(Mike Antonucci is an MPT Communications Department volunteer. This is his account of recently exploring a famed antique event in advance of Chesapeake Collectibles’ Season 12 taping event.)
Most collecting journeys are simply trips. A few are pilgrimages. One of the latter is Brimfield. Formally, it’s the Brimfield Antique Flea Market, named for its Massachusetts location and which proudly promotes itself as America’s oldest outdoor show of its kind. But the ultimate lure is its gigantic size, containing so much vintage spectacle that there is even a noticeable attendance of international treasure seekers among collectors and professional buyers from all over the United States.
This post’s writer, who primarily is a pop culture devotee (with a side passion for sports memorabilia), made the long drive from Maryland for the July edition of Brimfield. The show also takes place in May and September, but July offered the timely opportunity to review Brimfield in the context of Chesapeake Collectibles’ Oct. 5-6 taping event, which we hope you are or will be registered for (see the link below).
What’s trending? Who’s buying? What are prices like? What’s scarce? And what’s the coolest thing somebody else got to first?
Some answers: Vintage clothing stood out as the hottest item. Vintage jewelry seemed a close second. Contrary to common wisdom about crowds getting older, younger shoppers were conspicuous (and indefatigable traversing the sprawling fields of vendors). Prices were entertainingly negotiable because July brings fewer customers than the May and September events. Inventories had been depleted in May, so any hard-to-find stuff was extra hard to find.
Oh, and in the is-it-cool-or-not debate category, a connoisseur of old tools who has a big social media presence, attracted chattering onlookers as he threw down $450 for an eye-popping five-foot-tall wooden screwdriver that was once meant as hardware store decor.
As for me, I was after an expensive “holy grail” objective — a 1950s Nabisco ride-on toy truck (yes, with a steering wheel) that I only know about because there’s an ancient photo of me as a young child sitting astride one. It was nowhere to be found, but I did end up in a fascinating conversation with a gentleman who repeatedly comes to Brimfield from Canada in search of similar-era pressed steel toy vehicles.
Can’t see yourself getting to Brimfield next month (Sept. 3-8)? Rest assured there’s a nice slice of that ambience at the Chesapeake Collectibles taping event. Not only can you get three items of your own evaluated, but you also get to immerse yourself in the joys and mysteries of what others have ferried in from throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. Come for the information, and soak up the shared excitement.
Ready to register for the taping in October, with the bonus of getting an insider’s look at how TV production magic works? All the details, including the attendance process, are available HERE. The registration period continues through September 20.
