Fun from the weekend: Santacon and The Big Crafty

Posted on by Rebecca Sulock

This weekend marked the return of two local holiday traditions: SantaCon (Santarchy!) and The Big Crafty.

As for Santacon, we’ll share a dispatch from one Santa, who learned a valuable lesson from the events of the day:

“My personal favorite part: Tearing around Asheville in the back of the U-Haul with 16 rowdy Santas. For reasons unknown our designated driver consistently parked us about 5 blocks from our target destination.

Here are shots starting with the 2nd stop on the tour: U-Joint. Then some of downtown & Santa downs. I am looking for shots from Grove Park and the 828…Those parts were lotsa fun but kind of a blur. The infamous Gypsy Bar worked its magic and we were somehow able to cart it around with no arrests. That I know of. Yet. The 2 batches of hot yummy cider were a huge hit everywhere we went. 10 gallons dispensed via Dixie cups. 

Thanks in advance for photos. Hopefully none put out there in public that are tooo incriminating (?!?) Moonshine was a poor choice for a party starter. Hindsight, 20/20, yada yada yada.”

Well Santa, it’s not that often we get to give back to you, but here’s a photo gallery from Jonathan Welch. Also, because I love it so, here’s the slideshow Welch made from last year’s Santacon. It’s set to music. Goodtimes.

And Sunday brought the semi-annual Big Crafty back to Pack Place. Hundreds of folks crammed in to browse wares from local artists and crafters, of nearly every ilk. A dispatch and photos from arts writer Alli Marshall:

“If The Big Crafty has been, in the past, the social event of the season, this December’s Big Crafty was like a crafter cotillion/holiday bazaar/open house/downtown Asheville reunion all rolled into one. And on steroids. What I heard from pretty much everyone I talked to was ‘It’s overwhelming!’ but people, even as they uttered these words of surrender, were wide-eyed squeezing their way to the next table of button flowers/wine cork robots/subversive greeting cards/stuffed ogre toys. (I also overheard one crafter tell another that this is the best craft event in the area—pretty cool since this Big Crafty was only the 4th of the semiannual event, which started at the Grey Eagle.)”

Thanks to Justin Rabuck and Brandy Bourne for dreaming up the event, and making it happen each season. And thanks to the Santas, all of youse.

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