Sweeping its popular cultural path through Thorold, the 41st annual Arts and Crafts Show promises offerings tried and true—and new—to entice shoppers of all stripes this Saturday.
There are perennial favourites—which show organizer Cathy Henderson calls “fixtures”—like Applecreek Country Crafts from Fingal, Ontario, featuring Doug Mactavish and sons’ handmade Mennonite deacon’s benches and occasional tables, as well as wooden mailboxes, bird houses, and picture frames.
Sweet by Nature’s homemade Ontario maple syrup and Ontario honey products from Tara, is another Thorold Arts and Crafts Show fixture.
Items as diverse as purses, puppets, pet portraits, and gourmet popcorn will be showcased among the 70 or so juried artisans.
New this year is an innovative offering from The Friends of the Dunnville Public Library.
Making its mysterious debut, the Blind Date with a Book booth will inspire readers of all ages to fall in love.
Elegantly wrapped, various genres of gift-quality books come with a bookplate teaser tag, letting you know if it’s a historical narrative of Father Jean de Brebeuf, who worked among the Huron Indians, a mystery, western, cookbook, biography, or young adult fantasty/paranormal.
A book in the latter genre bears the bookplate: “If you think you know what it’s like to be dead; if you think it’s just an eternity of harp music and cloud lounging; well, think again. Ever heard the saying, ‘Life goes on’? It does; take it from me. I’ve been dead for well over a year.”
There are books suitable for children of all ages, from toddlers to young adults. Most items are priced between $2.50 and $5.
According to long-time Dunnville Library Friend April Cormaci, “People buy these books for various reasons—holiday exchanges or where they have to buy a lot of small gifts for a family celebration, as a treat for themselves, as birthday gifts, as party favours, and so on. We sell well over $1,000 worth of items per year.”
“One man was going on a blind date and bought one as a gift for the unknown lady,” Cormaci recalled. “If I remember, he picked a romance (book). I always wondered how that went over.”
The Friends raise approximately $25,000 annually through various activities and projects, and introduced the Blind Date with a Book or Movie project three years ago. Several times a year, The Friends sell them at local craft shows, and in the Dunnville Library all year long. In both venues, the items have proven very popular, said Cormaci, adding, “The title, author and/or stars are not included, hence the project name ‘Blind Date’.”
The Friends is an all-volunteer, non-profit group established in 1996 to support and enhance services of the Dunnville Public Library, raising funds to purchase equipment and materials and to sponsor adult and children’s programming not provided for in the Library’s budget. In 2017, the group provided $40,000 toward its expansion and renovation.The Arts & Crafts Show runs Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Thorold Arena, 70 Front St. N.
