The late, great Miss E was a sucker for craft festivals, especially those that featured hand-woven yarn and other items that helped to satisfy her knitting itch. I, on the other hand, love a good gun show. Even if I don't end up purchasing anything, it's fun to walk the aisles, talk with gun owners, see the history on display, and hunt for a bargain or an unusual offering.
I don't think I've ever run across a show that combined arts and crafts and firearms, though. At least not until now. And I guess there's good reason for that, since this particular event takes place in Saskatchewan... a place I can barely even spell and have never had the pleasure of visiting.
The Swift Current Hobby Craft and Gun Show returns for its 63rd installment.
Running Nov. 7 and 8, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Kevion Banman and his wife, Linda, have arranged for 251 tables in the Stockade Building this year, the most they have ever had. That’s up from 245 tables last year, featuring a huge variety of goods.
“We've got everything from soup to nuts, hobbies, crafts, collectibles, coins, glass, leatherwork, furs, hunting, fishing, knives, medieval stuff, military stuff, you name it,” said Banman. “We're trying to bring in as much variety as possible because we're getting a lot of people applying for the show now.”
You might be as surprised as I was to learn that Canada even has gun shows, given the animosity shown towards gun owners. And my guess is that most of the firearms offered for sale Swift Current, Saskatchewan will be hunting rifles and shotguns. There's a freeze on handgun sales at the moment, and the government has banned hundreds of models of semi-automatic rifles.
In fact, there might not be many guns actually changing hands at this weekend's show. In Canada, sales of non-restricted firearms require the seller confirm that the prospective buyer has a valid Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL), request a reference number from the Canadian Firearms Program (either online or by telephone), and wait until the reference number is issued before transferring the firearm.
That sounds like a pain, but if this is the 63rd Hobby Craft and Gun Show then my guess is attendees have gotten used to it.
I think an event like this could be huge hit here in the United States, or at least the more-Second Amendment friendly locales. There are plenty of men and women who love both crafts and firearms, so why not combine the two? In addition to tables, you could have seminars on everything from woodworking and needlepoint to concealed carry and gun laws in the state where the show takes place.
You could even have a little crossover between the two worlds. There's a market for gun owners who'd love a custom leather holster or a hand-carved gun rack, but what about a quilt featuring their favorite firearm? And I suspect more than a few crafters might discover that shooting sports are just as enjoyable as their current hobbies.
There's also something appealing about bringing together people who might not otherwise cross paths. The woman selling handmade jewelry might have absolutely no interest in firearms, while the guy looking for an optic for his rifle might not know a knitting needle from a crochet hook. But put them under the same roof for a weekend, and who knows what conversations might take place?
I don't have the organizational skills to set up something like this, but I encourage anyone who does to run with the idea... and to send me an invite.