While we work with sellers in all corners of Nashville, listing everything from modern condos to historic Victorian homes, every empty property has one thing in common: It’s a house, not a home.
A space doesn’t become a home until you infuse it with you: your furnishings, your art, your cuddly hand-knitted throw blankets and the candle holder you found at some out-of-the-way shop on a weekend trip. A home is in the little (and big) things that capture your heart, mixed with the memories you make there.
When you move into a new place, the process of turning it into a home — one that reflects your personality and style — can be a big, overwhelming process. That’s especially true if you’re hoping to fill your home with pieces that have personality, and not just turn your rooms into echoes of a Wayfair.com ad. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that.)
There are lots of ways to capture the perfect, personality-filled items you’re looking for: antiquing trips, thrifting, finding custom artisans who’ll build to your specifications. But for our money, the best one-stop shopping around is at the Nashville Flea Market.
Nashville Flea Market: quick facts
Never been? Here’s the quick rundown of what you need to know.
The Nashville Flea Market is held the fourth weekend of every month at The Fairgrounds Nashville, 625 Smith Avenue, Nashville, near Wedgewood-Houston. (December’s is a week early because of the holidays.) Once inside, you’ll meet with hundreds upon hundreds of vendors selling thousands and thousands of items — everything from period-perfect antique furniture to hand-restored vintage pieces, art, decor, kitchenware and on and on.
Each market month has a theme — May was “Thrift Emporium,” and June is “Vintage Galore,” both of which bode well for home decor shoppers. But while the theme is a fun framework, it also doesn’t mean you’d only find thrift scores in May or vintage pieces in June — the mix is impossibly broad, month after month.
Once the month’s Market kicks off, you have three days to shop: Fridays 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Saturdays 7 a.m. – 6 p.m., and Sundays 7 a.m. – 4 p.m. (December through January, Fridays open at noon, Saturdays close at 5.)
Admission is free, and parking is $5. And definitely plan on driving in with something that has cargo room — chances of finding more than a few somethings you can’t pass up: always very good.
A few other fun facts about the Nashville Flea Market, by the numbers:
1969
Year the Nashville Flea Market was founded
800-1200
Number of dealers/vendors you’ll see each month
30
Number of states those vendors represent
2000
Average number of booths at the market
500,000
Number of annual visitors to the Nashville Flea Market
Thinking about going this month (or another month)? Check out the Nashville Flea Market page on Facebook to keep up with the latest, and if you grab any heart-stopping finds, tag us in anything you post on Facebook or Instagram — we’d love to see!