Made in Windsor

By Maciejka Gorzelnik

Holiday shopping was in full swing Nov. 16-17 as Windsorites made their way through Walkerville Brewery purchasing handmade goods at Made in Windsor’s holiday craft sale.

Approximately 2,000 people and over 40 local vendors were in attendance throughout the weekend for the free event. All items for sale were handmade locally ranging from soap to photo prints, original artwork to clothing.

With humble beginnings in the basement of the Windsor Public Library, Made in Windsor is now celebrating its seventh year as a community of crafters. Organizer Christine Rideout-Arkell said this year it feels as though they’ve come full circle.

“We started with a craft show. I had a store for a little while, I’ve done some outdoor craft markets on the weekends, popup events and now we’re doing a craft show yet again,” said Rideout-Arkell. “I remember the days when I was first starting and had to beg people to join, now we actually had to turn away about 25 vendors because of limited space.”

The newly renovated 18,000 sq. ft. brewery may be limited for space but co-owner of Walkerville Brewery Chris Ryan said it’s a unique fit for the event.

“It’s Made in Windsor and we’re made in Windsor,” said Ryan. “Our intentions were to be a part of the community fabric. This event is a great example of the diversification of things you can do with the brewery. It doesn’t always have to be beer and heavy drinking.”

The craft sale was held in conjunction with Walkerville’s annual Holiday Walk. Supporter of the local arts scene Jeffery Kerr said he was doing the Holiday Walk with his wife when they noticed this event and decided to stop in.

“We go to as many events like this as we can. It’s really wonderful,” said Kerr.

Rideout-Arkell said she did not expect so many people to show up but the venue and the walk helped in spreading the word.

“This is huge,” said Rideout-Arkell. “It’s the entire neighborhood working together.”