Local hands, holiday treasures at the Gilboa Museum

GILBOA—Even (especially?) in the age of Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude, there is something special about meeting your  human, neighborhood artists, artisans, and vendors to browse gift items crafted by human hands and offered for sale to support The Gilboa Museum & Nicholas J. Juried History Center.

This season, the Gilboa Historical Society invites the community to do just that at its upcoming Holiday Boutique on Sunday, November 15, starting at 11 a.m. throughout the museum.

While the museum’s regular seasonal calendar runs from Memorial Day weekend through Columbus Day in October, this year highlights an expanded season of events bringing together a talented roster of local talent, artisans, and bakers.

Meet the Vendors

- Ashley Baldassano: An avid art and animal lover, Ashley creates handcrafted candles, crystal pendant necklaces, keychains, crystal trees, crystal arrowhead earrings, resin art, and bracelets. As she shares, "It’s more fun than a business to me, but it’s also a passion."

- Connie Bates: Bringing festive charm to the boutique, Connie offers a variety of crafty Christmas ornaments, wreaths, tissue boxes, and beaded items.

- Crafts by Diane: Diane will be showcasing a wonderful assortment of holiday crafts, cross-stitched gifts, and baked goods.

- Critter’s Crafts: Started as a homeschooling project, this unique booth features beaded keychains, pens, and lanyards, alongside resin creations, handcrafted wood signs, and a variety of other craft items.

- Dawn Cornell: A lifetime resident of Gilboa, she crafts original design cards, earrings, key rings, and quality, handmade pyrography (wood-burning pieces).

- Cathy Feaste ( Bread Too ! ): A state registered Home Processing Micro-Baker based in Middleburgh, Feaste bakes organic sourdough bread weekly in her home kitchen. You can pre-order ahead of time at Bread Too Hotplate or find her at regional markets and the Schoharie County Farmer’s Market in Cobleskill during season.

- Laurie Jones: A retired local who keeps busy crafting miniature "kitchen towns" in various styles and patterns, Laurie also repurposes vintage canning jars with fresh, decorative patterns.

- Barbara Mat: She brings warmth to the holidays with her beautiful quilts, quilted pot holders, placemats, and table runners.

- Jo Anna Garfi-McNally, psychic medium-spiritual communicator: A straightforward inspirational reader who relies on her positive and caring approach. She is a psychic medium, spirit communicator, remote energy healer and light energy worker.

- Regina Pompei: Driven by a love for meeting new people and discovering crafts from neighboring towns, Pompei creates beautiful wreaths, handmade floral arrangements for the home, jewelry, and 3D toys.

- Laura Shapiro: Specializing in handmade woodworking, Shapiro creates carved and painted wood mirror frames, coat racks, keyholders, custom furniture, and charming small animal sculptures.

- Elaine Starheim: Beginning her artistic journey with stained glass, Starheim has expanded into mosaics, fused glass, colored wire, and found objects. A life-long Upstate New York resident and retired teacher, she remains a firm believer that "a thing of beauty is a joy forever."

- Lorelle Van Houten: A collage artist specializing in distinctive greeting cards that feature whimsical combinations of human bodies and animal heads, complete with clever messages inside.

Mark your calendars for November 15 to support your fellow creatures and craftspeople, find unique holiday gifts, and celebrate the rich creative spirit of our region at the Gilboa Museum & Nicholas J. Juried History Center, 122 Stryker Road, Gilboa.

Bring your appetite as well so you’ll have room to savor one of  “Soup Chef” Paulie Russel’s homemade soups, a perfect complement to Cathy Feaste’s fresh based sourdough bread. Pass the butter, please!