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Newark, NJ

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Downtown NewarkForest HillIronboundNorth WardUniversity HeightsWeequahic
Priya Anand·University Heights·ParticipatingJul 7
Creator Post

How Five Newark Artists Decided to Share a Studio and Build Something Together

The Heights Makers Collective started with a storage problem. Tonya Alcott had more prints than she had wall space. Rafael Guerrero was binding books on a kitchen table that was also the dining table. Three other makers had similar situations. They found a studio space near NJIT and split the rent five ways. That was two years ago. Now the collective has a joint storefront, a shared website, and a reputation in Newark's maker community for work that is serious and priced honestly. I asked Tonya what made it work. She said: we all showed up on the same day and we kept showing up. That's it. That's the whole thing. The Heights Mural Print series — Tonya's documentation of University Heights' public art — is the kind of project that only gets made when someone has a studio and time and people around her who care about the same things she does.

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Marcus Webb·Downtown Newark·ParticipatingJul 6
Creator Post

Fernando Abreu Has Been Giving the North Ward the Same Perfect Shave Since 1998

The shop smells like Bay Rum and barbicide and the kind of order that comes from doing one thing exactly right for twenty-five years. Fernando learned straight razor technique in Alfama and brought it to Bloomfield Avenue because there was nowhere in Newark doing it properly. That was 1998. The radio plays fado on a small speaker near the window. The chairs are the original ones. The regulars are the sons of the original regulars now, in some cases. Fernando will tell you this if you ask. He'll also tell you that the blade requires absolute confidence, and that doubt is what causes nicks. He has never, in twenty-five years, had doubt.

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Nadia Cruz·Ironbound·ParticipatingJul 5
Creator Post

Ferry Street at Golden Hour

Every evening around 6:30, something shifts on Ferry Street. The lunch crowd has cleared. The dinner crowd hasn't arrived yet. The florista on the corner is closing up and the churrascaria two doors down is doing its first seating. This is the hour I go to Fernanda's. The cheese bread is fresh because Fernanda makes a second batch in the afternoon. She does this because she grew up in a house where there was always food available when people came by, and she runs her shop the same way. I've watched people stop in the doorway and just stand there, holding a warm pão de queijo, like they needed a minute before they went back out into the evening. I understand the impulse. Some places make you want to slow down without explaining why.

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Nadia Cruz·Ironbound·ParticipatingJul 3
Creator Post

Alberto Santos Has Been Watching Over Ferry Street for 33 Years

Alberto opened A. Santos Florista in 1991 in the space his father found after arriving from Faro. He doesn't call it a legacy. He calls it the family business, which is technically the same thing, but in the way he says it you understand the difference. The flowers come from Colombian and Ecuadorian growers he's worked with for fifteen years. He knows which varieties each family wants for which occasions — he knows this because he's been present at most of the occasions. The wildflower bouquets he builds in the morning are never planned out. He assembles them from what's right. He's been doing this long enough that "what's right" and "what's beautiful" have become the same thing.

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Marcus Webb·Downtown Newark·ParticipatingJul 1
Creator Post

Diana Okonkwo Is Publishing Newark Back to Itself

Newark Print Works started because Diana couldn't find a way to publish her illustrations without losing either the quality or her savings. So she bought a risograph and figured it out herself. Now she prints her own work and opens the studio to anyone in Newark who has something to say. The Newark Skyline series — the one hanging in a lot of people's apartments right now — was her third project in the space. She drew it from photographs she took from the Passaic River bridge, at the hour when the city looks like something you'd want to remember. The edition is 80. There are about 20 left. I asked Diana if she was planning a second edition. She said she wasn't sure yet, because the right answer depends on what the first edition means to the people who have it, and she wants to know that before she decides.

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Ironbound·A. Santos Florista
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Seasonal Wildflower Bouquet

Assembled the morning of pickup from whatever is at its best this week. Alberto doesn't plan these in advance — he builds them from what arrived at the wholesale market and what has been sitting in his cooler long enough to know it's ready. No two are the same.

$28.00

Ironbound·A. Santos Florista
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Single-Stem Specialty Rose

Alberto keeps specialty roses from Colombian and Ecuadorian growers — varieties you won't find in a supermarket. Available in whatever colors arrived this week. A single stem, properly cut and wrapped.

$9.00

Downtown Newark·The Broad Street Roasters
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House Blend Whole Bean — 12oz Bag

A medium-light roast blended from two East African origins — one Ethiopian natural for fruit and sweetness, one Kenyan washed for brightness and structure. Roasted in small batches every Monday and Thursday.

$19.00

Downtown Newark·Newark Print Works
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Newark Skyline Risograph Print — 11×17

Diana's own illustration of the Newark skyline as seen from the Passaic River bridge, printed in two-color risograph. Blue and black on cream stock. Each print is numbered in an edition of 80.

$38.00

Downtown Newark·Newark Print Works
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Hand-Stamped Canvas Tote — Newark Print Works

Natural canvas tote stamped with the Newark Print Works block print logo by hand. Each one has slight variation in ink coverage — that's part of it. 100% cotton. Made to carry things.

$26.00

Forest Hill·Blue Ridge Studio
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Handthrown Ceramic Mug — Terracotta, 14oz

Esmeralda's everyday mug. Thrown on the wheel, trimmed by hand, fired with a reduction ash glaze that varies with each kiln load. Some pieces come out darker, some warmer. No two are identical. Made for actual coffee, not a shelf.

