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With Nod to Frank Lloyd Wright / Robert Frost

Edited By Madelyn Miller, the TravelLady

Vermont Companies Handcraft Fine Furniture For Display Sept. 30 - Oct. 1 in Woodstock, VT At 3rd Annual Vermont Fine Furniture & Woodworking Festival

The designs of over 30 companies  will be displayed Sept. 30-Oct. 1 during the 3rd Annual Vermont Fine Furniture & Woodworking Festival being held over two days at Woodstock, VT's Union Arena.

The Festival showcases the artistry and hand-crafting skills of creating furniture in a centuries-old tradition that includes more emphasis on the schooled hand and eye and less on technology and industrial machinery.

The Festival coincides with the crescendo called leaf-peeping season in the Green Mountains and expects to draw hundreds of visitors who are shopping for Christmas, enjoying a family outing or simply admiring the artistry on display. Guests of Benchmark Inns of Woodstock will receive complimentary tickets to the Festival. (See www.benchmarkinns.com)

In addition to displaying some of the finest hand-crafted furniture created in the United States, the Festival will be an opportunity for guests to enjoy live music throughout the day plus the fast-becoming-legendary-cuisine of  Travelin' Willy B's, an outdoor barbeque based in Bethel, VT. The Woodstock Garden Club will provide floral arrangements as will several regional garden supply companies.

Live demonstrations include spring pole lathe turning, how to sharpen tools, and techniques for selecting and applying appropriate fabrics for antique furniture.

The events at the Union Arena are from 10am - 6 p.m. Saturday and 11 am to 4 pm Sunday. Admission is $5 per individual and $10 per family (two or more). A free shuttle will take visitors between the Arena and the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller-National-Historical Park for activities there.

Forest to Furniture
Partnership with Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park

In addition to exhibits and displays at Woodstock's Union Arena, there will be an opportunity to visit Vermont's first National Park.  The 550-acre park demonstrates a model of land stewardship continuing a tradition of sustainable forestry.  Visitors can participate in programs highlighting connections between sustaining a healthy forest and wood products that promote conservation. Activities (free) include, among others, ecologist-led forest walks, viewing a portable sawmill in action and how woodcrafters do their work and riding a horse drawn wagon though the forest.

Admission is free for both days at the park.  The park is open from 10am until 5pm

In addition to exhibits and displays at Woodstock's Union Arena, there will be an opportunity to visit Vermont's first National Park.  The 550-acre park demonstrates a model of land stewardship continuing a tradition of sustainable forestry.  Visitors can participate in programs highlighting connections between sustaining a healthy forest and wood products that promote conservation. Activities (free) include, among others, ecologist-led forest walks, viewing a portable sawmill in action and how woodcrafters do their work and riding a horse drawn wagon though the forest.

Festival sponsors are the Vermont Wood Manufacturers Assn. (VWMA) and the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park

VWMA President Mike Rainville notes that the furniture makers represent traditional skill sets and values.

"In a time when assembly line factories in Asia are churning out furniture by the container load, Vermonters have chosen a different path: to stick with the woodworking traditions of fine craftsmanship, respect for the environment, and a commitment to excellence," he says.

For more information and a schedule of events please see www.vermontwood.org and www.nps.gov/mabi

READ MORE ABOUT VERMONT

THE THIRTEEN COLONIES
Travel Historic America
Fodor's
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Hidden New England
Including Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont
Ulysses Press
www.ulyssespress.com

Madelyn Miller is a writer and web entrepreneur who writes for www.travellady.com
www.carladynews.com, www.cocktailatlas.com, www.chocolateatlas.com, www.teaAtlas.com  and other publications.

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