About

The Genoa-Kingston Christmas Craft Walk is an annual craft show that features handcrafted and homemade items. Shoppers are invited to visit homes, churches, businesses, and other organizations in Genoa and Kingston. The Craft Walk always begins one week after Thanksgiving, and maps are available of all the locations! Pick up a map at area businesses or at one of the locations during the show.

The Craft Walk is a unique craft show run by a group of volunteers, and is a non-profit based in Genoa, IL.

2025 Craft Walk Committee

Joni Watson

Dorothy Francke

Emily Weil

Kay Baker

Elaine Czuba

Mary Keys

History of the Craft Walk

The idea for the Genoa-Kingston Christmas Craft Walk originated with the Ellen Oaks Arts & Crafts Show. The Ellen Oaks Show started in 1970, and was organized by Marilyn Greenawalt and Nancy Wulf. They held an open house at the beginning of December at Nancy’s private home in Ellen Oaks subdivision. The show showcased local artists, including oil paintings by Marilyn Greenawalt and stitchery by Nancy Wulf. This open house quickly became an annual event, and eventually moved to the Masonic Temple in 1985 to allow for more artists and crafters to participate. For many years, they shared their proceeds with Safe Passage.

This open house idea quickly spread to other organizations and subdivisions in Genoa. In 1975, Arlene Erickson and Janice Campbell organized their first open houses at their homes on the same weekend as the Ellen Oaks Craft Show. Their two open houses were the origin of the “Christmas Craft Walk” in Genoa. Soon, other local crafters were opening their homes to shoppers on the same weekend. In the 1980’s, local churches such as Faith United Methodist Church, St. Catherine’s Catholic Church, and Herbert United Methodist Church got involved and hosted crafters in their fellowship halls. In about 1988, the Ellen Oaks Arts & Crafts Show and the other open houses in the area started collaborating together to coordinate their open houses into a “holiday walk” with maps and coordinated advertising. This walk eventually became known as the “Genoa-Kingston Christmas Craft Walk.” The participants in the Walk showcased their artistic skills, including painting, bread making, crafty Christmas decor, woodworking, and more. In 1996, there were over 33 locations in Genoa and Kingston participating in the Craft Walk!

Over the years, the Genoa-Kingston Christmas Craft Walk has been coordinated by several dedicated volunteers, including Dixie Awe, Penny Swanson, and more recently, a committee of five Craft Walk hosts. Several long-time hosts of the Craft Walk include: Ellen Oaks Open House (1970-2015), Jan Campbell’s Country Christmas (began in 1975), Cravatta’s Country Christmas (began about 1987), Faith United Methodist Church (1986-present), Trinity Lutheran Church (1996-present), and Drake Baskets (1996-present).

Get in touch

Interested in hosting a location on the Craft Walk, or being a crafter at one of the stops? Visit our Get Involved page to learn more! Or Contact Us for other questions.