The Goderich Signal-Star, 1970-10-29, Page 13123rd YEAR
Christmas Couiitry Fair
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t
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biggest success
The Christmas Country Fair was just one tremendous success
this year according tethe 50 craftsmen who had booths at the
show.
. Over 2,000 people visited Carlow Hall last Wednesday and
Saturday and milled all through the century -old building.
looking at the hundreds of new and 'exciting ideas exhibited
there.•
The bake table was a huge success. Sales there totalled
e•
ver!
$1,500! That's a lot of pies and cakes and bread!
While there is no report, of course, on the sales on other
items, it is suspected that thousands of dollars worth of
merchandise was carted home by happy shoppers.
There seems to be little doubt now. Christmas Country Fair.
at Carlow has earned the respect of folks in and out of the
district and is officially launched as an annual exercise in
enjoymentl,
gannon
monologueon the bale
The regular meeting of
Dungannon UCW was held on
Tuesday, October 20, with the.
theme "Thanksgiving."
iv1rs: M. Reed opened the
meeting 'leading "The Basque
Sheepherder and the Shepherd
Psalm,'.' ' assisted by Mrs. C.
McClenaghan. Mrs. Reed also
read the story,, "Bread, and
Gravy."
Two readings Were read by
Mrs. C. Blake. One of Edgar
Guest's poems, "Thanksgiving
&Prayer," was read by Mrs. Wm.
Wiggins, followed ,, by silent
The tiny booth upstairs at Christmas Country Fair, Carlow,
4 at which Mrs. Ralph Feltz, Clinton, displayed her hobby —
hand knitting was one of the, most colorful in the show.
The table was always covered with bright hand -knitted
items including decorative novelties ..which caught many
admiring glances. '
The ,,,pretty tea pot covers were knitted poodles in pastel
greens, yellows, blues. °
V "Does a tea cozy actually help to keep the tea warm?"
asked one customer.
"You'd be surprised how it helps," answered Mrs. Feltz.
"And besides that, it makes your tea pot look so pretty." -
The little dolls dressed in fancy woollen dresses had skirts „
which were full enough to pull them out, over and around a
roll of toilet paper to make a • delightful dressing table
ornament. These were the big sellers; according to Mrs. Feltz.
There were more practical items — mittens and slippers, for
instance.
This was Mrs. Feltz' second year at the Christmas Country
Fair. One of the reasons for her success with the crowd was
her interest in customers who asked questions about the craft.
In the above picture, Mrs. Feltz is showing cousins Mary and
Lia Van Diepen how to make pompoms for trimming.
As most Clinton pe ple, Jack Plumtree made a pretty .fine
barber — when that was his trade.
But Jack gave up barbering about six years ago and went
into the antique'; repairing' business in his workshop at the rear
of 84 Albert Street.
"I'd been puttering around at woodworking most of my
life," Jack explained. "I thought I'd give it a try on a full-time
basis."
Jack's business flourished. He's busy for the largest part of
most days just glueing and repairing and rebuilding furniture
' for six antique dealers and quite a few Clintonians.
• But Jack's real bobby is wood -turning —.intricate, fine
woodwork completed on a lathe. His display at the Christmas
Country Fair was a favorite for folks who love the warmth and
. natural color of wood. ,
Jack was showing` toothpick holders,. vases, candlesticks,
picture frames, bowls, decorative pieces — the whole range of
lovely wooden things which can grace a home.
Good walnut — the nicest Wood to. work with, says Jack —
is difficult to find. He likes it to be about four inches thick but
"three-inch thick is about all you can get these days." Usually
the wood is ten or 12'inches wide.
"Wood -turning," explains Jack, "is handwork and machine
work combined. Handwork on a machine, you might say. It
takes lots of practice to get just what -you 'want.' •-
• When the items are turned -out and sanded, a.finish of just
plain bees wax is applied.
"I have used other finishes but bees wax is the best," stated
Jack ppinting to the mellow ,lustre of the objects on the table.
