Nov 22, 2002 By Cindy Ekas-Brown 6 min read

A year later, the art and craft show found its current location at the earth-sheltered home of Scott and Barbara Campbell on Grindstone Road. “Charlotte’s original idea of displaying quality art has prevailed to this day,” Rankin said. “We have a following of people, who attend the show every year because they really enjoy it. They look forward to the show because they can find unique Christmas gifts that they wouldn’t be able to find any where else.”

This year’s event will feature 13 local artists, including two new artists, who have been invited to join the juried show.

Bill Evans of Low Hill, a wood carver whose specialty is hand-carved and elongated Santas created from tree trunks, candle holders, wall plaques, rolling pins and other holiday kitchen utensils, will participate in the show for the first time this year.

During a recent interview at Campbell’s home, Evans said he began his wood carving art when he was only 7 years old.

As a child, Evans spent weekends and summers at his grandparent’s farm, which is located near Ten Mile Creek in the Fredericktown area. His step-grandfather, William Conrad, taught him how to carve wood with a penknife while they were fishing at the creek.

“We would carve faces on sticks, and then use them as walking sticks,” Evans said. “I learned how to carve the hard way with a penknife.”

After learning how to carve, Evans spent the next four decades perfecting his skill. He worked for more than 20 years in upper management at a company located in the state of California before he moved back to the area several years ago. The 54-year-old man, who is now retired, makes and sells his painted wooden Santas on a full-time basis. A small Santa can sell for $24, and a large 3- or 4-foot-high Santa can cost as much as $82.

“If it’s wood, I will carve it,” he said. “I can carve about 1,100 Santas a year. Of those Santas, there are only about seven or eight of them that I can’t sell because I made too many mistakes. My wife, Bernadette, tells me which ones aren’t suitable to sell. The Santas I can’t sell become Christmas presents for my friends and relatives.”

Evans explained that he uses as many as a dozen different types of wood to carve his wooden crafts. The rough-cut shape is cut with a band saw, and the edges of the wood are rounded with a sanding tool. He carves the intricate details like the wrinkles on the face and the lines in the beard into each piece with a variety of knives and gouges, ranging from extremely small and extending up to a foot in length.

After the Santas have been carved, Evans said he spends many hours painting them to produce his final creation.

“In some cases, it takes longer to paint the Santas than it does to carve them,” he said. “I try to brush the paint along the edges so they look natural when people display them in their homes because they don’t always have adequate lighting for display purposes.”

Rankin found out about the wooden Santas that Evans makes one day when she was visiting one of his neighbors.

“Bill’s neighbor had these gorgeous wooden Santas sitting on her fireplace mantel, and I asked her where she got them,” Rankin said. “She told me that her neighbor made them. That’s really how we find out about crafters. It’s a network of friends, and we’re always looking for quality craft people to include in our show.”

Rankin, who does rug hooking, said she first learned the craft in 1964 when she took lessons from the Pittsburgh Arts & Crafts Guild. She took time out from her hobby to raise four children and then returned to it again in the 1980s. She does framed artwork, chair seats and Christmas wall hangings and ornaments.

Her daughter, Rebecca Rankin of Washington, who does watercolors, calligraphy and applique felt Christmas stockings, has been involved with the Holiday Treasures show since it first began 20 years ago.

Valerie Gmutza of the California area said she has been doing counted cross-stitch since she was about 9 years old. Her hobby first began when her grandmother, the late Jane Croft, taught her how to embroider intricate designs on pillowcases.

Gmutza previously worked as a store manager, but she lost her position when the store closed. Because she no longer works at the store, she now has more time to devote to her hobby. Her hand embroidered items range in price from $3.50 for a small item to as much $50 for a large piece that she spends days working to complete.

“It’s very time consuming to do cross stitch,” she said. “One piece will take me as long as two or three days to finish because I can only work on it so long before I have to put it down. I try to work on my cross-stitch two or three hours at a time. It’s easier to do during the day because the light it better. I can only work on it so long before my eyes give out on me.”

The other artists featured in the show and their specialties include:

( Jody Best of Confluence, wrought-iron sculpture, fireplace accessories and small gifts

( Karen Check of New Salem, painted folk art on wooden items such as old sleds

( Kay Gammon of Brownsville, stenciling, stationary and painted colonial floor cloths

( Joyce Lynn Langley of Uniontown, stuffed animals

( Nancy Mucci of Uniontown, soft sculpture

( Kitty Siefert and James Tomasek of Hopwood, handmade baskets, including the Nantucket lightship style.

Handmade Christmas ornaments and gourmet food made by the artists will also be available during the event.

“Each crafter has a specialty dish that they make for the show every year,” Barbara Rankin said. “We make breads, cookies, jellies and other items that we offer during the craft show. We also sell gift breads and other specialty foods.

“Everybody works all year long just to get ready for the show,” she added. “After it’s over, we’re exhausted because of all of the time that we spend preparing for it.”

Samples of the arts and crafts that will be sold at the Holiday Treasures show will be displayed at Citizens Library, 55 College St., Washington, where Rebecca Rankin is employed as the Children’s Department Head.

“People, who want a preview of what’s going to be available at the craft show, can come to the library and see the display that we have,” she said. “Then, they will know what to expect during the show.”