Laguna Leaves Muddy Memories in the Sawdust

Having survived a winter of record-setting rains and destructive mudslides, Laguna Beach’s art community turned out in force Thursday for the opening of the 32nd annual Sawdust Festival.

On a warm, sunny day that drew shoppers and browsers to exhibits offering everything from pottery to pearls, artists and artisans talked about the contrast.

“It’s amazing that we’re here considering where we were four months ago,” said Mike Heintz, a jeweler and photographer. “This whole place was buried in 4 feet of mud.”

More than 80 truckloads of mud had to be hauled away from the 3-acre eucalyptus grove on Laguna Canyon Road before the sawdust could be scattered on the festival grounds. But the work was finished in time to welcome the first of the 200,000 visitors expected before the festival ends on Aug. 30, event coordinator Lynne Powell said.

“There’s something here for everybody,” she said.

Indeed, children had a chance to have their faces painted by Star Shields, who uses stencils to spray on a water-based makeup. Kids and grown-ups could try their hand at pottery, sitting at a wheel and shaping clay into bowls and vases.

“It was fun--and gooey,” said Attia Reid, 13, of San Clemente. “I had never done pottery before, but it was pretty easy.”

The festival offers a wide range of arts and crafts at its 180 booths, which are rented only to artists who have lived in Laguna Beach for at least 16 months. And everything offered for sale must be handmade by the artist, not by anyone else, Powell said.

“It’s our 26th year here at the festival. We’re one of the old-timers,” said Pamela Kahlo, who helps friend Leslie Edler sell her handmade jewelry. “She has to do everything herself, every little detail,” she said, pointing to a double strand of hand-strung freshwater pearls with a large blue topaz pendant. “These artists are the real thing.”

Among this year’s offerings are purses and paintings, wind chimes and watercolors.

“It’s a great opportunity to show our work,” said Javier Alvarez-Palomar, who owns a gallery in town and is participating in his first Sawdust Festival. “I’m trying to open the doors for other Latin American artists.”

The festival also offers food at a number of booths, and entertainment, from jazz bands to jugglers, making it attractive as a day trip for families.

The only catch is the perennial problem for visitors: parking space. And not even the artists are immune.

“I’m going to have to run out again soon just to feed the parking meter,” face-painter Shields said. “You would think they could give us a parking space.”