Postcards from Berlin (part 2)

One of our dealers, Ann, is on vacation in Germany this month visiting family.  The trip is a welcome way to recharge and a great chance to scour some wonderful German flea markets.  Here is an update on how Ann is doing.

*********************************************************************************************************************

Hallo again from Berlin!  This past weekend I was lucky to have help from a friend who took me by car to four flea markets on the outskirts of Berlin.  These are huge markets that sell everything from antiques to second hand garden tools and produce from neighboring farms...sort of like giant yard sales.  Most stores in Germany are not open on Sundays so they hold the flea markets in the parking lots of large stores.  It is an amazing and exhausting experience.  You can find great bargains but you have to cover a lot of territory.  Fortunately Germans like to stay well nourished and hydrated so along the way you can stop for Kaffee und Kuchen or a quick beer for motivation!  

My finds included a linen grain sack from late 1800's, a really special Rolltuch - blue with busy elves doing the laundry, a whole selection of shopping bags a woman had made from vintage linens, and 2 sets of old porcelain spice jars.  

I am shopping every weekend at the Flohmarkts and having great success networking with my vintage contacts.  On Sunday I went to the most famous market in Berlin, Mauerpark Flohmarkt.  "Mauer" means wall and this market is held weekly in the east part of the city at the edge of a large park commemorating the Berlin Wall.  It is huge and full of lots of "hippie" flavor.   

One thing I found interesting was that the vintage dealers I found there have mostly 1970's and 80's clothes, not much that is earlier.  There are many artists/craftspeople selling clothing that has been made from vintage pieces or things with an African or Asian flavor.  I love to people watch at Mauerpark.  There are young people from all over the world, backpackers, students, travelers of all sorts.  You can hear a dozen languages at once. English is often the common language for people from different places

.

A bowl filled with vintage tins.

Tomorrow I'm leaving for Nurenberg and on the way back will visit Leipzig for a huge antique market that is held on the last weekend of each month.  Our friends are driving us back so I will have serious hauling capacity,  I am very grateful for this since most of my shopping is done via Berlin's excellent public transit system.  It is a good workout and makes for some painful decisions sometimes about what one can or can't actually carry regardless of how beautiful or cheap it is.  I also have to remind myself frequently about transatlantic baggage fees.  Sigh.       ~Ann

*********************************************************************

(Note:  Ann's vintage linen and clothing business is called Wild Thyme.  She is located on the third floor of The Old Lucketts Store, dealer code RAM.  You may remember an earlier post where we featured a collection of hats she purchased at an estate sale.  Ann and her new German finds will be back in September.) 

***UPDATE:  Here is the link to Wild Thyme on Facebook.  Be sure to like this page for new info. on what Ann is bringing in to her space at The Old Lucketts Store.***