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This past week I traveled to Brimfield, Massachusetts for the iconic flea market. Dozens of shows within the show... tents as far as you can see. My friend Jennifer and I were up for walking miles and miles on the hunt for new items for Dashing Trappings.
What did we find? Some amazing items, some oddities, some things you just need a picture to see. I'm gonna tell you my thoughts, including when I go back how I will adjust my trip and more.
I had always seen pictures of Brimfield and just couldn't imagine what it would really be like. How could there be fields upon fields of antique booths? Would I be able to find items my clients are looking for at a reasonable price? I was gonna find out.
Brimfield happens three times a year, May, July and September. If I'm are being honest - all I could think about is how hot July would be. May and September seem like much better options. The weather was perfect last week.
We arrived into town on Monday before the show began. We wanted to get a feel for the area. As we hopped out of the car, we found were vendors setting up their tents. Some highly curated at retail pricing of home furnishings and accessories. Other tents full of oddities or items you may find in Grandma's attic.
As we walked around, we were able to make a game plan of where we wanted to go on Tuesday AND also we were able to walk through Black Swan Meadows. As we got a lay of the land, we decided where we would park the next day, which fields to go to first. It was helpful to take some time and make a game plan.
Tuesday morning was early! We arrived by 6:30 a.m. to the fields. As a morning person, it was exciting to get there and start to look around. What became obvious is there was a charcuterie board of decor. I had gone with a list of items to focus on, small silver vases, silver picture frames, oyster plates, rugs, Staffordshire dogs, and rattan pieces. When we ate lunch (at Pilgrim Sandwich... the best!!) I had only secured three small silver vases and two rugs.
What I found were a lot of vendors will still setting up, there were fields that weren't opened (and wouldn't until Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday, Thursday). The rest of the day got better - I secured more rugs, more silver vases and ONE oyster plate.
On Tuesday, we walked through over eight miles of fields and had seen a LOT. We made some amazing connections, overheard some fascinating conversations, and were exhausted.
We celebrated our first day with a great dinner at The Duck . It was the perfect way to end the day. The food was really good (I had the duck and was delighted by the meal). The atmosphere was lovely.
We had one more half day to shop, Wednesday. We got up again early (but not as early as Tuesday:)) to shop the fields that were opening on Wednesday. The New England Motel & Antiques Market opened at 6:00 a.m. I will be honest - as we were walking through, we kept saying - this is what we thought we were gonna see on Tuesday. There was more higher end antiques and decor. Some of it was of course sold because we didn't get there at 6:00 a.m. BUT it gave me energy. The final field we went to was the Heart-O-The-Mart // Again, it felt more high end. The art was great, I found elusive oyster plates and the furnishings were stellar.
As we were walking back to the car, I looked at the Hertan's Antique Show and the set up for May's Antique Market, they both looked like they had more things that I was on the hunt for. It made me want to come back again to Brimfield.
What is my take? GO to Brimfield to experience it. On my next trip I will roll into town Tuesday, to map out my plan while the show is happening. Make sure to get to Dealers Choice which is only on Tuesday afternoon, shop EARLY Wednesday, and shop Thursday. Although I'm sure I'd miss out on some things early Tuesday morning - I think in the long run, the fields that cost $5 or $8 for entry AND begin later have more of the items I am on the hunt for. If you have been, tell me your thoughts. Am I missing something? Share with me..
xoxo - Christine
Rugs from Brimfield
The Bacchus
The Artemis
The Apollo
The Caerus
