JARRETT GOODMAN
Staff Writer
Monteagle City Hall was bursting with artistic and holiday energy during the community’s Christmas Bazaar event.
This year’s Bazaar serving as one of many holiday festivities within Marion and Grundy Counties. The event also marks a return to form for a bygone event, which was left dormant for years, just in time for the holiday season.
“We used to do this years ago and it kind of fell away, so we thought we would revive it,” said Rhonda Atkins of A Little Sparkle.
Atkins, alongside her daughter and other community members, came together to bring back the local event into Monteagle. A total of 25 artisans and crafters gathered to showcase their works to visitors. Atkins herself was among one of the vendors who participated in the Christmas Bazaar, providing various crafted jewelry and glass work for visitors to purchase.
“I’ve always had a heart for arts and crafts, and for the vendors,” said Atkins. “When people come through, they’re always happy.”
Each vendor showcased a distinct craft from one another, ranging from homemade cake pops from Mom and Me Pop Shop to handcrafted A and B resin products made by Ariel Mathy. Lisa Hixson, a Monteagle resident, had a diverse range of crafts from Grinch themed décor to “button bracelets”, handcrafted bracelets with a button for easy wearing and removing.
“I had to do something different. I didn’t like toggles and I did do some stretch bracelets,” said Hixson. “I thought I’d do something different.”
Jonathan Hill, owner of Phantom Prints, was another local vendor present during the event. Hill explained Phantom Prints specializes in 3-D prints and custom figurines. Various figurines were showcased to the public, including Christmas filaments, dragons, and fidget cubes. Hill’s products helped add on to the diversity of wares on display during Monteagle’s revived Christmas Bazaar.