With Halloween done and Christmas the next major shopping holiday looming, residents will soon start looking for ways to find those unique, often handmade gifts.
Craft fairs spring up around the region to meet demand, but one of the first on the calendar is always the one put on by members of the . This weekend (Nov. 5 and 6) marks the 28th annual fundraiser sale for the Colwood-based organization.
B次元官网网址淲e want to be one of the first on the block, plus the weatherB次元官网网址檚 better for people getting out and about,B次元官网网址� says craft fair committee chair Carol Wright.
Shoppers will find items created by members of the various craft groups that are active at the centre, such as woodworking, ceramics, lapidary artwork (polished stones and gems), knitting and sewing, quilting, the bake table and more. A dozen or so private vendors, who are also centre members, will be selling their own creations.
Enthusiasm for this event, which expanded to two days from one back in the early 2000s, has grown over the years, despite a brief slowdown in 2008 during the economic recession, Wright says.
B次元官网网址淭he tables went on sale at 8:30 one day and they were all sold by 8:40,B次元官网网址� she says of this yearB次元官网网址檚 demand for the private vendor spots. Also encouraging, she says, is the fact many of those tables were snapped up by new centre members.
As this is a major fundraiser for the centre, the balance of the 25-plus tables will be stocked and staffed by member craft groups raising money for the facilityB次元官网网址檚 operations, while private vendors sell their goods for personal benefit. A strict set of vendor guidelines includes a key rule that all items on sale be made by the members.
One exception to the member-made rule at the Juan de Fuca Craft Fair is the popular Loonie Bin sale, where every item sells for $1. People donate new or gently used items to the bin in the centre lobby through the year B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址渢hat tie you donB次元官网网址檛 like or the toys your kids donB次元官网网址檛 want to play with anymore,B次元官网网址� Wright says. A crew of B次元官网网址渆lvesB次元官网网址� were slated to start wrapping the items last weekend to be ready for the fair.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e been told thereB次元官网网址檚 a local business that buys 20 or more of these items for their office gift exchange,B次元官网网址� says centre publicity spokesperson Evelyn Schumacher.
Adds Wright: B次元官网网址淚f you want the Loonie Bin, Saturday is the day to come.B次元官网网址�
Organizers are expecting a good turnout for this yearB次元官网网址檚 fair. Wright and her fellow volunteers did some advance marketing in late August and early September, dropping in to area seniors residential facilities to help arrange bus trips down to the Juan de Fuca Centre for residents.
While personal and household gift items will be popular, food, as with most celebrations relating to Christmas, is a staple of this annual event.
Not only will the kitchen be open to purchase meals, snacks and beverages during the fair, the bake sale table is B次元官网网址渉uge,B次元官网网址� Wright says. B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know how many hundred people are baking this week getting ready for the fair.B次元官网网址�
Stop by the Juan de Fuca 55-Plus Seniors Centre at Westshore Parks and Recreation, 1767 Island Hwy., this Saturday or Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information on the centre and its activities, visit .
editor@goldstreamagzette.com
