Owl & Thistle General Store

New York, United States

4.7

Closed now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 347-722-5836
Website:
www.owlandthistlegeneral.com
Address:
833 Franklin Ave, New York, NY, 11225
b/t Union St & Eastern Pky
Crown Heights
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
290 ftFranklin Avenue (2,3,4,5)
370 ftBotanic Garden
0.3 miEastern Parkway-Brooklyn Museum (2,3)
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Dogs Allowed
Yes

Today

Today 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (New York) 05:23 Sunday, 22 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 8:00 pm
Tuesday –
Wednesday 11:00 am – 8:00 pm
Thursday 11:00 am – 8:00 pm
Friday 11:00 am – 7:00 pm
Saturday 11:00 am – 7:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am – 6:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Locally sourced and fair trade handmade gifts, apparel, jewelry, kids toys and clothes, small batch foods, & bath and body care! Just like an old fashioned general store, we have something for everyone. We specialize in Brooklyn made gifts and souvenirs including Best of Brooklyn food Gift boxes.

Sewing, knitting, and other crafty classes are held regularly in-​store.

History

Established in 2011.

Opened in 2011 by Keri Cavanaugh to offer unique and charming finds from Brooklyn and beyond. Owl & Thistle has been named to the Top 10 Gift Stores in NYC by TONY every year since 2011.

In 2014, Owl & Thistle relocated to a larger store at 833 Franklin Ave, just steps from the 2, 3, 4, and 5 trains at the franklin ave stop. Sewing, knitting, and other crafty classes are taught in-​store

Meet the Business Owner

Keri C.

Business Owner

Owl & Thistle is a marriage of Keri’s varied interests! After serving in the Peace Corps in West Africa, fair trade and responsibly sourced products became an obsession. Keri’s years of working in museums brings a unique curatorial eye to an old fashioned concept.

Keri is the mother of two young boys, a hockey fan, and avid seamstress.

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Nearby

Near this location:
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818 Franklin Ave
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835 Franklin Ave
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20 reviews of Owl & Thistle General Store

