The annual Elmvale Flea Market opened its doors for a new season this weekend at the Elmvale Sales Barn and Event Centre.
Vendors opened their stalls and filled their tables with their wares on a perfect sunny day.
Vendor Brian Hymander of Wasaga Beach started selling in Elmvale five years ago.
When asked what is the best part of the market experience, he said, “Meeting the people, actually. That’s what I find the most interesting."
The hardest part for any vendor is getting ready for the new selling season.
“You’re collecting this stuff all year long,” said Hymander, “and you’re trying to sort it out as to what goes to a flea market and what goes to the other upscale market and what goes to an auction. I have stuff that is in the thousand-dollar range, but you can’t bring that to the flea market.”
“We’re basically recycling everything. Because a lot of this stuff most people would just throw into a landfill. That’s not the way to go. This is a really good way to repurpose things,” he added.
Derek Burke of Barrie enjoys just walking around. “We’re here today to waste time and walk around to see what we don’t want to buy,” he said with a laugh. “I like walking around to see the different stuff. I’d like to buy plants, but that will probably be next week here. Meats and vegetables are good here too.”
Gail Sheridan of Orillia is a regular at the flea market.
“It’s opening day, and I usually come out here three or four times a year and bring the grandkids, as they love it,” she said. “I like looking at different unique things and retro items.”
There are always deals to be made at a flea market.
“I buy my DVDs here,” said Sheridan. “I bought a pair of pants today, a DVD, and three pairs of sunglasses for 10 bucks.”
Cane seller Al Smith of Elmvale is a handy guy who is retired and spends his time foraging in forests for just the right kind of wood to carve and transform into a walking stick.
“It takes the better part of an afternoon to make one,” he said. “You’ll never get rich making walking sticks, but it’s a fun thing to do. The biggest enjoyment I get out of them is when I see somebody with one of them and using it. I see a lot of people with my sticks now. I’ve sold them all over the world.”
And for just 15 bucks each, it’s the best deal of the day.
Three-year-old Liam Maiato was happy finding just the right kind of stuffed tiger, which is going to be his new best friend, and even though it was his favourite part of the morning, he still had his eyes open for bargains.
When asked what was left on his shopping list for the day, he replied, “more toys!”
