3 minute read
SHOP TALK
oak cliff made
Shopping at Tyler Station
BY RACHEL STONE
HANDMADE MUGS, a local streetwear line, vintage clothes and bespoke face masks make up the merchandise at Trade Oak Cliff.
But mark it on your schedule, because the studio/ boutique currently is open for retail sales from noon-6 p.m. Saturdays only.
Oak Cliff resident Corrie Pocta, a high-school art teacher, pottery thrower and leatherworker, started the business, which fits the mold of experimental retail and collaboration that the developer of Tyler Station envisioned.
Pocta started offering pottery classes to adults over Zoom as a creative outlet after a school year frustrated by the pandemic. She says she coped with that and the death of her father last year “by being a workaholic.”
She opened the collaborative with female and femme identifying artists, all but one of whom live in our neighborhood. They’re also doing occasional mini-markets called Trade & Friends, where they bring in other local artists and makers for socially distanced shopping.
“I’m really passionate about it being from Oak Cliff and having a direct point where you can support the artist directly,” she says.
Pocta plans to leave her full-time teaching job at the end of the school year to fully focus on her own art and Trade Oak Cliff. Having taken her students on class trips to Japan and Big Bend in the past, she’s leaning into her talent for organizing people.
Oak Cliff is full of creative people, but they don’t always have a connection.
“The bigger vision is a community center, a place where artists can collaborate with each other more frequently because they’re in closer contact with each other,” she says.
For now, they’re keeping it small.
Pocta currently teaches wheel-throwing from noon6 p.m. Mondays. It’s a fourweek series with two throwing classes, one trimming class and one glazing class. Contact her directly to ask for a seat, corriepocta@gmail.com.
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Oak Cliff Brewing Co. (1)
Tyler Station built a beer garden with a quickness after the pandemic hit, and it’s a charming place to have a socially distanced beer with buddies with a view of the creek. Our namesake brewery also offers contactless curbside beer to go Wednesday-Sunday.
Hours: 4-10 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and noon-10 p.m. Saturday-Sunday Website: togo.oakcliffbrewing.com
Green Pet
This 13-year-old Oak Cliff business relocated to Tyler Station in 2019. They offer delivery to registered customers and online ordering.
Hours: 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday Website: greenpetdallas.com
Oak Cliff Bike Synergy (2)
There is no snobbery at this bike shop, which offers sturdy refurbished bikes as well as affordable new ones. Co-owner Jorge Samano worked as a mountain-bike racing-team mechanic for teams in El Paso and Juarez starting in the 1980s, and he just moved the shop into a much larger basement space with a staff of skilled mechanics.
Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday Website: oakcliffbikesynergy.com
Zakti (3)
Owners Pamela Miller and Janeil Engelstad source loose-leaf tea from small farms around the world and sell it online and to local coffee shops and restaurants. They opened a tasting room in Tyler Station a couple of years ago, and they launched a line of CBD infused bottled tea in 2019. Website: zakti.com
Rose Garden Remake (4)
This classic Oak Cliff business relocated to Tyler Station a few years ago after 20 years on West Davis. Shopping here and donating items supports the local nonprofit 2000 Roses Foundation, which supports formerly incarcerated women.
Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursday-Friday and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday Instagram: @rosegardenremake
owner2owner (5)
A couple of other second-hand clothing sellers are making a go of it at Tyler Station, including this vintage streetwear store, where you can buy, sell or trade.
Hours: noon-6 p.m. Friday-Sunday Instagram: @owner2owner
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