Indoor market brings goods, treats, warm vibes to Oshkosh community
Finding activities to do during winter can be difficult, especially in a Midwestern oasis like Oshkosh. On March 9, downtown Main Street hosted the winter’s farmer market in the Oshkosh Arena. Not only are farmers markets a great way to support small businesses in the community, but they bring people together and form community. From crochet mushrooms and wooden sculptures, to freshly grown vegetables, the Indoor Farmers Market had a plethora of options to look at.
Patricia Roberts, Debbie Karns and a helping friend, Lyn, were just some of the many vendors selling products. The ladies handcrafted nearly every single item in their booth.
Lyn explained that her friend Karns, one of the main owners of the business Dreams Come True, has been selling her handmade items for over 20 years.
“I love crafting and it gets stuff out of my house and into other people’s,” Lyn said.
She clarified that she is not the main owner of Dreams Come True, and only plans to continue selling until moving to Florida.
“In fact the peeps over there, I did those. Sugar free, fat free, full of fiber, I mean you can’t go wrong,” she said, referring to crochet Peep bunnies.
The stand was teeming with different fiber filled creations, enough to fill a wardrobe.
“I do blankets, shawls, I’ve got hats and scarves. If it can be crocheted, I do it,” Lyn said.
Sharry Allen is the owner of Sharoza Ranch Alpacas. She and her husband own an alpaca ranch as well as a booth where they sell things related to their animals. Her items varied from crochet finger puppets, fuzzy hats, scarves, yarn, socks, and many other things.
Many of the businesses present at the market are owned by just a few people like in Allens’ case.
“It’s my husband and then we have the alpaca on the farm, so it’s just our farm business basically, and then we go to craft shows as well,” Allen said.
Allen’s items varied in type as well as appearance. Many things looked warm and fuzzy, and the overall vibe of the booth was welcoming.
“We have some things made from our alpacas; I do my own knitting, hand spinning, weaving,” Allen said. “I do a lot of that stuff myself like felting, so I make some of my own and then we also order from our co-op in New England, or from Peru.”
Sharoza Ranch Alpacas has been in the works for a long time, before products could even be made.
“We started raising alpaca 15-18 years ago,” Allen said.
Allen sees herself doing this for a few more years.
“As long as we have alpaca, we have to have them sheared every year, so we have to sell the fiber, and this is what I do,” Allen said.
A wide variety of goods were on sale at the market, including a vast selection of sweet treats that were easy to spot at the market.Gold Coast Candy is a returning partner at the market.
“This is our third year. Everything here we make. Everything else was made in my store, we started our business in Appleton, and then we started the store in Oconomowoc last year,” Gold Coast Candy worker Orson Fournillier said.
Over time many of the small businesses at the market are able to expand.
“We’ve been in business for four years. We started off with our brittle, and then last year we added everything else you see here,” Fournillier said.
There were many choices of sweets to choose from. Peanut brittle, cashews, chocolate marshmallows, and chocolate-covered toffee, were just a few of the mouth watering goodies available.
Amongst the vendors, there were many guests enjoying themselves.
“I thought they had really unique stuff and I liked how creative it was,” market guest Emma Donahue said.
by Adele Faust
Published April 1st 2024
Oshkosh West Index Volume 120 Issue VI