The third annual Christmas Bazaar and Book Sale will feature a variety of homemade and donated goods, including wreaths, ornaments and decor, health care products, potpourri, dog treats and, of course — books.
“The Christmas bazaar and book sale is a kind of wonderful chance to help the library and have a lot of fun at the same time,” said Katherine Ratcliffe, branch manager of the Oglethorpe County Library.
Hosted by the Friends of the Oglethorpe County Library, the event will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2 at No. 3 Railroad Street in Arnoldsville. All proceeds go to the Oglethorpe County Library.
“We were just very thrilled with the turnout we had last year, and the hard work and dedication,” said Babs DeArmond, president of Friends of the Oglethorpe County Library.
There are 10-12 people working all year, said Lamara Martin, a member of the Friends of the Oglethorpe County Library who helped come up with the idea for the bazaar.
“The bazaar takes longer than just this coming week,” Martin said. “It takes a community.”
The Friends started the bazaar two years ago, as a way to drive engagement for the December book sale, and the group has been working to make it “bigger and better” ever since, DeArmond said.
“The special moment is to see some of our members, who spent hours and hours during the course of the year making crafts, and doing shopping for this and that and special things to put in the baskets, and using their time and money,” she said.
The gift baskets are a “big hit,” DeArmond said.
Each basket’s theme is based on the book included in it. A book about winemaking, for example, may be accompanied by goblets and glasses, Ratcliffe said.
Last year’s selection of gift baskets included themes such as Happy New Year, Gardening, Bird Lover, Romantic Evening, Tea for Two, Barbecue, University of Georgia and more.
Ratcliffe said the group sifts through donated books to pick out certain ones for the baskets.
“They are really fun and talented people who will pick one or two donated books and then build a whole gift basket around it that would be a great gift for anyone in your life,” Ratcliffe said. “I think it’s the perfect time to finish up your Christmas shopping and get something literary-themed.”
There will also be a book sale, where attendees can fill a bag with books for $5.
Nearly all of the books that will be available for the book sale are donated by members of the community, DeArmond said.
“We’re very fortunate that we have great readers in this county who, when they finish a paperback or a novel or a cookbook or whatever, they donate it back to the library,” she said.