Peter's Valley Craft Fair!!

This past weekend my family and I went to the Sussex County Fairgrounds and walked around the 40th Annual Peters Valley Craft Fair (http://www.petersvalley.org/) . According to their website, "Peters Valley Craft Center is a national center for fine craft education where people’s lives are enriched through the exploration and execution of fine craft. Located in the Delaware Water Gap Peters Valley offers two to five day workshops in blacksmithing, ceramics, fibers, fine metals, photography, wood and special topics including printmaking, books & paper, drawing, and glass." Every year they have a craft fair. We had never been before, and I had seen a show about Peters Valley on the local PBS station. So we decided to check it out. Great choice! It was only $8 per adult ($7 with $1 coupon), and children under 12 are free. It was so much bigger than I imagined! There were 6 long buildings,

and each one was filled to the brim with vendors selling all kinds of handmade creative items.

Clothing, jewelry,

ceramics,

fiber arts,

sheep,

beautiful flowers made out of clay (!!!)

roaming musicians,

even wood carving.

In fact, the artist in this picture was carving little items out of wood for passers-by. We just happened to be standing there and watching when he had finished a small item for a lady nearby. When he was done, he said, "Who's next?" Naturally, my daughter chimed right in, "Me!!" Much to my surprise. I didn't think the items he was making were free, but he set to work making a 3-dimensional butterfly. He made it seem so easy the way he used his tool with skill, as he described the process of making the butterfly. In moments, he gave my daughter the finished item below:

She promptly said thanks and we gave him a small donation. She was delighted with the little butterfly, and so were we!

There was also an area where artists from Peters Valley were demonstrating their crafts.

Many of the vendors had delicate items, so we cautioned our daughter not to touch them. However, there was an area for the children to create their own crafts, so my daughter spent some time there coloring and cutting.

It was a pleasant day, the weather was nice, and we enjoyed ourselves.