Knott’s Berry Farm’s Crafts Festival Offers the Spirit of Christmas Past

Anyone sniffing for signs of the Christmas spirit can check out the second annual Christmas Crafts Festival at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park. Located in the park’s Ghost Town, 20 Christmas craftspeople are working in an 1880s setting complete with roasting chestnuts and miles of fragrant garland. They include a silversmith, leather worker, glass blower and carrousel carver. At one location, doll maker Gaetanne Rinker sews up the local market for dolls and handmade Barbi clothes, while nearby a 20-ton chunk of serpentine marble becomes a triceratops dinosaur. Tucked in between is a fourth-generation wheat weaver, Morgyn Owens-Celli, who made President Reagan’s Christmas tree angel this year. The idea behind the festival was to create “an alternative to shopping centers,” said spokesman Stuart Zanville. So far, an estimated 185,000 bag-toting bargain hunters have visited the free display since it opened three weeks ago, and another 115,000 are expected to shop there by closing day on Dec. 24. That would top last year’s attendance of 216,000 by almost 39%, said Zanville, who estimates that festival revenues this year will hit almost $1 million. The outdoor festival was rained out Wednesday but is expected to be open every day through Christmas Eve.