Waynesville, NC, February 13, 2019: The Shelton House is proud to announce that it has been awarded an anchor position on the new Blue Ridge Craft Trails. The Blue Ridge Craft Trails link 75 craft sites across the 25 counties of Western North Carolina to promote craft businesses and coordinate the marketing of crafts on a region-wide level, while branding Western North Carolina as a leading craft destination, developed by the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership. The awarded anchor position will feature the Historic Shelton House displaying, sharing and promoting high end crafts with residents and visitors to Haywood County.
To celebrate the opening of the Blue Ridge Craft Trails, the Shelton House will host the 1st Annual Blue Ridge Heritage Weekend on June 22 & 23, 2019 at the newly formed Shelton Campus. On Saturday, June 22 from 10am until 4pm, a Craft Fair will feature juried crafters who will display and demonstrate their crafts in this outdoors festival, on the Shelton Campus grounds. A variety of activities for this weekend event are being planned by all members of the Shelton Campus with the Historic Haywood Farmers Market offering local food and the HART Theater featuring a special performance of our Appalachian music heritage on Sunday, June 23. The Shelton House Museum of North Carolina Handicrafts will also be conducting Open House tours featuring displays of local life, history and artifacts, as well as traditional crafts, a quilt exhibit, tribute to Mary Cornwell and the Village of Yesteryear, and a special Native American exhibition.
In 2019, the Shelton House will also continue its Crafter Showcase Series for its third year. The Crafter Showcase Series selects 6 professional crafters and features one each month to demonstrate their process and craft on the third Saturday of each month at 10:00 AM. The Crafter Showcase runs April through September. In June, the Showcase will be part of the Blue Ridge Heritage weekend on the fourth Saturday. The crafters will also be displayed in the Shelton House Gift Shop all season. The Showcase is open to the pubic with a $5 donation requested.
The Shelton House is now accepting applications for the Shelton House Crafter Showcase, until March 15, 2019. Selected crafters will be notified by March 31, 2019. Applications for the Blue Ridge Heritage Weekend will be available, on line, shortly with a deadline by May 1, 2019. More information is available by visiting the Shelton House website at www.sheltonhouse.org or calling 828-452-1551.
“The Shelton House is a vital partner for Haywood County to support local crafters and their products. The anchor position on the Blue Ridge Craft Trails is a great opportunity to expand the vision of the Museum of North Carolina Handicrafts at the Shelton House that was founded by Mary Cornwell in 1977” said Mike McLean, Shelton House Board Vice Chair. “We invite businesses and individuals to participate as sponsors and supporters of our 2019 exciting events. And come out for the Blue Ridge Heritage Weekend and just have a great time.”
The Shelton House Museum of North Carolina Handicrafts runs tours April through October, on the hour, Tuesdays – Saturday 11:00am until 4:00pm. The Shelton House is located at 49 Shelton Street in Waynesville, North Carolina.
For more information about the Blue Ridge Craft Trails, visit https://www.blueridgeheritage.com/blue-ridge-craft-trails/ and learn about this new endeavor in Western North Carolina.