BRATTLEBORO — Cherry Street Artisans announce the group's fifth annual Holiday Sale & Café, a community oriented, family-friendly holiday fair, to be held Saturday, Dec. 1, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 2, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., at 44 Cherry St. off Maple Street near the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and Esteyville.
The sale showcases the work of 11 professional artisans, eight family members and two chefs. Collectively, they have designed a unique and festive emporium, taking place in the beautiful Victorian home of founding member Judy Zemel.
Artisans are all in attendance at the event, offering a direct connection with the public in a comfortable, fun setting, with enough time to suit visitors' schedules. The Cherry Street Artisans all have a rich history of creating fine craft, and love offering it with good food, music, and community spirit. Much of the work offered is unique to the event.
Fair highlights
This year, the Café welcomes baker Kris McDermet, who is set to provide her gourmet desserts. The Café will see the return of Aew Ladd and her Thai fare. The event Saturday evening takes on the air of a bistro, with live music from 6 to 9 p.m. Several performances are slated, with host Teta Hilsdon and musical guests including Singcrony, a female a cappella quartet with their seasoned blend of swing, jazz, and doo-wop tunes in tight, four-part harmony.
Some of the participating artisans have been friends and colleagues for more than 30 years. There are four mother-daughter pairs and one grandmother-mother-granddaughter trio.
New artisan David Schoales joins the group this year. He makes a line of hardwood products noted for their sensual feel, gorgeous grain patterns, and durability. He creates cutting boards and kitchen implements from Vermont hardwoods, especially Bird's Eye Maple, Black Walnut, and Black Birch. David also builds cedar garden furniture and trellises. He lives in West Brattleboro and sells his work at area farmers' markets.
Baker Kris McDermet also joins the group for the first time, and she will show a few of her rugs that have the unusual combination of hooking and braiding. She loves the textural differences of the two early American crafts complimenting each other, the vivid colors of using hand dyed wool and silk together, and the endless possibilities of designs.
Josh and Marta Bernbaum make unique glass work in their studio in West Brattleboro. They will again have their ornaments, which were popular at the previous year's shows, and will offer tumblers and other smaller functional vessels, ideal for gifts. Both Josh and Marta's work may be seen on their website, www.jmbglass.com. Marta's mother, Cher Jones, will once again offer felted animals.
Pamela Cubbage taught herself to knit as a teenager, accidentally turning her first sock into a Christmas stocking. She's been knitting whimsical stockings ever since, some of which will make an appearance at Cherry Street. She will also bring her hats, hand-knitted in bright colors, as well as pot holders and napkins sewn with beautiful vegetable and fruit prints. Pamela's mother, Connie Cubbage, will again offer her handmade notecards.
Teta Hilsdon works with high-fired stoneware thrown on the wheel. Hailing from a family of craftswomen and engineers, she is attracted to functional art, and will offer a variety of carved and glazed bowls and mugs in strong, earthy colors. A co-founder of the Brattleboro Clayworks in 1983, Hilsdon now does pottery alongside full-time work at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center.
Hilsdon says her mother, Eileen, inspired her through her own creativity: making music, sewing, crocheting. At age 92, she still gets excited about new quilting patterns that she can't wait to try out. Eileen will have quilted and crocheted items for sale at Cherry Street.
More information on Teta Hilsdon's work is available at www.tetahilsdon.com.
Patricia Johnson has been a bookbinder for more than 30 years, and is always reinventing her craft and art. From traditional books and boxes, to more innovative mobile structures, she uses found objects and original paste papers to complete her books. New this year is a line of Eloise Twilight Delights, a range of original unique earrings, market bags, and other gift items.
Ladd will show her woven scarves in addition to offering her wonderful Thai food in the café. She was born and raised in Thailand in a family and community of weavers. In her weaving, she enjoys experimenting with varying patterns and colors, using fine natural fibers of cotton and tencel. She has lived in Vermont for more than 20 years.
Naomi Lindenfeld's colored porcelain pieces reflect her love of dance and patterns found in nature. Her flowing, colorful designs have a liquid, tactile quality. Since 1983 she has been refining a technique of staining clay with metallic oxides, then layering, and carving the soft clay to create patterns. She has created a new line of dishes, trivets and wall pieces with leaf patterns. Images of her pottery can be seen at www.naomilindenfeld.com.
Jane Viking Swanson creates fine lace ornaments. Her love of fiber arts led her to lace making in the 1980s, with handmade Battenberg lace, and cutwork lace on the sewing machine her specialties. She loves bringing these laces to the 21st century with her own designs and recreations of vintage patterns. Swanson is honored to follow in the footsteps of the wild women of 1900.
Ellen Troy's one-of-a-kind beaded jewelry is colorful and elegant. For the past 30 years, she has worked as a graphic designer and fiber artist, a background she considers a real asset in her use of color for her beadwork. She is fascinated with the mosaic quality of beading with how the build-up of beads can subtly or dramatically form larger patterns. Ellen's husband, Wayne Troy, will offer cork trivets and coasters.
Zemel is a retired textile artisan known for her sensuous hand woven, hand dyed rayon chenille scarves and clothing. More recently, she has been printing and painting on linen napkins, silk scarves and cotton handkerchiefs; all fabrics that carry color in a very alive way. She also makes necklaces, earrings, and bracelets using crystal and glass beads, another manifestation of her love of color.
This year, her new work is about plants and pottery. Also new this year, her family will offer handmade creations and will provide fun and ruckus in the former sale room. There are two of Judy's daughters: Nina Huld Coleman, with a holiday candleholder-making activity for visitors; and Lucy Myles Billings, with handmade soap; granddaughter Ruby Lou Coleman, age 7, will offer her surprisingly delightful hand-dyed washcloths and dish towels; and son Kaj Huld will show his wood carvings.
For more information, visit CherryStreetArtisans.com or Facebook.com/CherryStreetArtisans, or call 802-254-3530 or email naomilin@sover.net.