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The recent 9th Annual Butternut Creek Festival 2007 drew a large crowd to Meeks Park on July 21st and 22nd. Art lover, families, and lots of shoppers attended the much anticipated yearly event.

Presented by the High Country Artisans, Inc., the 9th Annual Butternut Creek Festival gets bigger and better every year. Union County Recreation Director Larry Garrett says, “This is the largest Butternut Creek Festival so far. We probably had 8,000 people in the park on Saturday.”

Seventy artists and craftsmen filled booths and tents with paintings, sculpture, pottery, jewelry, fabric art, wood furniture, wood crafts, gourd art, photographs, candles, soap, baskets, brooms, metal crafts, and stained glass. Visitors were impressed with the quality of the festival and most were doing a lot of shopping.

Musicians played throughout the two day event. Butternut Creek and Friends, Crista Lynn, Buck & Nelson, Weaver Believer Survival Revival, and Ross Moore entertained the crowds with lively, foot-tapping music.

Demonstrations by various craftsmen gave guests a chance to see the artists at work; Woodturning, chair caning, leaded glass, soap making, broom making, spinning, quilting, woodworking, sign making, and chainsaw carving were interesting additions to shopping, eating, and socializing.

There was food available for every taste from Mongolian stir fry to American hamburgers. Homemade lemonade and kettle corn were two of the most popular items.

The Butternut Creek Festival is a juried show and vendors must apply for admission. Artists are accepted based on the quality of their work and there are a limited number of spaces available each year. The resulting festival offers some of the finest arts and crafts in the southeast.

The free event is held along the shady banks of Butternut Creek in Meeks Park . Cool breezes and shady walking paths offer a perfect venue for the festival. Next year's 10 th Annual Butternut Creek Festival is planned for July 19 – 20, 2008 . Artists, vendors, and visitors are already marking their calendars. For more information visit the web site at www.butternutcreekfestival.com.