Wednesday, May 20, 2009

The Oregon Convention Craft Show

By Rick Amorey

Different groups, including some guilds, assemble some crafts of all shapes and styles. This is was the collection of crafts shows at the Oregon convention is. You'll be able to see all sorts of pottery, multitudes of handcrafted jewelry, delicately woven fabrics, glass-blown art, and a whole plethora of other things that escape me for now.

A vendor here may be less than productive. And apparently, we weren't alone in this theory, as a lot of people thought so, too; but every which way you looked, there were things being bought. The craftspeople I had the chance to interact with said that they expected this year's sales to be down because of the recession. But, on this Saturday, everyone did pretty good business that was at par with the previous year. Everyone ended up satisfied.

I am not exactly an avid shopper, so wandering around the booths under normal circumstances should not be attractive at all to me. That's why it's interesting to note that I've been a regular of this event for about a decade now. Why? It seems that it has something to do with the growing appreciation for the crafts themselves; something about the chain of the basic material to the talented hands that shape them appeals to me.

Various rooms of beautiful crafts both simple and complex engage the eye. I find myself tending towards certain items - bowls, glass platters, a pair of earrings for Mother's Day - all of them weigh in my mind. The balance of the material with the creativity of the craftsperson astounds me. And of course, I wonder how such items will be useful at home as well.

I like the prices of the products, too; yet another reason why I like attending these events. A lot of them are cheaper than what you're likely to find in established shops. I've said before that I'm not a fan of shopping, so I will probably not be the best judge for these things. But, even so, I like spending my money this way.

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