Pilgrimage For Vintage
Summer yields the end of spring cleaning and the start of vintage selling events like Brimfield on the East Coast. Sunnier climates like California boast year round vintage/flea markets like the famed Pasadena flea market, but the east coast with its lengthier history tends to yield a deeper trove of antiques.
Depending on whether you are a store owner visiting the show to find that unique key piece to display prominently on your selling floor (you wouldn’t be alone, the staffs of Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Anthropologie, and more are known to shop events like Brimfield with a large staff to fill their flagships, stores, and showrooms) a stylist looking for some authentic pieces for a shoot or period piece, or a designer looking for inspiration there is much to be had. The question is never what can you find, but more what CAN’T you find.
Brimfield shows will be held three times this summer: May 8-13, July 10-15, Sept 4-9
Pasadena Rose Bowl Flea Market is held the second Sunday of each month
And it pays to remember a few things – bring cash, know where you parked, wear comfortable shoes, and know the asking price is always a starting point. For more tips on shopping Brimfield I recommend a these posts with some advice from some antiquing vets
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/05/garden/05qna.html
http://searosecottage.com/2012/04/10-tips-for-navigating-the-brimfield-show/
And for those who might be going to look for a treasured piece of vintage lingerie I thought A Slip of a Girl recently wrote a great article about how you can date lingerie pieces
http://www.aslipofagirl.net/2012/05/identifying-age-of-vintage-lingerie.html
