Fair Trade
Antique fairs and flea markets are not just great venues for buyers but for sellers as well. I believe it is an art onto itself to set up a successful booth in an arena full of other dealers. My eye went right to these exquisitely made pieces by Letty Worley at last years Country Living Fair.
She makes her unique creations from salvaged vintage relics, trims and mohair. Some are even functional like this needle holder on the left. Others are just wonderful pieces of art. All are signed and one of a kind.
Above a fun collection of vintage gadgets at Scotts last fall from Bantam House Antiques. They also have a brick & mortar store in Clarkesville, Georgia I am anxious to check out.
At the Country Living Fair this dealer did it old school, handmade brooms created on site were selling like hot cakes. You had a choice of natural or finished wood handles.
Urban Artifacts sells unique pieces from their Atlanta based store at Scotts. I liked these french revival chairs, reinvented in purple snakeskin.
Then there is Dorthey Loud, a dealer from Florida who specializes in high end vintage jewelry, clothing, accessories, Judith Leiber bags and in being fabulous.
Win Some Art Goodies!
I really fell for the booth of Lisa Price of Art Goodies. Her original linocut block prints were mixed lots of groovy vintage goodies and the bright, cheerful booth pulled me right in. I love the bold graphics of her designs and then I saw the Pie print and was sunk and she bakes them too!
She has offered up a two prizes a pillow and a tea towel, winners can choose the patterns they like from her etsy store. This weeks question (FYI: I really enjoy reading your answers!) tell me about your favorite place to hunt for treasure, be it flea market, antique mall, a particular store or other event? Please provide a link if there is one. Be sure to include your email in the appropriate box (it will not be public) or you will not be entered. One entry per person, the winner will be chosen via random.org. This is a quick one, you have till midnight March 24th to enter.
For more on this topic, check out this groovy little documentary on the wonderful world of flea markets and then there is this excellent new magazine, Flea Market Style.
all photos & content © Lara Rossignol
Bantom antiques, Country Living Magazine, Letty Worley, Lisa Price, Scott Antiques Market, art goodies, earth angels, flea markets Share Article Comments Off
Reader Comments (26)
I always find something at the Raleigh Flea Market: http://www.ncstatefair.org/fleamarket/index.htm
My favorite place has always been this little house up at my cabin calle Cobweb. They sell antiques mostly, but in the attic they have vintage clothing, too. I have found the most fabulous things there - vintage costume jewelry, glass wear and amazing vintage jackets. They always have a ton of variety and the prices are amazing since it's so rural.
I go through phases depending on what I am collecting at the time. Right now, I'm working on building a sizeable collecting of flatware and I find myself stopping at Goodwills when I travel to rummage through their silverware. I've discovered a few lovely things aside from silverware as well - vintage tins, wonderful wool, and great holiday table coverings while walking through the aisles.
I am also a HUGE fan of Art Goodies! I've been coveting the squirrel towel for a really long time now... adorable, it is!
I LOVE the Golden Nugget in Lambertville, NJ. The town itself is known as an antique town, but the flea market is a little big more down and dirty then the shops in town. It is in the woods across from the Delaware River. Prices seem a bit higher here lately, but it could be because a lot of New Yorkers come down to the country for day trips.
http://www.gnmarket.com/
I want to buy those and put them on my store. I'm all about vintage gifts. Nice post
I dig that French Revival chair. I like the funky purple alligator with the distressed white wood. It's surprising but chic.
absolute favorite place to treasure hunt is Paxton Gate in SF. it isn't really vintage themed but has amazing science finds. for vintage I really love a great estate sale - lots of fun finds there!
I love finding treasures at an art shop in Toronto called Magic Pony (http://www.magic-pony.com/). In addition to having amazing designer toys they also feature clothing, book, jewlery, and artwork. They are kind of like the Canadian version or KidRobot.
Unfortunately, locally not much to find :-((( Other than that...I like little kitchy stores where I can find little treasures...not necessarily a bargain but more like unusual :-) A little bit of this, a little bit of that makes for a fun treasure hunt.
Hi Lara,
My favorite place to shop is at Nannygoat Antiques and Vintage Market, just outside of Philadelphia. Doors open one weekend a month (first Friday weekends) for themed market events and it is THE place to be around these parts! Since wine is served from 5-9 pm on opening night, and mimosas are flowing all day on Saturday and Sundays, it is a festive, happy place! Each month, the space is redecorated to suit the "new" theme! You'll find more info, pics and videos after the jump: http://www.NannygoatAlley.com.
Twitter & FB: NannygoatAlley, / Facebook.com/nannygoatantiques
Full disclosure- I am one of the partners at Nannygoat, but it is, indeed, the #1 place I like to shop... We buy from each other all weekend long!
