Naomi ThamReview: Public Garden
The Public Garden Flea Market returned on October 25 featuring a smorgasbord of knick-knacks from scented wax melts to comical retro telephones.
The flea market’s location (the 16th floor of TripleOne Somerset) meant there was an outdoor rooftop area overlooking the bustling Orchard Road cityscape. At dusk, the area was filled with natural sunlight, inviting shoppers out for photo sessions.
Although the market area wasn’t extensively decorated, the focus was on the vendors and their wares instead. Each vendor featured their carefully-curated selections and artistically-arranged merchandise on the shelves, creating a visual feast for customers trigger-happy with their camera phones.
Mina & Liili’s e-store featured healthy breakfast and snacks on their e-store. You’ll be pleased to know that you can customize your muesli mix, or choose from a pre-selected mix! Their list of (solely natural) ingredients included hard-to-source berries like mulberries and goose berries. Each canister ranges from $15 to $18.
It was almost impossible to walk past Artisan’s Garden, without stopping to smell a blend of calming scents. There were a variety of scents to choose from, such as the popular lavender and ocean breeze. Each box of soy-wax aroma cubes costs $15.
Organic food has always been a mainstay at gardens and farmers’ markets, but the pièce de résistance in this booth were these compact jars of nut butter. A healthy alternative to sugar-laden peanut butters, each jar had just 3 ingredients: blended nuts, coconut oil and sea salt. Of course, you can choose your own blend of nuts too. For those with a sweet tooth can try the hazelnut with cocoa ($16). Prefer something rich in flavor? Go for the pistachio ($19).
UrbanWire spotted other great finds at the flea such as the popular rock mineral jewelry, which was sold in at least 3 different booths. By Invite Only had the widest range of necklaces, adorned with all sorts of mineral stones that would pique any woman’s fancy. Their prices were steep ranging from $45 to $60.
(Picture taken from Asymmtrcl’s Instagram page)
Asymmtrcl provided a slightly less expensive alternative to their mineral necklaces such as their one-off marble stone pieces. These intricate pieces ($30 to $45) made their debut here ahead of their launch on their website.
For Him
Home to more than just motorcycle accessories such as handle grips and Hedon helmets, MotoVault featured pompadour products as well. Known as ‘the ultimate 50s greaser store’, their water-based imperial pomades came in 4 types – weak-hold, strong-hold, matte and slick, and cost between $29 and $35. We also spotted the iconic metal Chicago combs ($45).
The flea not only allowed shoppers to be exposed to the unique independent businesses and unusual items to add to our homes, but also provided benefits such as exposure and opportunities to test local customers for the vendors.
UrbanWire spoke to vendor Kendra Liew, also known as DJ ElectroKat, who recently launched her line of organic beauty products, Katfood to allow potential customers to sample her handcrafted products.
“We have not even launched our website, let alone our products, to the public yet. We wanted to use Public Garden to introduce ourselves properly and to get the customers’ feedback,” said Kendra.
Every Public Garden flea is unique with its distinct mix of vendors and location, but something remains constant — the ability to excite shoppers with unexpected finds that turn into desired treasures.
Public Garden flea will return on November 22.