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| One of the many treasures I saw at the Long Beach Flea Market this past weekend. Thought about taking her home, but where to put it...... |
First, let me say hello and Happy Monday! Last week while I took a short break from AWNL so I could catch up on a few house projects and tie up some loose ends. I continued to work on spring-cleaning my closet, primed a large canvas for my next project (hopefully I'll be sharing it soon!), worked in our garden, spent some great time with my family, booked a trip to NYC, and spent my Sunday morning at the Long Beach Flea Market. Although it was only a week, I missed blogging & chatting with all of you and am happy to be back!
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| Rod iron garden chairs waiting for someone to rescue them with some metal spray paint and a comfy cushion. |
I've been going to the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena since I was in middle school and even worked there in high school to make extra money, and as long as I can remember, it has always been THE flea market in L.A., and one of the best in the country. However, over the last several years, everyone here in L.A. has been talking about the Long Beach Flea. Month after month, there seemed to always be something in between me and the LB market, but this week the stars aligned and I finally was able to go! Walking through aisle after aisle, feasting my eyes on all the glorious and beautiful vintage knickknacks, furniture, jewelry, clothes and odds and ends was so fun and I was reminded of why I used to get up on Sundays at a quarter to 6 in the morning to be one of the first to arrive. If you live in Southern California and love vintage, I definitely recommend you pencil in the 3rd Sunday of the month to visit LB. Here are just a few of the many lovely wares for sale yesterday in Long Beach:
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| The wood on these mid-century modern chairs was in pristine condition. |
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| My friend bought one of these vintage sorting tins to plant succulents in. |
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| This was a child's wagon made of an old 7-Up bottle crate. |
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| Distressed metal + aero-dynamic design = very cool chairs. |
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The purple glasses were so lovely in person and my dear friend picked up all 6 for $25!
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| I loved these quatrafoil bar stools with iron bases. |
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| I'm always a sucker for vintage children's beds. If only I knew how to rehab rusted pieces like this one. |
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| An incredible collection of vintage suitcases. |
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| A child's rocking chair. |
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| Super glam and very French gold double-mirror. |
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| Gorgeous Moroccan pendants. |
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| It's not a legit flea market if you can't find a suit of armor. |
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| A vintage dresser, repainted and just a little distressed. |
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| Great vintage barrels for potted plants. |
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| Vintage jewelry box. |
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| Thought this would be great in a garden, with the seat used as a planter. |
For me, wandering aimlessly is just as much, if not more fun than finding great pieces, but these days it seems harder and harder for me to carve out the time to go. If you don't live in a city with a large Flea Market or just don't have the time to go, here are some great online flea markets of sorts that you can shop whenever you have a few spare minutes (well, maybe hours:).
Three Potato Four - Both a retail (in Philadelphia) and online store, they usually have a great selection of home decor objects - from vintage boy scout flags and children's toys, to depression-era mug shots and vintage signage, there are many, many treasures to be found here.
TINI (This Is Not Ikea) - I've never visited this store here in L.A., but I hear nothing but great things about it. Luckily, they also post their inventory online so you can view what they've got in store. Their selection is wide and varied, from Hollywood regency to mid-century modern.
One Kings Lane - already my absolute favorite online source for all things home. With their new addition of a vintage marketplace that is updated daily and impeccably curated, you can satisfy your vintage craving 24/7.
V and M - I dedicated a
whole post to this fabulous place back in February. One of my favorite online destinations for vintage home wares.
1stdibs - No question this place is largely aspirational (unless you have a $5000 budget for a coffee table), but if you spend a little time, you can find some more affordable pieces. I often just go here and browse to pinpoint exactly what I'm looking for, and then start the hunt to track it down for a price within my budget.
etsy - with an easy search function, etsy is quickly becoming one of my go-to resources for vintage everything. There are some great sellers who repurpose and rehab furniture and some well-curated stores. Check out
The French Artisan (all vintage pieces from France),
Rellik Vintage,
Rhan Vintage, and
The Turquoise Iris for starters.
ebay - From fashion designers, to mid-century modern collectors and interior decorators, everyone still swears by the site that started it all. While I've ordered many things on ebay, I have yet to buy any large pieces of furniture (the closest I've come are several lamps). Anyone out there had a successful Ebay purchase of a chair, couch or the like?
Although I saw several pieces of furniture I loved at the Flea Market, I forgot to bring my wall measurements with me and didn't want to make another mistake after having learned that lesson the hard way (buying a table that couldn't fit through our front door and lamps that were too tall for our bedside tables). However, I did score a few smaller pieces, including a vintage Greyhound map of the U.S. (for my daughter's playroom), an original painting of booksellers along the Seine in Paris, lovely yellow pillowcases, and a delicate gold mirror.
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| Gold mirror for my stairwell collage - $12. |
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| Yellow hand-blocked pillow cover for my living room, $24. |
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| Vintage U.S. map (it will need a new frame), $25. |
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| Original drawing of booksellers in Paris for my stairwell, $35. |
Do you have any stories of great home finds at your local flea market? Do tell! Have a great week everyone!
5 comments:
My my you are back with a vengeance:) I feel like everyone has had a week off and has come back invigorated.. good on you!
Gosh, there are so many pieces I would have liked, like the child's cart, the purple glasses ( what a bargain was that?) and the moroccan pendants. In fact, I could have bought many more.
Of course, the online flea markets looked great too.
Funnily enough it was on Friday when I had some blogging friends over for lunch that we discussed going to this really cool vintage flea market. We must put dates into diaries.
Me and 5 other english girls are going to a blogging weekend/conference to Berlin in a month time. That should be fun.
Nice to have you back.
I am BEYOND jealous that you can go to the Rose Bowl flea or the LB flea so often! Flea markets in Philly are a twice-a-year event, and I am always absurdly excited when they roll around. Flea markets are like heaven for me, and I've found some really great pieces at them. I'm on the hunt for a solid dresser I can repaint, but won't be able to really go to a flea market until May (unless I'm in Europe at the time! in which case I might hit up Le Puces in Paris, swoon!). I love all the pictures you included! It totally satisfied the urge I've had to go thrifting. You got some great pieces! I love that print of booksellers in Paris, and that mirror.
I love your links about where to find good pieces of vintage furniture and housewares, too! I've found some neat stuff on Etsy and Ebay but usually shipping is a deterrent. And yeah, 1stDibs would be great if I had loads of cash, haha. Craigslist antiques section usually has some good stuff, too!
Oh what a fabuloso post! I only wish I could go to these, like Erin I really want to go to Rose Bowl (blogger holiday perhaps??)
So generous of you to write all of that, I need to find some decent ones in London as all the ones I've been to are a total rip off (Hello Alfie's Antiques Market!)
xx
@Tina - what fun to be planning to attend a blogging conference! I wish we had a small one here in L.A.! Can't wait to hear about the details!
@Erin - thanks for the tip on craigslist. For some reason I never think to look there for vintage. I planned on going to the Paris Flea Market when we were there, but so many good friends and experienced shoppers discouraged me and said it was a total rip-off and nothing that couldn't be found online or here in the states...I'm still bummed I've never been to one in Paris!
@Annie - plan your trip to California and we can make a day of the Rose Bowl and other great L.A. sites! Haven't been vintage shopping in London (just some high street stops) - would imagine there are amazing treasures abounding there, just where to find them.
I was sorry to miss the LB flea market last Sunday. We did go the month before with the kids and rain! Needless to say, we weren't there for long. ;) We have to plan a trip together.
We did score six vintage Eames chairs at the Rose Bowl Flea last year. I couldn't even believe we got them as I never find the great deals.
You scored some great pieces!
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