Once located in the West Custer County Library community room and then in the Cliff Lanes conference room, the Friends of the Library Arts and Crafts Fair has grown over the past 30 years to host more than two dozen local artists at the Hope Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall. 25 percent of every purchase from ceramics to jewelry, soaps and candles to handmade stationery, wood crafts to knit, sewn, and quilted items, to the books of four local authors, goes to support the West Custer County Library.
Met at the front door by a table of cheerful volunteers and years worth of collected wooden shopping baskets, visitors local to Custer County, summer residents, and those simply passing through enjoyed the abundance of artistic Valley talent this past weekend, July 17, 18, and 19.
Diane Dudley, one of the many volunteers for the Friends of the Library organization, calls herself a “blatherskite – it means talk a lot and say nothing,” Dudley cheerfully said amid laughter. Whether strolling through the fair, conversing with guests or artists, Dudley was “the woman to talk to,” echoed Terri Kerr and Ann Robey, both fellow volunteers.
Unlike other artisan fairs and markets, the Friends of the Library Arts and Crafts Fair is free to each artist – there is no required booth fee, which is a standard cost among many festivals, said Meredith Ott, one of the jewelers at the fair. “That is a big difference… most craft fairs, you have to pay for your table, and at most craft fairs, you have to stay by your crafts,” Dudley explains. “Here, you can [leave], and you can rely on us to fluff your table or refill it if you’ve provided us with instructions.”
“We will rearrange things to make it continuously look good,” Dudley said. “It’s crafter friendly.”
There are many more sellers and artists showcasing and selling their work during the Christmas Arts and Crafts Fair, which “is crowded with crafters,” Kerr explains. For both events, there is a running list of artists from year to year. “We advertise in the newspaper. We advertise at the library. We advertise on the radio. We have our own Facebook page,” Dudley said. And word of mouth is another important way of finding local artists, not just from the Valley but from surrounding towns. Yet, above all else, the local artistic community is tight-knit.
Ott, owner and designer of “The Pink Armadillo Hand Made Jewelry,” tended to her table in the back right corner of the church’s hall. Having spent much of her time attending different gem and mineral trade shows in search of materials, Ott said she can tell you about 80% of the gems, beads, and stones used for her perfectly arranged table of bracelets and necklaces. “I try to get more knowledgeable about the stones…and you know, just learn more,” Ott said.
While Ott has been making jewelry for the last 50 years, Lisa Lichter began repurposing glass into sculptures and wall hangings just last year. She came across an artist repurposing seashells into art using epoxy and thought, “Wait a minute, I got enough bottles in this town and boards and old stuff and things in my yard and in my workshop that I can do this, so I started that way,” Lichter said. So, using discarded alcohol bottles from the recycling bin in the Altitude Community Fitness parking lot and unwanted jewelry, her mission of making art out of unwanted and repurposed objects is evident. She prices it with “the value of [her] heart, because you know, if you love it, it’s going to go,” Lichter added.
Courtney Miller, Gerri Duke, Nancy Oswald, and Bill Christie, each a local author to the Valley, shared their work this past weekend as well. With their books arranged neatly on their shared tables, each of them was quick to share the uniqueness of their writerly voices and processes. Notably, Christie laughed while speaking about his “midnight mental meanderings” – moments of epiphany when he will be lying in bed and the next scene or chapter of his book will pop into his head and an “ah ha” midnight moment will occur.
If you missed this past weekend’s Friends of the Library Arts and Crafts Fair, the Christmas fair will be December 4, 5, and 6 and will be “twice as big,” one of the volunteers remarks. Be sure to converse with Dudley, Kerr, Robey, and every volunteer, artist, and author. You will most certainly learn something new. Additionally, the Friends of the Library organization is dedicated to funding and supporting the West Custer County Library with purchases for books, DVDs, magazines, library courier services, and programs.
You can follow the Custer County Friends of the Library Facebook page to keep up to date with the Arts and Crafts Fair.
– Brett LeVan
