Fine crafts festival returns

The event is under new ownership but will remain the same

Staff report

COLUMBIANA

The Shaker Woods Festival, the nationally recognized marketplace of fine handcrafted goods, will return under new management but with familiar faces.

The 31st annual event is spread over three weekends: Saturday and Aug. 11, and Aug. 17-18 and 24-25.

It is now under the guidance of Lana Tipton and her husband, Tim. But don’t expect any changes: Lana is the daughter of Sam and Sue Ferguson, who founded the event and operated it until now. Lana worked closely with parents, and believes the transition to new owners will be seamless.

“Mom and Sam set the bar high on putting on a first-class festival, but since I have been involved for so many years, I know what it takes and I am up for the challenge,” said Lana.

The Shaker Woods Festival, founded to honor the 18th-century Shaker community, offers more than 200 craftspeople, representing artists and crafts from all across the country.

The Fergusons started it in the early 1980s out of concern that the revenue from their farm products might one day not cover the cost of producing them.

While experimenting with ways to turn their land into a more profitable enterprise, the Fergusons hosted an apple butter festival in 1982. That first fall festival has blossomed into the highly acclaimed Shaker Woods Festival.

The Shaker community was a group of industrious and devout people whose inventions include the washing machine, spinning wheel and flat broom, as well as clothespins and packaged seeds. Shaker furniture is known for its simple, clean lines and fine workmanship.

Each year, the Fergusons chose crafters whose work carries on the tradition of fine workmanship. Dressed in Shaker-period clothing, the craftspeople offer their wares in the manicured, wooded Shaker Woods grounds, off County Line Road. The level grounds feature crushed gravel footpaths for easy walking and acres of free parking.

Crafters demonstrate their skills without the use of modern conveniences — not even electricity. The crafts include basket weaving, blacksmithing, broommaking, leather work, paintings, pottery, quilts, custom garden stones, plants, toys, jewelry and woodwork. The items for sale range from small miniatures to rooms of custom-made furniture and hand-carved masterpieces. Some of the crafters exhibit only at the Shaker Woods Festival.

An extensive selection of food also is available, from soups and sandwiches to complete meals — some cooked over an open fire.

Three stages will host musical entertainment, from country to bluegrass to cloggers. The lineup includes:

Darryl Gatlin, Saturday and Aug. 11, 24 and 25.

The Cedar Valley Cloggers, Saturday.

Zach Paxson, Aug. 17 and 18.

The Allegheny Drifters, Aug. 17.

Black Horse, Aug. 24 and 25.

Additional performers and events include Vanessa Campagna, Melissa Cox, God’s Quad, Jive, Herb Classes by Jeanette Thompson and caricature artists.

Robert Griffing will sign autographs Aug. 11. Griffing artwork focuses on the Eastern Woodland Indians of the 18th century.

Now in its 21st year, the Children’s Order offers one-hour classes for youth, including “Working with Gourds,” “Duct Tape Art” and “Folk Art Painting.”