The thrill of the hunt
Welcome to my blog! (This is my first entry, which I wrote in September 2021 but never posted!). Since leaving my job at Ralph Lauren about a year ago, I’ve been busy with a variety of projects, including doing some virtual interior decorating work for clients through Havenly, and also some ongoing schemes for friends, family and myself. I have also had time to visit Brimfield in September and what a blast it was! While I didn’t have any specific pieces I was looking for, my husband and I were about to close on a new (old) house in a few months so I figured it wouldnt hear to see if anything peaked my interest. The early wake up call to get to the stalls at sunrise reminded me of my early days at Ralph Lauren when I lived for the sample sales. My friends and I would get up in the middle of the night and arrive at the doors around 4am so we could be in the first group of shoppers to get our hands on all of the gorgeous Purple Label gowns, coats, shoes and handbags. There was such a feeling of "nervited” energy (nervous + excitement). Nervous that the person in front of you might grab the bag that you wanted, and excited to think of all the amazing pieces that were waiting for you on the other side of the security guards. Once you got in, there was sort of a frenzy, and if you saw someone holding something that you just MIGHT like, then all of a sudden you DEFINITELY liked it. If you really coveted it, you would follow them around and see if they discarded it. Many people would just grab anything and everything that looked appealing, and then sort through their pile to determine what to keep after making a few rounds. I had a similar experience at Brimfield. My friend Laura was with me and we stopped at a stall that featured all sorts of antique planters and gardening paraphernalia. Laura fell in love with an antique potting table. She considered getting it, but since she was temporarily living at her Mother’s house, she didn’t have a home for it. Once I knew that Laura loved it, I found it more appealing— just like at a sample sale— and I convinced myself that it would be a great addition for my new house in Philadelphia, where there would be bound to be a need for it. It was early in the day, and there is also a feeling that especially happens early in the days at these type of events, where you are compelled to make your first purchase. You also know that if you walk away and decided to come back in a few hours, if it is truly a good piece, it will no longer be there. So, without thinking through the logistics of 1)getting it loaded in my subaru outback (did I mention I was 6 months pregnant?), 2)how much else would fit in said subaru outback once it was loaded 3)getting it unloaded from subaru outback into my mother-in-law’s basement where my husband and I were currently living and 4)getting it from East Hampton to Philadelphia after we settled on the new house, I sent the vendor the money through paypal, they put a SOLD sticker on it, and Laura and I moved on our merry way, with miles and miles and hours and hours of more antiquing ahead of us! If you’re interested in hearing more about Brimfield logistics, travel, food, etc, let me know and I can do another blog post about it!
Taking a little rest from our Brimfield bingeing on these gorgeous French rattan chairs.