by STORMIE MCGEE

There’s something a little different about the 33rd Annual Craftsmen’s Spring Festival. Not to be mistaken with the Craftsmen’s Christmas Festival, the spring edition “…connects the Craftsmen’s Festival with a small antiques and collectibles show,” explained Quincy Scarborough, the event’s coordinator. “We’re going to have at least 25 booths [of antiques and collectibles], maybe more, and we’ll have about 80 booths of arts and crafts.” The Eastern {mosimage}Carolina Craftsmen’s Spring Festival — which will open Sat., March 8 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sun., March 9 from noon to 5 p.m. — is a regional arts and crafts show that is designed to showcase the talents of the region’s many local craftsmen. More than 100 selected craftsmen, artists and collectors from the east coast have reserved booths for this festival. “About a third of the show is going to be new craftsmen and women who’ve never been with us before,” said Scarborough. He says that this is due to burnout that occurs after years of demonstrating your wares on the road. “But we’ll have a little of everything,” he laughed, “We’ve got several artists coming in who’ve been with me for years. One craftsman, by the name of James Parker — retired military — who did our very first show 33 years ago is still with us.” To {mosimage}Scarborough, what makes the Craftsmen’s Festival so unique is that “everything you buy is handmade by the person you’re buying it from, which makes it a little more valuable… and if you ask, they’ll tell you how it’s made.” The hands-on involvement is what makes these events so exciting to shoppers. At the festival, many of the artists and craftsmen will be demonstrating their specialty, and all will be displaying their latest creations and selling their work. There will be a veritable cornucopia of traditional crafts, decorations, home furnishings, antiques and collectibles; and with the exception of the antiques and collectibles, all items sold are handmade by each craftsman participating. The antiques and collectibles show will delight nostalgic shoppers with old furniture, gold and silver, porcelain dolls, rare books, primitives and much more. These items are great gifts for home decorators and treasure hunters alike. So whether you’ve got a weekend to bask in handmade goods and historic relics or you’re just looking for something to do, there is something at the Craftsman’s Festival to interest almost everyone. The 33rd Annual Craftsmen’s Spring Festival, combined with the Fayetteville Antiques and Collectibles Show, is one of the city’s top spring attractions. New exhibitors, new ideas and great original craftsmanship makes the Spring Festival a great family event where you can see original arts and crafts, great gifts, jewelry, collectibles, investments and bargains. “I guarantee you will enjoy this show,” said Scarborough. The Craftsmen’s Festival is open to the public. The daily admission for the two-day cultural and shopping experience is $5.50 for adults, free for children,and free for handicapped visitors. Everyone is welcome to come out and shop from thousands of unique and original handcrafted item and artworks, many of which are designed specifi cally as spring gifts.