Scenes from Marche Dauphine, where some of the best bargains can be found. [Photo/Agencies]

The perfect scarf:

Vintage Herms scarves, many of them decadesold and in the softest of silks, start at 160 euros at Le Monde du Voyage in March Serpette. Helen and Alain Zisul also offer a selection of perfectly preserved Louis Vuitton trunks.

Paintings: Post-Cubist gouaches in oak frames by the little-known painter Jacques Marly (1885-1965) start at 950 euros. Marly painted only for pleasure during his life; his grandniece Josette Revellin has begun to sell a few at a time at March Serpette.

Old kitchenware: Call on Franois Bachelier at Bachelier Antiquits at March Paul Bert for enamel scales, heavy copper pots, enameled metal animal prize medallions, tin molds, advertising signs, kitchen utensils, southwestern French pottery jugs and pitchers and winemaking paraphernalia. At 350 euros, the 1-meter-high, cast-iron apparatus in fire-engine red to cork wine bottles was a steal.

Old paper: Take a detour to Paul Maurel in March Vernaison at St.-Ouen. For 35 years, the shop has offered old travel posters, maps and flower and animal prints.

Costume jewelry: If you're longing for native English speakers, also in the March Vernaison is Au Grenier de Lucie. Jason and Heidi Ellis gave up their jobs as sports coaches, sold their London home to move to Paris and opened up a vintage jewelry and accessories shop five years ago. If you're not tempted by the alligator handbags, try a rhinestone tiara.

Old postcards and photographs: Take another detour up an escalator to the March Dauphine and call on Philippe Rault just inside the entrance. Try out his stereoscopes for a look at early 3-D. And at 15 euros apiece, you might walk away with the perfect gift: a 60-year-old aerial photo of a Paris neighborhood. If you're not worn out, head into the main Dauphine area for some of the market's best bargains.

But if such a singular adventure sounds exhausting, hire a guide to do all the work - and price-negotiating - for you. Henry Personnaz, a French interior designer, has made a hobby of giving small private tours of St.-Ouen. He can customize them to suit your tempo and your taste for any object - from a 19th-century oil painting to an Art Deco silver table setting.

If you want a brasher, nonstop, more American approach, contact Rachel Kaplan. She loves to show you what she calls "the deals"; she hates being interrupted.

"You know what I call the flea market?" she told a mother, daughter and grandmother on a private tour. "The Louvre - except you can go shopping."

Some may call that the perfect Paris outing.

If you go

Hours are Saturday 9 am to 6 pm, Sunday 10 am to 6 pm, Monday 11 am to 5 pm. For more information, visit marcheauxpuces-saintouen.com; maps are available at the St.-Ouen tourism office. Guides include Henry Personnaz (parisfleavip.com) and Rachel Kaplan ([email protected]).

Websites in English

· L'Eclaireur, leclaireur.com/en.

· Mademoiselle Steinitz, mademoisellesteinitz.com.

· Un Singe en Hiver, unsingenhiver.com. Le Monde du Voyage, lemondeduvoyage.com/defaultan.htm.

· Paul Maurel, poster-paul.com.

· Au Grenier de Lucie, augrenierdelucie.com.

Websites in French

· Paul-Bert－Serpette, paulbertserpette.com.

· Habitat 1964, habitat.fr/vintage.

· Galerie Gam, galeriegam.fr.

· La Petite Maison, lesmerveillesdebabellou.com.

·Colonial Concept, francoisdaneck.com.

· La Buvette des Tartes Kluger, tarteskluger.com.

· Bachelier Antiquités, bachelier-antiquites.com.

The New York Times