Another of Whatcom Museum's occasional Family Activity Days features a Fall Festival-themed program this weekend.
"This one should be really cool," said Carrie Brooks, lead educator and operations manager at the museum's Family Interactive Gallery - known affectionately as the FIG.
She's enthusiastic about the broad level of community involvement with the event, which includes co-sponsorship with Allied Arts, seasonal stories presented by the Bellingham Storytellers Guild, and participation in the downtown Bellingham trick-or-treat events.
The program is noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, in the museum's Lightcatcher building at 250 Flora St., just around the corner from Bellingham Public Library.
Cost is $3 for all ages, which includes admission to all Lightcatcher galleries. Museum members are admitted free.
Brooks said the crafts will focus on the autumn season and Halloween. Among the projects planned are raven and moon marionettes, which involve silhouettes cut from construction paper.
"It's a neat little craft," she said.
Participants also can make skeleton masks, scratch art, and trick-or-treating bags with a choice of three templates.
Allied Arts teaching artist Janet Lehwalder will help participants create silk paintings suitable for cards or framing in the Lightcatcher's second-floor studio.
At 1 and 3 p.m., members of the Storytellers Guild will perform stories of the season.
"We're going to do some funny-scary stories," said the guild's Doug Banner. "(Children) like to get goose bumps, but we don't want them to have nightmares."
"They're cute Halloween stories rather than scary," the guild's Lyn Spangler added.
Banner said a pair of "tellers" will offer tales appropriate for all ages, from tots to grandparents.
"There also will be a presentation on the history of Halloween celebrations, including how the holiday evolved and how costumes and jack-o'-lanterns fit in," he said. It's an educational-slash-entertainment piece."
Banner said the guild, which started 15 years ago, still presents regular performances the third Friday of the month at the Fairhaven library. For more information on the storytellers, see bellinghamstorytellersguild.org.
For more information on the museum, see whatcommuseum.com or call 360-778-8930.
TRICK-OR-TREATING
Families and their children 13 and younger can trick-or-treat at various locations in downtown Bellingham from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29. The annual Halloween event is sponsored by the Downtown Bellingham merchants group, which also sponsors the monthly art walks.
Participating merchants will post a "trick-or-treat" sign in their window. Maps that show participating businesses are available at downtownbellingham.com/trickortreat.
For more information, call 360-527-8710.
'TOYS GO OUT' AUTHOR
Emily Jenkins, who wrote about the lively adventures of Lumphy, StingRay, and Plastic in "Toys Go Out" and "Toy Dance Party," will be in town for a presentation on the newest book in the series, "Toys Come Home."
Her free event is at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27, at Village Books, 1200 11th St., in Fairhaven. For details, call 360-671-2626 or go to villagebooks.com and check the calendar at the lower right.
