Visitors to home show are pleased

Visitors to the weekend’s Daily Journal/B104 Home and Outdoor Expo at the Farmington Civic Center indulged in delicious food, looked at furniture and kitchen supplies, and thought about the fun they could have with a variety of recreational vehicles.

Wedding photographers Jacquie Hand-Dennis and Sherry Pierce displayed the special books and creative photography they offer brides and grooms. The women said they had had a lot of interest in their work during the Expo.

“I’ve gotten two weddings today,” Hand-Dennis said on Saturday. 

She and Pierce sometimes work together, but often have separate bookings.

“We’re not here to make a lot of money,” Hand-Dennis  said of her business, Jacquie’s Creations. “We just want to make our expenses.”

Across the way, Cindy Hoeflein offered scrapbooking items from Close to My Heart.

“We’re having a really good day,” Hoeflein said. “The crowds are constant and people are buying. I think people are once again relaxing and doing things they enjoy.”

Several booths offered jewelry, including one in which craftsman Owen Sloan custom made rings from silver spoons. Most of the spoons were silver-plated, but Sloan also had Sterling silver and English silver spoons.

“It takes me two minutes to make one, and I don’t hit it or heat it,” said Sloan as he bent the handle of a spoon in a hand-operated machine.

“English silver is better than Sterling silver, because Americans alloy their silver with copper, and the English use platinum,” Sloan confided.

As usually is the case, The Blue Owl Restaurant booth was crowded with customers who treated themselves to small pies, chocolate covered strawberries, and rich, luscious cheesecakes. Mary Hostetter demonstrated two of her restaurant’s top sellers, the Snicker bar pie and a crunchy chicken salad.

Other vendors offered mixes for dips, chili and cheesecake.

Stone Haus Furniture displayed oak, cherry and maple furniture. Behind their display was a Gulf Stream Visa recreational vehicle, open for tours of its compact kitchen, dining area and bedroom.

There were fancy lawnmowers and four-wheelers, motorcycles and motorboats, and offers for national and international travel.

Mary Miller took a break at the Beauty Control booth, where Dawn Eaton draped a warm wrap across Miller’s shoulders and ran a vibrating hand massager across her shoulders and upper back. Eaton offers the massages and facials during in-home spas to demonstrate her beauty products. Her focus is on products that aid in relaxation.

“This feels great,” Miller said. “I could go to sleep.”

One vendor thought crowds were down a bit from previous years, when appraiser attracted large crowds. But most vendors said they thought the crowds were about the same or bigger.

“We’re doing much better this year,” said Cindy Sebastian of Juice Plus. “It’s going well.”

Paula Barr is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-431-2010, ext. 172 or at pbarr@dailyjournalonline.com.