It’s never too early to get a head start on Christmas shopping, especially when it’s for a good cause.
As part of a summer fundraiser to support Orcutt’s American Legion Post 534, local crafter Maryann Johnson is selling some festive giftables—including snowman figurines and teddy bears—just in time to commemorate Christmas in August, rather than July.
Johnson is one of several artisans who signed on to sell their goods at the Aug. 10 event, which is not restricted to winterly wares or any specific season, although its charitable nature may attract shoppers in the spirit of giving.
“I hope we get a lot of foot traffic,” said Johnson, who co-organized the upcoming pop-up craft fair to help offset a financial roadblock that’s been looming over Post 534 since the beginning of 2024.
Dedicated to raising funds for local veterans and their families, the nonprofit owns a barn space in Old Town Orcutt that it previously leased to Rick’s Car Care. There hasn’t been a new tenant at the barn—which Post 534 is paying off a mortgage for—since January.
“At first, they were trying to lease it back out,” said Johnson, Post 534’s second vice president for the auxiliary. “That wasn’t going real well, and then they decided to go ahead and open it up and see what we could do.”
Post 534 has hosted events and fundraisers in the past, but the upcoming pop-up craft fair marks the first of its kind for the nonprofit. When it comes to participating crafters, the more, the merrier, Johnson said, as she’ll be accepting new vendors who wish to join up until the event date.
Johnson has enlisted more than a dozen participants so far, including local resin artist Linda Olivar, whose beach-themed projects feel especially sunny in contrast to Johnson’s winter wonders.
Both Olivar and Johnson took up their respective crafts in 2020 as ways to cope with the monotony of sheltering in place at home. For Olivar, experimenting with resin art was also a fun way to bond with her daughter shortly before she left home for college.
“It was at the start of the pandemic. My daughter wanted to try it [resin art], so we ordered the supplies,” Olivar said. “Then she went off to college and left me doing it.”
Over the past four years, Olivar has used her resin skills to create scenic charcuterie boards, coasters, wall art, and other items. Many of Olivar’s works are available for sale at The Natural Toolbox, located at Pismo Beach’s premium outlets.
Johnson started crafting her light-up snowman creations after seeing a trend on Facebook. Each figurine starts with two clear globes that she fills with diluted glue, the crafter explained.
“Then I put glitter in them. Once the glitter dries, I put lights in them and then attach them together,” said Johnson, who decorates the round exteriors of her snowy figures with scarves and hats of various themes, some of which celebrate different sports teams, for example.
Johnson’s teddy bears will also be available for sale at the upcoming pop-up craft fair. While not as inherently winter-centric as her snowman offerings, her bear work began as a direct result of the holiday season.
“I got into the bears about five years ago, when I took my grandkids on a Christmas vacation,” recalled Johnson, who wanted to give them handmade gifts that year, specifically something that would remind them of the Mount Shasta trip for years to come.
Luckily the trip was planned a year in advance, said the crafter, who was given plenty of time to come up with the perfect souvenir.
“They each got a bear,” said Johnson, who stuffed an assortment of handmade teddy bears for her grandchildren.
Johnson imprinted some writing onto each of the bears’ feet to commemorate the Mount Shasta trip.
Guests of the Aug. 10 craft fair who are in the market for any of its featured vendors’ goods, which include pottery and other media, can also enter a raffle for the chance to win a gift basket stuffed with various items available at the pop-up.
“Each person that does an entry for the craft fair will also donate one of their gifts. Out of the gifts, we’ll try to make four different baskets,” Johnson said. “You don’t have to be present [during the raffle draw]. ... We’ll give them a call if they win.”
Try to win Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood’s attention at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.