Around the Corner: Free Summer in the City

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I just spent the morning looking for fun and free things to do in the City this month and here are my picks:


Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell
Throughout the summer, this venerable concert series offers a wide variety of different musical and theatrical events such as, Sweet Honey and the Rock, The Muppet Movie Sing-A-Long, and Lyle Lovett. Most importantly, you can hang out with our Etsy New York Team Members at our fabulous gift shop at the bandshell.
Telekinetic Alien vs. Cupcake by LiPeony
E.T.: Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier One Harbor View Lawn, July 5th
SyFy Movies with a View is sponsoring a free movie series on Thursday evenings in Brooklyn Bridge Park. E.T. kicks off this summer program. In my quest to introduce my child to now classic movies (and yes Back to the Future is on that list), we will definitely attend this event.

Roller Derby T-Shirt by SkateLove
Xanadu: Piper Theater at the Old Stone House in Park Slope
Olympian muses, roller skates, disco what's not to love! This outdoor production runs from July 5th to the 20th at 8 p.m. Also, the Old Stone House is the site of the Battle of Brooklyn, the battle that almost put an end to George Washington. I find it fascinating that one of the most important battle grounds of the Revolutionary War is right next to Staples.

NYC Music and Drama Pendant by Citybitz

12th Night: New York Classical Theatre, Battery Park in front of Castle Clinton through July 22th
I love the fact that this is a walkabout production of the play. Hopefully it will make for an exciting introduction to the Bard for the 10-year old video game addict who will have to come along to this event.

So what are recommendations for free summer events?
Simone
groundsel.etsy.com

Send a Valentine: Share Your Love 2012

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Today, Etsy announced the return of their Special Delivery campaign - Share Your Love 2012. Etsy will once again partner with Citymeals-on-Wheels to bring nutritious meals & companionship to elderly New Yorkers with a little surprise...a Valentines' Day card from you.

Check out details on how to get involved, where to send your cards & any dos or don't here. Since K. Batty Design & Stationery is my name & cards are my game, I'm super excited to participate in this & pledge to send 20 cards. Maybe more! I love the opportunity to bring up the spirits of a fellow New Yorker.

I hope you'll join me in bringing some cheer with Etsy & Citymeals-on-Wheels!

PS If you're still gazing at your holiday cards & wondering what to do with them, check out Sara's post from the other day on how they can be upcycled for charity.

Kerry



Around the Corner.

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Highlights of the High Line!

Have you been to the High Line yet?  Well, you should go.  Recommended by Karen Seiger of Markets in NYC (in my last post covering Morningside Heights), the High Line is quite the treat.  And it's FREE to check out.  Yup, this elevated Manhattan public park spans nearly 20 blocks from Gansevoort Street to 34th Street (between 10th & 11th Avenues), and it's full of plant life and history.

Did you know that the High Line was built in the 1930s and no trains have run on it since the 1980s?  Read more info here!



Access points can be found at:
Gansevoort Street
14th Street (elevator access)
16th Street (elevator access)
18th Street
20th Street



What's around your corner?  In the comments section, please suggest something neat to do/see in the Manhattan Tri-State Area that's either free or on-the-cheap, and it just may be the next place I visit.

Thanks for coming along!
Virginia Kraljevic

Crafts In Chelsea Deadline Extended!

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Save the date - October 17, 10am to 5pm
PS 11 in Manhattan is partnering with us - The {NewNew} - a local NY Metro group of Etsy Sellers, to close 21st Street between 8th and 9th Avenues, to host Crafts in Chelsea. A fall handmade street fair of the finest handmade arts and crafts the New York Metro are has to offer. From elegant jewelry to unique upcycled handbags, to cutting edge fashions, artwork, and more! All handmade within the New York Tri-state region.

There will be something for everyone with free food for kids, games, bouncy castles and a petting zoo inside the school - all to occupy the children, leaving the parents free to shop the best handmade goods in the Metro New York area!

Applications are still being accepted for this unique handmade event happening in the heart of Chelsea! Contact us or you can download an application here http://thenewnewny.com/CraftsInChelsea.pdf You have until Sept 12!


-Kimm
KimmChi.etsy.com

Just a Seamstress? The Museum at FIT Showcases Isabel Toledo's Fashions

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If you are in need of cultural inspiration but are short on time, the oft forgotten Museum at FIT has the perfect dose. The current exhibit “Isabel Toledo: Fashion from the Inside Out,” showcases work by the Cuban-born fashion designer Isabel Toledo who is described as "a designer's designer." Isabel is admired for her experimental techniques and unique vision of wearable American sportswear: A section of the exhibit entitled "Origami," a current runway trend, shows sculptural elements of her garments while another grouping described as “Liquid Architecture” displays jersey dresses.


Many may be familiar with the wonderful Nordstrom store advertisements in fashion magazines, all drawn and executed by Isabel’s husband Ruben Toledo. This exhibit is wallpapered with his fashion sketches. Isabel describes her role in her close collaboration with Ruben as that of just a “seamstress” and Ruben as the “artist/illustrator.” An example of their process, she explained, is that sometimes she articulates a design vision of which he renders a sketch. The sketch above is a portrait of Isabel by Ruben.

As Isabel stated to the museum's director, Dr. Valerie Steele:

I really love the technique of sewing more than anything else…the seamstress is the one who knows fashion from the inside! That's the art form really, not fashion design, but the technique of how it's done.
I find it refreshing for a designer to discuss the technical art of sewing. As portrayed in Bravo TV’s The Fashion Show, too many design contestants whine that sewing is so hard and that they see themselves as visionaries not seamstresses. Their scariest assignment was to dress real women!!! Kudos to Isabel who insists that she does not "want to be radical," and finds that "weird is not smart," and yet creates stunning, innovatively constructed garments.

This small museum’s exhibits are always free and this show is on now through September 26, 2009. Click here for more details.
- Talita for Fairywallah

Socrates Sculpture Park

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Socrates Sculpture Park


On the far west side of Queens, overlooking Roosevelt Island and Manhattan, is a very special, and dare I say, magical place, located in my very backyard of Long Island City/Astoria.

It’s called Socrates Sculpture Park and it is one of the best spring and summer destinations in NYC for families, couples or to wander around on your own.

Once upon a time, Socrates Sculpture Park was an abandoned riverside landfill. In the 1980’s it was transformed into an outdoor exhibit space and studio by a group of artists and members of the community. Today it serves as a world renowned outdoor museum and artistic workspace, as well as a multifaceted activity park.

The best part about the activities on offer is that they are all free of charge and available several times a week during the spring and summer, with some continuing into the fall.

There are educational art workshops, a film series, and a weekend fitness program including yoga, capoeira, pilates and more!

It’s all just a short hop from Manhattan on the N or W subway lines to Broadway, and then a 10 minute walk.

For more information on all the Socrates Sculpture Park has to offer, please visit: http://www.socratessculpturepark.org/

At a Glance:

PARK HOURS: Socrates is open 365 days a year from 10am until sunset. Click here for sunset times

ADMISSION: FREE

DIRECTIONS TO SOCRATES SCULPTURE PARK: N/W to Broadway (Queens)

ADDRESS: 32-01 Vernon Boulevard at Broadway, Long Island City (Queens), NY 11106



by Lorina Pellach-Ladrillono of The Original Beadscarf &