Find out why this low-key artisan market feels like a neighborhood-sized “Saturday Market” with more heart – and fewer tourists …
This banner, out front, welcomes neighbors to a warm June day at the Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market, in the neighborhood’s community center.
Story and photos by David F. Ashton
Even in the morning hours, the warm air felt more like mid-July than mid-June, as neighbors streamed toward the Brentwood-Darlington Community Center on Sunday, June 14th, for the “Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market”. For four hours, the grounds turned into a compact marketplace featuring artists, crafters, bakers, and candy makers from the neighborhood and beyond.
Greeting shoppers and browsers coming from far and wide, Emilie Wright and Alli Gannett say hello to each as they enter the Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market.
What began as a modest, do-it-yourself pop-up has evolved into a full-fledged annual happening. “This is our fourth annual summer market,” co-organizer Emilie Wright said. “We started from just a little pop-up craft market on my street, to this amazing coming together of community here at the Brentwood-Darlington Community Center.”
This year’s market featured 28 vendors, who lined the walkways and lawn with colorful canopies and tables. “We have a lot of repeat vendors from years past, which is really exciting, but then we also have some fresh faces,” Wright told East Portland News. “We have some kids vending their own crafts too, so we’re supporting the next generation of artists and makers.”
-3 In their shared booth at the Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market, cloth creator Michelle Youngblood of ‘Second Flourish’ displays a bag she crafted, while author and illustrator Audrey Sauble of “Kid Lit and Steam” shows off one of her children’s books.
Not long after opening, shoppers start arriving to browse the handmade creations at the “Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market”.
Co-organizer Alli Gannett outlined the mix: “We have different types of art. We have a lot of fabric art – clothing and bags,” Gannett observed. “We have an author that’s here, and we have tons of baked goods, jewelry, coffee, fine art, plants – so we really have a good mix of all kinds of different artists.”
Most vendors hailed from Brentwood-Darlington, with others arriving from across Southeast Portland. The event was free to visit and browse, offering what felt like a neighborhood-sized version of the Portland Saturday Market – one with with more kitsch and fewer tourists – and a strong emphasis on local handmade work.
Clifford Charles shows a T-shirt, one of his locally-made products, at his Off-the-Cliff company booth.
What started as a small street-side pop-up now functions as a seasonal gathering place – where local artists meet their customers, kids test out ideas for their first small businesses, and neighbors discover just how many makers live nearby.
On our Front Page: Iris Navarro and daughter Harumi, showing their handmade wares at the Brentwood-Darlington Artisan Market.
© 2026 David F. Ashton ~ East Portland News™
