| Note: this is an archive of the old 2006 Sale pages. Click Here for the newest pages. |
Kansas Crafts features a wide variety of quality pre-priced handmade items. The list includes decorated clothing (vests and sweatshirts), stuffed toys, special Easter and Christmas items, baby quilts and clothing, quiet books, embroidered tea towels and pillowcases, denim blankets, rugs, pillows, baskets, wood crafts, wreaths, crocheted work, wall hangings, doll clothes and jewelry.
A special section, the Kiddie Corner, makes available items priced at $3 and under. Kids may choose from playdough, wood toys, bug cages, bird houses, puzzles, hair bows and writing kits.
Don't miss Cookbook Nook where old and new cookbooks are available for purchase. Cookbooks may be donated by seeing a church contact person prior to the sale. For more information call Candi Sawatzky, 620-543-6576 or e-mail candicorne@hotmail.com.
Also adding interest at Kansas Crafts is the rug loom from the Et Cetera Shop in action so shoppers can see how rugs are woven.
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Interested in making your own quilts or other crafts? Don't miss the Quilter's Corner in the Meadowlark Building! |
In additional to local crafts, the Kansas MCC Sale brings the world to you through the efforts of:
This year's Mennonite Relief Sale will feature beautiful works of art. While most handicrafts at the sale are from Kansas, you will want to take a walk to the Sunflower South Building on the fairgrounds and shop at Ten Thousand Villages for handicrafts from countries spanning the globe.
Ten Thousand Villages is part of the North American network of 99 stores which leads the fair trade movement with nearly 60 years of experience providing fair wages, working capital and market for artisans in more than 30 Third World countries who would otherwise be unemployed or underemployed. Nguyen Thi Yen is one of these artisans.
For centuries, Vietnamese artisans have been known for their exquisite ceramics. Using traditional techniques at a small family workshop in village, Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Yen creates beautiful, ceramic planters.
To create the planters, she and other artisans working with Viet Lam Co., first put the clay into a round mold and spread the clay around the walls of the mold. Next, artisans place the mold on the rolling table and, with a special piece of machinery, roll the mold in order to make the pot round. Next, artisans take the mold outside and allow the clay inside to dry for about two hours.
After two hours, they take the pot out of the mold and allow it to dry completely. After applying the glaze by hand, the artisans place the pot under the sun to allow the glaze to dry and then place the planter in a wood-fired kiln. Artisans heat the kiln to over 800 degrees Celsius for one day. Then they extinguish the fire and allow the kiln to cool before removing the planters.
Three years ago, Nguyen Thi Yen helped to support her family with odd jobs she found in her village. Today she and her husband have consistent work and receive a fair income through their work with Ten Thousand Villages artisan partner Viet Lam Company. She shares the dreams of many artisans in Vietnam and around the world. Consistent work and a steady income means she and others can continue their traditional arts and provide education and a better life for their families.
Viet Lam Co., contracts orders to family workshops in and around Ho Chi
Minh City. The organization provides piece rate work, materials for production
and payment for labor costs. Additional benefits include interest-free loans
to the artisans for repairing tools and machines, advances for orders and
assistance with development of new designs and products.
By supporting the work of Ten Thousand Villages, local customers can join international trade that benefits both artisans and shoppers. Customers find unique handicrafts from diverse cultures around the world and artisans sell their fairly traded handicrafts to suppliers in the North American marketplace.
--Heidi Huber, Newton Ten Thousand Villages store manager