Two more Philly-area faves:
Milkhouse Antiques in Glenmoore, PA, in the heart of Chester county, just outside of Amish country: www.facebook.com/pages/The-Milkhouse/354437200927?v=info
Clover Market: Multi-vendor outdoor market open one Sunday a month in the spring and fall: clovermarket.blogspot.com/. Nannygoat and Clover are located @1 mile apart if you want to catch both on one trip. Both will be open on May 9 and June 5th!
Thanks for the opportunity to win Lisa Price's Art Goodies- Love them!
Alliison
Very sweet and lovely antiques you found!
I love travelling out west to op shops and car boot sales... pleasant way to spend a weekend.
My favorite place to shop is Wichita, Kansas. The estate sales they have there are the best of all the places I have lived. They always start on Wednesdays, Thursdays are garage sale days, and by Saturday, the estate sales are down to half price. An added bonus is you get to see inside the houses!
i love antique stores. my favorite in my area is the rare bird in goodletsville, tn. it has a great selection of vintage and there are always tons of things in my meager price range. my other favorite is the goodwill outlet. you have to dig through bins of stuff, but it's all by the pound and SO CHEAP! i've gotten lots of great vintage there for pennies!
I LOVE the Brooklyn flea market!
i love digging through items at antique/variety/thrift shops. thankfully, my husband does too!
In Savannah, GA there are many neat thrifty/eclectic shops around: The Paris Market (home goods), Blessingdales (thrift), Civvies (vintage clothing)... but 99% of the time, as fun as shops like those can be, I still prefer the raw thrill of the hunt at Goodwills and yard sales! :)
I don't have a favourite place to hunt for treasure. My parents have a knack for finding awesome flea markets, and I just tag along.
Although it's far from a flea market I used to love searching at my tiny college town's (Milledgeville, GA) local jewelry store Villane's. It's my favorite casual jewelry store and hidden in the middle of nowhere!
http://maps.google.com/maps/place?hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=villanes+milledgeville&fb=1&gl=us&hq=villanes&hnear=Milledgeville,+GA&cid=2443652136730718107
Buffalo boasts some surprisingly good thrift stores, actually. There's an Amvets and second hand store called A+ right around the corner from each other, so they make a perfect double-feature destination on rainy days. You really have to dig, but there's some lovely stuff to be found, and the prices are always right.
For me, nothing beats estate sales. I like to see goods in their natural environment, clothes in the closet, dishes in the kitchen cabinets.
I personally love sifting through my grandmother's stuff. She has an endless supply of random things, a disorgnized, eclectic mix of valuable family heirlooms interchangeably mixed in with junk she found at the dump or a thrift store.
My favorite place to shop isn't exactly a store, but my mother & I once stumbled across a flea market in a little town in Italy and it was an incredible experience (and it was by sheer luck that we happened on it the particular day it was being held). One old vendor sold us some old metal skeleton keys and before he gave them to us he kissed them to ensure that luck came back to him, and it was so charming. Even though we were traveling for 3 weeks with just one single backpack each, my mom trekked home two small wooden shelves and an enormous (6"+ wide) brass bell, carrying them on her back with the rest of her stuff for the rest of the trip.
I love combing through the Melrose Trading Post flea market in LA, on Melrose Ave. at Fairfax! Fun Sunday afternoon outing.
I enjoy going to the Third Sunday Market here in Bloomington, IL. I can't wait until May 15th for the first one! Thanks for the giveaway!
http://www.thirdsundaymarket.com/
I always sift through my local Goodwill for treasures but one of my favorite places to go treasure hunting is in nearby Dillard, Georgia. The town and surrounding area have some amazing places to visit. I love roaming the Rabun Gap Flea Market, found some cool vintage letterpress type at Good K-9 Antiques and if you want to discover some amazing fresh/local produce then head over to Osage Farms Produce Market (be sure to grab lunch at the Tomlin BBQ shack there, the blackeye pea salad is delicious). Plus, once you finish gathering some amazing finds head on down 23/441 and just a few minutes beyond the GA-NC state line there is a little ice cream shop with fresh made flavors plus they sell local cheese/butter/milk. It is the best treasure hunting daytrip ever!!
My favorite place to hunt for treasures is at Down Home Antiques in Orange, Califoria (www.downhomeantiques.com) They have wonderful open house events in March, June, Sept. and November where they decorate each space with holiday themed vintage items along with their antiques and wares that are there year round. Each vendor also has some wonderful little snack to munch on as you shop and you leave there happy and full! I just attended the Spring event with my pals and came away with a wonderful bag full of treasures. As we wait in the long line anticipating the opening doors the owners walk along and thank everyone for coming and takes pictures for their site. For the 1st 50 guests they have some wonderful little thank you gift, this time we got a little strawberry plant in a colorful glass pot with a handmade sign that said take me home and plant me! The open house events are so much fun but, I find myself visiting the store at least once a month to wander around, see what new wonderful antique has been added, and dream of how this or that would be perfect in my home and again I come away with another wonderful piece that I just couldn't live without!