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The Biggest Little Craft Show in Saskatchewan hosts another successful event

Carlyle welcomed large crowds on Saturday, Sept. 19, and Sunday, Sept. 20, to this year’s 29 th Homespun Craft Show and Sale at the local rink.
Homespun

                Carlyle welcomed large crowds on Saturday, Sept. 19, and Sunday, Sept. 20, to this year’s 29th Homespun Craft Show and Sale at the local rink. Additionally the 13th Annual Quilt Show, held in conjunction with Homespun, was hosted at the Carlyle Memorial Hall.

                This year’s new Chair of the Homespun board, Nicole Currie, said, “Everything went good. We had amazing volunteers who helped us out because without them nothing would run smoothly and the exhibitors that came commented on how wonderful Homespun is and how welcoming and friendly our community is.”

                “I had a lot to learn this year and I always had a lot of respect for Judy [Riddell], but to go and do what she did, I have that much more for her now, she made it look simple.”

                In total there are nine members on the board which oversees both Homespun and the Quilt Show.

                Homespun’s slogan, “The ‘Biggest Little Craft Show in Saskatchewan’” rang true as approximately 3,000 people were welcomed to the show, which featured 72 vendors from near and far.

                Although the majority were from the Prairie Provinces, Michaud Toys of Jarvis, ON, have attended as vendors for eight years and really enjoy what Homespun offers.

                “I always do well here,” the Michaud Toys vendor explained. “We have handmade toys by three brothers in Ontario, and you can get all the old classics. I think people here particularly enjoy these game boards because of those long Saskatchewan winters, they’re great for playing good games with friends and families.

                Laurie Kitsch, The Cookie Lady, from Pilot Butte arrived with cookies, tarts, and brownies to Homespun, although she bakes much more.

                “I’ve been doing this for over 20 years,” Kitsch explained. “I really liked baking, so I decided to start baking and selling it.”

                “My favourite thing to do is icing cookies. I love it. I’ll ice 4,000 cookies at a time.”

                Kitsch added that attending such shows as Homespun and other craft shows has become something fun for her husband and her to do. Although her husband was at the Regina’s Farmers Market, while she was in Carlyle, she explained, “A lot of the same vendors go to the same craft shows, so you start getting to know each other and if you are in trouble they will give you a ride or if you left something at home and they have an extra they’ll help you.”

                One of the most popular vendors to come back time and again is Geneane Feland with Bells Berry Inc. which creates Redneck Caviar.

                “We love the Carlyle show,” she exclaimed. “We love Saskatchewan in general, but Carlyle is so good to us.”

                Originally from the Pierson/Gainsborough area Feland has ties to small town Saskatchewan although now she calls Brookdale, MB, home.

                “The recipe is my mother’s from years ago,” Feland explained. “It looks like red caviar, there’s no fish in it though, and it’s quite expensive to make.”

                Bells Berry Inc. is celebrating 10 years as a business and in honour of that they created “Hotter,” a spicier version of the red pepper relish so many people have come to love.

                “There were job cuts at work and my hours were cut back,” Feland explained of how she created the business. “I was always making the product to take to Christmas parties or I’d serve Mom’s red pepper relish when people came over, they always asked for the recipe or told me they would buy it if I made it.”

                “My girl friend with Patti Cakes, she’s here this weekend too, encouraged me to try selling it. So I applied for a government grant in Manitoba and scaled up my operations. My mom would spend all day in the kitchen to make 10 baby food jars of it. I now go through 500 kg of peppers in a day and make 68 jars.”

                The first year Feland went to smaller shows, mostly in her local area. She decided that because the product sold quite well that she would travel a little further and attend larger shows.

                “This is my ninth show here and we’ve got customers now that come to find us asking for three, six, or a dozen jars at a time,” Feland said. “We really appreciate those repeat customers and the new ones we get to meet.”

                “Homespun is great,” she added. “There’s always amazing food being served at the concession and they offer hostess services which we don’t find anywhere else.”

                Next year will be Homespun’s 30th anniversary and Currie says, “We’re getting ideas ready for what we can do.”

                Over the years Homespun has given to the Carlyle Leisure Complex, Library, Sports Arena, Gordon F. Kells, Lions Walking Path, Food Bank, Memorial Hall, Museum, Carlyle Elementary, Golf Course, Cornerstone Family Youth, and Arcola Rink totalling $127,250 since its inception and continues to give to the local community.