The Flea Market at Eastern Market

I wish this was larger! However, I really liked it. I’m a fan of flea markets that have people’s better quality junk, or artists showcasing their stuff, or natural items (you know real wood carvings, things made out of alpaca wool, hand blown glass etc) and this had that. There were maybe 50 – 75 vendors only. It goes by quickly. But there were fruit/​veggies in abundance, a place to get coffee, outdoor seating as a couple cafes as well. It had a few artists there showcasing their paintings and prints and photographs. Be wary of the couple in there selling mass produced ones though. Also some people who painted furniture and tried to sell it. There was even a «psychic». I’ll go back sometime but hope it’s larger because there wasn’t enough there for my liking. There is also a food area where vendors do ethnic cuisines. Parking is hard though. A few metered spaces but mostly around there is housing so you have to read signs very carefully before you park. A metro comes right out to it, so best to park somewhere else and just come in by metro.

I love flea market, the Eastern Market’s flea market seems to be shrinking by the year, when I first stayed in this area, I recalled the market occupied more space, now part of the space is a construction site, don’t know what they are building, but being DC it is probably going to be another apartment building.
There are antiques, fashion (adults and kids), jewelry, handicraft, paintings and food. There are plenty of places to have brunch on the 8^th streets nearby, and the Market in the old building inside also sell food. It is not bad for a Sunday morning stroll, but not necessary the best place to buy anything.

I came to Eastern Market for the first time on Saturday afternoon after brunch. I am a big fan of outdoor markets and was so excited to take a look at what this one had to offer. This one was super walk-​able; it’s really organized in the way it’s laid out. I purchased a small handmade turquoise vase for only $ 10 and was so excited to get it home. We saw lots of great home décor, scarves, paintings, and jewelry. It’s also a great spot to listen to music as there were several street performers with guitars in hand. Some vendors sold lemonade and fresh fruit drinks; so it’s also a great place to sit for minute and relax. We didn’t spend a really long time there because we were meeting friends for drinks, but it was a great spot to shop for hidden treasures.

Randomly came into this place. From the outside, it looks questionable but to my surprise I saw a few cool vendors. One of the coolest vendors I saw was The Old Book Guy or something to that effect. Really nice man who had an impressive collection of vintage LIFE magazines. Most of the prints were in relatively good collection and his prices were very fair. I purchased one with jfk on the cover from the 1960s. Very cool piece to have or in my case, a very cool gift to a friend. Most of the booths have typical flea market junk, but you might spot a nugget here and there.

I always make it a point to visit whenever I’m in DC. You never know what you’re going to find.
At the same time, the market does maintain a degree of uniformity that is refreshing in a time as turbulent as one’s mid 20s. I like visiting whenever I come from out of town to visit my family, and I enjoy knowing that where the stands were last time is where they’ll be this time. It’s usually the last place I visit before walking over to Union Station to catch my train home.
My favorite purchase here: a framed drawing from the main chapel on my college campus. It cost me just $ 10. I was the envy of my classmates for weeks. I got so many Facebook likes for it too.
I enjoy looking through the old maps and photographs stand by the entrance.

Love coming to this flea market. It’s always like a day outing, and I love in the area, but it’s always different. Love the eateries, all the enithnic food, fresh and tasty. The booth s of different things to buy, fresh fruit and vegetables. The different back of people that come out, family outing, girlfriend hanging doing brunch, or just a stroll by yourself..

Vendors seems like they been selling/​re-​stocking same things every month? Selections seems small for a free to the public flea market. Maybe during summer the lot may be full but not in other months. Prices also seems high from the available selections. Bargain at all times (single or multiple items).
Good selection of industrial-​craftsman furniture yet at a premium price.
Lots of food/​fruits and veggie vendors in the opposite lot with free samples.
Lots of women’s jewelry, men’s cuff links (vintage looking), hand crafted well-​made accessories for home and garden décor, and vintage clothing. I noticed the prices of costume jewelry is higher when you cross the street towards the red brick Eastern Market structure. Great outdoor fun but a disappointing shopping experience this day.
Lets try again in the later months for better deals.
* Parking is close to impossible*

I was visiting DC for the upteenth time and wanted to purchase some DC art to hang on my wall back home in Indianapolis. Not only did I have several options to choose from (good problems), but I really enjoyed getting lost in the flea market. There’s a lot of great stuff in there from clothes to artwork to outerwear to suitcases to scarves to records to maps to hats to (insert funky antique here). One of my favorite vendors was selling old ceiling tiles that had been repurposed into mirrors. Had I not been boarding a plane that day, I would have purchased one.

A great find for a lazy sunday. This farmer’s market is located right by the metro station which makes it easy to get to! They have a wide array of places to grab lunch, coffee, veggies, fruits, baked goods, and trinkets/​artwork. Definitely recommend DC Donuts and walking around enjoying a cup of coffee to start off your sunday!

Walked through the Eastern Market on one of the hottest days of the summer… and it was a blast! The sheer abundance of tents with clothes, nicknacks, hand-​crafted jewelry, food, and unique beverages was impressive. This was a perfect introduction to the neighborhoods of DC, nestled in between a few beautiful neighborhoods and a pretty short walk away from Capitol Hill. I was glad to experience and check out the local businesses and products as well as the flea market. It was an ideal stop on the walk through the city and an effective immersion into this part of DC.

Awesome at this flea market went with the family and have a blast… lots of cool and free stuffs n free food cause u know I love free. …got me some cool so to the next flea market it is!

