Iowa Girl on the Go

Market Day is a monthly gathering of artists, antiques dealers, and craftspersons held in an old warehouse on SW 5th Street in Downtown Des Moines.

It’s a funky place, for sure.

This is the third time I’ve been. The first time was a special Black Friday Market Day – a nice alternative to big box stores and malls on the day after Thanksgiving. That was fun. And then I sort of forgot about Market Day, given the winter we had, and I didn’t think to go again until last month. Now I plan to go on a regular basis.

It’s such a great concept: Artists who sell their goods on websites like etsy.com come together for a fun event, described on the Market Day website as “arts festival meets bohemian garage sale.” That’s a pretty accurate description. There’s jewelry, hand-knitted scarves and caps, photography, wallets made from maps, T-shirts, and journals made from old Hardy Boys books mixed with cupcakes and flea market fare.

Don’t expect the place to be huge – it’s small and fairly crowded. I felt like every time I stopped at a booth I was blocking the way of someone who wanted to walk through. But the friendly vendors and nice selection of functional and eclectic art are enough to bring me back later this fall for some serious Christmas shopping.

Market Day is held 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. the last Saturday of every month at 300 SW 5th St., Des Moines. Black Friday Market is Nov. 26.