Brimfield Bound

It’s our pleasure to introduce new columnist, Diana Petrillo! Selling antiques for over 25 years, Diana’s column, Diana's Vintage Ventures, will explore the many fabulous finds she discovers while on her journeys. 

America’s seasoned antique collectors and sellers will be familiar with Brimfield––the country’s largest antique show held three times a year in May, July, and September. To think it all started back in 1960 in one woman’s yard with just 70 dealers!

For those who have never been before, here’s what to expect: Brimfield is a small Massachusetts town with a Main Street running through it. Nineteen consecutive fields filled with goods line both sides of the street, which swells with foot traffic on a good day and is still pretty busy on a “bad” day.

Each field contains masses of vendors selling anything you can think of, whether it’s antique, vintage, collectible, or junk. To find a field, look for their sign, e.g., Heart O’The Mart or Black Swan Meadows, on that main street.

When you get hungry, you’ll find food trucks serving everything from the usual suspects like burgers and kettle corn to chicken quesadillas and Belgian waffles with brie & raspberry jam. 

Most fields have parking: expect to pay $10-20 for all-day parking. Porta-Potties are located in most fields and are kept clean and running smoothly by attendants who work for tips.

My sweet husband and I headed west into Massachusetts from our home place in upstate New York to shop until we dropped on the opening day in May. Here’s how our trip went:

Tuesday, May 12th (Opening Day!)

12 pm: Arrived and found parking in the Green Acres field. I’m chomping at the bit to get shopping, but it’s taking so long to drive down the crowd-filled lane to the parking area. 

This field is filled with incredible vintage and antique items. It feels a bit overwhelming at first as there are so many vendors, which to choose first?!!

Just look at all of the tables in this one large space. It’s filled with a remarkable assortment of items. It would take hours to scour these tables in any sort of meaningful way. Instead, we breeze through and move on to the next vendor, looking for deals, of course!

As a bottle digger from way back, I’m always impressed with large collections of bottles like this one. Bottles with labels sell well at my antique booth, and collections of three to five aquas sell on my Etsy shop.

12:30 pm: I make my first purchase of three ironstone knobs. At Christmas, I love to insert bottle brush trees into them for a cozy farmhouse-style decoration. I’m super pleased to pick them up for just $1 each.

This particular vendor had boxes lined up on tables, each containing unique items, such as lamp parts, hinges, and miniature light bulbs.

One of my favorite tents from our entire day featured this lovely, primitive farmhouse display. I fell in love with the wooden document box on the right, but at $125, it was out of my price range.

1:00 pm: We discover Golden Oldies Antiques, a fun booth filled with a mix of genuine antiques along with [what I believe are] Indian imports. 

I asked the vendor how his day was going, and he said, “Great!” and other dealers echoed this sentiment throughout the day. I was so pleased to hear that, as I know how much work goes into setting up a booth. Invariably, they commented that the perfect weather likely contributed to their success.

3:00 pm: Time for a snack. With so many food trucks to choose from, we went with a yummy quesadilla that came with fresh sour cream, pico de gallo, and guacamole.

3:30 pm: So many attractive booths and striking antiques to see as we walk up and down each lane of vendors. These face jugs caught my eye, and I wished I’d hung around longer to talk with the seller, but he was deep in conversation.

You never know what you’re going to come across at Brimfield.

4:30 pm: All in all, a successful day browsing some truly wonderful antiques and picking up a few to take home as well. Here are some of my purchases, proving that you can find reasonable (cheap!) pieces if you search hard enough.

5:30 pm: Arrived at our Airbnb in nearby Connecticut and decided to nap before dinner. 

6:30 pm: Enjoyed a delicious meal (and margaritas) at No Coast Taqueria. Looking forward to tomorrow! 

Wednesday 

9:00 am: We woke up to rain, but it ended around noon. While dealers showed up rain or shine, we decided to start later. 

12:00 pm: We park at the Central Park field and start shopping!

There’s just so much vintage goodness everywhere we turn. Now, I’m sure old-timers can differentiate between the various fields: as in, what types of dealers and goods sell at each one.

But to the uninitiated (this is only my third trip to Brimfield), they all seem pretty much the same. 

In my opinion, the fields are made up almost entirely of lovely sellers with great goods for sale. 

Are there lazy sellers who just throw stuff out on tables in heaps and call it a day? Yep. Are there sellers who don’t price their merchandise? Yep. But I just walk right past them to the next responsible dealer who has taken the time to organize and price their merchandise.

1:00 pm: After wandering and enjoying all the sights and sounds, I stumble on a tent selling ephemera. In the back, I discover a table filled with $1 treasures. I select a few holiday postcards that strike my fancy.

If they’re in good condition, which these were, I sell them from my booth. Others I pick up to frame and sell for $15-20.

2:00 pm: Speaking of holidays, get a look at these Christmas blow molds. They’re highly sought after and fetch a pretty penny. I’ve had personal experience with the nativity blow mold characters, which sell especially well.

3:00 pm: You won’t find many crafts at Brimfield, but these spice tin gals are the cutest. Selling for $35 each, the vendor seemed to be doing a brisk business.

3:30 pm: We enter a booth that contains my absolute favorite display of the day: two shelves filled with antique children’s boots and shoes. So adorable!

4:00 pm: We hit three fields today, including Central Park, Quaker Acres, and Crystal Brook. We old people are pretty pooped and decide it’s time to bid Brimfield adieu.

Final Thoughts

Finding accommodations in or near Brimfield can be difficult, so it’s important that you plan ahead as far as possible. With only a month available to plan our trip, we secured a comfortable Airbnb apartment about 35 minutes from town. 

Pricing is on the higher end in most booths, with a few lower-end vendors sprinkled here and there, so set your expectations appropriately. If you’re not afraid of higher prices, consider bringing a cart to hold your loot so you’re not running back and forth to your car.

I wear a cross-body purse and bring a plastic satchel with comfortable handles that works just fine, especially if you have a significant other who carries it for you! A light backpack would work as well.

For more information, you’ll get all the scoop you need on the Brimfield Flea Market website.

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