Indie Flea

After stalking the Indie Flea Instagram for months, my husband and I were stoked to finally make the trip down from Gainesville. We saw the option to purchase VIP tickets online ($ 10/​per person) for entry an hour early and decided to go for it.
When we arrived we found parking right across from the Rialto in a small lot. Mind you, we were here an hour early, so don’t expect to find parking so easily if you arrive at noon. Once we returned to the lot there were so many cars parked every which way that we could barely squeeze out of our parking space! If you drive a luxury vehicle that you don’t want dinged up, find somewhere else to park.
Alright, onto the market. We wandered around the outside vendors first. Nothing impressive, so we went inside. My husband got a coffee, it was good, but nothing mind blowing. Our daughter got a succulent planted in a plastic dinosaur, it’s pretty rad actually, but it was expensive. Our mega find was handmade wooden shelving. The shelves are awesome and the vendor gave us a great deal.
All in all, it was okay, but once was enough. Considering we spent $ 30 on VIP tickets and drove all the way from Gainesville, we were expecting more. It seemed way cooler on the ‘gram.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm. How to say this. Nice try, but no cigar? This event needs some help. They need to diversify the offerings, add lots of food vendors, I don’t know. It just seemed like everything here was lame. For ideas on how to improve, please see:
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Maybe the day I went (Feb flea) was an off day. I was in and out in 10 minutes. Oh and by the way, this flea is indoors but open-​air. So am I to assume that in the hot months there will be no A/​C in this place? Because if that’s the case, you are excluding people like me who don’t go anywhere without A/​C between the months of May and September.
I hope it gets bigger and better. Until then, I’ll stick to my jaunts to Brooklyn.

Missed the November inaugural opening of this Tampa Heights monthly market. So made sure I was part of the crowds that seemed to be arriving from every direction when it returned on a Sunday afternoon in December.
This is such a great scene that I can only hope that the market becomes a fixture for this neighborhood. Parking may require circling the surrounding blocks a few times and a walk to reach this part of Franklin Street where vendors set up along the sidewalk, inside the Rialto Theatre and adjacent Hidden Springs Ale Works.
So comfortable walking shoes, bags to carry off purchases and a little patience while slowly winding your way among the various vendors will greatly enhance your experience. There are all kinds of items for sale from original art, handcrafted candles and soaps, jewelry and plants to greeting cards, leather bags, clothing (new and not-​so-​new) and records.
There are some food trucks and food and beverage vendors so be prepared to treat yourself to some tasty treats such as baked goods, cold brewed coffee, craft beer and cold-​pressed juice.
As crowded as it was, people were very congenial as they made their way around to view the various tabletop displays.
Held the third Sunday of each month, I will faithfully mark my calendar for Indie Flea Market future trips and maybe add on a visit to Ulele, which is nearby.

The holiday Flea Market of December 2015 was pretty packed with a great turnout. I enjoyed the opportunity to visit the historic Rialto Theatre and the chances to see inside it. I also liked historic neighboring buildings that are starting to get repurposed as the area starts to blossom.
Next door is a custom woodwork and furniture shop. They also do laser engraving and stencils. Woodshop classes. Hidden Springs Ale Works is next door on the other side. It is a newish brewery spot and tasting room in a warehouse space.
The Heights YMCA, Carnegie library building, Waterworks Park and Ulele Restaurant, Café Hey, Oceanic Oriental Market, and Café Hey are also nearby.
The indie vendors are the main attraction at the Indie Flea. Several crafters of leather goods, belts, purses, bags, a lovely smock and bag maker, Dark Cycle and other local t-​shirt and clothing design companies, some cake and donut vendors, a few food trucks, candles, soaps, wreaths and succulents, cards, vintage items and such as well as good people watching. Disney Springs /​Downtown Disney this ain’t. These hipsters are fashionistas!!! I wore my best Americsn Apparel vintage tee.
This is a great project by community minded peeps. Buy local. Love local. Live local. And fight Mayor Buckhorn’s TBX highway expansion that will decimate, destroy and divide these historic neighborhoods once again in favor of suburban commuters and Buckhorn’s big business construction buddies.

I couldn’t believe how packed Indie Flea was today. Holy moly was everyone in Tampa there.
Parking was a project in itself. Everyone parked there so close together like sardines, and I was worried our car door would be hit. It was okay. So happy it was not.
We started off at Hidden Ale. I never knew it was there. What a nice surprise. There were about 10 vendors in there as well as a handful on the sidewalk next to there.
Then we went inside the Rialto Theater. There was about 5 or 6 rows of vendors and then also vendors on the two sides as well as the room next door, and outside side. This was very happening. Tons of fun stuff to be bought.
My faves were the dog vendor that actually has a store in Seminole Hts. I loved the ohh lala bakery with the sinful desserts. Why do desserts in mason jars look so appealing to me. They also had donuts, cold Brewed coffee, ginger beer, essential oils, plants, tablets, local art. There is so much to see.
They had food trucks too like Surf and Turf and a fry truck.
This is a really cool market, and when it comes back around, it’s definitely a fun spot to shop!

What a neat market! Indie Flea is hosted monthly at the historic Rialto theatre in Tampa Heights. The market features unique local vendors showcasing their products. There is clothing, art work, décor, food, drinks — you name it.
All of the vendors I met were very friendly and passionate about their products. There were many items that I had not seen elsewhere and I really enjoyed getting my shop on. When I was done at Rialto Theatre, I popped over to Hidden Springs Ale Works to grab a beer and was delighted to see that there were even more vendors there.
I will likely make the Indie Flea a monthly tradition and I look forward to seeing what vendors and items there are next month. Do yourself a favor and check it out! You will be surprised what you find.