The foggy morning did not deter shoppers as they lined up in droves outside of May’s Antique Market, which opened on May 15 at 9 am.
Review & Onsite Photos by Madelia Hickman Ring, Carly Timpson, Kiersten Busch & ZG Burnett
BRIMFIELD, MASS. — The 2025 season for the Brimfield Antique Flea Market opened Tuesday, May 13 and closed six days later, on Sunday, May 18. Soaking rains the week prior to the show’s opening made for some initially soggy fields, many of which became even soggier thanks to drenching downpours on Thursday. But the weather for most of the week was ideal: slightly overcast and cool on Wednesday and sunny if windy on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
This edition of Brimfield took place at a time when many people were feeling the pinch of inflation, stock market losses and higher prices for many daily necessities, including groceries and goods imported from overseas. It’s no secret that Brimfield shoppers have always recognized — and sought out — “recycled” or “repurposed” objects but in the current economy, the fields now appealed to cost-conscious buyers as well.
Dealer’s Choice
Tuesday, May 13 brought a brief respite from the recent rainy weather as well as a stacked lineup of vendors at the Dealer’s Choice field. Due to refreshed excitement and a current collecting interest focusing on jewelry and vintage clothing, Dealer’s Choice welcomed many first-time and younger shoppers, many of whom said they traveled from other states — and even other countries — just to experience shopping the market’s famed fields. And, at Dealer’s Choice, it wasn’t just the fields that were famous — Frank Kaminski reported selling a pair of oversized wrought-iron garden gates to comedian and movie star Jennifer Coolidge, who is a Massachusetts native.
Brimfield is for everyone — even movie stars! Jennifer Coolidge with Beverly, Mass., dealer Frank Kaminski at Dealer’s Choice. Photo courtesy Frank Kaminski.
With the purchase of those gates, we think Coolidge may have been on to something, if not setting the trend herself. Susan Oates, from Long Island, N.Y., exclaimed, “It’s garden season!” and pointed us to a selection in her booth: “Decorators are loving these Italian terracotta garden urns.”
Vintage clothing and accessories were plentiful, with some dealers reporting better-than-usual sales despite current political and economic anxieties. Queens, N.Y., dealers D & J Vintage, who sell vintage clothing, accessories and jewelry were back for their second time and stated, “There are active measures to decrease tourism in the United States right now, but people are still here. We’ve talked to people from France, England and Japan, who all came for the show. There are a lot of changes, but we meet the market where it is at.”
New England Motel
A full field of dealers, both new and returning, welcomed shoppers — including “more interior decorators than I’ve seen here before” as one vendor told Antiques and The Arts Weekly — to New England Motel’s 6 am opening on Wednesday, May 14. While some fields encourage a more spontaneous, fast-paced set up, New England Motel allows vendors to unload over several days and booths range from casual pop-up tents with grass floors and open walls to spacious booths with carpeted plank flooring and elaborate lighting. Some of the new dealers included Owen and Leslee Shugard (Union, Maine), Meaghan and Jamie Burke (Sutton, Mass.) and Tracy Davis (Portland, Maine).
Vintage and antique taxidermy were in plentiful supply with District V. Home, from Sutton, Mass. Meaghan (left) and Jamie Burke were showing at New England Motel for the first time and characterized their many early sales as “lots of ‘littles,’ some fun things, a little of everything.”
An increasing number of vendors bring vintage clothing to appease the appetites of thrifters. One of the current nostalgia-driven thrifting trends is called “granny-core” — think vintage floral patterns, modest silhouettes and cozy textures — such as one’s grandmothers might have worn in the 1950s, 60s or 70s.
“The opening was better today than it has been in previous years,” said Greg Havriluk, who has been buying at New England Motel since 1976. When we asked him why that was, he said he thought the economy played a significant part.
Match strikers were “a big seller this morning,” Barb and Angus Davidson, Tinker & Nidge, Narrowsburg, N.Y., told us. That said, textiles are one of their specializations and their British-themed booth had quilts, pillows, towels and clothing, as well as stationary.
Heart-O-The-Mart
By the time early morning shoppers had picked over the fields that opened before 9 am Wednesday, they were ready to head to Heart-O-The-Mart, the large field that dominates the center of the Brimfield strip. The Moriartys — Don and Pam, and their son Eric — have hosted shows since July 1982. The opening attracted the largest crowd this reporter has seen in nearly 10 years covering the field. Even though the field had several gates, the crowd waiting along Route 20 stretched in both directions and when the gates finally swung open, they sprinted into the field, headed for their favorite vendors.
Zachary Capps made his Brimfield debut at Heart-O-The-Mart with this 1980 Renaissance Revival pedestal he said had been commissioned for an upstate New York home. Alexander’s Vault Antiques, Allentown, Penn.
“We have a full field, with a lot of new vendors,” Eric Moriarty told us about an hour after the field opened. “There’s been much better energy and buzz than in previous years and a lot of dealers are doing very well.”
“I had my best day ever at Dealer’s Choice yesterday,” shared jewelry and folk art specialist, Sandy Jacobs. “People want to put money into tangible objects rather than into stocks or bonds that go up and down.”
