My neighbor Sandy and I have set upon a journey to find as many flea markets as we can in New England. We decided to do this one day last fall as we took a trip to Northern Massachusetts where Sandy showed me a couple of her favorite spots to shop for "antiques". She has a great love for buying stuff she probably doesn't need, but an even greater talent for getting it at really fabulous prices. We've been to several antique stores and have branched our way to flea markets. After all, there's nothing like buying someone else's junk and finding a need for it. Plus, I have to admit I love the thrill of the bargain.
I just decided this would be a great topic to write about so I'm going to start with a place that was new to us. We visited this indoor flea market in the middle of February and it was a great repreive from all the snow we had succumbed to all winter long. I found out about this particular flea market while I was scrolling for deals on Craig's List, but that's a whole other blog!
Cumberland, RI home of The Big Flea Market Superstore http://www.bigfleari.com/en_indoor.php
They claim to be Rhode Islands' biggest indoor and outdoor flea market, but I can't confirm or deny that at this time, because it's the first flea market in Rhode Island that I've been to (so far). Besides being opened on the typical Sunday, this flea market was opened on Saturday also, a huge plus. Additionally, it was not a long drive for us, about 45 mintues.
This flea market is housed in an old brick factory, and I couldn't tell you what might have been manufactured there way back when. Perhaps there's an old timer there that could....We pulled into a crowded parking lot of sorts and were lucky enough to find a parking spot right near the entrance. And when I say lucky, I mean it, the place was hopping and parking spaces were hard to find.
We were greeted by an enthusiastic cashier who took our $1 entrance fee. As I said, the parking lot was hopping and so was this flea market. Sandy and I had brought along a couple of guests on this trip and it was no surprise that within a half hour we had separated as a shopping group. There were so many booths you were assualted with which direction one should head in.
One of the first booths that grabbed our attention was some folks selling live bamboo stalks. The booth presentation was great, and brought you to the booth immediately. These ladies offered beautiful green, healthy bamboo at really affordable prices. It was available in a variety of ways, either in single stalks, in arrangements in decorative ceramic bowls (Sandy got one for $12) or in clear vases with the option of including a beta fish. The vendors were attentive AND informative to thier customers, explaining the proper way to maintain the stalks and incredibly they guaranteed thier products. If your plant died, they would replace it free of charge. I'd have to say we considered them to be a five star vendor.
There were alot of booths and many customers. They had a section that hosted more of a variety of typcial flea market wares, I mean other people's stuff. I scored at one table and bought a brand new cake plate for only $4. It was still in the box and had never been opened. Probably someone's unwanted wedding present. It was one of those things I didn't need, but it could come in handy one day when I actually bake a cake.
The rest of the flea market was kind of a blur for me. I went in one direction and got caught up with some gentlemen selling "recreational" items and incense, which was one thing I was looking for. They had the Nag Champa, my favorite. These were the good incense too and I bought 10 boxes of 20 sticks for $10. Decent price. One thing I love about these places are the people. The people who go there and the vendors. It's not unusual for either Sandy or I to strike up a random conversation with someone. The vendors selling me the incense engaged in one of these random conversations and I told them about our quest to find all the flea markets in New England. Lucky for me this gentlemen clued me in on another indoor/out door flea market. So I wrote down the information and tucked it away for our next adventure.
We plan on going back there soon, maybe even next weekend. I didn't feel I got to poke around long enough, because at one point I separated from my co-horts and then panicked when I couldn't find them. So some of my time was spent just looking up and down aisles looking for them.
On the whole this was a pretty decent flea market. We rate it 3.5 STARS (scale 1-5). This flea market is much worth the trip, only a 45 minute drive from Central Mass. Easy to get to. And on your way home, you can stop at Wright's Chicken Farm http://www.wrightsfarm.com/ if you want some cheap eats to go with your cheap day!
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