Annual craft fairs bring thousands to Cape

Masses of craft-fair fanatics flocked to Cape Girardeau over the weekend to purchase and peruse handmade pieces of all varieties offered at the Osage Centre, Show Me Center, Arena Building, the 4-H Building and Notre Dame Regional High School.

48th annual Christmas Arts and Crafts Extravaganza | Osage Centre and Show Me Center

Sarah Steffens, director of Arts Council of Southeast Missouri, said between the Osage Centre and Show Me Center on Saturday and Sunday, 250 vendors � and 14,000 attendees � participated in the 48th annual Christmas Arts and Crafts Extravaganza, hosted by the Arts Council.

�And that�s pretty average for us,� she said, �because a lot of the vendors like to double-book on booths. Ideally, we can have over 300 different crafters and artisans.�

Some of the repeat vendors, she said, have participated for 20 years, along with first-time vendors, as well.

James and Valerie Mormann were new to the show this year, traveling from Pittsburg, Missouri.

Their business card reads: Jim, The Bottle Guy.

The Mormanns acquire wine, soda, liquor and other assorted bottles from a local recycling facility, melt them down and create 50 to 60 types of stained-glass platters and bowls.

He said their adventure began shortly after retirement several years go when he decided to make some use out of a kiln they had at home.

River Valley Craft Club's 44th annual Christmas Craft Expo | Arena Park

Friends Maureen Walsh, Judy Hager and Kathy Mayes were in attendance Saturday at the Arena Building in Cape Girardeau, and made the drive from St. Louis at 7 a.m. for the craft shows � a tradition they�ve shared for at least five years.

Their plans for Saturday were to attend all of the craft shows, they said.

�This is how we kick off our holiday season. It�s one-stop shopping,� Walsh said. �Every year, I get a new ornament. I just moved into a new house, so I�m looking for a handmade ornament with our new address on it.�

Walsh said she believes the prices to be �much better� than in St. Louis � another reason they attend.

Southeast Missouri offers �more handcrafted stuff,� Mayes added, who was on the lookout for basset hound-related items.

Hager was in the market for wine-themed crafts. She purchased a homemade wine wreathe at the Show Me Center.

Southeast Missouri natives Jill Pinkston and her sister Penny Ressel also were in attendance Saturday, admiring the assortment of the items available and the affordable prices, they said.

�There�s so much variety. You couldn�t buy this in a shop for $32,� Pinkston said, pointing out a nearby home-produced Christmas wreath featuring a vintage ice skate.

Pinkston purchased a hand-knit red and white �Santa hat� moments before from an on-site vendor from Oran, Missouri.

�I�m going to wear that,� she said enthusiastically.

Pinkston said of the item�s seller, Mrs. Kittie Shy, �I asked, �Do you knit all day?� Her husband said, �Yes, she does.��

Shy and her husband, Danny, were sitting behind several tables full of multicolor mittens, hats and other assorted crocheted- and knitted items.

They have been part of the Christmas Craft Expo for nearly 10 years, offering items made solely by Kittie Shy, she said.

�If I don�t do anything else, I can get a hat done in a day,� Shy said. �Sometimes, we go to Branson, St. Vincent and Mitchell, South Dakota.�

Kittie Shy couldn�t put an exact number on the different styles of crafts she offers, but was able to describe the assortment filling the tables as �a lot.�

23rd annual Christmas Extravaganza: The Crafts, Gifts and Collectibles Show | Notre Dame Regional High School

Deana Pecord, Notre Dame Regional High School dance teacher and promoter of the event, said the school has not been the location of the event for the entirety of its 23 years.

�Dixie Barnett, one of our vendors, started this craft fair at the Bavarian Halle,� Pecord said. �She started turning it over to us in about 2006. We started running her admissions a little bit at a time, just the performing and visual arts teachers.�

Pecord said the show started to increase in size and became too big for the hall.

And the trend has continued. As of February of this year, Pecord said vendor spots were sold out.

�We�re thinking of expanding even a little bit more,� she said. �We have 150 booth spots, but we have more than 200 vendors.�

Initiator Burnett said it�s been great to witness the growth of the event over the last 20-plus years.

And 17 repeat vendors, she said, have been at every show.

Proceeds from the event Friday and Saturday go into a program, Performing and Visual Arts (PAVA), that supports music, art and theater departments at Notre Dame, according to Pecord.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3632