Unique gifts abound at Sugarplum Artisan Market
Santa and his elves aren’t the only ones working year-round to prepare for the holidays. The members of the Upper St. Clair League for the Arts are crafting to create one-of-a-kind pieces for the Sugarplum Artisan Market, Nov. 10-15, at the McLaughlin Run Activity Center.
Looking for something whimsical, unique, funky or traditional? The Sugarplum Market might have that certain item to please the toughest person on your list, and you won’t have to pay for shipping. “We work to offer something for everyone and bring to you the finest local craftsmanship that we can find,” Vi Laux, president of the Upper St. Clair League for the Arts, said.
The league will transform the McLaughlin Run Activity Center into a boutique and artist gallery filled with hundreds of handmade items crafted by artisans from the South Hills. Admission is free.
“We start planning for the next year as soon as Sugarplum is over,” said Laux, a glass artist. She and fellow artist and Sugarplum planner Mimi Kernan immediately begin brainstorming for next year’s show.
Now in its 46th year, more than 35 artists will participate in the juried show. Expect to find hand-carved wood art, upscale vintage jewelry, wire-wrapped serving utensils, fused glass, fabric purses, wreaths, fashion accessories made of felted wool, velvet pumpkins, glass and fabric trees, polymer clay, knitted items, calendars, bookmarks, journals, whimsical pottery, ornaments, painted gourds, woven mats, wool accessories, watercolors, felted toys, knitted items, greeting cards, gnomes, paintings, photography and so much more.
At 95, Carol Gilfillan said she is probably the oldest and longest participating artist. “I call myself a compulsive doer. I’m always knitting or doing something,” said Gilfillan, who received her bachelor’s of fine arts from Beaver College outside of Philadelphia (now Arcadia University) in 1949. “There were 600 women,” Gilfillan recalls. “I majored in fashion illustration. At the time, newspapers had (fashion) drawings instead of photos, and that was my major,” she said. She graduated and had a job with Kaufmann’s department store. “The first day I was going to work, there was a strike, coal or steel or something, and Kaufmann’s said, ‘we are sorry, we aren’t hiring anyone.’ So I never really worked in it. I’ve always been a freelance person.”
Gilfillan has belonged to other art leagues and participated in many art shows through the years. A watercolor artist, she moved into pottery and fiber art after tiring of watercolors. “I guess I was looking for something else, and I got into fiber and ceramics, which I still do.”
Gilfillan leads a pottery class at Friendship Village, and she creates colorful fabric purses from men’s ties, which have been very popular, she said.
She was in charge of the Sugarplum market for a time until the show grew and Laux took the helm. “She’s a display person,” said Gilfillan. “She’s done a marvelous job. Each year, it’s grown, and there’s a larger number of artists each year. We are always searching for new talent.,” Laux said. “And our artists create new items each year as well as return with popular selling items.”
The league seeks to help young artists as well. Each year, raffle proceeds and a portion of the proceeds from the artist’s sales go toward a scholarship for a senior pursuing art. Last year $2,000 was awarded to an Upper St. Clair student.
Sugarplum began 46 years ago with a group of local artists in Upper St. Clair who decided they wanted to sell crafts at Christmas, Laux said. The show started first in homes and then moved to the township’s library before calling the former USC recreation center, known as the McLaughlin Run Activity Center, home.
For the third year, there will be a dedicated gallery for paintings. “We have many talented fine artists who work in oil, watercolors and acrylics. This gallery also includes photography,” said Laux. “We have a policy that our paintings are finished and framed to hang right on the wall,” she said. Some artists have prints and cards available also. The gallery is organized by league member and artist Ann McCartney, an oil painter and local instructor.
Laux and Kernan spend the entire year preparing for the Sugarplum Market, talking with artists, planning the displays, and updating the customer mailing list and postcards. When setup time arrives, everyone pitches in. “As a team, our amazing artists come together to set up and create the magic of Sugarplum,” said Laux. “I get excited at the response of the repeat and new patrons.”
Hours for the Sugarplum Artisan Market are Nov. 10, 11 and 12 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Nov. 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Nov. 14, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Nov. 15 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.