Sherry, Burger and I recently took a day trip to Washington, D.C., and made a point to visit the city’s famous Eastern Market. Built in 1873 and located near Capitol Hill, Eastern Market is the longest continuously operating marketplace in the District. It truly comes alive on weekends, with a bustling Farmer’s Market on Saturdays and a lively Flea Market on Sundays. The Sunday we visited was chilly and overcast, but the market was still packed with interesting finds and friendly vendors.
Vendors offered everything from handmade jewelry and original paintings to antique furniture and vintage collectibles. It was a refreshing change from the predictable offerings at big-box stores — a place where each booth felt like a small, curated discovery. We were particularly drawn to several booths selling rustic, iron-framed mirrors that had a lot of character.
Another vendor had repurposed old windows into framed mirrors, blending history and design in a clever, decorative way.
Furniture vendors were abundant, too. One booth specialized in Asian-inspired pieces — elegant, well-crafted items that would make striking additions to many homes. We haven’t added an Asian-inspired piece to our decor yet, but now we know where to look when the mood strikes.
We also came across a mid-century display case that was exactly our style — a cool, alternative option to a typical bookcase or china cabinet. It would have been perfect at home, but unfortunately it wouldn’t fit in our trunk.
One booth that really caught our attention was full of vintage treasures: old maps, photographs and an assortment of antique keys. We imagined a few keys used as small accents on a side table or grouped together in a jar as a rustic display.
But the pieces that stopped us in our tracks were classic woodblock printing letters. The seller had boxes full of them, offering a delightful variety of worn letterforms and numbers that felt both nostalgic and decorative.
Sherry and I have a soft spot for these woodblock letters. Early in our relationship we bought a set at the Hell’s Kitchen flea market in New York City — our initials and a “7” to mark the date we started dating, July 7, which later became our wedding anniversary. Those letters now sit in our guest bedroom as a small, meaningful memento of our early days together.
Of course we couldn’t resist picking up a few more woodblock letters at Eastern Market — they were only $3 each — to display on our living room console atop a stack of sentimental cards from our wedding guests. Maybe a little sappy, but those small keepsakes are a lovely reminder of the life we’ve built together.
