Let’s take a little trip to the Brimfield flea market and antique show. I visited the May 2026 event on Sunday, the last day of the flea market, and today I’m sharing everything about the trip. Where we shopped, WHO I shopped with (big news…at least to me!), what we ate, and what we bought. Spoiler alert…it was the least amount of money I have ever spent at Brimfield. Sunday was good to us. Shall we dive in?!
A Trip With My Daughter
I took Rowan, currently age nine, with me to Brimfield this show. She’s been my sidekick for vintage shopping these last few years, shopping thrift stores, antiques malls, the Waterbury and Chelsea flea markets, yard sales, and estate sales with me. Last year, when I went to Brimfield, I didn’t tell her I was going before I left in the predawn hours, and she was so mad at me. So I promised this year she could go, and it worked out well for Sunday.
Typically, I leave by 5:00 am. I like to be there at 8:00 am as it’s the sweet spot for finding the best parking and shopping before it gets too busy (and hot). It’s a two-and-a-half-hour trip, leaving me an extra 30 minutes for a gas-up, a breakfast sandwich, and a preshow bathroom break.
My kids are not morning people, so I was a bit worried, but the second I woke her, she sprang out of bed. The last time she was this excited about an early wakeup was the morning we got the call from the post office that our baby chicks arrived.
Off we went, armed with sunscreen, hats, layers, extra footwear, our shopping totes, water, snacks, and an audiobook (Harry Potter…always Harry Potter).
The Budget
I never go into a shopping experience at Brimfield without a budget. It can get dangerous. Since I wasn’t looking for anything large, I opted for a small $200 budget all-in. That includes parking, food, and treasures.
Rowan brought her wallet containing all $6 left over from her birthday money from her family. I added a twenty-dollar bill to her budget. The goal was to teach her a little bit about money and budgeting while we vintage shopped.
8:00 am – Parking
We pulled into the parking lot directly across the street from May’s field and got a great spot. Dare I say the best spot I’ve ever secured? It was in the second row from the road, on a dead-end row, and under the shade of a tree. Given that the day was expected to be 100% sun and over 90 degrees, shade was welcomed.
8:15 am – Shopping at Shelton’s Field
After sunscreening and loading up our supplies for our first stop, it was off to Shelton’s across the street for some shopping. When we first hit the field, only about half of the vendors were open for business, and the rest were starting to open up. By 8:30 am, the field was fully open with only a handful of vendors who had either packed up for the week or hadn’t yet started their days.
As we walked to Shelton’s, we discussed what we were looking for. Me, owl statues for the girls’ Harry Potter/Narnia reading room (they need an owlery…obviously), cheap vintage rugs, crystal glassware that could be repurposed, but mostly DEALS. For Rowan, small animal and dog figurines, and anything for a dollhouse.
Rowan gravitated to a few booths that were highly curated with natural objects. Booths filled with crystals, rocks, plants, ocean objects, etc. We spent alot of time perusing those. While I did find a sphalerite crystal that caught my eye, at $180, it was a bit out of my price range.
Most of the booths we tackled after that were the true flea market booths where you have to dig, and dig we did. Booth after booth, and pile after pile.
It was fun to watch Rowan grow in confidence, asking vendors about prices, and paying for items she couldn’t live without with her own money. After a couple of hours, Rowan found a few small figurines she loved, and I had found a wooden shelf that looked like a house. Not a ton of stuff, but enough.
Along the way, we stopped at a booth with a stack of Brimfield flyers. They were a few years old, but they had the map of all the fields. Even though we drove through most of the market before parking, I don’t think Rowan fully grasped how massive the fields were. We had been shopping at Shelton’s for hours and still hadn’t visited all the booths. So I showed her on the map where the field we were standing in was located. It was a tiny little sliver of the entire market. I think she got it, then just how big this vintage event is.
10:30 am – Hot Dog And Shade Break
Since I last fed Rowan breakfast around 5:00 am, by 10:30 am, she was starving and asked for a hot dog. I almost pulled a Ski Patrol (the movie, has anyone seen it?!) and told her they don’t sell hot dogs here. I couldn’t help it. But lo and behold, there was a food truck right near us that was selling hot dogs at 10:30 am. Not only can you find absolutely anything vintage at Brimfield, but that applies to food selection as well.
We took the hot dog across the street to our parked car. I unloaded what few items we had picked up, along with the layers we had shed as the heat of the day increased significantly. We sat in the shade, ate our snacks, slurped water, and decided to head to Hertan’s.
11:00 am – Shopping Hertan’s Field
This year, Hertan’s started doing a weekend warrior special. Meaning, new vendors came in just for the weekend. I wanted to check it out and see what the hype was all about. It did not disappoint; the field was packed! Since the field was right next to where we parked, we headed there next.
The Figurines
Almost immediately, we came across a booth of small figurines and objects that Rowan was obsessed with. She went through everything twice (and then later in the day, we double-backed to spend the last of her money there).
One of her favorite things she came across was a collection of miniature books. She picked up 10 of them with plans of using them with the mouse house slash doll house at home. She also purchased quite a few Wade’s ceramic figures, which she’s been collecting (hence one of my reasons for buying a wooden display shelf earlier in the day).
Precious Shop Owners
The beauty of shopping in Hertan’s Field is that once it gets hot, there is shade. Hertan’s has a large wooded section filled with mature trees for a much-needed reprieve from the heat of the open fields. This is where we met Gayle, and had one of the most special shopping experiences.
As we were perusing a booth, I noticed a bird bath for sale marked down to $25. I’ve been wanting one for a while now, and this was the first affordable one I’d found. As I’m checking it out, Rowan is looking over a vintage balloon animal kit. Sweet Gayle says to her, “You can have that. I’ve been here all week, and you’re the first person to look at it.” It took Rowan a minute to realize she meant for free. Next thing I know, she’s also giving Rowan a ballerina statue. She thought Rowan was a dancer, since she was wearing a ballet t-shirt, but Ro describes how she’s not, but her sister is, and she’d been looking for a gift for Bea. “Take it,” Gayle insists.
