If you are a shopper who enjoys finding unique presents or who delights in buying handmade items to give as gifts, then the Elizabethton Woman’s Club’s annual Christmas Craft Show is the place to be next weekend.
Each year, the Elizabethton Woman’s Club hosts the craft show as a way to raise funds for their charitable work. This year, the show will be held Friday and Saturday, Nov. 13-14, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. daily at the Elizabethton Parks and Recreation building located at 300 W. Mill Street.
The show provides a way for the Club to raise funds for their charity and outreach programs while also providing an opportunity for local crafters to showcase and sell their products. The Club raises money through a vendor fee each crafter pays for their table space and then the crafters keep the money they make from sales, EWC President Jo Voigt said.
The Christmas Craft Sale is the largest fundraiser the club has each year.
“Our big fundraiser previously was the Tour of Homes and we did very well with that for a while,” Voigt said. “But, with the economy the way it is and the way things are in the nation and the world, people didn’t want strangers coming into their homes so we had no homes to show.”
The Christmas Craft Show used to be held at Sycamore Shoals State Park, but it outgrew that venue.
“We asked them if we could take it over and they said ‘yes,’” Voigt said.
This is the fourth year the Club has hosted the sale and the third year it has been held at the Parks and Recreation building.
More than 40 vendors will participate in this year’s show, Voigt said. A variety of handmade items will be available including jewelry, baby items, quilts, blankets and home decor.

Vendors do not have to be a member of the club to participate in the show, Voigt said.
“We just ask that everything be homemade,” she added.
The event will also have food available for purchase during the event so shoppers don’t have to leave the building to grab lunch. The menu will include lunch fare as well as drinks and snacks.
“We will also have Santa there,” Voigt said. “He will have a booth and will also be running around the event.”
The Elizabethton Woman’s Club will also have a booth set up to introduce visitors to the Club and the projects it supports in the community.
The EWC, which is part of the Greater Federation of Woman’s Clubs, works on several outreach projects in the community. The group makes lap robes for patients in local nursing homes, makes hats and scarves to give to local cancer patients, provides scholarships to local students, helps support local schools, works with St. Jude support programs, supports the East Tennessee Christian Home and Academy and donates to United Way and the United Service Organization (USO) that provides morale and recreation programs to U.S. military personnel.
While the EWC members have a lot of fun working together, the primary mission of the group is to be a service organization that gives back to the community, Voigt said.
In addition to their service work, the group also provides a way for local women to come together and fellowship with others who want to help make their community better.
“It’s a great group of people,” said Nancy Cornwell, chairwoman of the Arts and Crafts Committee for the EWC. Everyone has such a good heart.”
Membership in the Elizabethton Woman’s Club is open to any interested woman, regardless of age. Annual club dues are $25.
Anyone interested in joining the club should contact President Jo Voigt at 423-542-9109.