No registration required
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
My favorite store in the Prospect/​Crown Heights area! Love the premise of selling handmade, locally sourced products. So many great gift ideas and items with which to treat yourself. One of my favorite necklaces is from Owl & Thistle, and I come back often for thoughtful Christmas and dinner party presents since the selection is so varied — from soaps to chocolate to dainty necklaces, it’s a one stop shop in the area.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
Cute shop, great selection of unique/​quirky/​cool greeting cards and other assorted gifts. Shop keeper was friendly and helpful, will definitely be back for more tasteful gifts etc. in the future.
Place rating: 4
Bedford-Stuyvesant, NY
Adorable little shop, definitely worth checking out. Bought some awesome jewelry and coasters. My friend bought some post cards. I was surprised to see that most of their clothing was for babies/​children, but no worries. Great place to check for cute, unique somethings!
Place rating: 5
Moab, UT
This store is adorable and the owner is sweet. I think I am addicted to purchasing those $ 4 and $ 5 handmade birthday cards though. I try to justify all the money I spend on fancy cardboard because I figure it’s equivalent to buying a pint of beer for your friend and mailing it across the country.
Anyway, as I said, this place is darling if you like flower seeds in a matchbook, and jars of local Brooklyn pickles, and random birthday cards celebrating cheese.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
This store is adorable and not too pricey or precious. Inviting neighborhood vibe, nice staff, and a really lovely collection of unique gifts. Brooklyn has plenty of indie shops that sell the same stuff. This place is a neighborhood business that actually sells pretty items made by neighbors at reasonable prices.
Place rating: 4
Brooklyn, NY
Nice store, small selection of mostly locally-​made gifts/​cards/​food things. But I get annoyed when businesses don’t accept large bills and they only take 20s and under. If I hadn’t needed one of the items I purchased right away, I wouldn’t have bought them because I don’t want/​need to be putting things on my credit card when I have cash in hand…
Place rating: 5
Carrollton, TX
Super cute and unique items. The shop worker was so sweet and helpful. My new dino necklace is just what I needed. And the sea salt caramels were delish.
Place rating: 5
Los Angeles, CA
This store is great! Definitely worth checking out when you’re in Crown Heights. Their crafty classes are terrific too. I took the knitting, sewing and crochet classes and would recommend all of them.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
Über cute clothes and accessories. You need a unique gift for someone special? Shop here! Also, you can take sewing and other craft classes here. The instructor? Awesome, patient, and friendly. This place is a neighborhood GEM!!!
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
Super cute little store that is perfect for getting unique gifts. I love that they support so many local businesses by selling everything from Brooklyn Slate to Caru Skincare. I was able to walk out of here with gifts for three very different people, without even trying that hard! That’s saying something!
The only downside for me personally, is that outside of gift shopping, I’m not sure that I would be buying countless items with «Brooklyn» emblazoned across it.
Place rating: 4
Jackson Heights, NY
Recently moved to a larger space on Franklin Avenue, this Crown Heights shop seems like the ideal place to seek out unique gifts. There are home furnishings, accessories and clothing for children and adults. The staff is friendly, the space warm and inviting. Borough pride shines — there are so many Brooklyn-​themed knick-​knacks! I would probably buy a few if traveling abroad, and needed to give some sort of token to an international host /​hostess.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
Best cards ever. I love this place.
Place rating: 5
New York, NY
I just took an immediate sewing class with Keri, the owner, and it was amazing! I was fortunate enough that I was the only person who signed up so the class was one-​on-​one. We worked on making a pair of pants for three 1-​hour sessions.
Keri was a great teacher and very patient throughout the process. She showed me a lot of sewing best practices, such as how to cut the fabric and how to tailor the garment. We went over by 10 – 15 minutes a couple of times, but Keri never minded.
I really enjoyed these lessons and Keri is amazing to work with! I definitely recommend these classes to anyone who is interested in sewing.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Just like that popular character from that popular scene from that popular show says, «Shut up and take my money!»
If I’m looking for something sweet, charming, and unique, I turn to this lovely spot and usually walk away with a couple of extra items. As much as a place can boast «local,» Owl and Thistle satisfies the locavore in me. They have a few awesomely delicious edible items like Nunu chocolates, McClure’s pickles, and Floyd’s beer cheese. There are also adorable housewares: coasters! aprons! shopping bags! And tons of baby clothes and toys, stationery and postcards, jewelry, yoga mats, recycled wallets and laptop cases, and other tchotchkes galore. I don’t really love spending money on superfluous things, but it’s my favorite destination for cards and gifts (and okay yes I get myself things too).
Place rating: 5
Bronx, NY
This shop is dangerous. Especially if I wander in there after a boozy brunch at Chavella’s. That’s when it seems like a really good idea to buy a Brooklyn dog-​themed tea towel, a greeting card for someone I don’t even like that much, some toys for my dog that are meant for human children, and a linzer cookie.
Yes, O&T is an excellent shop for Brooklyn-​themed gifts, unique cards and overall touches of whimsy. I admittedly have bought several items that were intended to be gifts but ended up keeping them for myself like a greedy b*tch because I liked them so much. If you need a cute gift or a conversation piece for your own place — and dont have time for etsy or modcloth to ship it out to you — this is the place to go.
Like other reviewers mentioned, the owner is always cheerful and pleasant. And in some parts of this city, that alone is worth 5 stars.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
This is my neighborhood GO TO for gifts or a fun pick-​me-​up purchase. They have a Brooklyn-​centric inventory (although they also carry select fair trade merchandise).
The inventory is smartly curated (no RegrEtsy here!). My personal favorite is this gorgeous line of leather goods made by a local designer. My boyfriend snagged me one of his designs (a smart black crossbody purse) for which I constantly receive compliments.
Additionally they carry an array of cards, foodie gifts, locally made clothing and jewelry. The owner is sweet and helpful which makes and makes shopping here an easy breezy fun time.
Place rating: 4
Flushing, NY
Super cute shop in my neighborhood that ended up being a great stop for my xmas shopping this year. If you like the things on
and/​or enjoy a curated collection of clever, graphically and artistically inspired knick-​knacks, Owl and Thistle is the store for you.
I got a cute helvetica font tote with the guac ingredients listed on it (saw this on
earlier in the year), plus a set of interesting locally made soaps ($ 5.50 ea). One of which was made with shitake mushrooms. FUN!
I also noticed they had a nice little selection of holiday cards, some candies, toys, a few locally made kitchen things, and a collection of baby clothes and baby items for new parents.
Place rating: 5
Brooklyn, NY
Totally agree with the reviewer who called this an Etsy store. Or maybe it’s a hipster-​y store for lovers of Brooklyn. Stocks everything from cute local clothes (from onesies to silk dresses), cheeses, candies, candles, pillows and more. Highly recommend checking them out for your holiday gift-​giving needs. Although so far I’ve bought more for myself than I have for others. Oops.
Also, there’s sewing classes I’m excited to try. Will update the review after.
Place rating: 4
Brooklyn, NY
An
Etsy
Type store with
An assortment
Of cards, local cheese, clothes, and much much more.
Place rating: 4
New York, NY
Happened upon this store after going to Dutch Boy and Breukelen Coffee House. It’s right up the street and stays open until 8 or so. A variety of cute and practical Brooklyn-​made cheese, t-​shirts, coasters, jewelry, cold-​weather accessories, and greeting cards, as well as silly things like the Nacho and Avocado temporary tattoos I HAD TO HAVE.
She also sells candles and body products that have scents made after the nabes of Crown Heights, Bed-​Stuy Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, etc. They actually smell wonderful and do capture the feel of these places.
In addition, this kind owner teaches practical sewing lessons! Getcha some.