Flea Market Season

With the very beginning of Spring a month or two ago, I have once again been frequenting the local vide-greniers, or brocantes. These are the French terms for the flea markets which pop up all over the place starting in the Spring. In the past, we would go to more of these when our children were very small, as they are perfect for finding secondhand baby clothes, and babies change sizes very quickly. Before this year, I had not been to a flea market since before the pandemic.

So far, I have been consciously going to a lot of these. It takes a little discipline to set reminders and to get up early on Sunday mornings to be out at the event by eight in the morning, But it is necessary if we want to get the things we are looking for, as the best stuff goes quickly.

Each village tends to have a flea market once a year, and larger towns have several. Most districts in Paris have a flea market every weekend, it seems. I’ve found that it is best to visit the small villages, where people have saved up things all year and are willing to sell for low prices to get rid of their stuff. So far, I’ve been out to Le Perray and Cernay, and today I went to Vielle Église.

I was most surprised today, as I expected the flea market at Vielle-Église-des-Yvelines to be small, as the village itself is home to about 600 people. I think the close proximity to Rambouillet changed a lot of things, as when I arrived I had a little difficulty maneuvering my bicycle through the swarm of cars to park it close to the entrance to the flea market. The market itself was the main street of the village, closed off to cars and lined with tables of goods for several hundred meters.

These flea markets are still great opportunities to find cheap clothing for our kids. Some tables have their clothing well organized in labeled bins so that it is easy to walk up and find the exact size you are looking for. Today I got at least 10 pieces of clothing for each of our children, plus two pairs of shoes for Miriam and one pair for Daniel. I spent about 30 euros for all of that.

I have found that the key is to be quick and find the tables which have a lot of children’s clothing, especially if it is labeled with the age range you are looking for. Obviously I buy a size or two bigger than what our children are wearing right now. Then I ask what the price generally is, and usually the answer is about one euro per item. Occasionally I will buy some things at two euros a piece. The best thing to find is shoes. Good shoes for kids are a real steal, and today I really lucked out as I bought a pair of tennis shoes in good condition and a pair of Velcro strap sandals for one euro each. For another pair of shoes I paid three euros, which is still a good deal.

I’m planning on continuing to frequent these flea markets as much as I can this year. Even if not every item is a big hit with our kids, I’ve found that few of the things I buy turn out to be duds. It’s fun to feel like you’re getting a good deal, and for kids’ clothing, it’s a really good way to save money. The added bonus for me is that I get to visit a lot of cool little villages and see them bustling on an early Saturday or Sunday morning.