I’ve been bitten I guess you could say. I didn’t expect to, and to be quite honest I didn’t really have high hopes to, but my opinion and experience at Round Top, Texas was far different than what I was anticipating.
After years of people saying “WHAT?! You’ve never gone to Round Top? But you and Ashley go everywhere?!” We finally decided this was the year to go. When our dear friend Lorzel offered to show us newbies the ropes we knew we couldn’t decline. We looked at our calendars and found a date range that worked for everyone. Booked our flights and handed over the reins to Lorzel to tell us what to do next.
We flew into Austin, Texas and sorted through the airport chaos until we located our bags and secured our rental car. It took a bit of extra time to get the right car and find the temporarily lost luggage but soon we were Round Top bound. Stopping at Taco Bell of course which Ashley will deny to this day she doesn’t like but we know who vehemently advocated on behalf of Baja Blast.
An hour and a half with medium traffic and we pulled up to the antique holy grail known as Round Top. We didn’t even go to the BnB we went straight to the fields to meet up with Lorzel. Within the first 10 minutes of wandering around I knew we were exactly where we were meant to be.
Let me take a step back a moment.
I have been on the internet long enough to know that not everything you see and read on the internet is true. There were two versions of Round Top I heard before experiencing it myself. The first version is from dealers, other buyers I know in person and people who have been going for years like Lorzel. And their opinion has always been that the shows hold incredible pieces, one of a kinds, prices all over the board and worth going. The other version is the TikTok version of dressed up women, tons of jewelry, big hats and boots wandering around higher priced show rooms and tents sipping wine and checking out brands like Tuckernuck and Hunter Bell.
I’m here to tell you, both are very true.
When trying to figure out what to pack and bring Ashley and I were stumped. Is it really what we see on TikTok with dresses and jewels and boots? Because typically if you run into us at Brimfield, we’ve been up since 4am and we dress for utility. Athletic shoes, breezy pants, rain coats etc. After extensively consulting with Linda from Junk Style Design and Lorzel we decided to bring a few prettier Texas style dresses and then cute but utility style clothing. Linen Pants with layers of button ups, denim dresses with jackets, etc. We did not once change into the prettier pieces we brought. We could have sure, but we didn’t really feel like it was necessary. Most people were dressed very casually but still stylish. In some of the higher end show rooms there was some amazing fashion to behold (Maddie) but I would say you didn’t stick out like a sore thumb either way you dressed.
Back to day one meeting up with Lorzel in “the fields” I knew within the first ten minutes of being there that we were going to be in trouble. The prices at Round Top are like any other show you visit in the country (at least ones that I have visited and I think I’m close to anything on the eastern side of the US). You can find deals and you can find higher end pieces and prices. It depends on where you are and how hard you’re willing to look. There was truly something for every budget. I paid a premium for some pieces that I’ve never seen before that I’ll probably not see again and it was worth it to me. However, even though they were at a premium, I still think the price was fair for it. Does that make sense? If you want to find a set of beautiful dishes to make a plate wall in your home you are going to have two choices. 1.) Buy them from someone who sourced them already, cleaned them, repaired them etc and therefore will have price tag of….. $18/plate or option 2.) You can go to “the fields” and spend the day hunting around piles of treasure until you find what you are looking for and you’ll have a price tag of around… $6-8/ plate. BOTH can be found in Round Top and both options are equally as fun. It just comes down to how you want to spend your time and your money.
To sum up what I thought of Round Top prices I will tell you this. I went there expecting to just have a good time, gather inspiration and come home with maybe one special thing that I splurged on. What happened was Ashley and I bought so much that our friend Cath drove it home for us, We packed what we could into overweight suitcases and then I had to hire a shipper for furniture and garden cloches. Antiques are not “cheap” and we cannot expect prices of antiques to not rise in price in accordance with the rest of the worlds rising prices. If you are willing to put in a little elbow grease and tlc you can find some great deals. If you want something that is show room ready it’s going to cost a little more. I found that dealers in Round Top were very willing to work with you on pricing if you were interested in multiple pieces and a mutual respect for each other goes an extremely long way.
