Text by Anna J. Kutor

Early Saturday morning. In the fresh spring air, you let out an audible breath and it fogs up your spectacles. With a slightly shivering hand, you zip up your torn-around-the-edges coat and wrap another layer of scarf around your neck. The sound of a moaning engine fills the quiet air. Slowly, the sun creeps over the range, its warm rays driving the chill from your limbs as you grasp a cup of steaming java in one hand and an empty tote bag in the other. You remind yourself "the early bird catches the worm" and with a go-getter mindset you head into the maze of surprises and bargains that is the weekly flea market. A dozen thrifty collectors, long-established vendors and some would-be treasure hunters are all here, navigating the stalls in search of a vintage furniture, collectibles and rare finds. As a serious market aficionado, you know, it's all about the thrill of the chase. Acquiring that long sought-after antique abacus or circa-1920s timepiece is just icing on cake.

Kraków’s Market Madness

Antique and flea markets throughout Poland offers wealth of cheap deals for hardcore collectors, world travellers and would-be treasure hunters weary of department stores that sell the same mass-produced products. In Kraków, the crème de la crème of antiques, second-hand jumble and one-of-a-kind souvenirs can be found in Kazimierz, the old Jewish quarter. Imbued in this weathered but always charming neighbourhood is a kind of artistic and heritage ambiance that makes it a delightful respite for frugal dwellers in the hunt for objects with a story to tell. Diminutive, hole-in-the-wall antique stores are clustered along the streets of the district, each boasting an eclectic and unusual range of trinkets and treasures covering everything from retro radios to revolvers, vinyl disks to Velcro.

At the core of marketplace activities in Kazimierz is plac Nowy, a concrete square freckled by hundreds of old-time green market stalls, a central rotunda and ringed by Bohemian cafés and food outlets. Buzzing with activity from pre-dawn until the early hours of the afternoon, this lively year-round market features seasonal produce and a variety of local meat throughout the weekdays. On Saturdays, the square transforms into antique flea market, where the animated auction action takes a life of its own. Somewhat akin to rummaging through your Polish grandmother's messy attic, hundreds of tiny one-man booths are flooded with haphazard array of grimy merchandise and colourful bric-a-brac. Expect to find worn-out weapons and army uniforms, Soviet-era memorabilia, junky household appliances, vintage jewellery and even some hard-to-find porcelain figures and ceramics.

Buzzy Bazaars

Devotees of historic military apparel, insignias and rustic interior design accessories will find fine pieces to tempt them at Poznań's bi-monthly market on alternate Saturdays. Vendors are open for business from 8 am to 2pm in the Old Slaughterhouse at ulica Garbary. As an integral part of flea market culture, it's best to get acquainted with the art of good-natured haggling before you venture into this vigorous venue. Natives of Poznań are known far and wide as being level-headed, practical and penny-pinching people, so they'll understand your eagerness to drive a bargain. Better still, visit with a friendly local of the 'big-game bargain hunter' variety who can spot the 'best deals' and negotiate with the vendors in the native tongue. But if haggling doesn't really tickle your fancy and your looking for a larger and more diverse display of antique and miscellaneous merchandise then plan a visit during the city during annual summertime St. John's Fair (Jarmark Świętojański). Based on a time-honoured tradition dating back to the middle ages, craftsmen and merchants of all kinds - tailors, lace-makers, bakers, blacksmiths and wickerwork masters - flood the Old Market square of Poznań, the business-centred capital of Wielkopolska.

Bydgoszcz, a small town 120 km north of Poznań, is an indispensable destination for the seekers of fine furniture and functional hand-me-downs. The manufacturing hub of Polish furniture industry during the first half of the 20th century, Bydgoszcz-based factories specialised in Art Nouveau-style furnishings for upper-class clientele. Many of the languid, free-flowing designs can still be found in antique stores across town, especially in Desa Salon (ulica Gdański12), a nationwide antique chain, and in the well-regulated Retro (ulica Pomorska 70) and Antikus (ulica Zygmunta Krasińskiego) stores. There are also several new-age companies continuing the tradition of furniture making in the city. HF Helvetia Furniture, for example, assembles its 100-strong collection of stylish and approachable upholstered furniture in leather and fabric here. Gala Collezione, a three-factory enterprise established by two local furniture enthusiasts in 2001, sells an assortment of upholstered armchairs, loveseats and L-shaped sofas.

