The week of Dec. 5-10 will be a week of creative and interesting workshops at Tryon Arts & Crafts School at 373 Harmon Field Road, providing participants an opportunity to make special hand-crafted gifts for friends and family.

Starting out on Wednesday, Dec. 7, from 6 to 9 p.m., woodworker Karl Schwartz will lead an introduction to making wooden toys using basic band saw skills.   

On Thursday, Dec. 8, artist, art educator and art administrator David Edgar of Shade Tree Studios, will lead a fascinating lunch-time lecture, Holiday Expressions in Recycled Plastic, from 12-1 p.m. as part of TACS Crafts & Conversation Series.

David is the co-author of “Fantastic Recycled Plastic” and is an internationally recognized recycled plastics artist. For more information about the artist, go to plastiquarium.com.

Friday night, Dec. 9, will be TACS’ final Wine & Crafts night of the year, with Karoline Shaffer O’Rourke leading a workshop on making fused-glass bottle stopper toppers, swizzle sticks and more from 6-8 p.m. Make a few for gifts or to decorate your own holiday table. The workshop will include a selection of seasonal refreshments, snacks and treats, and participants always have lots of fun in their crafting process.

And finally, on Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., David Edgar will be back at TACS for the final Coffee & Crafts Workshop of the season, Imaginative Holiday Décor with Recycled Plastics. Participants will take home multiple handcrafted projects including both ornamental and wearable items. Ideas for larger more complex holiday creations will also be presented.

The workshop will include orientation to materials, equipment, and techniques as well as demonstrations of fundamentals for both large and small assembly projects. Students will need to bring their own cleaned plastic laundry product containers focusing on green, red and white, including at least one standard bleach bottle. All other materials and tools will be supplied. Coffee and breakfast pastries will be provided by the Tryon Coffeehouse Co-op.

For additional information or to sign up for any of the workshops, call the school at 828-859-8323 or visit tryonartsandcrafts.org/product-category/workshops/.

The school is open from Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Dec. 23 to accommodate holiday shopping at the Holiday Gift Show and Gift Shop.

– article submitted by Cathy Fischer