Entry No. 179 — the Denver file — filed under: oddities shop
CC Oddities by Cera
An ethically sourced oddities and curiosities shop run by artist Cera, stocked with responsibly foraged or gifted specimens (no animals harmed), bones, minerals, and antiques. Hosts a monthly Community Night gathering for creative work and connection.
The story
Most oddities counters lean into theatrical gloom or Victorian gothic schtick. Artist, death doula, and pet undertaker Cera Marquez takes a starker, gentler angle inside Edgewater Public Market: natural mortality stripped of shock value. Marquez hand-assembles every piece using strictly ethically sourced materials—think foraged vertebrae fashioned into air-plant holders, dried ladybugs in glass curio cloches, and articulated rabbit paws encased with gold leaf and crystal chips—without a single animal harmed for display.
Beyond selling bone jars and herbal bundles, Marquez uses her platform to normalize grief and unpack the quiet taboos surrounding death. Through custom pet memorial work—from bone articulation and pelt preservation to wet specimens—and specialized workshops like butterfly pinning for grief processing, the shop functions as much as a community sanctuary as a retail counter. You didn't hear it from us, but if you're holding onto something you can't quite talk about in polite company, this is where you take it.
On designated evenings, the operation migrates across the food hall floor to Barquentine Brewing Company on the market building's west side for Cera's free Community Night. It is an unpretentious, all-ages drop-in space where locals bring their own portable craft projects, grab a beer or soda, and share a table to connect, grieve, or just make art side by side without any commercial pressure.
What it's like
Stepping past the food stalls and neon inside Edgewater Public Market, you’ll find Cera’s intimate retail booth stocked with glass cloches, bone jars, and hand-blended herbal bundles. Sunlight cuts through the hall and glints off quartz crystals and preserved flora, making the space feel open and reflective rather than dim or claustrophobic. If a piece catches your eye, ask about provenance—Cera can recount the exact foraging path or backstory of the specimen. For the full experience, park in the free surface lot under the towering neon sign, hunt the shelves for an unusual mineral, then head over to Barquentine Brewing on the building's west end for Community Night, or clear your head with a walk around Sloan's Lake two blocks east.
The move: Hunt the shelves together for an unusual bone or mineral to take home, then go to the next monthly Community Night at Barquentine Brewing and make something side by side.
📍 Before you go It shares an address with the Edgewater Public Market — park in the big free lot under the towering neon sign and look for Cera's storefront among the retail stalls inside the food-hall building. Barquentine Brewing, host of the monthly Community Night, sits on the west side of the same hall, so the shop, drinks, and the gathering all happen under one roof. Community Night is an all-ages evening with RSVP via Eventbrite encouraged; any other day it's a browse-and-chat shop — every specimen is foraged, gifted, or ethically sourced, so ask about provenance. Sloan's Lake is a couple blocks east if you want a walk after.
- 📍 Edgewater (Denver-adjacent, ~15 min W)
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 5505 W 20th Ave, Edgewater, CO 80214
Hours: Added 2026-06-09 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- The Electric Cure — Walk three blocks down 20th Avenue after browsing bone curiosities to grab a devilish, tiki-inspired cocktail in a punk-meets-Satanic lounge.
- RitualCravt — Drive ten minutes north into Wheat Ridge to pair your bone art with a massive folk-magic apothecary, ritual tools, and a mini oddities museum.
- The Furnace: A Glassworks — Head ten minutes south into Lakewood to pair Cera’s glass cloches with a hands-on glassblowing taster workshop at a working hot shop.
Good to know
Where exactly inside Edgewater Public Market is the shop?
It sits inside the main hall at 5505 W 20th Ave among the interior retail stalls, sharing the building with food vendors rather than operating as a standalone exterior storefront.
Are any animals killed or harmed for the items in the shop?
No. Every specimen is strictly ethically sourced through natural foraging, ethical gifts, or natural death.
What happens at the monthly Community Night?
Community Night is a free, all-ages gathering held at Barquentine Brewing Company on the west side of the same market hall. You can bring a portable craft project, grab a drink, and hang out with locals to make art or talk openly about grief and life.
What custom pet memorial services does Cera provide?
Cera offers custom pet deathcare including bone processing, skeletal articulation, wet specimens, pelt preservation, and customized shadow box or glass dome displays.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · Facebook · atly.com · eventbrite.com · msmayhem.com · edgewaterpublicmarket.com
last checked: 2026-06-09