THERE will be plenty of Christmas present ideas at Crafts in the Pen, returning to Skipton Auction Mart for a weekend in November.

First held as a fundraising event in 2015 for the Mart Theatre with around 1,500 visitors and more than 100 exhibitors, it has grown over the years with now more than double the number of craft stalls and now with almost 6,000 visitors.

Cancelled last year because of the coronavirus pandemic, the event is back again this year and will take place in the cattle pens of the Gargrave Road auction mart on Saturday, November 20 and on Sunday, November 21.

There will be plenty to see, around 230 stalls offering handmade crafts, glass, jewellery, ceramics, paper crafts, metal work, wood, and cloth.

Included in the entry fee will be free parking and a free Santa’s Grotto, complete with elves, giant teddies and presents.

Some of those taking part include Skipton-based home textile business, Abbiedashery; AJ Jones and Hot Butter Yarns; Amy Holland, ceramics, and furniture maker Andy Selmic.

For glass, there will be Anethia Sellars, while Anna Byelova makes beautiful bags from tweed. Maxine Hunt is an artist-blacksmith, who works in metal and wood; Black Sheep Leather makes handmade leather items; while David and Caroline Cameron make and paint a wide range of wooden crafts and chainsaw carvings,

For more details, visit: https://www.craftsinthepen.org.uk