Paul Grecian, of Quakertown, is a photographer and happens to have a great blog. I enjoy reading it often. He opens his process to everyone which makes his photography all the more accessible.

Obviously he’s not a blogger first, he’s a photographer. But I got to know Paul as an artist more through his blog than simply through his photography. Yes, his photography is expressive, but his thoughts on creativity, or why he chooses certain subject matter, tells his story. It removes the barrier between his photography and his photography’s viewer. Its no longer just a picture on a wall.

I think many craft-makers could learn a bit from reading through some of his blog posts and thinking about how they could blog about their own work. The key to selling artwork is not always in the end product but in the story in which it was created.

Rona Fisher, of Philadelphia, works in a wide variety of premium jewelry including rings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants, and earrings.  Her work is crafted in sterling silver and 14 karat gold combinations, and in all gold. Many pieces feature precious or semi-precious gemstones.  Her pieces are made to be worn for a lifetime.

Wanna see her work in person?  She does a variety of craft shows including many of the Guild’s and also many other fine promoters.  On December 19 she’s having an open studio at her shop at 104 S. 8th Street, 3rd Floor in Philadelphia.

And if you join her birthday club, you get 10% off any order placed during your birthday month (plus there’s no obligation).

Our gallery in Lancaster is open until 9 pm today for First Friday.  Stop by and check out the great selection of handmade crafts in our popular Handmade Holiday store.  I’d like to give you some suggestions of what you can do tonight while you’re in town.

• Catch the James Ransome exhibition at PCAD (Pennsylvania College of Art & Design)
• Open Studio at Kevin Lehman Pottery
• A must stop is Veleska Jewelry on Orange St.
• Warm up at  Square ONE Coffee on Duke St
• Gingerbread houses at Lancaster Convention Center by Hempfield High School students
• Catch Annie at the Fulton Theatre at 8
• Or dinner at the Belvedere Inn or Annie Bailey’s

Hope to see you this evening in Lancaster.  Come out and support the arts by giving handmade this holiday season.

Our Holiday Fine Craft Fair opens today at 10 am and runs til 6 pm.  Sunday hours are 11 am to 5 pm.  Full details are at www.pacrafts.org/holiday.  Have a question or need directions?  Call 717-431-8706.

The act of giving handmade is inspiring because you know where the item came from and you can tell your friend or family about your exchange with the craft-maker.

There’s millions upon millions of options out there for holiday gift-giving.  But giving locally-made handmade crafts supports your neighbor-artist and your community’s economy.

Independent craft-makers are small business owners, which means their expenses are tied closely to their physical location.  If you know about the 3/50 Project then you know that $68 of every $100 spent with a locally owned independent business returns to their community through taxes, payroll and other expenditures.

31 out of the 126 participating members physically reside in Lancaster county.

If you’re an aspiring locavore, you may know about the concept of the 100 mile diet.  If we put that idea to our show, 86 of the total show participants live within that 100 mile radius.  So your craft diet will be full of options.  The bulk of the remaining members live in Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware (not exactly the other side of the world).

So come on out and browse thousands of unique, one-of-a-kind, handmade crafts at this weekend’s Fine Craft Fair at Manheim Township High School, and know that your money not only supports the artists you buy from but also supports Pennsylvania’s economy and the community services it offers.

With 140 craft-makers under one roof, it’s sometimes hard to choose among all of the wonderful crafts.  Here’s a glimpse at some of the work that will be shown this weekend at our final craft show of the year.

1. Clay horse head sculpture – Paula Brown-Steedly [booth #302]
2. Glass beads – Karen Hill [booth #318]
3. Leather and cloth purses – Seymour Mondshein [booth #300]
4. Framed quilts – Karen Bilak [booth #325]

See more in our Flickr image set.

Some would argue its the best kept secret of the Guild’s shows.  I agree.  The Best in Pennsylvania Crafts gallery exhibit is held annually during our Holiday Fine Craft Fair in Lancaster and serves as a showcase for juried members of the Guild.

Every year there’s a theme (this year’s is Go Green) and every year there’s a load of money given out in awards (this year $2450).  Awards range from Best in Fiber to Most Creative Use of Material, Excellence in Craftsmanship to Most Humorous.  The most prized awards are Best in Show, Craftsmen’s Choice and People’s Choice.

The ‘choice’ awards are tallied by voting all weekend long from attendees of the show (the People’s Choice) and exhibitors in the show (Craftsman’s Choice).  All of the awards are generously given annually by chapters of the Guild ~ thank you who give!  A full list of this year’s awards are at www.pacrafts.org/gallery as well as those who are vying for them.

So when you come to the show this weekend (and you are planning to attend), make sure to vote for your favorite piece.  Perhaps you’ll choose Bev Zimmerman’s Green Box, which is shown above.

Beth Aten, of Lewisburg, dyes, paints and prints fabrics and papers for her one of a kind wall hangings and gift items.  Her work, which she has been making for over twenty years, ranges in size from very small framed works to very large installations.  Her gift items include table runners, pins, scarves and ornaments.

She will be exhibiting her work at two upcoming guild shows; in Lancaster this weekend at the Manheim Township High School and with the Central PA chapter in State College at the Winter Craft Market on December 5th and 6th.  You can also see her work at Handmade Holiday at our 252 N. Prince St gallery in Lancaster.

Visit Beth’s blog, http://studiodays.wordpress.com, to read news from her studio and see her available works for sale.

On Saturday, our exhibition ‘from Raw to Refined‘ closes at the Reading Public Museum.  If you have not yet made it, change your weekend plans, get in your car and drive out there.  It’s a wonderful showing of fine crafts.

For details on hours and directions, visit the Reading Public Museum’s website http://www.readingpublicmuseum.org/

David Welsh Sr., of Millersville, creates gourd art as well as these wonderfully intricate images using pyrography.  Pyrpgraphy is the art of decorating wood by burning it, generally with a soldering iron or another controlled tool.