-"Design- is the toughest- part," -noted- Jack. "Most of these
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prayer for leaders in. our
troubled nation. .,
A monologue was presented..
on Supply Work by Mrs. C.
McClenaghan, giving two'
different scenes: packing h box
for a bale -- where anything not
useful -to you can go!, and, in
contrast, unpacking a box at a
'depot — where each article had
been carefully folded'°and was in
very useful condition.
The business meeting then
Was conducted by Mrs. Howard
Johnston, president, and Mrs.
Geo. Errington, secretary.
Seventeen answered the loll
cau. with a, "Thanksgiving
Thought."
A change was noted in the
date for the Agricultural
Banquet to November 4 at
12:30 p.m. Furtherplahs for• "
two wedding 'dinners were made:
All conveners' reports are to
be given at the November
meeting (Tuesday, November 3),
and the election and installation
of officers- -will be at the
December 8 meeting (note:
earlier date).
Flower beds around the
Knox Thankoffering enjoys.
•
ladyspeaker from Lucknow
• The Thankoffering meeting of.
Knox ,Afternoon Auxiliary of
the Women's Missionary Society
was held- October 20 with the
pte"sident; _' Mrs. H. —Rivers,
presiding.
After the opening exercises an
invitation from ' the Seaforth
Auxiliary to .tbei..Thankofferi ng
meeting , October 22 was
extended to the members. -:•
A letter thanking those who
helped inany way, during the
P.Y.P.S. rally was read, and one•
from Toronto stressing the need
for increased support in money
and prayer.
Mrs. H. C. `Knechtel, in charge ,
of devotions, read from the 25th
chapter of St. Matthew's Gospel
and followed with prayer.
Mrs..-J__..Leitch introduced the:..
guest speaker, Mrs. R. G.
Nicholls of Lucknow, who spd1 T
on the theme, `"Who Am I"?
" She began by playing three
Blue Water Chapter OES
has installation night
Blue Water Chapter Order of
the Eastern Star held its•meeting
last . Wednesday • at KI -fox
Presbyterian Church for . the
purpose of installation. _ ,
Miss Roseanne Kreps,was
installed as New Worthy Maron;
Bill Kreps as , Worthy . Patron;
Mary Bourdeau, Ass. Matron;
Wilfred. Dockstader, Ass. Patron.
Others were: Helen Stoll,
'Joan Stiles,' Mary . Henderson
(secretary), Jean Dockstader,
Evelyn Seaman, John Wray,
Fred Minshall, Betty Heylock,
Beaula Long, Dorothy Tideswell,
Mary Wray, Jean Stephens,
Edith Minshall, Allan Stoll.
The immediate Past Matron,
Jean Stephens, and Bill Stephens.'
were presented with a "lovely'
_silver cream and sugar and tray
from the officers.
. Over 150 members attended
the meeting from London,
Nilestown, Exeter, Mitchell,
Blyth, Clinton, Ingersoll,
Strathroy and St. Aarys.
A lovely smorgasbord lunch
was served. Gladys Barwick and
Unice Willis convened the lunch.
Miss Roseanne Kreps, ,new
Worthy Matron, congratulated
Jean Stephens and Bill' Stephen.;
as being chosen to present the
Canadian flag in the Grand
Chapter of Michigan October 13.
Travelling with them were
Dorothy Tideswell, Harry
T i d eswell and Rosemond
Garrett, Clinton.
Also a week previous the
officers - and, members travelled
by bus tom Davies Armada
Chapter, Michigan, where 'they
were . special guests of Davies
Armada Chapter.
The officer of Blue Water
Chapter initiated the Worthy
Matron's daughter of Michigan
. iffto the chapter, as it was
Canadian night in the chapter.
Rebekah Lodge
initiates slate
Initiation was held Tuesday
evening, October 20, of Rebekah
Lodge 89 when Mrs. Vernice
Stanbury was welcomed into the
lodge as a new member.
The initiation was conducted
by Mrs. Edith Craig, past noble
grand, and 'her team in a colorful
ceremony.
