TRAVERSE CITY -- Between stone birdhouses, sweetly scented candles and fuzzy, purple puppets with big green noses, the Arts and Crafts Fair on Union Street teemed with families enjoying creative bliss.
Each tent had something unique and hand-made by artists from all over Michigan.
Father-and-son team Bruce and Nick Faccio came from Sterling in Arenac County to sell their dangling sports logos. Nick draws the logos and his father cuts thin slices of metal and spray paints them. Each piece takes about 12 minutes to make.
Their art projects help Nick pay for college and also allow him to spend more time with his dad.
"Being with my dad is really nice because I've been in college and haven't been able to spend as much time with him," Nick Faccio said.
His father agreed.
"The money you make is really nice, but father-son bonding is great, too," Bruce Faccio said. "Being out here with my son just makes it so much fun."
Family also is what brought Don Jaco to the Cherry Festival with his in-laws' candle company.
"I've been doing this for about six years," Jaco said. "It's a three-step process that takes about two days. But to get the candles as good as they are now, my in-laws spent about two years on the formula.
Kris Ashenfelter of Wolverine also has spent many years perfecting her crafty colorful puppets.
After spending a year and a half in Belgium doing religious programming with puppets on TV, Ashenfelter chose to make her puppets for children in the U.S.
Each puppet takes about two to three hours to sew and each is a little different from the other.
"When I see a little kid with one of my puppets on their hand, I feel happy that they may be using their imagination," Ashenfelter said. "I make a lot of them for my three kids, and I always find them ... all over the house. These puppets bring out the sparkle in their brains."
National Cherry Festival
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