News Photo by Darby Hinkley
Tim Allen, owner of Chippewa Valley Mercantile and Leatherworks, hand stitches a leather journal with wool lining on Wednesday using a saddlestitch, which is the strongest stitch you can use, he said. He will be one of the vendors at Saturday’s Meet the Maker pop-up artisan market from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. in downtown Alpena.
ALPENA — If you’re seeking unique, handcrafted, high-quality items, look no further than downtown on Saturday.
“We have, currently, 10 different makers, artisans, craftspeople,” said event organizer Tim Allen, who co-owns Chippewa Valley Mercantile and Leatherworks with his wife Meghan Allen.
He was hand stitching a leather journal with wool lining on Wednesday. It will be one of the many goods he will offer as one of the vendors at Saturday’s Meet the Maker pop-up artisan market from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. in downtown Alpena.
The event will be on 2nd Avenue in front of his store and down the sidewalk in front of the State Theater, and across the street on the sidewalk in front of the former antique mall. The street will not be blocked off.
“We will have live music from 12 to about 3 out on the sidewalk here on 2nd Ave. outside of our shop and the State Theater,” Allen said. “It’s a guy named Wild Bill Ellison. He’s a musician out of the Gaylord area who does, kind of, like, folk rock genre. Johnny Cash, you know, things like that.”
He said the vendor lineup has a lot of variety.
“So, we’ve got kind of an eclectic group,” Allen said. “I think that’s what’s going to make it kind of unique for the shoppers and people coming into town.”
Vendors include ironworker, blacksmith and jeweler Jacob Moss Idema, Ben Poli who does custom fly-fishing lures and flies, Josh Wieschowski of Maple Ridge Woodworks, a hand-turned bowl maker, Mindset Mavens by Betsy Young and Sarah Morrison, who make daily-use planners, horseshoe art, colorful clay jewelry by the Decker sisters, Logan Hunter mixed media and streetwear artist, Molly’s Market boxes organic produce and baked goods, hand-carved walking sticks by Wild Bill Ellison, and Classic Designs by Doreen Thomas.
“The thing that’s really cool about this event is that all of these people are local to Alpena,” Allen said. “And they’re just really great artists and artisans.”
He said this is a nice outdoor event, and noted that it’s a great time to get custom orders in for Christmas.
“I think, over the past six months, people have been kind of closed up, and cabin fever,” he said, “and we’re being conscious of social distancing, but we wanted to have something where people can come out and have fun.”
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