Prepare yourself for serendipity, in partnership with SmartWater.

way back on november 18, 2010 i attended a dinner at the elle decor showcase house in san francisco. and on that night, i saw my dream chair. a vintage wire patio chair that rocked and swiveled, which had been re-purposed into a luxuriously unique lounge chair for indoor living with velvet cushions. that was almost two years ago, and i’ve been on a mad hunt for one ever since carrying around this picture in my head. on my flea market trip last week, quite serendipitously, i found not one — oh no. i found two!

i wasn’t even going to go to this particular flea market, but jordan rang me up and i rushed out the door to join her. had i not gone, my chairs would have in all likelihood found another home. i do this all the time with things i dream about having, go on these mad hunts, never quite finding the ideal i’ve set myself up for. and then, serendipitously, they appear out of nowhere. but, there’s also a bit of preparation involved in my treasure hunting.

no matter where i go, i always bring along my little design kit – tools that help me make the sometimes hard decision to buy. tricks of the trade, if you will. i carry a cute little pouch and inside i keep all the things i need — paint and fabric swatches and measurements from home; floorplans; my eyeglasses so i can read them; a notebook, pen and pencils for sketching out ideas and for notes i’ve taken about what i’m looking for. i carry my camera, or my iphone and this handy charger i found that charges up the life of my iphone by 50% should it run out of juice mid-picture snapping. that’s happened once too often for me, so this keeps me prepared for that inevitability. for some reason i carry my trusty vintage pocket knife, too. it just makes me feel like a real scout! the kit is easy and affordable to create and trust me, it comes in really handy!

This series of serendipitious moments is in partnership with smartwater. Click here to learn more.

when photographer bonnie tsang asked me i’d like to share photographs she snapped of jen and kelly of ban.do fame at the rose bowl flea market, how, or for heaven’s sake why, would i ever refuse? i *love* the rose bowl and it’s one of the things i miss the most not living in los angeles. let’s see the ban.do girls do their thrifting thing. thanks girls!

“i’ve been an avid swap-meeter for fifteen years. for me, there is nothing more rewarding than getting up at the crack of dawn and heading to the swap meet with some friends (or husband – he’s getting used to it now). the best part of all, now there is a real sense of purpose to my visits (where before it was really just hoarding). i am always looking for inspiration for ban.do. i find it the costume jewelry, vintage clothing, even the other swap meeters themselves. i never leave uninspired or empty handed. plus, now they sell beer, so it’s kinda a win win!”

— jen gotch, ban.do

• all photos by bonnie tsang.

it’s the treasure island flea market this weekend, and i’ve yet to get there. so, if it doesn’t pour rain, that’s where you’ll find me this weekend, out hunting down some vintage treasures.

• recently thrifted photo courtesy of hilda grahnat.

this is just a quick, instagram version of sunday in the city, because as you can see — i visited the alameda flea market, and after four+ hours of wandering every aisle, alas i did not find much to speak of. a cute bespoke bag, a black tin box to stash stuff bedside; some metal filing bins for the office, and another lamp to which i added a filament bulb to and threw into the collection. it was sunny and glorious out, and very very crowded. i thought everyone would stay home watching some football game, but instead they were swooping up the scores at the flea!

mon dieu! with my travels out of town, i totally forgot i made a visit to the marion house book blog last week. where is my head? in paris, france apparently! visit the marion house book for a peek at my obsessions with paumes paris brocantes book. bon voyage!

hey, bay area — some smashing, big news! i’ve been waiting to hear when this was going to launch, but i just found out the all-new candlestick park flea market starts up tomorrow morning, bright and early at 6am! the flea market is a spin-off from some former folks running the alameda flea market, and will be held the 3rd sunday of every month at candlestick park — and they have a one year contract, so hopefully it just gets bigger and bigger! set your alarm clocks! here’s more information.

today lara from the always full of eye candy, piewacket, is taking y’all on a sublime southern flea market journey.

Scott Antiques Market, a once monthly event in Atlanta is a massive indoor/outdoor flea market that draws dealers and shoppers from all over the southeast and then some. John Collier brought his bull and  a collection of custom  furniture made from reclaimed materials, all the way from Altoona, Pennsylvania. No bull!

this weekend colleen from designing dna has gathered together some gracious contributors for a very special online flea market. We all remember the devastation left in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. But did you realize that the aide agencies have long gone, even though there are families who are still struggling and homeless?

this weekend, beginning 12pm eastern time, designing dna will host an online flea market auction throughout the weekend, to contribute to Samaritan’s Purse’s charitable goal of re-building 30 homes in New Orleans and 10 in Atlanta.  It’s an international blogging, hop and shop, flea market! so, pop on over to designing dna, shop online for some great flea market finds, and help out some very deserving folks in need at the same time.

today, the lovely karina from the blog, el beso is sharing a little flea market excursion with us, all the way from Argentina.

San Telmo is the oldest Buenos Aires neighbourhood, with charming cobblestones streets and old colonial buildings, the antique shops and tango houses make it a must to see place if you visit Buenos Aires. I love going there for coffee any week day, but every Sunday the gorgeous flea market is most attractive thing.

This Flea market is very high quality, created by architect Jose Maria Peña, who directed the city museum for years and years. he is retired now, and La Feria de San Pedro Telmo depends on the museum support, which organizes several market fairs all through the year. that is also one reason it is so interesting, the museum insures that the flea market stands have to carry things only from before 1970.

I love buying the old linens (I have a glorious bed sheet from there), and old French bags and hats. I try to buy things I can use or wear — I am not the kind of woman that just collects things, you can find beautiful jewels, and some day I hope to buy an aquamarine cocktail ring there, bijoux and ton of other little trinkets. Visit here, for more about San Telmo Flea market.

i love hats, and own many. problem is, i rarely wear them, because i guess sometimes they make me feel a bit self-conscious. not many of my friends wear hats (unless you count the male friends, or girls who wear beanies when it’s chilly here in san francisco), but i want to wear my hats!

[ hat on sienna miller via mrs. french’s bliss. ]

mrs. french had a post on bliss yesterday about wearing and choosing the right hat, and it got me thinking, gosh darn it, i should really wear my damn hats — it’s that time of year when the fog rolls in and just ruins any hairdo i’ve got going on anyway, so it’s perfect timing for hats. the hat up top is one of my favorites, found via the alameda flea market and a gift from my friend joni who bought it for me since i was down to my last flea market dollar. mrs. french, i say we wear hats and we wear them proudly!

[ i love this one mrs. french was considering from j. crew. ]

[ *hat photo at top courtesy of sfgirlbybay. ]