French Vintage Venues

Hello!This is Marmen from French Attic Finds.  After hearing about your thrifting adventures, estate sales and yard sales, I thought I'd take a moment and tell you how vintage sales are run here in France.

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There are basically three ways to shop for vintage treasures in France:
1. The Marché aux Puces
2. The Brocante
3. The Vide-Greniers

The Marché aux Puces is a flea market.  They are fixed events which usually happen on Sundays in larger cities.  The most famous Marché aux Puces is, of course in Paris - the Saint-Ouen.  Here you can find a variety of beautiful french antiquities and quality vintage goods to decorate your french country farmhouse.  But beware the prices!  A trip to a good Marché aux Puces is a feast for the eyes, if not the wallet.  Smaller cities also host Marché aux Puces, but they are generally a mix of new goods and old, much like a bazzar.  Make sure to come early if you want to get the good deals.

Vide-grenier in the village streets.

The Brocante is a sale organized by a community or an organization.  It caters mostly to professional vendors.  Professional vendors pay income tax as well as a fixed percentage of their earnings to the french state.  Their goods are hand picked and of very good quality.  If you have a decent budget, you can find some real gems.  Everything from wrought iron garden furniture to delicate porcelain, from old linen to antique books... basically a treasured trove of goods all in one place.  Usually held in a hall or in an open outdoor space, the Brocante is sometimes a paying event, and a small fee can be asked of visitors.  Bartering is acceptable, but beware the brocanteurs legendary tongue.  They can get be quite snippy if you ask them for a discount the wrong way.

Typical wares.

And now the third and by far my favorite, the Vide-Grenier.  Ahhhh, how I love a good vide-grenier.  Almost always held on Sundays, the vide-greniers, or attic sale, is organized by a village and allows all the villagers to empty out their cupboards, garages and yes, sometimes attics.  French law allows non-professional sellers to participate in two Vide-Greniers a year.  Usually held in the town square or on the church parking lot, the Vide-Grenier can boast 50-300 vendors.  There is usually a mix of pro and amateur, and you want to get there early because the pros are usually up at the crack of dawn with their flashlights, hunting out the good deals.  There are still some really great finds to be found, even though internet has done a lot of harm by giving people a sometimes unrealistic idea of what their items are worth.  Most of my treasure hunting is done at vide-greniers, and on a good day I usually have my husband and my kids help me carry my booty to the car :)  Bargaining is the norm, and the french love telling about an item's history and background.

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So whether you prefer to just browse and let your eyes wander over the beauty of the professional vendors tables, or whether you like getting right in there and digging through boxes of old books or linen, there is something for everyone in a french vintage sale.  Your budget is the only limiting factor.  The only down side being that these sales don't happen during the winter months, so  I now have to wait for March to get my buying fix.  So if you are planning a trip to France, chose your month wisely ;)

Cab Art Vintage on Etsy

Hope that gives you a better idea of what it is like to buy (and sell) vintage in France!

Merci, and a bientot!

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Source: http://www.marcheauxpuces-saintouen.com/1.aspx