Historic Cold Spring Village is featuring all things fiber arts at the 29th annual Cape May Quilt and Fiber Show, Saturday and Sunday, June 25-26. Sponsored by the Chatlos Foundation, the event will be held from 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. both days and will feature demonstrations and vendors of quilting, textiles, knitting, crocheting, lace making, basket weaving, broom making, wool dyeing, sheep shearing and more. Lectures on knitting and historic quilting, discussions with authors and a film on Cape May County mittens are featured from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.
On Saturday, visitors may vote for their favorite quilts in the Welcome Center at the Viewer’s Choice Quilt Show, and on Sunday continue to enjoy the display and see the winners. For the first time, the Show includes a Youth Category for the works of young quilters. A rare wedding quilt, c. 1714, handmade by Cape May Countian Sarah Spicer, will be on display in the Welcome Center for its annual appearance. The quilt was restored in 2012 through a grant from the Cape May County Culture and Heritage Commission. Also displayed will be works of CAMACO, a local Cape May County Quilting Guild. The Jersey Cape Atlantic Chapter of the Embroiderers Guild will have a display and demonstration of needlework.
Marketplace, with regional vendors offering quilting and sewing fabrics, yarn, buttons, notions, supplies and equipment to help inspire the creation of an heirloom project, will be open on the second floor of the Cold Spring Grange Restaurant. The Corson-Hand House, home to fiber arts demonstrations at the Village, will feature use of the “Great Wheel” which will be used along with wool preparation and dyeing. Bobbin lace making and tatting will also be demonstrated by a fourth generation artisan. Seasoned knitters and newcomers to the craft alike will learn from these discussions and demonstrations.
Shepherd’s Hook at the Taylor Poultry House offers handcrafted infants’ and children’s clothes, accessories and home decor. Also available are classes and materials for crochet, knitting and tatting.
Historic Cold Spring Village is a non-profit, open-air living history museum that portrays the daily life of a rural South Jersey community of the Early American period. It features 26 restored historic structures on a 30-acre site. Tuesday through Sunday, from late June to early September, interpreters and artisans in period clothing preserve the trades, crafts and heritage of “the age of homespun.” Fun and educational activities for children are featured, with special events every weekend through September.
The Village is located on Route 9, three miles north of Victorian Cape May and a mile and a half west of the southern terminus of the Garden State Parkway. Admission during the season is $12 for adults and $10 for children ages 3 to 12. Children under 3 are admitted free. Unlimited free admission is available with Village membership. The Village Nature Trail at Bradner’s Run is open to the public for free self-guided tours. Visit the Country Store, Bakery, Ice Cream Parlor and Cold Spring Grange Restaurant. For more information on events, membership, volunteering, or booking private affairs, please call (609) 898-2300 ext. 10, or visit the Village website at www.hcsv.org.