Santa Claus stood quietly as the masses viewed his facial features and caressed his clothing.
Santa, who was made of porcelain, was one of thousands of crafts and artwork available for purchase at the Union for the 38th Annual Holiday Arts-N-Crafts Show this weekend.
More than 200 booths ranging from knick-knack items and jewelry to holiday ornaments and decorations were set up on three floors of the building.
The show was a fund-raiser put on by the University Activities Board, which helps organize events for students on campus, including concerts and speakers.
Jodi Roberto Hancock, associate director of the University Activities Board, said the timing for the show is perfect.
“It’s kind of a kickoff for the holiday and it’s a very festive atmosphere,” she said. “And the most important part of the event is that it raises money for the students.”
Hancock said the University Activities Board gets money for renting out spaces for the booths to vendors.
Artists and crafters from all over the Midwest came to the event to show off their newest creations.
Joyce and Larry Parker of Elkhart, Ind. have been coming to the event for five years, showing off their potpourri holders and their most recent college logo picture holders and clocks.
Last year, the couple, who owns JoLar Enterprises, brought their green block “S” picture holder and since then have been licensed for other schools in the Big Ten and the state of Michigan.
“We wanted to make a collegiate product that looked nice and was a decent kind of product,” Joyce Parker said. “And we listen to customers and expand from that.”
Carla Schafer of Farwell, Mich. has been coming to MSU for six years showing off the porcelain Santas she makes with her aunt.
Schafer said her products take a better part of the weekend and sometimes a week to complete, and said she really enjoys coming to this event.
“I have a lot of return buyers - it’s a very good show,” she said.
Redford, Mich. resident Carmen Sesko said she was in town visiting her nieces who attend MSU and decided to check out the event.
She said she enjoys craft shows and had the opportunity to pickup some gifts for the holidays.
“There’s nicely crafted stuff and nice jewelry items,” Sesko said. “It’s a good combination of everything.”
