of the first phase of transformation and the beginning of a new urban space for Cincinnati and series of events this summer.  

Hear more about it at www.FivePointsWH.com and thank the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation for making big waves just outside of the river basin! 

VENDOR LOOKOUT / HOT HOUSE MARKET

We're super excited to welcome a new vintage vendor to the City Flea community this season and know you will love them just as much as we do. From furniture to clothing to fun knick knacks, Hot House Market surely has something for everyone.  Be sure to find them at their first market on May 18! 

GET CRAFTY

Looking for something rad to do today in Cincinnati? Well you cannot go wrong if you head to Clifton for Crafty Supermarket- Like no other craft show you have seen around these parts. You'll find a handful of flea vendors as well as fresh faces from miles away! Dont miss it!

EARTH DAY

We are as much a part of the earth as the trees & mountains- lets start treating ourselves better.

A CREATIVE MORNINGS RECAP

In case you were unable to attend the first Creative Mornings session, here's Bill Donabedian's (of Bunbury) talk for viewing pleasure. Remember to save the date this month- April 26th at The 21c Hotel with Joe Hansbauer, President and CEO of Findlay Market.  See ya there! 

TO DO TEUX DEUX 2 DOO TWO DUE

Have you guys heard of TeuxDeux? It's been around the block for some time now but now that we're in the thick of season planning we've been putting our teuxdeux to good use.  It's a $3.00 a month service that allows you to keep an organized, pretty looking to do list of all the awesome things you need to get done- finish an item on your list and it gets crossed off, because we all love that feeling of crossing things off our to do lists.  You can give it a whirl free for 30 days. Duex it!

What other services are you guys using for your business? We're always open to trying new things out....

CREATIVE MORNINGS COMES TO TOWN

In case you've missed the scuttlebutt about creative mornings coming to town let us fill you in.  CM is the brainchild of Tina Roth Eisenberg- designer and blogger over at Swiss-Miss, founder of tattly and TeuxDeux- needless to say she's our kind of gal.  The idea is to bring together a city's creative community once a month for breakfast and a short talk from a local creative.  Last friday the 21c hotel was nice enough to lend their space for the very first CM Cincinnati chapter. The flea's awesome baked goods vendors supplied the breakfast and Bill Donabedian of Midpoint and Bunbury paved the way as the first speaker.    It was an awesome morning of networking and connecting with folks right here in our city.  We know how easy it is to get caught up in the online world but the importance of actually engaging with people in real life is so important and what makes a community thrive.  We're super pumped for next months talk (date to be announced soon) and are stoked that such an awesome monthly event has come to town. Enjoy some photos courtesy of Nick Dewald. To view the entire collection have a look HERE.

HOLIDAY GOODIE BAGS

City Flea totes will be in full force at this weekend's Holiday Market and we're excited to help you fill them! Perfect gift bag for that one family member who loves awesome stuff.  Add some tissue paper (provided by us!) and you've got yourself a very handsomly wrapped Holiday gift! Totes are available for purchase for $8.00.   

MERRY FROM DOMESTICA

We've really, really been enjoying the last couple issues of Domestica Magazine- produced right here in our backyard. The December, "MERRY" issue was such a treat to browse through and so nice to see on physical pages how well stocked our city is with unique, quality gifts, passionate people, and endless beautiful backdrops for storytelling and picture taking.  If you haven't seen a copy yet, pick one up at a slew of awesome establishments or have it sent directly to your mail box.   We're definitely glad to add Domestica to our list of rad things that are happening in Cincinnati. 

Tis the season - Drink Up!

We enjoy the holiday's for lots of reasons, sure. One of them however is all the exscuses for hot alcohol.  These two specialities -Uncle Ed's holiday take on the White Russian and Mom's Spiked hot apple cider recipes are just two of our favorite family recipe's (and super simple to make.) Cheers!

 // UNCLE ED'S CHRISTMAS RUSSIAN //

1 1/2 ounces Vodka

3/4 ouce Kahlua

3/4 ounce EGG NOG

stir, pour into a fancy old vintage glass and enjoy (also note, you should be wearing a holiday sweater and be sitting by a fire) 

 // SPIKED HOT APPLE CIDER //

1 cup apple cider

bourbon (to taste)

Mulling Spices OR substitue with a few cinamon sticks and whole cloves

add ingredients in pot on stove. If you are using cinamon sticks and whole cloves make sure they are in either a tea caddy or cheesecloth.  Let simmer. Pour into your favorite mug, add as much bourbon as you'd like and sip. This drink also requires a holiday sweater. The recipe says so.

Washington Park's first holiday season

We can't wait to put to use one of the most festive spots in town in a couple weeks! 

 

Shop Small this year

We have slowly become more and more independent from malls and big boxes for our holiday shopping. We can GAURANTEE that it is both easy, affordable, and satisfying to buy all your gifts from local small businesses. Save your sanity this year and keep the money you worked hard for in your community. 

NORTHSIDE!

We're pumped to be heading back to Northside this Saturday for the second installment of the "Factory Flea". If you havent had a chance to explore Northside much, you're not gonna find a better time than this weekend to do just that. Check out this fantastic map by the talented Mr. Chris Glass whose studio Wire & Twine will incidentally be selling some handsome goods at this flea! 

