Shaker Woods craft festival returns to area

Staff report

COLUMBIANA

Shaker Woods Festival, a nationally recognized craft festival, returns for three-consecutive weekends beginning Saturday.

Now in its 34th year, the event features handcrafted items, unique food and live entertainment in the rustic and wooded Shaker Woods grounds, 44337 County Line Road, just off state Route 7, one mile north of state Route 14.

It will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. all six days: Saturday, Sunday, Aug. 20, 21, 27 and 28. Admission is $8 (free for children 12 and under). Pets and alcoholic beverages are prohibited. Because the pathways are gravel, children’s strollers are not recommended.

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

“We’re already considered one of the premier craft events in the country,” said Lana Grim, the promoter of Shaker Woods Festival. “But we’re always looking to improve the ‘simple life’ experience. So this year, we expanded handicapped parking, built new craft booths, doubled the number of picnic tables and benches and increased the amount of portable restrooms.”

Crafters demonstrate their unique skills without the use of modern conveniences – not even electricity. The diverse 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.

Each crafter dresses in Shaker period clothing. The fest also includes live entertainment on three stages. Go to shakerwoods.com for the schedule.