Eric Weit, of Akron, is an award-winning rag rug weaver.  He’s recently set up a shop online on Etsy and its worth checking out.  Plus he just passed along a few rugs to show in our gallery shop until April.

Eric’s approach to weaving is “it is like a puzzle using recycled materials and trying to put them together using the colors of the material that I find and coming up with a new pattern for the warp.”

His Grandmother said something to him a long time ago which he uses as his inspiration and motto, “The secret to a happy life is to keep your hands busy”.

Brian Cunfer, of Kirkwood, is the current President of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen.  He is also the instructor for our popular ‘Women-Only! Stool-making’ workshop.

We’ve officially scheduled our 2010 session for May 15 & 16.  It’s a very enjoyable two-day class for women to explore and discover the processes behind wood-working and furniture-making.  For details visit www.pacrafts.org/workshops.

That's my mom on the left.

We’d like to show our appreciation for our 1300 members with a special year-end thank you.  All members of the Pennsylvania Guild get 10% off everything at our gallery from December 26 until January 2.

Our store hours until January 2 are: Tues-Thurs & Sat. 10 to 4, Fri 12 to 9. (we’re closed Sunday and Monday)

Thanks for a wonderful year and for making the Guild a dynamic, inspiring organization!

Not a current member? You can join in-person at the gallery and get 10% off immediately on your purchases.  To get the greatest discount possible, purchase the $5800 corner cupboard.

Jay Brubaker, of Lancaster, is an amazingly skilled furniture-maker.  We’ve had the joy of getting to know Jay over the last year.

1. He became a juried member in March.
2. Exhibited at our craft show in July.
3. Then entered a gorgeous chair in ‘from Raw to Refined‘ at the Reading Public Museum through October 31.
4. He and David Lunin were our first Juried Member Showcase in our gallery on October 17 & 18.
5. We included his furniture in both our In the Kitchen and Handmade Holiday stores (his curly maple, corner cupboard is currently available in the gallery).

I’m featuring Jay because his involvement with the Guild not only shows what a member can get from the Guild if they become active.  But also the quality the Guild gets from its members.  Thanks Jay.  Looking forwarded to work with you more next year.

Our Lancaster gallery is open every day until Christmas day.  And to make things easier for everyone who works all day and then spends the weekend with the family, we’ve specifically extended our hours early next week.  Here’s our hours for the next seven days…

• Thursday, December 17:          10 am to 4 pm
• Friday, December 18:                10 am to 8 pm
• Saturday, December 19:           10 am to 4 pm
• Sunday, December 20:              12 pm to 4 pm
• Monday, December 21:             10 am to 7 pm
• Tuesday, December 22:             10 am to 7 pm
• Wednesday, December 23:      10 am to 7 pm
• Thursday, December 24:          10 am to 2 pm

And thanks to everyone for stopping in so far, its been a smashing success and because of you we’ve brought in even more handmade work.

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.

Okay, so the bargain-hunters of the nation have their day coming up: Black Friday.  They run out and gobble up all of the cheapest of the cheap items that have been churned out a world away.  It’s not about quality, it’s about pricing.

Although I won’t be one of them, I understand the wish to stretch a dollar.  But when the item only lasts a couple years, is it really even worth the cheap price paid?

Well, the Guild has an alternative for you: give locally handmade.  Starting this Friday we begin our holiday hours at our seasonal gallery store Handmade Holiday at 252 N. Prince St, Lancaster.  Sorry, you won’t find discounts.  The upside is, the work here is really worth what you pay for it.

If you’re brave, you can probably avoid the traffic snarls around Park City to get downtown to our gallery on Friday (we’re open 10 to 4).  If Friday’s not your top choice, we’re open this Saturday from 10 to 4 and Sunday from noon to 4.

As of this Friday we’re open seven days a week until Christmas day.  Here’s our hours…

Extended Holiday Hours

November 27 to December 20

• Mon – Sat: 10 am to 4 pm
• Fridays: 10 to 8, Sun: 12 to 4

December 21 to December 24

• Dec 21 – 23: 10 to 7
• Dec 24: 10 to 2

Closed December 25

December 25 to January 2

• Tues – Thurs & Sat: 10 t 4
• Fri: 12 to 9

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.