Today I am driving just 4 hours away from Brooklyn to go to the epic 5000 dealer Brimfield antique show in Massachusetts. Generally I’m spooked by huge outdoor markets because they’re just so overwhelming and exhausting. And when I’m buying for the store, staying calm and collected is key–making absolutely sure I’m paying the right price for the right thing. But Brimfield is too good to miss, so I recently came up with a simple strategy for buying at these kind of events.

The number one key is: don’t expect to find exactly what you’re looking for. I’ve had terribly days when I set out to find one type of thing and can’t find it. If you have an open mind and some patience you’ll no doubt find things you need/want, even if they’re not what you first imagined. I think it’s better to look carefully in a few places than quickly in a lot of places. It’s tempting to cover a lot of ground at Brimfield, but the hustle and bustle of it all tends to overwhelm the senses, and it becomes easy to overlook treasures. And when you do find something, make sure you have cash in hand… checks and credit cards are rarely taken, and ATM’s are few and far between.

I read on one Brimfield website, that if you’re looking for something in particular you should definitely make up a t-shirt that says “I collect blank.” I’m not really sure about this strategy, but last May, my girlfriend Sara was successful in capturing one individual wearing such a shirt (below). If you don’t happen to be into antiquing, the people watching at Brimfield is unparalleled. Boy scout antiquities anyone?