c/flea-market-hauls

People keep calling any old glass 'depression glass' at the flea market

I've been hitting the same big flea market in Springfield for about five years now, and there's this thing that bugs me every time. Sellers will slap a 'depression glass' label on any piece of colored glassware from the 70s or 80s, and charge way too much for it. I saw a lady pay $45 for a green dish last week that was clearly 1970s Avon, not 1930s at all. It matters because real depression glass has specific patterns, colors, and marks, and it's a piece of history. When everything gets called that, it makes it harder for new collectors to learn and they end up wasting money. I know because I made that mistake myself when I started, buying a pink 'hobnail' vase that turned out to be a 1980s reproduction. How do you guys tell the real stuff from the fakes or just the wrong era?

Hot take: I bought a 'working' 1970s turntable at the Springfield flea market for $40 and it died after two spins.

My buddy says I should've haggled harder, but I think it's just the risk you take with old gear. Anyone have a good local repair person, or is it time to just cut my losses?

Finally hit 500 vintage postcards from my weekly flea market trips, which is a lot more than I thought I'd ever find.

It started as a casual thing to grab a few from the bins at the Springfield Antique Mall, but after three years of digging every Sunday, I've got a whole drawer dedicated to them now, mostly from the 1940s through the 1960s.

Spent 3 hours cleaning a $5 brass lamp from the Springfield flea market just to find a dead mouse inside.

The thing was caked in decades of grime and I was determined to get it shining. Anyone else ever find something truly nasty hidden in a 'treasure'?

Found a cool old camera at the Brimfield flea market and the shutter jammed right after I bought it.

I picked up a 1970s Minolta SRT-101 for $25 at a stall near the back. Right after I paid, I tried the shutter and it stuck open, frozen solid. I took it to a guy named Carl who fixes watches and old radios there, and he got it moving again with a tiny drop of lighter fluid on the right gear. Anyone else ever have a find break on you almost immediately?

The $5 ceramic dog or the $20 mystery box? I went with the box.

At a flea market in Bakersfield, I had to pick between a cool little ceramic dog for five bucks and a sealed cardboard box the seller wanted twenty for. He said it was from a closed down toy store, no peeking. I took the risk on the box. Inside was a mess of old board game parts, some broken plastic, but also a complete, mint condition 1979 'Dungeon!' game. That alone is worth over a hundred. The dog was neat, but the gamble paid off big time. It's a good reminder that sometimes the weird, unknown lot is the real find. Has anyone else ever taken a chance on a sealed box or bag at a market and been really surprised?

Found a 1950s Pyrex bowl at a yard sale for $3, the booth next to it had a newer one for $15 and the difference in the glass color was huge.

Snagged a vintage radio at a flea market. The static reminds me of rainy Sunday afternoons.

Showerthought: I avoided a bad buy by noticing the seller's nervous laugh

Pay attention to body language when negotiating at flea markets.