One of the new vendors at Heart-O-The-Mart was Zachary Capps, the Allentown, Penn., proprietor of Alexander’s Vault Antiques. “High-end American Victorian furnishings — specifically Renaissance Revival, Aesthetic Movement and museum-quality antiques from the 1860s-1890s” is how the company bills itself and its elegant presentation was a stand-out in the field.
Brimfield Antique Shows
Brimfield Antique Shows occupies the field at the corner of Mill Lane Road and Route 20, in the space formerly ran by Hertans before the field was purchased by Klia Ververidis Crisafulli and her husband, Arthur Crisafulli. The Crisafullis have one iron-clad rule: no early buying before the field opens at noon on Wednesdays, an event presided over on May 14 by Klia, who — on the strike of noon — rings a large handbell while riding a golf cart. To continue the fun — and make Brimfield more than just a flea market to shop — Klia holds an auction on Thursday night and a Field Appreciation Party on Friday night. Her “Weekend Warriors” are dealers who exhibit on just Saturday and Sunday, replacing others who left earlier in the week.
Klia Ververidis Crisafulli is the ringleader of the Brimfield Antique Shows field and dressed the part for the noon opening.
“It was a fabulous show, probably the second-biggest gate after that first July show after Covid. Many of our vendors had record-breaking shows,” Klia told us. She noted that many Canadian and international “big buyers” were not there.
The field is a hodgepodge of vendors, including ones like Hilary Nolan, Tom Jewett and Butch Berdan and Sam Herrup, who are well-established dealers that participate at some of the finest antiques shows in the US. At the other end of the range are contemporary artisans who make all manner of objects, from candles to pottery. Advertising is also a strong draw for the field, with a good percentage of vendors either specializing in it or having a handful of representative pieces.
One new vendor was Mischa Roy, from Northampton, Mass., who runs a metaphysical apothecary called Spill The Tea. On offer were crystals, tarot cards, intention candles and unique gifts.
Zachary Fitzgerald had previously exhibited as a Weekend Warrior but was making his mid-week debut. His Rennselaer, N.Y.-based business, Nostalgia Knows Best, trades in toys, collectibles and clothing — in short, “anything that invokes nostalgia.”
May’s Antique Market
Despite the foggy weather on the morning of May 15, hundreds of enthusiastic shoppers still lined Palmer Road before the 9 am opening at May’s Antique Market, vying to be one of the first through the double gates. “We had an excellent opening day,” shared Martha May. “The gate was strong and dealers were reporting that they had a good show, some saying it was their best in five years.”
Besides the Coca-Cola advertising, the giant metal mouse outside of New Yorker Jim Calison’s booth was one of the main draws for shoppers. — May’s Antique Market.
The best part about May’s is the show’s unique opening style, which allows everyone an equal opportunity at finding something fresh and one-of-a-kind. One of the oldest fields at Brimfield — operating since 1977 — its slogan “At May’s, everyone’s an early buyer!” was still in full effect, with dealers just beginning to set up as the bell rang and shoppers piled in for the morning rush.
This year the show was heavy in advertisement, from Coca-Cola to gasoline to anything in between. Costume and gold jewelry, wooden furniture and glassware were also in abundance, as were vintage clothing dealers, where the younger population of shoppers seemed to flock en masse.
A newcomer to May’s was Trunk & Disorderly from Worcester, Mass. While owner Ashley Troy and her team have been showing at Brimfield for 11 years — mostly at Central Park Antique Shows — this was their first time at May’s. Troy’s eclectic booth contained a mix of clothing and accessories spanning the 1920s to early 2000s, furniture, décor and upcycled home goods.
Brimfield Auction Acres
Shaken by the previous afternoon’s sudden downpour, dealers at Brimfield Auction Acres welcomed fairer weather and undeterred customers on May 16. Many migrated from other fields and some were regular fixtures who have sold for years on that spot, formerly operated by J&J Promotions. The majority were from New England and the Tri-State area. Brimfield Auction Acres’ spacious booths allow for large scale goods and furniture, and vendors can create mobile shops of smalls within their sturdy tents. The aisles were full of customers by midmorning, most lugging large shopping bags and wagons behind them.
At Brimfield Auction Acres, Cathy Alcorn of Nostalgie, Bridgeport, Conn., primarily deals in vintage clothing yet drew in buyers with this Midcentury grill.
More than a few dealers brought their stock from Mongers Market, Bridgeport, Conn., including local vintage clothing dealer Cathy Alcorn of Nostalgie. Alcorn brought only a fraction of her inventory, some offered at half price and the rest much reduced, such as beautiful $10 vintage wedding gowns. “This is the eighth time I’ve [had a group gallery] shut down,” Alcorn shared of her long career, following the recent announcement that Mongers Market will be closing its doors on June 29. Though Nostalgie is not pursuing a ninth venue, she will continue selling the remaining goods. “You’ll see us in September,” she added.
Brimfield Antique Flea Markets will be open July 8-13 and September 2-7. For further information, www.brimfieldantiquefleamarket.com.
