'Pop-Up' Holiday Shop Finds Home [VIDEO]

The Concord Handmade “pop-up” holiday shop is back open for business, this time, at an empty storefront next door to The Draft on South Main Street.

The store is owned and operated by Alison Murphy, a local artist, who first tried out the concept last year at the intersection of Pleasant and South Main streets.

The idea is simple – bring together vendors looking for holiday sales, open up a temporary shop downtown, sell items through the holiday season, and then go back to regular life. In the case of Murphy’s store – Concord Handmade – it features handcrafted products from around New England, with more than half coming from New Hampshire.

“We have over 50 local artisans and crafters, from around New England,” she said, from soaps and cards to clothing, jewelry, and Christmas items. “We take preference for people from New Hampshire … there is an application process [and] most of our New Hampshire people are from the Concord area.”

Even though she opened last week, Murphy is still in the process of stocking the store with goods. Her end goal is to be completely set up by tonight.

This year, Murphy said Monkey Chow print cards were a highlight. Another was a wooden bottle holder from 100 Rings that balance wine bottles in a way that seem to defy gravity. Handmade shawls by Funky Jazz Designs were snazzy and competitively priced, in the $40 range.

“I sort of work a lot with artists to make sure things are affordable,” she said. “I like to have a real range of prices here … being able to shop handmade shouldn’t be an elitist thing, I think … so to get everybody to be able to shop and buy handmade for Christmas is important thing.”

The grand opening party will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 29, and the store will be open through Dec. 29.