Plenty of unique pieces
Bats and other puzzling items caught shopper’s attention at annual Fall Craft Fair
Whimsical windchimes, shadow boxes, bat and bird houses were some of the items perched on Ron and Sandra Bedwell’s table that caught attention as shoppers weaved around the 50 vendors at the annual Fall Craft Fair held in the Credit Union Place, Saturday. “We try to make anything that’s unique and eye-catching, and I think we’ve succeeded,” smiled Sandra. “We like to use natural products, so our driftwood is collected off local beaches and we decorate a lot of pieces with shells. “We also make bat houses because we need them to control pests such as mosquitoes and black fly populations, which is really bad right now on the Island,” she continued. “In 2013 the bat population decreased because of disease, but now they’re coming back and flourishing.” Bats try to find safety under tree trunks or bark during the day, so a bat house mimics this environment. “A bat only feeds at night, so once they finish feeding they find a small place to get into which is dark. Our bat houses allow them to crawl up the wall and hang safely during the daylight hours. This can house 12 to 15 bats,” shared Sandra, while showcasing her narrow wooden carving. Bedwell and her husband create custom woodcarving and designs in Breadalbane, P.E.I. “My husband has been making wooden furniture for more than 25 years, and he has every tool in the workshop that you can think of. I help with all the little pieces… We have on our booth reversible signs, bird houses, wooden barbecue paddles, and shadow boxes with memorabilia.” The treasure trove of handmade pieces that could be found at the craft fair included ‘Lil’ Buddy Puzzlez.’ “We mass produce pictures and give the artist or photographer full credit on the jigsaw,” motioned Dave Fortune to a name on the box. “Once our website is launched we plan to promote our product internationally, so the photographer and the artist will have a link to their page too. But everything is 100 percent local and the inspiration behind it comes from doing puzzles all the time – anything to get out of a chore!” He chimed. The craft fair ran 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. The Christmas Craft Fair will be next, held at the same time and place on Saturday, Nove. 24.