Something different this time. As you may know, the Rutland Herald has several associated publications, among them the Rutland Business Journal, for which I also write. Recently, I got three articles in too late for the publication schedule, so they won't run with the upcoming holiday special. But I want the businesses I talked with to get some exposure, with the permission of my editors, I'm publishing the three pieces on this blog. SHOP LOCAL!
HOLIDAY ITEMS MADE LOCALLY AS WELL
There’s nothing that spoils a Christmas season gift quite like having the recipient turn it over and find a little oval label saying it was made halfway around the world and probably where it gets very hot.
On the other hand, there are all sorts of reasons for buying gifts, ornaments, and other holiday items made in Rutland County, or at least in Vermont. The local food movement has shown the way for local handicrafts to thrive as well.
This month and next, numerous towns will feature craft shows, bazaars, and other festive occasions at which green and red will be the predominant colors. Artisans will exhibit at studios and galleries.
A locally grown tree, harvested and brought home by the family, is a well-known special treat. So is going to a show or store and finding something locally made, whether an indoor ornament or an outdoor decoration or a gift—that is worthy of becoming a regular part of the family tradition.
And don’t neglect Hanukkah in that regard. There’s no law against kids who aren’t Jewish learning that play that game with the dreidl, and what it signifies, or finding a source of local candles to light in a series in honor of the original Hanukkah miracle.
To guide your buying expeditions, don’t forget the Rutland Region Chamber of Commerce’s Calendar of Events (go to www.rutlandvermont.com then click on Calendar of Events, which is on the front page). The Chamber puts a lot of effort into compiling the most complete listing possible of area happenings, including fairs and bazaars.
Many of those little community and church and farmers’ market and organizational chances to get unique local items will appear there later in the year, and some are posted already.
Don’t neglect the November listings; fortunately, the event organizers realize that if they all take place close to Christmas, each will see fewer visitors.
Remember, if you’re planning such a sale, send the Chamber your information. The Mount Hollyday Craft Fair, Dec. 8 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the elementary school, was missing from the Calendar of Events, as of mid-October.
While you’re checking online, take note of the many church and community organization suppers offered at that time. These fundraisers are known to many as especially good feeds, since the local cooks know that everyone else will be looking at what they brought, and no one wants to deliver something second-rate. Shop locally, then eat locally—a perfect set-up.
In anticipation of that season of strong community spirit, we have been looking around for good examples of locally made holiday season items. We found several at Pittsford’s Homegrown and Handmade Fair, which got a head start by taking place on Saturday, Sept. 29.
The Crafts By Home Shop in Rutland was represented on Pittsford’s village green, with 12-year proprietors Earl and Janet Laviana occupying the lawn chairs by the tent. Earl demonstrated his talents as a wooden toy-maker by showing off his “clapping horse,” a small-scale rocking horse with a uniquely noisy gait.
Wagons, boats and more were “all made of Vermont pine,” he said. “We usually have a lot more” as the giving season arrives,” he added.
Warm winter clothing? Sherri Geiner of Mount Holly was on hand to show people her “Sherriations.”
One that we found particularly ingenious was her fleece pullover that opens up to become a blanket. There was even a front zip pocket in which to keep things warm (like maybe a digital photographer’s batteries?).
J.J.’s Jewels, a Pittsford operation, was tended by John Jackson and Robin Rowe. “Beauty with a purpose,” she called his colorful works, which he said would include a lot more Christmas charms and some angels as time went on.
Now listen to this, because you won’t find better statements of what it means to buy locally.
“We try to keep all our prices so everybody can have something nice,” she said. He went on from there, pointing out that if something breaks, “I’m not too far away.”
The area’s galleries are good places for prospecting. At Center Street Artisans, along with all the fine furniture, we found several members whose creations could easily be turned to holiday uses.
Rather than buying mass-produced Christmas cards, you could look into the work of Evelyn Powsley of Rutland, whose cut-paper cards are already selling as wedding pieces. Rather than put that “good things come in small packages” gift into a cardboard box and try to jazz it up with wrapping paper, how about one of T. Breeze Verdant’s wooden boxes with inlaid landscapes? (Okay, he’s not strictly local, but he’s from Vermont and he exhibits locally.)
Linda Evans of East Clarendon does etched slate tiles, and anyone from western Rutland County knows what a big part of the area’s history slate has been. And though they aren’t strictly Christmas-y, Rutland artist Darlene Gregory’s fantasy world pieces could synchronize with the season beautifully.
At the Farrow Gallery in Castleton, which features the works of sculpture Patrick Farrow and his painter-visual arts wife Susan Farrow, they send out a pictorial list of items in advance of each Christmas season, knowing that former buyers want to see what they have. Two of Patrick’s often whimsical pieces of sculptural jewelry addresses two themes with which this holiday-oriented piece will end: a mother and her baby, and a dove that signifies hopes of peace on earth.
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