29th Denman Island Christmas Craft Faire:
Wrapped in Rural Spirit By Laura Busheikin
M
y ten year-old daughter still hasn’t forgiven me for the one year we went out of town and missed the Denman Island Christmas Craft Faire.
remains a small, rural community, and the Faire’s warm, down-to-earth atmosphere reflects that. “A lot of the big high-end fairs get so professional it kind of kills the spirit
She’s not alone in her love for this event. Of the 3,000-odd people who visit the fair each year, many have been coming for decades. Denman Craft Faire Coordinator Leslie Dunsmore says she knows people who have been to every single Faire since it was launched 29 years ago – including herself. The biggest draw, of course, is the variety and quality of the wares: pottery, weaving, jewellery, toys, carvings, culinary items, clothing and more. People come to shop, but also to enjoy. Gathered into the 8,300 square feet of two community halls is an array of artistic output that equals several dozen gallery exhibits. There are homemade lunches for sale in both halls and a variety of tempting snacks (authentic poutine, steaming lattes made from locally roasted coffee, fresh-pressed apple juice) at the outdoor booths. There are twinkling lights and sprigs of holly and smiling faces, and there is beauty and colour everywhere you look. The day I call Dunsmore to ask about plans for this year, she’s just gotten off the phone with a journalist from Westworld Magazine, which is featuring the Faire on its list of the 20 best craft fairs in BC. “What makes the fair so successful?” I ask her. “I can only give you my theories,” she says as a disclaimer. But she’s well-placed to have an insight: the multi-talented Dunsmore has organized this event for 28 of its 29 years and participated as a vendor, as well as organizing the Denman Home & Garden Tour for many years. Dunsmore sums up the Denman Craft Faire’s secret of success in two words: quality and community. “Since the 1970s, Denman Island has become an enclave for artists of all sorts. They pride themselves on the high quality of their work,” says Dunsmore. At the same time, Denman 6
/ December 2010
shoppers, being able to buy something directly from the person who made it is both fun and meaningful. I ask Dunsmore to highlight a couple of artists. “Well, that’s hard, but there’s a wonderful woodworker, Bruce Matthews, who makes beautiful lathed bowls and hand-crafted wooden pens. How nice is it to pick up a pen and feel the warmth of wood in your hand?” she asks rhetorically. “We’re the only craft fair he does, so this is a rare opportunity. “And glass artist John Harned’s work is astounding. He has truly mastered his craft. He sells these exquisite small dishes for serving chocolates and snacks, for just $10 – I don’t know how he even buys material for that amount. And next to that you might see a highly complex sunflower image on a plate that has taken him five days to craft. It’s a plate but you can put it on the wall and call a painting.”
“Sea Mask” by Scott Beardsley • a Fireweed photo in the air. We have kept both – the homey feeling and the top quality of the work. “Also, the Faire is an outing, a great day or weekend trip. You come over on the ferry; it’s quaint and beautiful and feels like a community. You can feel the huge level of local support for the arts. Also you see the support for the non-profits who sell raffle tickets, food and other fundraisers. You really get the feel that this is a community in the old-fashioned sense of the word,” she says. As well, people appreciate the old-fashioned approach to shopping, says Dunsmore. “In typical gift shopping, you go out to a big centre and look for the best bargain. You generally have no idea where it was made or by who. At the Craft Faire, everything you buy has the added value of relationship,” says Dunsmore. Artisans at the Faire are required to staff their own tables; for
I ask my daughter about her favourites: “I like the woman who makes the felt animals [Christiane Brown] and last year I really liked Cathy Stoyko’s table [jewellery and funky/comfy clothes] and I always like to see what’s at the kids’ table…I just like all of it!” This year she is planning to attend on both days – perhaps to make up for that one lost year. The Denman Island Christmas Craft Faire takes place Saturday, December 4th, and Sunday, December 5th, from 10am to 4pm at the Denman Community Hall and the Seniors’ Hall. Visitors from Vancouver Island are encouraged to leave their cars at the Buckley Bay Ferry Terminal and walk onto the ferry. From the Denman terminal, it’s a short walk up the hill to the site, or take the Faire’s shuttle service which runs continually from the ferry to the Faire.
Shopping tip from Leslie Dunsmore, Faire Coordinator: If you’d like a less
crowded shopping experience, come on Sunday, which is consistently less busy. It’s not true that you have to arrive early to get the ‘best stuff’, she says. The exhibitors have generally been working for months to build up inventory for the holiday season and have plenty of merchandise on hand. ~