Flea markets a gold mine of vintage beauty

The arrival of spring means that flea markets are reopening for business around the country. Shoppers will hunt for treasures amid acres of used goods. A few will come home with just the right vintage art or quirky piece of furniture.

Jaime Rummerfield, co-founder of Woodson & Rummerfields House of Design in Los Angeles, sometimes mixes flea-market finds with new, high-end furnishings to decorate the homes of her celebrity clients.

The beauty of flea markets, she says, is you never know what you will find. Theres nothing like being outdoors or in a place off the beaten path, rummaging through old treasures.

Interior designer Brian Patrick Flynn of Los Angeles, creator of the FlynnsideOut design blog, also hunts for vintage pieces: I shop secondhand regardless of my projects budget or clients level of taste, he says. Vintage and thrift is the best way to add one-of-a-kind flair to a space without insanely high cost.

There is luck involved, of course. But skill also plays a role. As you browse through crowded tables of used things this spring, how can you find the treasures that will give your home an infusion of style while avoiding decorating disasters?

Here, Flynn, Rummerfield and another interior designer who shops for vintage dcor Lee Kleinhelter of the design firm and retail store Pieces in Atlanta tell how they do it.

When to go

Winter and early spring are perfect for flea-market shopping, Flynn says.

Since thrifting and antiquing are often associated with gorgeous weather and weekend shenanigans, many people shy away from hunting for their vintage finds when its cold or gloomy, he says. So go now and go early.

I usually show up just as the flea market opens to ensure I see every new item as its put out on display, he says. When you wait until the end of a flea markets run to check out its stuff, youre likely to find mostly leftovers, things priced too highly, which others passed over, or things that are just way too taste-specific for most people to make offers on.

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Flea markets a gold mine of vintage beauty