From early on in the 51-year history of the Skaneateles Antique Show, hosted by the United Methodist Church, a glass grinder was present. Attendees could leave a chipped crystal glass with State Street resident Herbert Kopp and after an hour or so of browsing antiques, return to find a restored glass.
It was an usual service that was hard to come by, and when Kopp retired from the show about five years ago, residents missed it.
Glass grinding returns to this year’s show, which runs July 9 and 10 at Austin Pavillion, with antique collector Tony Peretta of New Hartford, N.Y. Peretta has Kopp to thank for his rare skill.
“That’s how I got interested in glass grinding,” he said, reflecting back to the early 1990s when he saw Kopp grinding glass at the Skaneateles Antique Show.
“I bought a machine, taught myself, did some reading on it, and watched Herb Kopp grind glass.”
Peretta will be one of 70-plus dealers at this year’s show. He plans to bring two to three tables of merchandise from his business in Yorkville, NY, Tony’s Treasures & Touchable Memories.
Peretta, a retired construction manager for fix years now, sells antiques at six or seven shows a year. When event organizers approached Tony looking to bring a glass grinder to the show, he thought he’d give it a shot.
“We thought we’d take a chance,” he said. “It gets your name out.”
Dottie Couch, in charge of beautification for the event, is excited to once again have a glass grinder at the show. Couch has been involved in the show since the early 1970s and remembers Kopp well.
“I often brought things to him to repair,” she said. “Mostly glasses, nice crystal that might have a chip in it and you wouldn’t think you could use again.”
There are two oversized glass cabinet doors that say Couch has missed Kopp’s glass grinding. She meant to have Kopp grind them down, but he retired before she got around to it.
“As a result we still have these doors that don’t fit,” she said.
51st annual Skaneateles Antique Show
WHEN: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 9 & 10
WHERE: Austin Pavilion, corner of Jordan and E.
Austin streets
COST: $6 for one-day pass, $6.50 for two-day pass. $15 for early bird tickets to begin viewing
and purchasing at 9 a.m. Friday
