Celebrate the rich colors of autumn and find beautiful and functional gifts for the home and family with the Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Festival as it returns to Montgomery County Community College October 16 and 17.
Support those who support the Earth and make durable, locally-made fine crafts part of your lifestyle. Buying handmade, long-lasting crafts is better for the earth too because many craftspeople observe sustainable practices. They are conscious about the impact their creative process has on their environment and future generations. Many also reduce their waste by using reclaimed and repurposed materials. This year, craftsmen who use sustainable practices are identified with a “Guild Green” sign.
Supporting craftspeople in your region is as important as supporting your local restaurant. Craftspeople are small business owners, who pay local taxes and support local institutions just like you. Local, regional, and national craftspeople exhibit annually at the Pennsylvania Guild fine craft fairs. This year, there are more than 30 craftsmen participating who live within a 30 mile radius of Blue Bell. More than half of the festival’s 100 craftspeople live within a 100 mile radius.
Explore the hundreds of one-of-a-kind, individually handmade works by 100 craftspeople in glass, jewelry, pottery, wood, metal, fiber, clothing, furniture and more. The Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair is an opportunity to support the region’s best craftspeople while finding functional and decorative craft.
Featured craftspeople:
Mary Coover’s whimsical creatures are a delight for both children and adults to gaze upon. Each face, or dragon present in her works, seems to have a personality of its own. Coover mixes her own porcelain using a formula she has worked with for over thirty years. She was recently juried by the Pennsylvania Guild and her work is exhibited in galleries throughout the U.S.
Eric Weit (Studio Weit) is an Ephrata based, award winning rag rug weaver. Weit spent his early childhood learning spinning, weaving, knitting and tatting from his grandmother. He attended Pennsylvania College of Art & Design, after which, he spent 20 years working in the printing industry along the east coast. Weit continued to work on developing a rug look and style that would become his own, settling into weaving rag rugs. Weit’s approach to weaving is like a puzzle; using recycled materials and trying to put them together using the colors of the material that he finds and coming up with a new pattern for the warp. He is always on the lookout for new recycled material for his weaving. He has won many awards on both the local and the national level for the quality of his work. His Grandmother said something to him a long time ago which he uses as his inspiration and motto, “The secret to a happy life is to keep your hands busy”.
Live musical performances, ample children’s activities and good food make this the perfect outing for all ages.
Among the new and exciting festivities are a variety of live musical performances. Acoustic Roadshow returns on Saturday October 17, with the lively sounds of a returning favorite, the Martin Family band. Then on Sunday, October 18, enjoy music by Tin Kettle, an Irish and old time band and solo artist Butch Imhoff.
Craft enthusiasts of all ages welcome! Children 12 and under get in the festival for free and have a new series of activities to get excited about.
A new program for kids called Craft Festival Passport is launching this year! It gives each interested child a map of the show and has some challenges to keep them engaged in the event. After completing a series of challenges, they can win a prize.
Distelfink Artisans are partnering with the Guild to provide hands-on craft projects for children. With a stencil from theorem-painter Sandra Jean Coldren, former president of the Distelfink Artisans, kids can draw a pumpkin and then use paints, markers and colored pencils to add their creative touch to the seasonal icon.
