A Super Day At a Country Auction

I love auctions.  I especially love country auctions. A country auction loaded with great items and sold by a top-notch auctioneer?  Triple love.  At 5:30 Saturday morning I hit the road for a 163 mile drive to attend just such an auction.

 Chuilli's Auction Service was selling the estate of a collector gone wild.  Auctioneer Jerry Chuilli, (pronounced chili), assisted by two other auctioneers ran the two-day, two-ring sale.

  I don't get to many Chuilli auctions; most of them are 3-5 hours away from me.  Their ads are often enticing and this one looked just too good to miss. I was able to attend only the first day.

 The first thing you'll notice at a Chuilli auction is a big tent. (In this case, 2 big tents). With chairs.  That's rare. Most outdoor auctions in Wisconsin are byocaiywsosbau, ('bring your own chair and if you want shade or shelter bring an umbrella').

Items were clean and well-organized.  There was a huge amount of merchandise to be sold, yet it was sorted in a way that  made it easy to preview each item. Large items were lined up on the grass.  Small items were divided into box lots.  And guess what? They sold the whole lot without piddling around. I can't tell you how many auctioneers bring up a flat of stuff and then start choicing out the items...it can take 10 minutes to sell one flat.  Not here.  Shown & sold. 

The auctioneer stood in the center with a table on each side. Each table had a staff member who put the small items up on a platform so you could tell exactly what was being sold.  In the meantime, the staff member at the other table was loading up, readying his lot to go up.  This is the most efficient system I've seen.  Buyers were able to see what was about to come up and there was no delay for the auctioneer...sell from the left, sell from the right, sell from the left...

And speaking of staff...all seemed relaxed, yet very efficient.  A group like this doesn't come together by accident; the tone of a business is set by the leader. Jerry's demeanor is calm, confident and professional.  (So many auctioneers in this state get frustrated, snap at their employees and bidders, don't know where they're going next, waste time trying to wring blood from a turnip....). 

 A few select items came home with me; a wonderful box of prisms, a delightful folk art memory jug, an advertising umbrella, some clocks, toys and other odds & ends. Some of it will be available at the Elkhorn Antique Flea Market next weekend.  You'll see the shabby table & bench that I got at the Viva la Cottage Door County show next month. 

This auction was well-worth the long trip; I only wish I could have returned for round two today! 
Enjoy the rest of the photos.