What was/is this bizarre jewelry shop he spoke of?

January 17, 2013 3:42 PM

Someone I met told me about this bizarre jewelry shop he went to once in NYC 15 years ago and I want to know what shop it was and if it still exists.

He told me about it after I asked him about his interesting silver skull bracelet. Here are all the facts that he gave me:

-The shop consisted of mostly (if not all) silver pieces. Lots of things with skulls and even some finger claw type things.
-It was somewhere in the Village.
-It was very small, narrow and dimly lit.
-There were upside down crucifixes hanging from the ceiling.
-Glass cases of jewelry lined the walls on the left and right with waist level glass cases in front of them.
-The guy who soldered his bracelet was middle aged with long stringy hair and had a black cat in the shop.
-There were black and white "publicity" photos of people dressed as vampires above the cases along the walls.
-The floor was in bad shape with riveted metal covering many holes in the floor.
-He kept referring to the shop as weird and satanic.

I won't ever see this person again so I won't be able to relay any answers I'm given.

posted by MaryDellamorte to grab bag (6 answers total)

Oh, I think I know the place he means! It was on St. Mark's Place near Trash and Vaudeville, but isn't there anymore, if it's the one I'm thinking of. When you had out-of-town friends, you'd take them to Trash and Vaudeville first and then over to this place if they made it through the T&V experience without freaking out.

I am not thinking of the name yet, though. I'll do some Googling.
posted by Sidhedevil at 3:49 PM on January 17 [3 favorites]

Nnnnno, I think I know what the shop is - it was on 4th between 1st and A or A and B or something like that. I lived in the area for 12 years and it was there early on when I lived there; there were always rumors about it being a front for some kind of Dark Magick sort of thing.

Don't remember the name, but it's long gone now. A theater company I once worked with is on that same block and I think there's a wine bar in the space now.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:51 PM on January 17

I'm guessing it was C'est Magnifique. ~20 years ago it was on Macdougal Street. Tons of weird jewelry--a whole case full of rings made from glass eyes.
posted by scratch at 4:23 PM on January 17 [1 favorite]

C'est Magnifique is at 328 East Ninth now, and so worth a trip. 15 years ago, though, the original lady owner would still have been alive, though, right? I don't think they had a cat, either.

The cat and vampire pictures combo make me think it's the St. Mark's Place place place place.
posted by Sidhedevil at 4:30 PM on January 17

Are you thinking of Religious Sex, Sidhedevil?
posted by griphus at 4:52 PM on January 17

(It was directly across from Trash.)
posted by griphus at 4:59 PM on January 17