INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Those seeking a rare find and are drawn to the thrill of the hunt have just today left at the Indian River County Fairgrounds to sift through thousands of items at 250 booths during the Vero Beach Antiques Extravaganza.
The three-day show, which returns in February and then is gone for another year, attracted over 3,000 people between Friday and Saturday.
Hosting the show are Kay and Bill Puchstein, who have been putting on the Vero Beach antiques show for 16 years.
About half the vendors at the show are from Florida, several from Indian River County, Puchstein said. Others have traveled from Texas, New Hampshire, Ohio, Georgia and even Canada.
“They’re from all over the place,” he said.
Items antique hunters can find range from 50-cent postcards to a $50,000 diamond ring. Running the gamut in between are toy cap guns and tin trucks, cut crystal, costume and estate jewelry, brooches, linens, china dishes, paintings, records, furs, and a host of others.
One happy treasure hunter at the show Saturday was John Dinger, of Vero Beach, who attended with his wife, Sonia.
Dinger found three cobalt glassware items, for which he is always searching.
“We like browsing antiques,” Dinger said, adding that when he found the cobalt glass, he was thrilled.
The Dingers collect cobalt glassware, saying it’s the color and uniqueness that speaks to them. They bought two candelabras and a bowl.
“He made us a good offer,” Dinger said of the vendor who had the cobalt.
“And he couldn’t refuse,” Sonia said, referring to her husband.
Lil and Paul Mita also attended the show on Saturday and went home with a salt and pepper shaker set for a friend who had just that morning dropped hers on the tile floor.
“Wasn’t she lucky?” Lil Mita asked rhetorically.
The Mitas also picked up a blue and white plate of Robert Burns, to whom Paul Mita is related.
They have about 50 such blue and white plates, all of which are either from places they have visited or have some other personal connection.
“It’s a nice memory,” Lil said.
First-time Vero Beach Extravaganza participant Liz Hanson, of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., said sales for her were a little slow, but she suspects the economy is still a factor.
“People are looking for small things,” she said, noting that she has sold a few handkerchiefs and other such linen items typically given as gifts.
She decided to try out the Vero Beach show because of its – and the area’s – reputation.
“I’ve heard so many things about Vero,” Hanson said, noting that the locals have been quick to welcome her at the show.
“I find that mindboggling,” she said of the courtesy extended to her.
Antique vendor Denise Sierens, of Loxahatchee, Fla., said the Vero Beach show was going well, better than it had her first time out three years ago.
“It’s second only to Mt. Dora,” Sierens said in terms of antique shows.
Sierens’ wares include numerous pieces of jewelry, among other items.
“I know I’ve made a lot of women happy,” she said, grinning.
Sierens made it a point of asking her buyers where they lived. She said many were local, but some traveled from Miami and Mt. Dora to join the hunt.
The Vero Beach Extravaganza continues Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Indian River County Fairgrounds. Admission is $6. Can’t make it today? The antique show will return with 350 vendors Feb. 10, 11 and 12. About half of January’s vendors will return in February.