The Baltic Sea shoreline, stretching out over some 500 kilometres in Poland alone, is reputed for its abundance in amber. It this profusion of natural stones that has made Gdańsk and the entire Tri-City area (including Sopot and Gdynia) a haven for amber-made art, jewellery and ornaments. Numerous richly decorated jewellery shops line the inner-city streets of Gdańsk, selling a medley of refined amber pendants, earrings, bracelets and rings in earthly colours and textures made by local designers. On top of all the atmospheric little shops, the city also plays host to the annual Amberif International Fair of Amber, Jewellery and Gemstones in March and the Ambermart International Amber Fair in September which both showcase up-to-the-minute designs and trends in the realm of amber. Amber aside, the Tri-City area is also a good source of valuable and rare maritime equipment, especially shops near Gdynia's yacht marina and city centre (around plac Kościuszki).

Best Buys in Warsaw

From brand-name clothing boutiques to traditional craft stores, open-air marketplaces to exotic food emporiums, Warsaw has all the shopping opportunities you'd expect from a dynamic European capital. So, amid the bounty of shopping malls, specialty shops, boutiques and souvenir shops, where are the best places to find one-off treasures? For frugal travellers and money-smart shoppers, the best place to start is the Koło flea market. Full of character and colour, this outdoor market on the outlying area of Warsaw boasts a hodgepodge of top-notch period furniture, so-so quality antiques and other objects of desire. Browsers, tourists and urban archaeologist arrive here every weekend, shifting through heaps of discarded objects, chit-chatting with long-time sellers and pondering their purchases in food and beverage stands that dish up standard home-style meals.

For something similar yet completely different, visit what's left of Europe's largest open-air bazaar, the infamous Russian Market (officially called Jarmark Europa). Situated on the eastern bank of the Vistula River, this football stadium-turned-flea market was home to thousands of stalls selling everything imaginable, from new and used car parts, fur coats, knock-off bags and perfume to caviar, fresh vegetables and kitschy religious paraphernalia. The majority of the market is now closed off due to the construction of a new national stadium that will host the opening ceremony of the Euro 2012 soccer championships. There is, however, a small section still functioning due to an active Vietnamese community, which is well worth the visit for the atmosphere alone.

Fabulous Finds

Standing in stark contrast to the bargain-hunting buzz of bazaars and antique shops is Warsaw's sophisticated shopping and entertainment courtyard on Burakowska Street. Situated far from the tourist heartland of the city, close by Arkadia shopping arena and the famous Powązki cemetery, Burakowska's creative complex boasts a sleek photography studio, the high-style Jaga Hupało & Thomas Wolff Hair Studio, Mielżyński Wine Store and Red Onion, a quality-conscious interior design store. Red Onion founded a few years back by Polish-Canadian entrepreneurs Joanna Strzelec-Stewart and Peter Stewart with the vision of being the first choice for high-end Polish and international designs. It is filled with furniture and accessories that radiate a certain oriental-Zen feel, plus a large collection of kitchen products for blossoming food geeks.

Warsaw has enjoyed a strong design-centred awakening in recent years as upscale international and homebred interior and homeware designers and style setters are rushing to meet the rising demand of homeowners across burgeoning 'New Europe' markets. A shining example of this trend is Magazyn Praga, an industrial-style design store set up by art historian Łukasz Drgas in a corner pocket of the red-brick Koneser Vodka Factory. At the heart of Warsaw's hipster hotbed, this jack-in-the-box boutique continually springs up avant-garde creations by bright young design talents from Czech Qubus studio, British Black+Blum and French Lexon and Atypyk brands, to name but a few.

One of the latest go-to places for furnishing that achieve the ideal synthesis of aesthetics, functionality and creative edginess is Indivi. Part design boutique, part art gallery, this streamline split-level space adjacent the leafy Rydza-Śmigłego Park was opened a few months back by a group of Polish art-lovers. They carry furniture, contemporary lighting solutions and home design apparel by big-name brands such as Naughtone, Established & Sons, Zero, Vitra and Artemide, alongside works by many up and coming domestic designers.

Spacestation is another popular gallery-like design store where funky forms, innovation and eccentric creativity hang out on a daily basis. Tucked away in the capacious rooms of an old armoury in Warsaw's Żoliborz neighbourhood, this high-spirited showroom is a one-stop spot as far as fashion-forward European interior design goes. The owner's trend-sniffing nose is visible in each hand-picked item, from the transparent bubble chairs by Eero Aarnio to the green tree-shaped tables by Eero Koivisto and bright-hued lounge chairs incorporating geometric and organic themes fabricated by Swedish designer Leif Jørgensen.

Treasure Troves - BOX

Red Onion
www.redonion.pl

Magazyn Praga
www.magazynpraga.pl

Indivi Design Store
www.indivi.pl

Spacestation
www.spacestation.pl

Zoom Design Shop
www.zoom.waw.pl

Lamus Antique Auction House
www.lamus.pl

Antique & Art
www.antique-art.com.pl

Antyki
www.antyki.bizn.pl

Antyki Sosenko
www.antyki.krakow.pl

Aka Antique Gallery
www.antykiaka.com.pl

Akant
www.meblestylowe.biz.pl

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