On Friday and Saturday, November 23-24 from 9 am to 4 pm, enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of Old World holiday shopping, where you'll find a unique selection of one-of-a-kind gifts for those special someones on your list!

Turner Hall's Christkindlmarkt will feature the work of select artisans and vendors, with unique, affordable and quality gifts. Shoppers will find a variety of items including fiber and fabric arts, candles, soaps, floral arrangements and Christmas decorations as well as specifically European items such as Scherenschnitte (scissor cuttings), Kerbschnitte (chip-carving in wood) and Holzschnitte (wood-carvings.) For a complete listing of this year's vendors, click here.

Father Christmas will be making an appearance on both days of the market, visiting with children and shoppers. And Santa stopped by recently at The Swiss Colony in Monroe and left gingerbread houses for any children who may come to the Christkindlmarkt.

The Old World ambiance of the Turner Hall of Monroe provides the perfect backdrop for this unique European-style Christmas market. The Christkindlmarkt, or literally translated, Christ-Child Market, is a traditional German Christmas market with origins dating back to 1434. One of the most famous and oldest markets, which was first officially recorded in 1628, is held annually in Nuremberg. Christkindlmarkts take place in many cities throughout Germany, as well as in areas of the United States where immigrants brought the tradition with them.

Also part of the market, a European-style café, including homemade Swiss baked goods and treats from Turner Hall's Ratskeller Restaurant, will offer Christkindlmarkt shoppers a chance to relax and take in the holiday atmosphere.

Treat yourself to the experience this year, and you'll want to make the Christkindlmarkt one of your holiday shopping traditions every year!

Partial Listing of 2008 Christkindlmarkt Vendors
• Baskets 'n' More - custom-made gift baskets for special occasions
• BJ's Stitch 'n' Such - handmade fabric items by Bev Rufer and Joyce Kubly
• Chip Carving by Gottlieb Brändli, Sr. - carved wood ornaments and more
• Chip Carvings by Horst Hart - wood items featuring the European art
• Chromaticity - watercolor note cards, painted gourds, watercolors, bird houses
• Cold Springs Creations - broom corn swags, vintage quilt stuffed kitties
• Cottage Bliss Mosaics - mosaics on vintage furniture and other home decor
• Corrugated Roofing Pictures - by Rita & Wendell Norquay
• European Bake Sale - baked goods made by the Monroe Swiss Singers
• Holidays and Every Day - unique large lighted Christmas arrangements
• No-Soot Candles - candles, floral arrangements and home decor
• Schatzkiste (Treasure Chest) - Swiss and European collectibles
• Scherenschnitte - European art of scissors cuttings by Elda and Linda Schiesser
• Sewing in Circles - fabric bowls
• Sugar River Roses - porcelain painting
• Up-a-Creek Dairy Goats - goat milk soap and lotion
• Hand-carved Wood Figurines - by Ernst Possner