Nostalgic Shopping at Atlantic Ave.'s Newest: Dry Goods

If there is one thing the human psyche doesn’t get sick of, it’s nostalgia.

In fact, yearning for a simpler time is quickly becoming one of America’s favorite pastimes again. That is, of course, after America’s other favorite pastime: buying lots of shiny, new stuff.

Luckily, lusting after an oft-idealized past is not wholly opposed to our unyielding desire to accumulate new objects - to shop, shop, shop.

Atlantic Avenue’s Dry Goods, which Carla Brookoff and her mother Rita opened last week in the old space (owned by Rita and which maintains its SoHo outpost), taps straight into the heart of these dual impulses. Like a trendy general store, Dry Goods features heirloom pieces and vintage, as well as a mixture of home goods, personal items and products for your pet.

“Heirloom pieces?” you might ask, as I did. What does that mean?

Shop girl Stella, herself an equal mix of vintage nostalgia and cutting edge chic, laid it out.

“We have heritage brands from around the world, which are made in their country of origin," she said.

What you will find is brand new items that have been made by classic, long-standing companies using original molds, formulas and often even old factories.

But nostalgia is not the only important aspect of heritage brands. A driving force of Dry Goods’ vision is the idea that these companies, because they manufacture in their country of origin, support living wages.

“Ninety-seven percent of the items sold in the store are made in their country of origin,” store manager Jessy Levy told me. Items manufactured in China are avoided.

At Dry Goods you will find Moser pressed green milk glass tableware made from original 1920s molds and still produced in the same Ohio factory. Also made in America since 1905 is classic Anchor glass, known for its durability.

Looking at producers outside the US, you find Farina perfumes made in Cologne, Germany since 1709 still using (secret) original formulas from the early 18th Century. Giovanni Maria Farina created the very first Eau de Cologne, which was sent to almost all of the royal houses in Europe. To be able to create a homogeneous fragrance at that time was unheard of, and the term eau de cologne has now become a generic term descending from Farina’s perfume.

Scanning the shelves, which themselves are reminiscent of a by-gone era, you may find yourself repeatedly thinking, “My dad had one of those!” or “I remember that!” 

There are Stanley thermoses, Pendleton blankets, English Tala cookie cutters and baking measures, British Merchant and Mills sewing kits and notions, and the list goes on. All are new productions from heritage companies.

That’s not to say there won’t be a few unfamiliar items (to me at least). Santa Maria Novella is an Italian company that makes dog care items like dry shampoo. The products are produced by Italian nuns.

Dry Goods also incorporates new companies, which uphold the same living wage standards that the store stands behind. Mayron, for example, is a natural baby goods company founded in 1998 by a daughter and her pharmaceutical chemist father and developed in Philadelphia.

Emotionally, Dry Goods is a trip in itself. Call it Nostalgia 101. And as the holidays approach, it’s also a practical trip as well, offering charming, meaningful, socially conscious items that give a greater gift to the recipient than just a new possession.

***

Dry Goods will be hosting an opening reception Saturday, Nov. 12 from 5 - 8 p.m.

362 Atlantic Avenue

718-403-0090/ info@drygoodsny.com