Talent on display at annual WFU Artisans’ Fair

Linda Early

About 40 faculty, staff, students, retirees and others will be showing their creative side and offering handmade items for sale at the seventh annual Artisans’ Fair on Friday. The fair will be held from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. in the Benson University Center, room 401.

Vendors must be Wake Forest faculty, staff, students or relatives, but the fair is open to the community. There is no charge to attend, but canned good donations for the Second Harvest Food Bank in Winston-Salem are encouraged. Cash and checks will be accepted, and door prizes will be given.

The fair is now a Wake Forest tradition, with new vendors sprinkled among some who have shown every year. For Linda Early, who works in the ZSR Library and makes jewelry, it adds to the University’s family feel.

“I love getting to see the same vendors and customers every year,” said Early, who has been a fixture as a vendor. “It’s great to hear later that someone really loved their jewelry. A nice pat on the back …”

For Early, the entire artistic process is about family.

“My daughter KT taught me to make jewelry in 2004 when she went on the road as a traveling contract therapist,” Early said. “We sold together for several years — she would ship me her new stuff — and I still have a piece or two in my collection that she made.”

As both an alumna and staffer, Early should already be a familiar face to many around campus. She’s worked in the bookstore and the library, where she is currently the Head of Monographic Acquisitions, managing the operations for purchasing books and DVDs for the library.

For her dedication to her job and many other volunteer roles across campus, she was named the 2010 Employee of the Year.

Early said that jewelry making has been a beneficial hobby.

“I actually thought I couldn’t do it since my fine motor skills have aged along with the rest of me, but making jewelry has actually improved them a great deal, just like my therapist daughter said it would,” she said. “I enjoy the design work the most and have really learned to challenge myself to learn new methods.”

List of vendors for the 2011 Artisans’ Fair:

• Melissa Avent — crafts, signs, holiday items, jewelry, wine glasses
• Caitlyn Brooks — polymer clay sculptures
• Alan Cameron — wood
• Brandi Cleveland — hand-painted wooden wreaths (Christmas and WFU)
• Anne Davenport — jewelry, earrings
• Richard Deheck — canned goods, crafts


Kelley Dietz

• Kelley Dietz — jewelry
• Linda Early — jewelry
• Amber Elledge, Morgan Burnette — polymer clay ornaments, accessories, home decor
• Natasha Gaggar — feather and tinsel earrings and hair accessories
• Adriana Granados — jewelry
• Betty Hauser — salsa, apple butter, chow chow, candy, cookies
• Mariama Holman — crocheted scarflaces
• Kasey Hughes — hand-painted wooden wreaths (Christmas and WFU)
• Kelly Hundley — arts and crafts


Teresa Jackson

• Teresa Jackson — jewelry, knit scarves, purses/totes
• Zella Johnson — dishcloths
• Dionna Lee — wreaths and other Christmas décor, floral arrangements, centerpieces
• Cynthia Leonard — wheel-thrown pottery
• Ashely McCulloch — aprons, hats, other sewn items
• Jessie Lee Miller — handmade dolls
• Amy Mohan — bead jewelry & Christmas ornaments
• Gale Newport — baked goods
• Christie Otten — pet beds, jewelry, horse tack
• Erin Pfeiffer — mixed media artwork and handmade jewelry
• Paul Ross — woodworking, knitted dishcloths
• Layne Runyon — jewelry
• Linda Rymer — hand-beaded jewelry and knitted items
• Lawrence Smith — food trays, bird boxes, wind chimes
• Ruth Smith — blankets, corn-toss bags
• Pat Starkey — crochet items
• Tracy Stegman — holiday candy and crafts


Gloria Stickney

• Gloria Stickney — Wake Forest licensed products, baby quilts and more
• Amy Tindel — jewelry
• Maria Tompkins — beaded jewelry
• Joanne Vansice and Vanessa Horan — sewn items (bags, burp cloths, Christmas ornaments), headbands, mini cheesecakes
• Renza Wallace — alpaca coats, vests, bags, scarfs and hats
• Jonathan Williams — gourmet dog treats and slide-through pet bandanas
• Jane Williams — pottery
• Penny Wilson — jewelry and crafts
• Gabrielle Wilson — jewelry (hair clips, earrings)