Chicago - May 27, 2004

Flea For All

The Chicago Antique Market

Typical Sunday morning:

1. Wake up. Roll over. Heave grateful sigh in realization that it isn’t Monday.
2. Retrieve paper. Hope no one spots you in hideous sweats.
3. Crawl back into bed.
4. Repeat steps 1 and 3.

Rise and shine, lazy bum. The Chicago Antique Market opens this Sunday, and it promises vintage treasures to rival New York’s Chelsea and London’s Portobello flea markets. And it’s just a roll out of bed away. No driving an hour west to scavenge at Sandwich. Market organizer’s Sally Schwartz and Kathleen Finley have hand-picked over 120 of the Midwest’s most unusual dealers, who will be peddling everything from vintage jewelry and clothing to seventeenth-century French paintings, with most of the merch dating from the 1890s to the 1950s.

But wait, there’s more. Gourmet nosh. A kiddie playroom (with classic games like Twister). An on-site appraiser (helloooo, Antiques Road Show). Bingo! (As in the game.) Not to mention free parking.

Now that’s worth getting out of bed for.

The Chicago Antique Market, 1300 West Randolph Street, between Ada and Ogden Streets (312-951-9939 or chicagoantiquemarket.com). Admission: $8 for 8 a.m.-5 p.m.; $15 for 7 a.m. preview. Fair is held the last Sunday of each month, from May through October.