How I Shop Vintage at Vendor Fests

Hey buddy!

So glad you’re here! This article is number 3 of a series where I answer one of my most commonly asked questions, “Where do you find all your vintage treasures?”. If you missed the other 2 articles where I share 2 other great ways to shop vintage you can read them HERE and HERE. This one I’m sharing my very favorite vendor fest!

Vendor Fests

I’ve been attending vendor festivals or fairs for years. First as a shopper, then as a vendor, and now again as a shopper. I enjoy them immensely! Vendor fests seem to evolve as time passes and they also seem to be popping up everywhere. I have found most of the ones I’ve attended via Facebook or word of mouth. I personally don’t care for craft fair type but instead look for the more vintage geared ones. These basically look like curated booths at an antique store have been picked up and placed in the festival.

Locally it seems that many started small and were mostly a combination of handmade and found items. Now I’m noticing that they’re getting bigger every year and have more boutiques and company type products being sold too. I still enjoy them all because of the atmosphere that’s created. There’s usually good food and drinks and just a whole lot to look at. However, one vendor fest stands out as my absolute favorite! So much so that I’m almost afraid to share it because it’s still like this wonderful secret!

The Blue’s Junk and Primitives Fest

It’s The Blue’s Junk and Primitive Fest. You can find a link for its Facebook page HERE. I’ve been attending this fest twice annually for about 3 years. IT IS WONDERFUL! Seriously it’s everything I could want from one of these things and I’ll tell ya why!

Location

First of all it’s located in this teeny tiny town here in Southern IL  and kind of winds its way through the wood, which makes it extra cool! It also coincides with their town wide yard sales that take place at the park right around the block! So it’s a 2 for 1 bargain day deal!

The Junk

Secondly, the main draw for me is that they have true “junk”! It’s like a pickers dream! Many of the vendors there simply find cool old vintage treasures and then bring them to sell as is. They haven’t been painted or repurposed or most the time even cleaned up! Lol! This is the kind of stuff I’m after!

Prices

And thirdly, because of the way many of the vendors operate prices are kept low, which is the other biggest draw. Y’all know that I love architectural salvage. I’ve never found better prices on architectural salvage than here except for when I’m picking it from an old house myself! Lol!

They also always have great prices on things I collect such as ironstone, crocks, flower frogs, rolling pins, cutting boards, etc. As well as on bigger furniture pieces. Here’s my advice, bring a truck or a trailer or both lol!

I Went I Conquered and Here’s What I Got!

Their annual Fall vendor fest was this past weekend and it did not disappoint! Here’s my $100 haul!

The Haul

I got a sweet little chippy table which I’m loving in the sunroom for plants! This amazing round window! One of my favorite scores for sure! This old sifter, that I have the perfect spot for! 5 amber bottles which I’m loving for Fall! And a cutie flower frog!

There’s More

But that’s not all! There’s more! I told ya they have good stuff for awesome prices! I also snagged this huge window that I have big plans for come next spring! And I couldn’t walk away from this this chippy old sheet of ceiling tin! Also this table and chair patio set is from the Junk Fest this past spring 😉

It was a great treasure hunting day for sure! I’m already looking forward to their spring event! I will say it seems bigger every time I go and I noticed several out-of-state license plates this time too. It’s a vendor fest that definitely might be worth a trip! 😉

Happy vintage shopping friend! And as always thanks so much for stopping by the blog today!