Central Park welcomes craft show Saturday

Dozens of vendors of handmade goods will descend on Washington this Saturday for the 2011 Craft Show. The event is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Central Park. This is the 23rd year of the event, which is sponsored by the Washington Chamber of Commerce.

There were over 70 craft vendors at the event last year, and Chamber director Tim Coffey expects at least that many at this year?s event.

?The variety of vendors at the craft show is amazing,? Coffey said. ?You will see handmade pencil sets, purses, jewelry, candles, antique dolls and porcelain things.?

In addition to the crafts, there will be plenty of food at the event, so visitors can spend the whole day there.

?It?s going to be a jampacked day,? Coffey said.

Over the years, the Chamber has collected data on how far its vendors have to travel to come to the event.

?Sixty percent of our vendors are from outside the county,? Coffey said. ?Between 20 and 30 percent are from outside the state.?

Coffey said that the reason the craft show attracts so many vendors from outside the area is that its reputation has spread throughout the Midwest.

?We are on the circuit of craft events in the area,? Coffey said. ?One of the things I?ve been told is that we have one of the best organized craft shows in the circuit. The craft show is a point of pride for us. It has become a mini-tourism event.?

Coffey said the craft show has been so successful because of is its longevity and because it is held at a consistent day every year ? the second Saturday in September.