Remember, ladies!
Send in your
meeting
reports -
recordings and showing how the
Words of the songs showed the
problem today's youthhas
finding a sense of identity.
" She was fiissisfe f in a . panel
discussion by Mrs: A. H. Erskine
and Mrs. A. Enright, who helped
her answer the question, "Why is
a sense, of a
,identity s muck
harder for today's youth than it
waffrfty, years ago?".
She closed with a" short talk
which was an attempt to -find a
general Christian answer to the
problem of 'a search for identity
in today's world.
Miss L. Macarthur thanked
the speaker for showing the
problems of young people and
how they may' be met.
Two solos by Mrs. Lee
McCallum were an enjoyable
conclusion to the program.
Mrs. Rivers announced that
Miss Ida White has been made
Director of Nulling in Jobat
Hospital, India.
Local A:rt Club
hosting- exhibit
The Goderich..-Art Club held
its monthly_ meeting October 20
at the Studio.
After reports had been read,
President, Miss Mary Howell
announced the imminent arrival
of a travelling exhibition entitled
"Development of Colour in
Western Art" from .- Ontario
Art -Gallery at'Torofto
r
Goderich will be fortunate in
having this educational
exhibition from November 1, to
- 22. It covers painting over a long
period of time from De la Croix
to optical art. The show will be
on view at the studio in Queen
Elizabeth School (formerly St:'
Peters), and an accompaning
film shown at specified intervals.
This exhibition will be open
for public' inspection afternoon
and evening on specific days.
Everyone with an interest in
mart should plan to attend as
some smaller communities°
seldom can 'arrange for such an
informative show.
,church are to be in iprdved, The
cupboards` are to be varned,•
Following the _ Bible .sgetety
report, .a. donation of $10 was
given. Anniversary flowers, were
app'keciat.ed greatly.
Members are reminded to
Ming used stamps as they are
valuable. ..
Rev. C. McClenaghan reported',
for Explorers who will be selling—
calendars;
calendars; and for C.G.I,T. to
make it known thiit all ,girls 12
`years and over are welcome.
Miss Beth McConnell read `an
interesting story, 'For Maggie"
from the Observer. •
Closing prayer of
"Thanksgiving" was offered by
Rev. McClenaghan. •
Lunch was served by the
hostesses, Mrs. J. C. Drennan,
Mrs. Chester Finnigan and Mrs.
Wm. Wiggins.
On the previous Wednesday a
smorgasbord luncheon was
•enjoyed in the Dungannon .UCW,
assembly room at which time
Nile UCW were -special guests.
An interesting; programa was
given, and Mrs. Ross Shielis of
Luckno y gave a most instructive
address; • entitled : "From
Nowhere to Somewhere."
Arthur- Circle---
Thankof#sting
sees slides
The Thankoffering meeting of
the Arthur Circle was held ,
Monday, . October 19 in the
church parlour of. Knox'
Presbyterian Church. The prayer
of invocation was offered by the
president, Lucy Johnston.
• The reports "of the secretary
and, treasurer were read and
approved, Final ' plans were
. formulated for_.the bazaar and
tea 'to be held on `S"aturday,,
November 14 in the Sunday
School atiditoriurri.
The offering was recived by
Ruth Homuth and' Ruth Skeoch.
The Thanksgiving service of
warship was •carried out on the
theme "It is a good thing to. give a
thanks unto the Lord." Psalms
and prayers of Thanksgiving
wete offered by Evelyn Scruton,
Madeleine Edward, Helen'
McManus, Glenda. Salter and
Emily Crew.
Helen McManus introduced •
the --guest_.speakers...Miss,_Clare
McGowan, who _ eptihralled her
listeners with a commentary and.,
slides of• her trip to the Holy
Land. Her charm and humor
added much to her explanation
of. each slide, and a truly
delightful feeding of having been
on the• trip with her remained
with each listener.
Madeleine Edward thanked
Miss McGowan for sharing with
the Group the memories' and
souvenirs of her time spent on
Holy ground. . • .
