Brimfield Antiques

Last weekend I finally made it to the Brimfield Antique Show, something I have wanted to do for years.

It is the largest outdoor antiques show in the world, covering 23 fields along a one-mile stretch of Route 20 in Brimfield, MA, and takes place three times a year (May, July, September), drawing over 6,000 dealers and 130,000 visitors. 

Here's a nice aerial shot of the show grounds, courtesy of BrimfieldExchange.com:

I wish I had the foresight to take more photos of the trends I saw there, like the girls over at DesignSponge did, but as a first-timer I was utterly overwhelmed. DesignSponge did a fantastic job summarizing the major sights (especially the bird cages - I saw lots of those, too, and commented on how beautiful they were, but sadly I missed Mary Kate Olsen!).

Here are a few things that caught my eye:

Dainty dishes (like all the lovely pieces in my mom's china closet)

Ornate, cut-glass ashtrays

Tons of vintage brooches and pocket watches 

  

A fair amount of French-influenced furniture (Pam Szori described it on the DesignSponge blog as "Gustavian furniture in grey and white, mixed with nubbly flax grain sacks, rough-hewn linens, French scrolly monograms, and wood.")

 

Chandeliers

   
 
Interesting wall decor: beautiful mirrors and engraved silver trays

And lots of enthusiastic fair-goers, like us!

I loved the show, and wish we had more time to browse through all the fields (we just did a day trip). Even if you don't buy anything, it is fascinating browsing through the goods (and the food is great, too!).

I did manage to pick up a lovely set of Tiffan glasses, a cast iron chocolate mold, a vintage sweater clasp, and a reclaimed, punched tin mantle piece. Need to go back next time and score a vintage Tole tray.

View the entire Brimfield photo set here.