One of my father’s favorite pastimes is treasure hunting at flea markets. We went to just enough when I was a kid that he passed this passion down to me but I don’t think it was ever anywhere near as many as he would have liked. He was a constant flea market bargain hunter before he had kids but it had been a very long time since he had been to Brimfield Antique Market in Brimfield, Massachussetts. For the past couple of years I kept bringing up the idea of us going up for a weekend but work and other things kept getting in the way. The tricky thing about this market is that it only happens three times a year. Once in May, once in July and once in September. If you miss any of these dates, then you’re out of luck! So I’m so excited that my husband and I finally got to experience this flea market with my parents. My father’s giddy, child-like excitement was such a treat to watch.
I was on the hunt for a frame to hang with an embroidery hoop I had been working on. And also any types of interesting fabric I might find. I didn’t find any fabric, but I did find the frame! I even used the phrase, “Is that the best price?” for the first time in my life like all the pros advise you to do and was very proud of myself. It saved me a whopping $5! It was marked $30 but the seller sold it to me for $25. Afterwards, I wondered if I could have even talked her down to $20. I’ll be braver at my next flea market…
I also sort of found fabric but I passed on it because I just didn’t feel right spending $45 on one yard of fabric at a flea market. I’m pretty sure that booth was The Textile Trunk and she has an amazing and vast assortment of vintage French fabrics in her Etsy and Ebay shops that I haven’t been able to stop perusing ever since we got back.
My father couldn’t help himself and bought this tiny side table towards the end of the day. He said he always used to come back with a table at all the other flea markets he went to when he was younger. So I guess it’s a tradition of sorts he wanted to uphold.
I really wish I had taken more photos during our first day there but there was so much to see and look at, I really didn’t think pictures would ever justify just how much was there. It was also SO crowded that day. It was a Saturday so you would think that’s good for business but we overheard one jewelry vendor complaining to a friend about how business was so bad the day before she had only done $100 in sales. “All these people just come for the food!” she said pointing to the crowd.
The second day was much quieter and much less crowded so I snapped just a few shots. It was the last day so although the market was supposed to be open until 3 PM, vendors were already starting to pack up when we got there around 10 AM. I heard one vendor say to another, “Yeah. I’m getting out of here this year.” So I felt a little anxious about getting to see everything we wanted to see before everyone packed up and drove off. The pressure! I was also secretly hoping to find The Textile Trunk again because I had talked myself into buying just a yard of her pretty fabric because my husband, my parents and I were all having such a good time that I wanted to splurge on something special to remember it by.
While I had no such luck, my mom did find the jadeite bowls she had been eyeing the day before but decided to pass on because of the price. The smaller bowls she actually wanted were gone but it worked out for her because that just meant my dad splurged on a larger set for her! I guess he wanted her to have something special to remember the trip by also. They were marked $95 but the seller sold them to my dad for $75. We all really enjoyed this seller’s merchandise and my husband was eyeing some things as well but he’s on the more practical (i.e. non-hoarder) side of the spectrum so he didn’t buy anything. I did take a photo of the seller’s info though just in case we’re looking to buy something some day.
^ Just a random photo I took when I had a chance because I was too timid to take pictures most of the weekend since I wasn’t sure of most seller’s picture taking policies. I guess they don’t care though since I’ve been poring over people’s pictures from the market on Instagram in an attempt to relive the weekend and also catch glimpses of interesting things we might have missed.
I didn’t buy anything the second day but my dad treated me and my mom to delicious doughnuts! (I love jelly 🤤)
For lunch, we brought subs from the supermarket because we weren’t crazy fans of the pizza we had eaten the day before. It was also so hard to find seating on Saturday with all the crowds. We were much more content on Sunday, sitting on a bench just outside the market with our subs. We loved watching what types of treasure people were walking away from the market with. No idea what that guy is gonna do with that giant metal rooster. But those baskets those ladies were walking away with sure looked cute!
After lunch, it was time for one last pass through a few tents before we went home. I was sad the weekend went so quickly but so grateful to spend time with my husband and parents. Time to start planning our next flea market trip!
Also, how good does this frame look with this embroidery hoop inside? One man’s trash is another man’s treasure for sure.
