There are flower-fabric umbrellas at the cafe tables in Madison Square Park, and Op Art beanbags on the sidewalk.  They’re part of the opening celebrations for the new Marimekko flagship store on the northwest corner of Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street.  As stores go it’s a good one: brightly lit, nicely merchandised, and smartly organized.  The products are just what you’d expect: waistless shifts, bath towels, coffee mugs, and placemats, all in signature patterns from the iconic Finnish brand.  I hope the store survives but that’s hard to imagine.  The only ladies I saw buying were from that slender sliver of the population that’s both old enough to remember the brand’s early 70’s heyday, and bold enough to want to shake up their personal style.

What I like best about the store, and the brand, is it’s support of home sewing.  Smack in the middle of the first floor there’s a full-height, open display shelf selling by-the-yard Marimekko fabrics.  The 45"-wide bolts, neatly rolled and pinned, have a candy-like allure.  The prints, of course, are glorious.  The fabric is a stiff cotton that’s not quite strong enough for upholstery and not quite soft enough for garments. But it’s unusual to find fabric for sale in a retail store.  And it’s especially heartening in New York City, after almost all of the small, family-owned fabric stores along West 39th and West 40th Street have closed their doors.  There’s even a workstation with a professional sewing machine to the side of the sales floor, ready for demonstrations and classes.  Just the sight of the machine and the piece goods cheered me.