Following the closing
exercises, lunch was served and a
period of fellowship enjoyed by •
all present:' ..
• Of all the new and wonderful things on display at Christmas
Country Fair this year, perhaps the articles which attracted the
most interest were the apple head dolls.
i "They've not seen them up around here," said Mrs. Hector
Cooke, Kitchener; who makes the quaint little dolls for sale.
."The Mennonites have been making them for years and years," ,
Thle apples are collected about this time of year, according
to Mrs. Cooke. They are peeled, pins are inserted for eyes, the
nose is cut in kind of semi -circle and the mouth is marked.
Then the apples are taken to the basement and placed by the
furnace "to dry._
Every day, Mrs. Cooke goes to the basement and pushes the
eyes and mouth inward and pulls the nose outward, As the
apple dries, the face begins to take shape — full of wrinkles
and giving the impression of old age.
A wire is inserted up one side of the apple core and down
the other. It is to this wire that the body will eventually be
attached. •
When the apples are thoroughly dry — and they must be
' absolutely dry, says Mrs, Cooke, — they are dipped in shellac
to seal them and then, allowed to dry again.
Clothing the dolls is an art in itself. Mrs. Cooke- looks at the
doll's face and decides whether it will be an old lady or an old
man. Then she makes it either an up-to-date senior citizen or a
real oldtime oldtimer.
x - The frocks on the ladies range all the way from smart little
below the knee two-piece suits and a chic little hat to a
full-length gingham dress and, a freshly starched white apron
edged with crochet work. .
The melt are garbed in suits or work clothes. Oahe fellow was
in buckskins and stood high in a tree!
Mrs. Cooke's booth had other exciting notions -- many just
right for Christmas. , •
One delightful, item7was a red and gold hearth basket tied
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jf:a...
The boothat the Christmas Country Fair set up by The
Village Shop, Lucknow; had one of the most exciting
backdrops of the whole show. It certainly set the scene for the
type of merchandise On display. •
One of the •most -intriguing offerings in the booth were
frames to make hanging Victorian larnps.
"It's funny how you stumble onto things," said Reg Jones
who with his wife Carol were in charge of the concession.
"Originally we attempted to sell the ready-made product,".
Reg went on to say. "But they didn't go over so well. Then we
thought we would try to° sell just the, frames and give
customers the directions on how to cover them and string
them up. It worked.like a charm. Now the frames are selling
• like hot cakes." '
It isn't any wonder. With just a bit of material and some
fringe, homemakers can create just exactly the right kind of
accent lamp they hoped for = plus gaining the pleasure of
actually 'creating something that is.stunning and different for
the home.
Mrs. Jones says she loves to "scour around for *antiques"
which were for sale in the booth.- That's her, hobby and'
although many .of the other items' in the booth were
handcrafted in Lucknow, Mrs. Jones first love was for the
collection of antiques on display.
•In the picture above,' Mrs..Helen Scott, Listowel and Mrs.
Roy Vogan, MolesWbrth, shop at The Village Shop with Mrs.
Jones in attendance.'
Leaders' Day for Guide leaders was held Saturday on the shores
of Lake Huron in a cabin near the new Huron Guide Camp on
'Black's Point Road. Discussions centred around guiding
methods and leaders were present from Exeter, Seaforth,
Hensel'', Huron Parti, Clinton, Adastral 'Perk, Goderith and
Brussel. Absent were representatives from Bayfield, Zurich and
Kingsbridge. Pictured here as they talked about nature study
(including evidenceA of beaver working in the Exeter area) are
(left to right) Mrs. Jean Jarvis, Huron Division Camp secretary,
Exeter; Mrs. Maureen Elliott, Goderich; Mrs. Jean .Ain$Jie,
Goderich; Mrs. Hazer{ McCreath, Huron Division Commissioner,
Goderich; and seated, Mrs. Greta Lavender, Huronia Area Camp
Advisor,Alerrsall. (staff photo) �' y
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