Flea Market Finds

Round Top Flea Market Favorites

My recent trip to the famous Round Top, TX Flea Market did not disappoint. It was truly a wonderful experience and I cannot wait to go back! If you have been to the Canton, TX Flea Market, then you get Round Top. It is overwhelming, exhausting, frustrating, exciting, and exhausting. Did I say exhausting? I have a few quick tips for the Round Top flea market that can really be applied to any flea market shopping trip you have planned that will help you have a wonderful experience and get those flea market finds you are looking for.

Tips for Tackling the Flea Market Experience

1. Wear comfortable shoes. Preferably closed toe shoes. You will be walking through pastures, dirt roads, fields, etc. Safety and comfort come before style in this case.
2. Bring cash. Many of the vendors do not take checks or credit cards. Only cash.
3. Negotiate. Remember that most vendors have set their prices expecting that you will probably want to negotiate at least a little.
4. Stay hydrated. You will do a lot of walking. Bring water and stay hydrated.
5. Go with a list or at least an idea of what you are looking to buy. If you don’t, you will be overwhelmed. I use a list to keep myself focused. Now, if I find something that catches my attention that’s not on my list…I just add it my list. Ha! Ha!
6. Take pictures or notes of where you find something. I can’t tell you how many times I would see something I loved, but decided to wait and see if I could find a better deal, and then I could not remember where I found it. I usually ended up going home empty handed.
7. Bring a bigger vehicle or a trailer. This last tip is really more for me. I didn’t expect that I would fill up my large SUV the first day with big items. We went to 3 UHaul dealers the next day to rent a trailer and finally talked ourselves out of it. But, there is a church pew still in Warrenton that has my name on it! Next time, I will take a trailer!

Fun Farmhouse Find

Now that you are equipped and ready to tackle your next flea market trip, I want to share one of my favorite purchases from my recent trip to Round Top. You can read about how the Industrial Farmhouse look is still going strong in this recent post. One of my favorite finds is something that has recently grown in popularity for some really fun and unconventional uses- of all things it is a rusty, metal chicken feeder! There were numerous dealers selling these little diamonds in the rough throughout Warrenton/Round Top. It just so happens that I was able to score one that was sitting lonely to the side of tent, and I got a deal! Now, I think if I told a local rancher how much I paid ($20), he would laugh me out of the county. But, that was half the price most dealers were charging! Win!

Now for the fun part! What in the world can an old, rusty chicken feeder be used for? I am so glad you asked! Here are just a few of the ideas of how these little beauties are now being repurposed and used for decor and organization. Yes, organization!

Dish Display

One of my favorite ways to use this chicken feeder is to display my Pioneer Woman white farmhouse dishes! I think this is such a unique way to showcase your farmhouse-style dishes. It would look beautiful running down the center of your farm table filled with your seasonal plates. I plan on using it for entertaining as well. Whether you use your fine china or fun paper plates for a party, this is a winner in my book for creating a fun conversation piece!

Book Display

How cute is this?! Do you need an inexpensive and fun way to organize your children’s books? This can be used in a playroom to add some fun character and organization to the room.

Office Organization

How about being used for office organization? Now I wish I had purchased more than one! I just love how it looks as office organization for files and notebooks. I mean how many people do you know that have something this clever for organization in their office? And, aren’t these file folders great?

Farmhouse-style Shelf

Another fun way to use these chicken feeders is turn them upside down! I think the chickens would think we’ve already turned things upside down, but who would have imagined that you could make an adorable, farmhouse-style shelf from one of these?! When it hangs on the wall, the wire frame folds open where the possibilities are only limited by your creativity. I used tea light candles(battery operated so it was safe!). You could put flowers or succulents. You could hang things from the wire frame such as kitchen utensils, aprons, tea towels…the list is endless!

As you can see there are so many fun uses for just this one crazy purchase I made in Round Top! The way I see it, if I divide the different ways I can use it by how much I paid, then technically it only cost me about $5. Probably even less. That’s what I tell myself and my husband!

What are some of your fun flea market finds? I would love to hear about them and some of your creative uses for those crazy finds!

Pioneer Woman White Dishes

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