$44.00

Forest Hill·Blue Ridge Studio
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Small Serving Bowl — Ash Glaze

A wide, shallow bowl suited for olives, fruit, small things. The ash glaze this week runs from pale gray-green to deep slate. Roughly 6 inches diameter, food safe, dishwasher safe.

$68.00

Forest Hill·Seven Sisters Press
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"Newark: A People's Zine" Vol. 3

The third volume of Marcus-Lee's long-running community zine covering Newark history, neighborhood culture, and the people who make the city run. This issue covers Weequahic, Ironbound padaria culture, and an oral history of the Hayes Homes. 40 pages, full color risograph, staple-bound.

$14.00

University Heights·Heights Makers Collective
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Heights Mural Print — Silkscreen, 18×24

A silkscreen print documenting the murals of University Heights, designed and printed by collective member Tonya Alcott. Two colors on cream stock, edition of 50. Each print is signed by Tonya and stamped with the Heights Makers mark.

$32.00

University Heights·Heights Makers Collective
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Handbound Sketchbook — Kraft, 5×7

Made by collective member Rafael Guerrero using a Japanese stab-binding technique. 80 pages of cream cartridge paper, ideal for pencil, pen, and light watercolor. Kraft cover with stamped Heights Makers logo.

$20.00

University Heights·Tia Carmen's Cocina
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Carmen's Sofrito — 8oz Jar

Tia Carmen's sofrito is not what you get from a grocery store. Fresh culantro, ají dulce, onion, garlic, and tomato — blended and packed into a jar you'll use for everything. This is the base of the base.

$13.00

Weequahic·Mama Sylvia's Kitchen
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Peach Preserves — Seasonal Batch, 8oz Jar

Made in late summer from Jersey peaches, lemon, and cane sugar. No commercial pectin. Sylvia cooks these low and slow until they set the way she wants them to, which sometimes takes three tries and is why there are never very many jars.

$13.00

Weequahic·Mama Sylvia's Kitchen
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Smothered Greens Kit — Serves 4

Everything for Sylvia's smothered collard greens: a bundle of fresh collards, a small jar of her potlikker concentrate, smoked turkey neck, and her handwritten instruction card. This is the version she makes for holidays and funerals and every important occasion.

$29.00

Weequahic·Weequahic Crown Lounge
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Natural Hair Consultation + Styling — 60 Minutes

One hour with Janelle. She looks at your hair, hears what you're trying to do, and gives you an honest assessment — including whether what you're asking for is right for your hair type. Then she styles. First-time clients receive a scalp health assessment at no extra charge.

$80.00

North Ward·Barbearia Camões
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Full Haircut + Hot Towel Treatment

A precise haircut done at Fernando's pace, which is the right pace. He doesn't rush. The hot towel treatment is included. If you want a straight razor neck finish, it is included. Most people do.

$48.00

North Ward·O Pão
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Pastel de Nata — Box of 6

The egg tarts that people come back for. Crisp laminated pastry, slightly scorched custard, dusted with cinnamon. Maria Helena makes them every morning starting at 5am. Best within two hours of the oven — which is why the bakery opens at six.

$15.00

Ironbound·Fernanda's Pastelaria
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Açaí Bowl — Granola & Seasonal Fruit

Thick organic açaí base, house granola, seasonal fruit, and a drizzle of honey. Made to order. Fernanda sources the açaí directly from a Brazilian supplier in Newark.

$12.00

North Ward·Barbearia Camões
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Traditional Straight Razor Shave

The full Fernando experience: hot towel, brush and cream, open blade, cold finish, aftershave. Takes about forty minutes. Regulars book this before important things — job interviews, weddings, meeting the parents.

$38.00

Ironbound·Fernanda's Pastelaria
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Pão de Queijo — Dozen Pack

Fresh Brazilian cheese bread made from Fernanda's family recipe. Tapioca flour and aged queijo minas — crisp outside, soft and chewy inside. Best warm, within an hour of pickup.

$14.00

Forest Hill·Seven Sisters Press
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Pocket Notebook — Screenprinted Cover

64 pages, dot grid, saddle-stitched. The cover is a single-color screenprint on heavyweight French Paper stock — this batch uses the Seven Sisters crow block, Marcus-Lee's original linoleum cut. Fits in a back pocket or a chest pocket.

$9.00

University Heights·Tia Carmen's Cocina
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Pique Hot Sauce — House Blend, 5oz Bottle

A Puerto Rican vinegar-based hot sauce with whole peppercorns, ají caballero, garlic, and oregano. This is the sauce Carmen puts on her counter and forgets to charge for because she assumes everyone just has it. Now you can have it.

$11.00

Weequahic·Weequahic Crown Lounge
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Locs Maintenance + Full Retwist

Janelle's locs clients know the value of this session. A thorough cleanse, scalp treatment, and full retwist. She works slow because the work requires it. Bring a podcast or a book. You'll leave looking exactly right.

$120.00

Downtown Newark·The Broad Street Roasters
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Cold Brew Concentrate — 32oz Jar

Steeped 20 hours, never sweetened. Dilute 1:1 with water or milk, or drink it straight if that's how you are. Made fresh twice a week. The jar is reusable — bring it back for a discount.

$17.00

North Ward·O Pão
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Country Sourdough Loaf — Whole, 1.5lb

Maria Helena's country loaf uses a starter she brought from her grandmother's kitchen in Braga. Long cold ferment, scored with a single slash, baked in a cast iron. The crust is dark and crackly. The crumb is open, slightly chewy.

$11.00