Fine Furniture & Woodworking Festival Sept. 26-27
The 6th Annual Fine Furniture & Woodworking Festival Sept. 26-27 at the Union Arena in Woodstock, VT will showcase an original project that combines community sustainability, family togetherness and creativity.
The Naked Table is a ShackletonThomas contribution to this year’s festival that expects to draw over 50 furniture makers who will showcase fine furniture and objects of art.
Aged maple trees at least 100 years old from Vermont hills have been felled, sawed, dried and shaped into parts that folks can assemble into their own “naked tables.” There will be 15 tables created over this weekend, with participants invited to join a communal dinner around their new tables at the conclusion of the weekend. Then they can take their new table home. The cost for participation is $650 and is on a first-come / first-serve basis.
The first demonstration of the Naked Table project will be Aug. 22 at ShackletonThomas workshops in Bridgewater, VT. There will be a third opportunity to join this project on Oct. 17.
“We’ve been thinking a great deal about what we are doing and how it relates to two issues facing our country and our world – the economy and the environment,” says Charles Shackleton. “This creative, fun, weekend project demonstrates our environmental and socially responsible company philosophy as well as the ideals of the Woodstock community and Vermont.”
“The table holds many symbolic connotations. It is where people gather to sustain themselves, with their friends and family, both physically and spiritually. A wooden table also has an important connection to the land, our forests and the environment. It has a connection to the people who made the table and all the people along the way who grew and harvested the wood,” he notes. “The table’s story also belongs to those who use the table to prepare food, eat, gather and work. It is where “stories” are told. The table becomes an icon of the family, the home and community, and a symbol of their connection to the place and the land.”
About the Festival
The 6th annual Fine Furniture & Woodworking Festival is Sept. 26 and 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily at Woodstock VT’s Union Arena on Rt. 4. This is a highly touted exhibit showcasing the finest work of Vermont furniture makers and artisans in wood. The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park partners with the furniture makers for a weekend of forest-related activities. A free shuttle runs between the Union Arena and Park and there is ample parking. Admission to the Arena is $7 (18 and up) and free to the Park. Over 50 exhibitors are expected to display, demonstrate, and take orders for their products at this annual event in Woodstock.