Celebrate all things local by learning a skill at northeast Olympia festival

Love Our Local Fest celebrates Olympia’s community and creativity, and this year, the annual festival aims to inspire everyone who attends to be more creative.

In addition to the usual lively mix of artists, artisans, healing-arts practitioners, community groups and food purveyors, the seventh annual LOL Fest will feature a chance to learn skills from beekeeping to weaving.

“The focus is on a more hands-on experience,” said Gail O’Sullivan, one of the festival organizers and the owner of Fertile Ground Guesthouse. “We felt that in years past, it was a little too focused on a marketplace atmosphere. We felt like if you didn’t go there to shop, you might get bored.”

But boredom doesn’t seem likely at Love Our Local, where leashed goats walk through the crowd, popular bands play music all day long, and the evening ends with a performance by fire dancers. Last year, the event, held in northeast Olympia near Roosevelt Elementary School, attracted between 1,000 and 2,000 people, organizers estimate.

Yet the idea of transforming festivalgoers into makers feels like a natural extension of the festival’s focus on celebrating and supporting local makers.

“It’s about stepping off the commerce wheel,” said Marie Poland, one of the festival’s founders. “The more we can encourage people to support local artisans and to make things themselves, the better. It doesn’t always have to be about the exchange of the almighty dollar.”

The main skill-sharing area — where experts will teach about embroidery, woodworking, stone carving and more — was organized by Arbutus Folk School. “They’re bringing the school to the streets,” O’Sullivan said in a recent phone interview.

Many of the artists and artisans selling their wares at the festival have added educational or hands-on elements to their booths, too. Among the offerings will be jewelry-making and button-making demonstrations, a chance to watch artists at work, and a peek inside a darkroom to learn about the making of an old-fashioned tintype.

“There’s going to be a lot more stuff to do instead of just walk around and look at things that you can’t afford,” O’Sullivan said.

O’Sullivan, who’s been assisting with festival organization for three years, suggested another free pastime.

“I really like watching people talk to each other,” she said. “I’m kind of a people watcher, and it’s really fun to see people run into each other who haven’t seen each other in a while and hug and engage and chat and break apart and do it again.

“It’s a great atmosphere for seeing old friends and really taking time to enjoy the day. The atmosphere slows people down with the cacophony of beautiful lights and colors and sound and performance.”

“It’s a day to get together and celebrate and see each other,” Poland added. “There’ve been so many troubles in the world, and so much ignorance and racism and hatred going on. I’m hoping this can be a counter to that.”

This story was originally published August 25, 2017 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Celebrate all things local by learning a skill at northeast Olympia festival."