 

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: STOP TRAFFICK FASHION

We're sure you're all familiar with STOP TRAFFICK FASHION by now.  They've been a vendor of ours since we began and it's been fun watching this amazing company grow and evolve.  They've got some really awesome things in the works having just launched some new branding and products.  Really good stuff.  If you don't know much about Stop Traffick, you really should. Not only are they creating interesting, quality products, they're helping fight the worldwide "epidemic" of human trafficking.  READ ABOUT THEIR STORY AND CAUSE HERE and be sure to visit their booth this weekend in Northside at the Factory Flea! 

FLEA THE CITY VIII: LOS ANGELES

We spent a few awesome days in Los Angeles recently and enjoyed shifting thru the sprawling metropolis to find a few of its gems. A few spots pictured above that are definitely worth checking out:

The Hollywood Farmers Market - We didnt expect much more than a people dressed as dead celebrities looking for tips and cheap Nikes out of a market in Hollywood but this is actually an amazing farmers market offerring every piece of produce you could want as well as spices, fresh seafood, meats, breads, and everything else a good farmers market should have. 

Eggslut food truck outside of Handsome Coffee Roasters - Combine an outstanding food truck breakfast with some of the best coffee that has ever been introduced to our stomachs and whatta you get? Our Saturday morning. 

Griffith Observatory - Depending on where you hang out in LA, you may find yourself needing a break from traffic, superficiality, or both. (Neither are myths or exaggerations) Griffith Observatory is nice and quiet (especially on days when it is technically closed) and provides amazing views of most of the entire city. It also illustrates the amount of yellow smog that hovers over all of it. 

The Warehouse - A lovely space that appears to be a fresher Urban Outfitters where the items you buy are actually unique and one of a kind.

Walt Disney Concert Hall - Worth walking the perimeter for sure.  Whether you are a Frank Ghery fan or not you have to marvel at a building as "custom" as this one. 

ReForm School - City Flea lovers will love this Art, Craft, and Design Shop in Silverlake.

Other awesomeness not pictured: Mohawk General Store (Holy Amazing), Space 15 Twenty, Katsuya, Wacko Soap Plant, Shamshiri Grill, In-N-Out Burger (Animal Style) and the Pacific Ocean.

Midpoint Music Festival Weekend!

MPMF is an event that has been pumping life into OTR for years. It was great when it began in 2002 and is even better now that the city has grown around it. Hopefully tons of you are planning on joining in the fun on at least one of the three days of music. 

PARK[ED], at 13th & Race will be alive and kicking on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to fill the stomachs of hungry music lovers. 

You'll see all of these awesome food options at some point or another this weekend at PARK[ED]:

C'est Cheese, Kaimelskys, Cafe De Wheels, Coldstone Mobile, EAT Mobile, New Orleans to Go, Sugarsnap, Pizzabomba

Also, there will be awesome food truck options at the Midpoint Midway along with a rad "boxtruck carnival" and the Night Owl Market is operating on two nights (Fri/Sat) at Central and Main. 

So much tastiness in OTR this weekend! Take advantage of it before winter sets in!

THINGS WE DIG

The Velepresso- boom! This pedal powered espresso machine is pretty awesome in every way imaginable. From the design to the functionality to the tiniest carbon footprint it leaves behind, the two recent grads from Royal College of Art and Design in London have taken gourmet coffee, design, and engineering to the next level.  

CINCINNATI STREET FOOD FESTIVAL

Listen up foodies, truckers, and street walkers! The first ever Cincinnati Street Food Festival is coming up and you need to be there! This event, taking place in Walnut Hills, will celebrate all things "street" and will undoubtably be the biggest gathering of food trucks, carts, & trailers in Cincinnati history.

This is your chance to not only find yourself a delicious meal, but to show your support for the food truck movement in this city. If that isnt a good enough reason for ya, perhaps the words 'beer' or 'live music' will strike your fancy. There will also be plenty of ways to keep your kids entertained and active as well.

Mark your calendars people! Help make this the first of many events that celebrate the nomadic food options that are making this such a colorful vibrant place to live. 

THERE WAS A FLEA

We can't thank this city, our vendors, and everyone else who helps make the Flea what it is enough. The summer season of year #2 will go down in the history books.  We'll see everyone in Northside on October 20 to kick off the Fall season.  

To view the entire photo collection from the September Flea check out the album here.  

FLEA THE CITY VII: LOUISVILLE

We spontaneouly decided to go get a taste of a summer Saturday in Louisville, Kentucky and were quite happy with what we found. 

The primary reason for heading south was to finally get around to seeing what The Flea Off Market is all about. It was certainly worth the trip! All sorts of vendors, great people watching, countless shops and restaurants within walking distance, and just a splendid urban market atmosphere. The sun was shining and everyone in Lousiville seemed to be loving life. 

If you find yourself in the Derby City on a Saturday be sure to look into The Flea Off Market. On any day of the week though, Market Street seems to be where all the action is. 

 

Copped an Original Makers Club City Guide & Coffee at 'Please & Thank You'- Awesome spot. Click for info.

Had a delicious pie and beer at the super cool 'Garage Bar'- Click the image for more info..