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Thrifty Thursday: DC Big Flea Market

DC Big Flea Market
website
address : 4320 Chantilly Shopping Center, Chantilly, VA 20151
hours : May 4th & 5th | Saturday: 9am -6pm | Sunday: 11am - 5pm

This place is out of control. They have flea markets around once a month in the summer time, and it's the largest of its kind in the area. I tried to capture the immenseness of it all. Every time we go we find some little treasure to bring home. The first time it was a type tray, a letterpress H, and the vinyl record of the orginal Star Wars soundtrack. So fun! There's piles of old toys, Christmas booths, lots of furniture (though seldom any mid-century modern), and all the jewelry you can possibly imagine. Besides being a great place to pick up treasures for yourself, this is a great place to find inventory for your boutique or vintage etsy shop. I put the most recent date of the show above, but definitely bookmark their site to check back on the schedule. You can bet that we're going to be there May ^_^

There's a little cafe up front with the kind of food you would probably expect :P

I'll take them all, kthxbai.

The jewelry on the bottom left there was all between $1-5. Again...I'll take it all...

There's not a lot of clothing here, but usually near the back left there's a couple of vendors with some incredible selections.

Definitely worth checking out! Let me know if you ever pop by...I'd love to know what you think...and what treasures you found! I've got more thrift stores, antique shops and vintage boutiques here if you'd like to take a look through.

Labels: flea market, thrift, virginia

Monticello

Last week, we had the most amazing stay-cation. The last destination on our trek around Virginia was Monticello. Andy had been once before, and I'd never visited. It's always been one of those places I'd like to check off my bucket list. So we hopped in the car for a 3 hour jaunt to Charlottesville, VA. The house tour was sold out by the time we got there, but we were able to tour the grounds and the gardens. It was just gorgeous.

This is the back of the house. Pretty impressive backdoor. We actually met someone who was moving from Texas to Connecticut and stopped here on the way. It's always great meeting another displaced Texan :)

The kitchen was fascinating The burners on the side and crazy contraption for the spit. It's so wild to think that people really lived this way, not so long ago.

I'm a sucker for vintage notions. Look how teeny and delicate that thimble is!

We spent most of the time walking around the garden. Apparently, Jefferson was really into the placement of plants and what grew best next to each other. It's still a functioning vegetable garden now!

Oh yeah, and the view from the garden. Just gorgeous!

We got to visit Thomas Jefferson's grave, too. It's just a short walk down the hill from the house.

My favorite part about this photo is the lady's face behind me! Haha!

I'd definitely like to visit again and do the whole house tour. It's not a far drive and Jefferson was such a fascinating, brilliant man, I'd definitely recommend hopping over if you can. Charlottesville is super cute, too. We drove in after Monticello and they have a really cute downtown area. We stopped at a place called Nook, and had the most amazing grilled cheese and bacon sandwiches. mmm... Definitely a good way to round out a long day of sightseeing.

Labels: monticello, Travel, virginia

Mount Vernon Antiques

I love old stuff. Thrift stores, vintage boutiques and antique malls are some of my favorite places to be. I love thinking about the stories behind everything there, who owned it, and if they were someone's favorite treasures. Plus, now, stuff comes from big box stores. I mean, I love Target. But there's a quality of craftsmanship that just isn't the same as it was in the past. People would buy things that lasted, things that would be repaired instead of replaced. I like keeping that kind of attitude and appreciation alive. So! I've started a collection of places in my area that is ever expanding and I'll be sharing some of my favorites here!

Mount Vernon Antiques
website
address : 8101 Richmond Highway, Alexandria VA 22309
hours : Monday–Saturaday: 11am -7pm | Sunday: 12pm - 5pm | Closed Tuesdays

This place is incredible! They're antique mall and work with a number of dealers. There's a huge variety of items from Victorian to Mid-Century Modern...little chotchkies to furniture. Modern Montage is one of my favorite dealers there...they've Danish furniture will probably make you faint a little bit. I swear I get a little anxiety from how much I want everything they have to offer.

Here's some shots to give you an idea of the...density...of this place ^_^