Brimfield, Massachusetts
A crash course on conquering the Brimfield flea market.
From the March 24, 2003 Issue of New York
 Imagine Portobello Road, Bermondsey, and Porta Portese
plunked down along both sides of pastoral Route 20
near Sturbridge, Massachusetts. For six days during
every May, July, and September, Brimfield becomes the
center of the universe for collectors of all
persuasions. Starting at 6 a.m. on a Tuesday, the 23
separate shows (“fields,” in dealerspeak)
open one after the other, providing repeated
“rushes” all week. But the biggest show,
J & J Promotions (or “The
Girls”�it’s run by the daughters of
Brimfield’s founder, Gordon Reid), is on Friday
and Saturday. Even on Sunday there’s still
plenty of stuff, not to mention a chance of finding
something for next to nothing because the dealer
doesn’t want to lug it home. If you didn’t
happen to reserve a room in Brimfield a year in
advance, try the elegant Celebrations Inn in Pomfret,
just across the Connecticut border.
— ELIN SCHOEN BROCKMAN
|
