ST  BARTHOLOMEW’S  CHRISTMAS  CRAFT  FAIR

SATURDAY 17 NOVEMBER 2012

10.30 am – 2 pm

• Arrangements for this year’s Craft Fair are well under way.  However, you will note that the starting time has been changed to 10.30 am which will give us more time to set up during the morning as time is limited on Friday evening.  We will also concentrate more on lunches, as this year we are conscious that we will not have as many craft items. The space for the “miscellaneous” table has been halved which will enable us to choose quality items to sell rather than have a surplus of items that just take up room.

• Workshops have been held throughout the year and will continue until the craft fair, with the last one being held on Thursday 8 November.  Anyone who wishes to come along with their sewing/knitting/cutting etc is most welcome – these are held during the afternoons of the last Tuesday each month 1.30 – 3.30 in the Community Centre.

We are rather concerned that the workshops have not been as well attended as inthe past and therefore we do not know how many crafts etc are being made “behind the scenes”.  If you are beavering away making things that we do not know about, will you please inform either Denise or Ann as soon as possible so that we have an idea of what to expect.  Maybe you know of someone who has a craft collection of things that they have made and don’t know what to do with and are happy for us to sell them.  We are not inviting other organisations to join us as the Christmas Market is only a few weeks after the craft fair when they will have the opportunity to sell their wares.

• As in previous years, we have been granted permission to display our crafts in the Parish Council window but not until after Remembrance Sunday on 11 November.  Unfortunately this means that they will only be on show for six days.  There is a workshop scheduled for Tuesday 30 October from 1.30 p.m. at Denise’s house (1 School Close) and can we request that everyone who is making items brings along ONE of each design so we can make a note of how many are being made and what to charge.  These single items will then be displayed in the window to advertise what will be available at the craft fair.

Ideas for the various tables so far:

• The café will serve coffee & mincepies from 10.30am until 11.30am and lunches from 11.30am until 1.30pm (the menus for lunch have yet to be chosen).
• We have decided to revert back to a Tombola even though the “prize every time” Christmas Tree was a huge success last year. It was however, a lot of work to wrap 250 presents and we thought that a “prize every time” Tombola for £1 a ticket would generate as much profit with a lot less work.  There will however be a Christmas Tree for the children with 75 stars to pick.  If you or your friends/family can donate towards either of these it will be appreciated, but these prizes must be of good quality and can be anything – unwanted gifts, toiletries, chocolates, jewellery – for either children or adults.  As the donations are received, the presents for the childrens’ tree will be wrapped in Christmas paper to be “plucked” from the tree. There will be boxes in church from mid-October in which to place your donations.
• As in previous years, we will be having a rolling raffle but will only need 7 prizes because of the later starting time.  Hopefully local restaurants/shops will be as generous as in the past with their contributions, but usually we receive very good items that can be used as raffle prizes.  If you know anyone who would like to donate towards the raffle we will be very grateful.  We are not running a children’s rolling raffle as we feel there will be enough going on for them elsewhere.

We appreciate that we are asking you to donate to these activities as well as making wonderful craft items and we thank you all in anticipation of your generosity.

As well as the handmade crafts, there will be the usual tables selling cakes, plants, unwanted good quality “anything”, café, preserves, Christmas items/decorations and hopefully Walter’s

games.  Additional attractions – chocolate fountain, face painting, children’s Tombola. No other organisations have been invited so there will be more room to display our own items.

We have names and contact numbers from previous years but if there is anyone who has not helped before, or knows of someone who would like to help on the day, please let us know so that we can add them to our records.

Phone numbers if you have any queries –  Denise 01422 822998   and  Ann     01422 824375

The Chair of Ripponden Parish Council, Councillor Andrew Naylor and his wife and consort Rachel have been invited to open the Fair and we are hoping for their acceptance.

The next newsletter will be in the middle of October which will contain much more information.