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The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Friday, March 29, 2024

Somerville Flea Market attracts artisans, collectors and students alike

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Handmade pottery is set out for sale at the weekly Somerville Flea Market.

On any given Sunday between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. students and locals alike can get their fill of refurbished furniture, clothing, household items and music all in one place. As attendees listen to a bearded, usually flannel-clad folk artist, they can take their pick of authentic items that have, for the most part, been hand-crafted.

This event is the Somerville Flea, a weekly market on Sunday afternoons that is steps away from the Davis Square T stop and is surrounded by quality local restaurants. The website invites locals and visitors to “come to Davis Square for brunch, stay for The Flea!”

The market itself is a hipster’s paradise with its assortment of authentic vinyl records, mason jars, vintage dresses and shoes, used books, typewriters -- the list goes on and on. The Flea, as it is commonly called, is the brainchild of Greg Ghazil, the current manager. While in school for preservation carpentry, Ghazil often had to search flea markets to find old tools that he would utilize for school projects.

“More and more, I found that I was more interested in selling vintage mid-century furniture and housewares than I was in my preservation carpentry concentration,” Ghazil said.

It was in these moments that the idea for the Somerville Flea came to fruition.

Many of the vendors at the Flea are friends of Ghazil’s, but he sifts through the vendor requests to make sure that all vendors share the same goal.

“The criteria for the Somerville Flea is that whether you’re a vintage dealer or an artisan, some aspect of what you’re selling has to involve re-purposing, restoring, recycling or reconnecting,” Ghazil said in an email to the Daily.

Abby Seaman, the co-founder of ReviVille (formerly Two Girls One Truck), has been a frequent vendor at the Flea for the past two yearsSeaman says she and her business partner both have other jobs. Like other vendors, this is a side job that they have always wanted to pursue.

“I am a bartender at a restaurant in Cambridge, and KC, the [other] co-founder, is a landscaper and has her own business," Seaman said in an email to the Daily. "She also used to bartend at the same restaurant, which is where we met and became friends and then coworkers. This is a side job for both of us, but also very much a hobby.”

Seaman's business is in alignment with Ghazil's mission for the Flea: She fixes and sells used furniture.

“We like to refinish and refurbish furniture and home goods that need a little love," Seaman said. "In a world of disposable furniture and goods, which totally serve a purpose when you need it, we like to take something old and make it new again, keeping it out of the trash.”

According to Seaman, part of the Flea's charm is the sense of community that it develops among the locals.

"It's a tight knit community of artists and vendors and we love being part of the local arts community, which is very big in Somerville," she said. "That is a very important part of living in a particular area for me, feeling and being part of the community. Many of the same people come by week to week, many of whom we know and recognize from living here for so long."

The Flea attracts a wide variety of buyers from the Somerville area, all with a shared appreciation for recycling and creating new from old. Hadley Green, a Tufts senior and International Relations major, is one such customer.  Green said she enjoys looking around at the assortment of distinct items the Flea vendors sell.

“I go there because it’s just nice to find something that’s unique, especially if you’re looking for a gift for someone," Green said. "It’s like you’re shopping in a store where everything is one-of-a-kind.”

While the authentic map-covered desks and used Dutch clogs are the main draw, there are other aspects that make the Flea what it is. Part of the Flea's attraction comes not just in buying items, but in experiencing the atmosphere, according to GreenGhazil runs a truck at the market that sells apple cider doughnuts, coffee and tea, and next to these autumnal refreshments, a different artist performs every Sunday.

Ghazil explained that the musicians that perform at the Flea make shopping there a unique experience.

“For the first two years, I scheduled the musicians myself, but as the Flea grew in vendors and publicity this year, I hired a booking agent for the performers," he said. “There's really nothing like adding a live soundtrack to your shopping experience.”

Green said she has only bought fruit and vegetables at the Flea, and mainly goes there for the atmosphere.

“It’s a nice thing to do on a Sunday afternoon," she said. "Just get a cup of coffee and stroll; you don’t have to buy anything.”

Ghazil has expressed an interest in hosting a similar flea market on the Tufts campus because so many Tufts students come to the Somerville Flea. If this is the case, students might be able to buy a refurbished silver pitcher-turned-lamp on the Campus Center patio sometime soon. But until then, the Somerville Flea is just down the road in Davis Square, with many unique items waiting to be discovered.