New York has answered my holiday shopping woes.

If you do not live here or only visit New York infrequently, I recommend you visit the holiday markets at Bryant Park (they have ice skating, too!), Union Square or Columbus Circle. They offer beautiful, quality and interesting gift items. But for those of us who have lived in the city for a while, we tend to see the same merchandise annually. Of course there are always a few exceptions, for example I know Angela Jia Kim of Om Aroma & Co. has debuted at Bryant Park this year. Over all I was looking for something new, and new is what I got. First I was delighted by the crafts made by Martha Stewart’s staff. Then I was equally impressed by the selection of items offered at the Brooklyn Flea. My aim was holiday shopping, the result was more directed by my appetite, but a successful exploration regardless.

Consider yourself a cupcake connoisseur?

Kumquat Cupcakery is another beautiful, delicious and interesting cupcake company that offers bite size sweets decorated with care. They offer wildly out of the box flavors. I brought home a maple bacon and yes there is a big piece of real bacon resting on top of the icing, bourbon caramel and pumpkin. The lemon and lavender cupcakes are stunning and I looking forward to ordering them in the future.

Other tables that got my attention: Bicycle Paintings. The owner is a biker who draws and in combining her passions. The end result is original and creative artwork.

I “invested” in some Liddabit Sweets. They had me at salted caramels and I thought the pretzel beer caramels would make a great gift. I resisted the pumpkin pie candy bar out of principal. $6.75 seemed a liddabit decadent for a small sensation but as you can tell, it’s stuck with me and I may need to figure out who is going to get it for Christmas.

Lastly, Moontree Letterpress showcased work at both craft fairs I attended last weekend, the stationery and prints are clean, creative and well designed.

You can check out all the vendors who participate in the Brooklyn Flea here.

Tonight is an after work shopping party from 6-9pm! Other Music is providing the music and beer is compliments of Brooklyn Beer Shop