I end up buying the bird bath, and we keep chatting with Gayle about her business and how the week has been. Turns out she lives in the same town as one of Colby’s sisters and is about to open a shop in one of Colby’s other sisters’ towns. Weird. We swap contact information as we say our goodbyes, and I promise to follow her shop’s progress and visit when she opens. This is why I love Brimfield. The people.
Committing The Ultimate Brimfield Shopping Faux Pas
Now, we’re loaded down and decide we must double back to the car for an unload. Rowan takes the box of rocks and moss that came with the bird bath, and I balance the heavy tote bag in one hand with a bird bath in the other. Thankfully, it wasn’t too heavy.
On our way to the car, Rowan sees a collection of Wizard of Oz dolls still in their packaging. Her best friend is Dorothy obsessed and wants to buy it for her. She doesn’t have quite enough money, and I tell her we can get it for her friend’s birthday. The trouble is, we’re out of available hands and tote bag space. Enter rookie Brimfield shopping mistake.
We continue to the car, drop off our things, and double back to the booth selling the Wizard of Oz items. Except, we can’t find the booth. It turns into an epic game of “oh, I remember walking by here.” And “that looks familiar.” After a while, Rowan complains she is tired of searching, and we give up the hunt to go back to our natural flea market shopping cadence.
In true let it go fashion, the second we give up the search, we naturally stumble upon the booth and buy Dorothy from a pair of New Jersey chain smokers who try to upsell the rest of the collection to us in a sleazy salesman way. Have I mentioned I love Brimfield?! But I do not have $200 for the whole set, nor do I have a use for it.
Mom, What Is This?
By this time, it’s lunchtime, and we’re both hungry and start walking toward my favorite lunch spot, Pilgrim Sandwich. On the way, Rowan is intrigued by an object in a booth and goes in to investigate. It’s a phone. A classic, plug-in, corded, early nineties telephone.
Next thing I hear, “Mom, what is this?!” Naturally, I explain the magic of a telephone as I knew it growing up a child of the nineties. Of whispering secrets to your bestie as the cord is stretched up the stairs and into your bedroom, away from a brother’s ear. I feel extra old when Rowan is perplexed over punching in numbers to call someone. “How did you remember all those numbers?” she proclaims. “You just do,” the vendor responds. And we still do. I can still remember my grandmother’s phone number, all my best friends, my parents’ office numbers, and my own.
As the nostalgia of the corded phone fades, I stumble across a trio of blankets I can’t live without. One hot pink, full-size coverlet that is perfect for the girls’ room. And a pair of stadium blankets. We’re back to being loaded down.
12:30 pm – Lunch Break
We’re right next to Pilgrim Sandwich, so we grab some sandwiches along with some Del’s frozen lemonade, which is two booths down. Then we walk back to the car to unload and eat in the shade.
At this point, Rowan asks if we can go home. She’s hot and tired and done with shopping. I have to admit, she lasted longer than I expected. My original expectations were one field and probably done. Keeping expectations low is key to shopping Brimfield with kids.
To put it in perspective, we shopped most of two fields (Hertan’s and Shelton’s) and put on 8,500 steps. Normally, when I shop Brimfield by myself, I hit four or five fields in a day and end up with 35,000 steps. Brimfield can be alot and I was so proud of her.
1:00 pm – Heading Home
Around one in the afternoon, we started to make our way home with one tired kid in the back seat. I kept expecting her to nod off, but she kept telling stories of the oddest things we saw (a toss-up between vintage scuba diving helmets and a full set of armor), the things we wished were cheaper (crystals and a pocket knife…that one surprised me), and how much we both loved Gayle. Core memories made.
The Treasures And The Cost
And I couldn’t forget to show you a pic of the treasures I scored.
- Wooden Shelf – $5
- Bird Bath – $25
- Pair of Stadium Blankets – $5
- Full Pink Coverlet – $5
- Dorothy Doll – $20
Total Cost – $60
Here is the vintage bird bath I found. The plan is to try and refinish it since alot of its current finish is flaking. Once that’s done, I may try a simple fountain hack to make a mini fountain in the middle. But I might leave it as is and place it somewhere in the garden.
Here’s the stack of blankets we found at Brimfield. The bottom one, in hot pink, is a full-size bed blanket meant to sit at the foot of the book. I’m hoping to use it as a coverlet for one of the girls’ twin beds in their room. The other two blankets are 100% wool stadium blankets. They are amazing! Can you envision the fall picnics to be had with these blankets?! Someone pass me my Hunter boots and vintage picnic basket.
And finally, the small wooden house-shaped display shelf and the ballerina statue. The plan is to hang the shelf in the girls’ room. Or maybe the playroom?! Unsure as of yet. Rowan has quite a collection of small figurines that she loves to display and play with. This will be perfect for part of her collection. We may need to build a few more to house the entirety of her figurines.
The ballerina will be cute decor for the girls’ room. Maybe painted a fun color to go with the rainbow-striped wallpaper in their latest room design plan?!
This is by far the least amount of money I’ve ever spent shopping at Brimfield. But I suppose if you throw in the cost of parking ($10), a hot dog ($9), two Pilgrim Sandwiches ($30), and two Del’s frozen lemonades ($12), it gets a little more expensive. But worth it.
Now, how many more days until the next Brimfield show?! 54. If you’re reading this on the day I published it (May 20th), the answer is 54. But who’s counting?!
Pssst…Have you shopped Brimfield? Any favorite scores or legendary vendor stories? Do share!