You can find all sorts of treasures or just browse around at the flea market. I love seeing items from different parts of the world that each vendor shares from their culture. They’re also happy to chat with you about what each item represents in their culture and I didn’t find anyone was pushy to make a sale. I’ll be back!

From my experience, Flea Markets consist of people selling things that they no longer want or need. This however was more of an antique market. Lots of repurposed furniture, scarves, clothes etc. We spent the day and had a blast but thought the prices were a bit high so didn’t buy anything. BTW, we much preferred the part of Eastern Market where people sell their arts, crafts and home grown things.

Allow me to lure you in…
Scarves by the boatload. I wanted to touch all of them. Seriously, make me a Scrooge McDuck vault filled with scarves scarves. Put the money in another room.
Cutting boards that will make great gifts for your friends and aunts. My aunt is the only one who likes stuff like that? Oh. Feel free to buy one and give it to me.
Vintage Playboy. Not that I looked or anything. Hi grandma!
Art! The guy outside the gate between the flea market and the market? Hilarious. He doesn’t have cards, but he’s easy to find. Mina Karimi? Colorful wood art and she takes requests. Zachary Sasim? His work is gorgeous. I will be going back for more from all of them.
Superhero prints on distressed tin. Wonder Womaaaaaaan!
Jewelry! I got some cute woven bracelets from Ecuador.
Skirts! I love the African prints from the first lady on right as you enter from 8^th street. Her skirts are one size and the longer ones can be fashioned into dresses. The shorter ones are 45, medium lengths 50, and longer ones 65. I got a longer one for graduation.
Kettle corn. You don’t like kettle corn? What kind of person are you? I bet you don’t like bacon or kittens.
Super cute DC t-​shirts from pop co. The guy there will talk sports with you. Live in Virginia? Well, that sucks.
Baby items that make me wish I had a baby. Well, a baby to buy that stuff for, not a baby of my very own.
There were all sorts candles, soaps, woven bowls, and desserts.
None of that tickles your fancy? They have stuffed alpacas. Who can resist a stuffed animal? No one.
Nothing that grabs you? Maybe you should move into a cave.

Worth a trip– fun collection of random things like sunglasses, mirrors, lavendar wreathes, brooches, baby clothing, old Life magazines, and scarves. The quality of the booths varied, and we left wishing there had been a bit more flea market/​antique booths and a little less commercial. Our favorite booths included a lavendar booth (with wreathes, soap, etc.), gorgeous antique-​like mirrors, and a baby clothing booth that used organic cotton and donated a percentage of their profit to an education fund in India. It took us about 30 – 40 minutes to go through the entire flea market.
We had an awesome afternoon, and I’d strongly suggest a day trip to Eastern Market, the flea market at Eastern Market, and the food carts in the area (especially the crêpe cart!).

I love this place. It’s diverse and pretty well priced I bought a beautiful Asian carved table priced at $ 125 but I paid $ 80. Then I headed over and got some fresh fruits and veggies. I will be back they have so much more to offer

I got a few of my now-​favorite scarves from this flea market.
Perfect to wander around after eating at Eastern Market, cup of Pitango Gelato in hand, shopping for accessories, antiquey furniture, dresses, jewelry, sunglasses. The quality of jewelry can range. This is bigger than many of the flea markets in New York with just as good if not better quality goods. Also, there’s a place with well priced summer dresses with cute patterns — no fitting room but you can try them on over your clothes.

Well. Hello, #1,000. When I started Unilocaling four years ago, I never imagined I’d be looking *you* in the face. Yet, here we are. I’ve definitely been daunted as you approached, racking my brain for a subject worthy of such a milestone. I kept searching for something big enough, and flashy enough, to suit. And then it occurred to me: go in the other direction. Small but dignified. So. Here it is, #1,000. Your subject is…
…The Flea Market at Eastern Market. I absolutely love this spot. It is funky and arty and hip and cool and everything you want in a flea market, including a cozy, manageable size. It blends the old — vintage clothes, shoes, furniture, artwork — with the new — hand-​knit hats, oil paintings, hand-​made stationery and jewelry.
Most of the vendors are incredibly high-​quality, too. None of that dime-​a-​dozen art fair junk. I particularly like Rock It Again, whose stall is filled with exquisitely kept vintage outerwear (our coat closet is silent testament to my inability to say «no» to a good coat). I adore the timeless fabrics and classic cuts. The Alpaca Girl offers more lovely coats as well, all 100% baby alpaca, in that trademark silky, luxurious fur. Turquoise Jewelry Boutique also sets up a stall with its show-​stopping and signature chunky necklaces, among other pretty pieces. And there’s the gentlemen whose vintage stall harkens back to Abercrombie & Fitch when it was actually a sporting goods company rather than a tween mecca: plaid flannels, brown cords, duck boots and tartan wool blankets (one of which hangs on the back of our couch now).
Home goods are well-​represented here as well. There are gorgeously restored sideboards worthy of «Mad Men,» vintage tin ceiling tiles painted every color of the spectrum, repurposed coffee tables made from old work trollies, 19^th century maps of Washington, distressed printer trays. One of my favorites is the Meditation Lady with her statuettes of Buddha and her phenomenal singing bowls, many of them antique and patinated beautifully.
Recently, the fate of the market was questioned when developers threatened to eliminate the school lot where it’s held. But after a groundswell of support from friends, neighbors and market patrons, it appears that the market has been able to negotiate for its continued operation once development — slated to start in July — is completed. Which is a huge relief, considering this gem is 30 years strong this year.
The Flea Market at Eastern Market may be small, but she’s mighty. Let’s all make sure she’s around at least another 30 years.