MISSION
To fill our car boot with collectibles, childhood memory items and bits for business
BUDGET
Zero (ideally) to £40
TACTICS
Haggle, haggle, haggle (with a smile and a final price already agreed between us)
TIMESCALE
In and out before one or both of us loses our temper with crowds, kids and other mad collectors
In case you haven't worked it out, myself and my better half are prolific collectors of items related to our childhood as well as TV/film memborabilia, both old and new as well as lots of "tat" (my better half's technical name for most of my collection) that we collect along the way.
Anyway, with today being a weekday, ie Wednesday, you would think it would be difficult to find anywhere to find treasures and bargains in our local area but you would be wrong!
Today we went to Widnes Flea Market http://www.widnesmarket.com/flea-open-market/ that is held every Wednesday next door to the main indoor market http://www.widnesmarket.com/
As usual it was busy with both traders and customers, even though it had rained during the night. The stalls were filled with a huge array of "goodies" and "treasures". Some stalls were laid out with military precision, each item having its own space, whilst others looked like they had just poured the contents of their van out onto the floor.
There are some regular stall holders who seem to know everyone and keep the place alive with their banter, insults and cheeriness. However, each week there are some "newbies" who have queued very patiently since 6am for a chance of being able to sell there wares (each week the Flea Market regularly turns away people hoping to sell, as it's a very popular venue).
Furniture, books and vintage clothes are highly sought after but we know what we want and what we like.
Ideally, we like to go up and down each aisle together looking on the tables, behind them and underneath as you never know what you will find. Stuff on the floor or under tables tend to be what the stallholder thinks are of little value - you would not believe the items we have found to be worth ten times and more the asking price.
Then there are the stallholders who know the value of their items and will not budge on price - it's still good to have a chat, a giggle and a bit of a barter with these guys as you never know, do you?
It's the "one offs" or "newbies" that catch our eye as you never know what they will have - they are instantly recognisable as the ones who look like they don't want to be there (by the end of the day they are hardened sellers ready and willing for the same onslaught next Wednesday).
After over an hour of pushing (I start to feel like a ball in a pinball machine), admiring, smiling, laughing, joking, buying and vowing never to come back (that's a total and complete lie hee hee) we finally leave with our bags of goodies, bargains and our memories.
Did we get what we wanted, for prices we were willing to pay? Most definitely! Do we have regrets? Only on items we felt, at the time, too expensive but now after doing some research we soooooo wish we'd bought but that's how it goes - you win some, you lose some!
A quick reminder - it's 120 days until Christmas - don't panic, don't panic!
We'll be back to Widnes Flea Market next Wednesday, will you?
This post is NOT sponsored - these are my own views, feelings and observations. Any and all spelling mistakes and grammatical errors are the result of a poor education (correction - lack of attention and attendance)!
Be Good - Be Happy - Be Lucky ♥
