Skip to main content

How to Navigate Flea Markets like a Pro

Today I packed a breakfast quiche, some sweet tea, a hat, and sunscreen and headed out before dawn for a flea market.
When I arrived, Billy, a favorite vendor  had something special tucked away for me. It was a pair of Italian D'oro Wheat Sheaf sconces from the early 1960s. Mint condition and newly rewired.
Coco Chanel and Yves St.Laurent decorated their own Paris apartments with Italian tables and sconces bearing the wheat sheaf  design, a symbol of abundance. Since 2013, manufacturers have been recreating these beautiful light sources at a retail price of  about $175.00 . But these were the real deal and authentic ones can fetch 1500 to 1800 dollars a pair on websites like 1st Dibs.

This pair were investment pieces guaranteed to remain popular for decades to come.



Billy has often saved me some special items, ranging from a mossy green crystal chandelier taken from a Chateau in WWII to sterling smalls, but I think these are my favorite. It takes years and a lot of sales to get vendors to learn your tastes and make special efforts on your behalf but you can still shop the fleas like a pro. Here are a few of my tips.

Shop alone. Vendors know you are serious if you don't have a bunch of friends in tow. Bartering is easier if the vendor doesn't feel out numbered.

Carry an expensive handbag and wear good jewelry.
Flea market vendors believe people with money don't like to part with it. In fear that they may overprice an item and have you walk away, they low ball the price up front in hopes of getting your business.
 For this reason, I carry a Prada bag to flea markets.

Always glance under the table. A friend who works at Tiffany's collects antique jewelry. He found a  platinum necklace tucked under a table for 50 dollars. It was appraised at $10,000. Some items get put under the table so that people don't walk off with it or to prevent damage and are  pulled out only if you ask.

Take cash. Most vendors these days are set up for online purchasing via their phone but cash always talks a good talk and can get you a better deal. Cash might not get reported for tax purposes, cash has no transaction fees, and cash never gets declined by the bank. As the vendors say, "cash is king".

If the vendor won't barter, ask them to throw in additional items.  Billy would not barter on the sconces so  I asked him to throw in a couple of sterling pieces..I had been eyeing a beautiful roccoco  sterling ladle and was able to get him to toss it in.

Go early. If there is a vendor whose items you consistently like at each market, go there first. Being their first sale of the day will get you a really good deal. Vendors are a superstitious lot and the days first sale is traditionally sold at a loss as they believe doing so brings good fortune for the rest of the weekend.
If  you can't decide between two items that you want and your budget says you can only buy one, buy the one that you are least likely to ever find again.
And most important,,wear comfortable shoes! No one can adequately navigate acres of flea market stalls if their feet hurt.
(photos by me)



Comments

Anonymous said…
I am obsessed with this site! Love, love, love it!

Popular posts from this blog

Antique Wardian Cases

When I moved into my present city apartment, a mere 680 square feet,  Things had to serve a purpose. No longer could this antique wardian case hold trinkets for display, it had to be functional. So I gave up a rather large chunk of my micro kitchen to grow fresh herbs. I figure it is a fair trade off. I have a full spectrum vita light shining on the plants and they seem to do quite well in there. I adore wardian cases, terrariums and the like. They were a fixture in the Palace of Versailles like the one above, and later the Victorians made great use of them when it was discovered that they could successfully transport rare species of plants home from  around the globe. I thought I would share some pinned photos of various styles.. Imitation cases are usually zinc and plexiglass ,like this one I spotted at a local market. You can tell the age of a real one by the thickness and color of the glass.The glass will most often be 1/4 inch to a 1/2 inch. They are always quite

Southern Bacon and Crawfish Cornbread Dressing

Imagine you are dining outside at Blake Shelton's house this Thanksgiving and deep frying some big turkeys. A crawfish dressing would probably be on the menu. Deep fried turkeys and outdoor dining on Thanksgiving day is very popular in the South. And while people don't wild catch crawfish like they did a century ago, crawfish are always popular on the menu. Here I have  paired it with bacon, corn, mirepoix,and jalapenos to give you a dressing with real local flavor. Here is what you need: 5 cups crumbled cornbread 1 1/2 lbs  boiled crawfish tails ( frozen is fine) 10 ounces bacon, cooked and coarsely crumbled 12 ounces yellow corn 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion 1/1/2 cups chopped celery 1/1/2 cups green red and orange bell pepper 1 jalapeno ( optional) 2 eggs beaten 2 cups chicken stock salt, thyme, and sage to taste. Fry your bacon until it is ready to crumble, remove from pan and set aside. Saute the mirepoix, (onions ,peppers and celery) corn and jalap

How to Restore Old Brass Without Losing Patina

Brass is really trendy right now. Much of the home decor brass commercially available is cheaply made and will not retain it's beauty long. But brass made in the first quarter of the 20th century and earlier, develops an exquisite patina. Assuming of course that it has had reasonable care throughout it's long life. Sometimes, a good piece of brass will have just a tiny bit of verdigris, that is the crusty blue green stuff caused by oxidation and tells you corrosion is setting in. I see this a lot on furniture with brass mounts, lamps, chandeliers and light fixtures. Most brass tutorials give directions only on bringing brass back to it's super bright finish. Many antique dealers restore brass to it's bright finish, removing the patina and then apply a commercial solution to darken it again. I can always spot those. They never look quite right. There are some pieces that devalue when you remove the patina.  Natural patina enhances the beauty of a piece, like this cl