It’s holiday craft show season and boy there are a lot of them! Check out our Events Calendar for some of our favorites, or visit the Hampton Roads 2009 Fall Bazaar Guide for a huge list of festivals!

This weekend one of our favorite members, Sloane, will be presenting her wares at Santa’s Stocking Old Fashioned Craft Bazaar. Make sure you check it out!

Santa’s Stocking Old Fashioned Craft Bazaar

Saturday November 21, 9am - 5pm
Sunday, November 22, 11am - 5pm

Kempsville Recreation Center
800 Monmouth Lane
Virginia Beach, VA

Put on those comfy shoes and shop among 120 vendors selling budget-friendly holiday gifts, including knitted crafts, soaps and lotions, jewelry, decorative household items, and more. Each weekend features different vendors. Plus, bring your children for those classic holiday photos with Santa! Free admission & onsite parking.

Tomorrow, catch our member Michelle of Gymbohannah at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church Holiday Craft Show (Dunbarten & Providence Rd. in Chesapeake across from Indian River High School, who is also having their Christmas Craft show) Come out see us and grab up some unique handmade goods. You’ll be glad you did!

Next weekend, Sloane will also be representing the crafters at the…

8th Annual Fair Trade Festival at Waterside
Sat, Dec 5, 10:00am-10:00pm,
Sun, Dec 6 12:00-5:00pm

Waterside Marketplace, Waterside Dr.  Norfolk, Va.

The Eighth annual Fair Trade Festival promises to be the best ever. The newly revamped and spacious Waterside provides room for new and unusual products as well as favorites from around the world that have made this beloved festival a must-go for 7 years. “Clothing, jewelry, food, house wares, chocolate, wine, and beer… all products are produced under fair labor standards, so not only will people love their gifts, you know that those gifts keep on giving by allowing people around the world and in your own community to make a decent living and support their families” says festival organizer Susan Posey.

Customers come from as far away as Williamsburg to experience this warm, friendly atmosphere: local and fair trade wines and beers, local food, and an all-star cast of local musicians providing live music all day long. Belly dancing, poetry, and free chocolate and coffee tastings make this festival a genuinely unsurpassed experience. Grab dinner here, and whatever you do, don’t miss the incredible main concert event, the DC based and world-renowned band Scythian. Classically trained musicians, Scythian plays everything from Celtic rock to Gypsy to Klezmer.

Contact: Susan Posey- 581-5672, fairtradefun@gmail.com

Also, watch for an invite soon to our 7 Cities Crafters annual holiday party! We will have food, drinks, a white elephant gift swap and more! See you guys soon!

Hi everyone,

The Trunk Show last Saturday went great!  Seven crafters showed up to sell their handmade goods.  We were moved inside Waterside because of the morning rain, but we still got decent foot traffic.  We’re going to look into doing more Trunk Shows with Festevents in the future, so I’ll keep you posted on that.

Our Craft Supply Swap will be Saturday, August 29th from 10am-12pm.  Hopefully we’ll be outdoors under tents for this one!  Please join us for this great opportunity to de-stash and get some new, free supplies!

Craft Supply Swap Rules

This is a freecycle—you may not leave with the exact same dollar value of items that you came in with, but it’s a great way to get rid of supplies you aren’t going to use and get some new supplies for free!

Acceptable supplies include: fabric, notions, buttons, beads, yarn, paint, paper, pens & pencils, art/craft books, and anything else directly related to making art or crafts. ONLY unopened/unused/full containers, no scraps or leftover bits please! Also, this is a swap of new items, no reclaimed or found items please.

You will receive a large or small bag to collect “new” items based on whether you contribute a large or small amount of supplies to the swap. All unclaimed supplies will be donated to charity. You must bring supplies in order to participate.

I hope to see you all there!

-Kristin G.

Hi everyone,

Please email me ASAP if you would like to sell your stuff at the 7 Cities Crafters Trunk Show at Town Point Park on Saturday, August 15th. The hours will most likely be 12-3pm, and they will be setting up the tables, chairs, and tent for us. All we have to do is show up, set up our displays, and sell away! Totally free for us!

Email me at kristin@craftandsewstudio.com if you would like to participate.

Thanks!
-Kristin G.

I wanted to remind everyone of the big event this Saturday, January 10th - the 7 Cities Crafters & Friends Craft Sale at the Suffolk Museum. The event is free to attend and will be open from 10am until 4pm that day. A variety of handmade crafts will be for sale. Stop by and browse and visit with the many talented vendors:

Soraia Gobin
Michele Oxton
Jeannine Peregrine
Vikki Marr
Deborah Johnson
Laura Webb
Kelly Guswiler
Charmaine Panares
Sherry Warren
Kristen Runberg
Lindsay Pless
Patrice Johnson
Tiffani Henry

For more information call the museum at 757-514-7284. Spread the word to your friends.

The museum is located at 118 Bosley Ave. Suffolk, VA 23434. Please visit our forums; maybe you can grab a ride with someone from the beach or Norfolk if you’re not close to Suffolk! Hope to see you there!