In addition to attire and expenses I didn’t know what the set up of the show was actually like. It was very hard to grasp via what I saw on social media. But there are several different ways to shop. Round Top which I’m using to generalize the actual town and everything that surrounds it, is a variety of venues. There is the typical outdoor market type of venue, open fields, tents, stuff spread out on folding tables, structured buildings and barns that house more permanent vendors , semi-permanent tent structures and actual store buildings. My favorite permanent building was this incredible area that had a restaurant and bar in it called La Petite Dame. It was GORGEOUS and so inspiring. Higher end French pieces were in the actual shop but it was just gorgeous to browse through. I took many many photos here as it was just perfection. I also loved Bar W (field) as well as Blue Hills, Excess 1 and Excess 2, Round Top Ranch and The Horse Shoe. There is truly so much to see and do but luckily we had Lorzel showing us where to go and who to meet.
The biggest difference I found between shows like Brimfield and Round Top is the lack of urgency. And I mean that in the best way possible. The first day Ashley and I were up and ready at 6am but seriously nobody opens up until at least 9:30. It’s a slower pace at Round Top than other shows. People chat, they eat breakfast, they get coffee, they watch the cows. When the shows open (which a majority are free to go to as well) (Brimfield it’s anywhere from $5 – $15/show) nobody is running, pushing shoving. Everyone is wandering. Taking their time and really studying the pieces. There is no one grabbing stuff out of your hands or picking it up the second you put it down. It’s just, relaxed. It’s like if you were wandering an antique mall but it’s a temporary show. Honestly, it was really refreshing because all of the above is what happens at Brimfield. That’s fun in it’s own way but it sure was relaxing to unwind a bit. We’d be shopping in Elizabeth’s incredible ironstone booth and she’d be like sit down and have a margarita. So we did. And we didn’t feel like that by doing so we were missing out on everything getting purchased. There are some shows that the day they open it’s a bit of chaos (Blue Hills and Marburger etc). But we went to Blue Hills after it opened and found great treasures and didn’t feel the need to rush. After a full day of shopping we joined The Cotton Shed at Royers Cafe and agreed with them 100% it was worth the hype. We had more bread, tried to set Maddie up on a date with a newly hired firefighter and had smothered steak.
I think this leads in to my most unexpected surprise at Round Top and that is the people. Truly I have met some of the most incredibly talented people who it took less than three days to become dear friends. Lorzel was so kind to arrange our lodging at the Wander Inn and the other women who were in the lodge with us, Debra, Natashia and Shauna, I now count as dear friends. We would spend the morning drinking coffee and partaking in the hot fresh biscuits that were delivered to our door each morning. Yes, you read that right, the Junk Gypsy team at the Wander Inn brings you a big bucket of hot biscuits and jam each morning of your stay. After breakfast we’d all head out to shop and get together at night to talk about our days and favorite finds. We shared so much together and had so many deep conversations it felt like summer camp in the best way possible. We actually teared up when it was time for us all to go home. In addition to the women in the lodge, Lorzel coordinated a wonderful lunch catered by Local Roots Round Top and I finally got my hands on one of those homemade ding dongs. OMG they were everything I wanted and more. It took me three full days to finish eating it. At the lunch we were surrounded by these incredibly talented and inspiring women and I will just treasure it forever. Another night we were invited to dinner at Linda and Chris’s house from Junk Style Design with some other people and they hosted this lovely dinner outside in the Texas sunset. It was just pure magic. We made so many friends in Round Top it’s impossible to name them all but Yve, Jen, Elizabeth, Mandi it was just so wonderful to meet you and I’m so excited my treasures making their way home will always remind me of my experience at Round Top with you. We can’t talk about the people of Round Top without talking about Darwa. Lorzel took us to meet “the mayor” of Round Top and the mayor she was. Darwa knows everyone and everything at Round Top. She is the brightest burst of energy and enthusiasm that just makes the excitement contagious. You get Darwa and Lorezel together in one room and it’s like the place is going to explode with electric energy. These two women have such a passion for small business and their creativity and deep love for authenticity and antiques is extremely inspiring. They are everyone’s cheerleaders and I just adore them. I hate that they are both spread on other coasts of this country but that just means we are all going to have to come back to reconnect.
I’ll do a full Round Top haul soon, but like I said at the beginning of this novel I’ve truly been bitten by the Round Top bug. It’s a very special place that I hope goes on forever and ever and I can’t wait for the opportunity to come visit again. It’s hard to put everything in to words but I hope that if you were on the fence about attending this changes your mind in the direction of going for it.
