In The Market For Antiques (Arezzo And Lucca, Tuscany)Ombretta: Going to an antique market is my favorite thing to do in the whole world!
When I arrive in a foreign country the first thing I research is when and where the antique markets are. Waking up early in the morning (even when I'm on vacation) doesn't scare me if it means getting there in time to find the best selection.
My passion for antique markets started when I was 14. At the time, I had no money so I was mainly buying old buttons, old medicine bottles, photographs, rusted keys and chains, broken pieces of bones, old medical instruments and some pieces vendors didn't have a name for. Even if I didn't know what to do with these objects, I kept buying them. They were so precious to me that when I moved to L.A., I took them with me.
About ten years ago Douglas and I went to explore Guatemala. I found an old box in Antigua and decided I had to have it (I have an obsession with old wooden boxes as well). When I came home I started to fill it with some of the pieces I'd collected foraging through antique markets around the world. Douglas was so enthusiastic with what I'd done that he encouraged me to make more. So I'm still buying lots of rusted chains, animal bones and old medicine bottles at the antique market — and our house now has wooden boxes everywhere — and Douglas is still asking for more boxes.
I am lucky because Douglas is very patient. He lets me scrabble through the market for hours because he knows we always bring home great pieces. When he gets grumpy and wants to go home I to take him to a cool bar. After he eats a panino and gets a cup of espresso he stops complaining — and we keep going.
When I move around an antique market, the vendors sometimes think I'm a dealer. When I hear that, it makes me so happy that I want to go and hug them. It is the best compliment I could ever dream of.
* Remember that most markets are outdoors in Italy, so be aware of the weather.
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