The 2018 Lancaster Festival ended on a high note--literally! Martina McBride and the Lancaster…read moreOrchestra brought down the house with a lively and epic performance. The weather was perfect for the outside event. The grounds behind OUL provide the perfect place for concerts with the hill providing natural stadium-like seating. The full moon set the stage for a wonderful night--even Martina commented on it. I can't wait until next year!

Apparently the Lancaster Orchestra aren't actually native Lancasterans! They may not even be…read moreAmerican. I heard they need places to stay in the dead period after the festival. Does anyone know how to foster one? Preferably a flutist?

This place is the cutest. It's a pottery painting studio that's also a coffee shop. So you can…read morevisit just to grab a coffee or hot chocolate or tea, or you can visit to paint some pottery, or both! I highly recommend doing both. You should know, though: This place seems to get very busy on the weekends, and they do not take reservations. So if you want to beat the crowds, your best bet is to get there right when they open. If all of the painting tables are full, you will need to wait outside until someone leaves. That could be 10 minutes, which is what it was for us. Or, like the nice man who works there pointed out, it could be 30 minutes or more, because there is no time limit once you're at the painting tables, because the creative process can't be rushed. Fair enough. Once we got a table, we walked around the store and looked at all of the pottery options. They had bowls, plates, piggy banks, coasters, planters, trinkets and ornaments (these are seasonal). My kids picked out a truck piggy bank and a kitty ornament. Pottery pieces vary in price -- the ornament cost around $12, and the piggy bank cost $35. Next we made our way to the painting station, where we loaded up our pallets with paint. They recommend using three coats of paint for the brightest finish, but my kids, who are impatient like all children, only did one coat of paint and their pieces came out really well. After you're done painting, you leave your pieces on the table, pay for them at the register, and then Art & Clay on Main fires them and glosses them, and you pick them up about a week later. It is so cool to finally get your finished pieces. Ours really looked professionally done! While we were painting, we ordered some hot chocolate with whipped cream, and drank and painted at a leisurely pace. It was a nice and relaxing family activity, and my kids were really into it. I highly recommend dropping by Art & Clay on Main if you're in downtown Lancaster if you're looking for a fun and relaxing activity with your kids.

I do like this place they are very friendly and during the summer there's a lot of good pottery…read morepainting choices, my only gripe is they close random days and it doesn't say that on the map, so imagine driving 25 minutes to pick up your piece and their closed. All I would say about this place is definitely call ahead or check the website before coming in because I find they are often closed on random days as this has happened to me twice now

I'm a big sucker for 60s, so I made a point to check out DACO's current Mod/60s exhibit before it…read morewas gone. All I can say is: So cool! Yes, I definitely wish there were more artifacts, posters and clothing on display, but that's just because I'm a lover of any and all things 60s era, so anything original to the time period just plain excites the dickens out of me and makes me think and ponder socio-economic conditions, and life in general, during America's past 100 years even more, haha. The museum is next to the Sherman house, a historical home with its own significance. There's plenty of free street parking if the small lot next to DACO happens to be full. I believe it was $11 to see their spotlight exhibit. If you're an art/history buff, I recommend you take a day stroll down to Lancaster and stop here; anything of historical significance is always worth patronizing, imo.

The current exhibit is Flower Power: Flora in Fashion. I loved all of the use of floral print…read morefabrics and the big paper flowers decorating the entrance to the exhibit. As part of the exhibit, I took a flower arranging class at the art education center on the museum property. Our instructors Brooke and Elizabeth were very knowledgable and gave us lots of helpful tips for working with flowers at home. Elizabeth provided all of the fresh flowers from her floral design business and farm (Bluegreen Gardens) and they were gorgeous. Admission to the Decorative Arts Center is free. On the weekends, they are open Saturdays and Sundays 1-4 pm. The staff is made up of volunteers and they are always fantastic.

This is the nicest festival I have been to in Canal Winchester…read more Compaired to the rather small ones they usually host, this was pretty major for such a small town. The car show was cool, alot of very nice vintage cars to admire with owners willing to give you the story on them. A lot of kids, rides, snacks, games as well as live bands for adults and the usual fried foods and art/jewelry stands to browse. Also goes on the entire labor day weekend which is nice. Perfect for a stroll on a beautiful late summer day with the family.

Somehow my wife and I managed to justify not just one, but two (!) meals of fair food this weekend…read more Such is the joy/curse of living within walking distance of the annual Canal Winchester Labor Day Festival. The first go-round was understandable -- we haven't eaten the junky treats of fair food in years. So we loaded up on the first day with corn dogs and fried cheese. The next day, we found ourselves drawn back to the festivities at lunch. Ribbon fries. Elephant ears. Lemon Shake-ups. Yet more fried cheese. How are we still alive? I still feel a little sick. Along with the wonderful fair food, this 80-year-old celebration boasts the usual small town carnival stuff -- a midway with games, live music ( I heard at least three Journey covers), arts and crafts, a car show and a parade. No huge surprises, other than the fact that the small town of Canal does it up so big. It's a blast!

How cool is it that Lancaster has a winery you can go to and stare at the grape vine pasture!…read moreOur server was so kind and accommodating! You've really got to try it! Hummus and veggies, meat and cheeses and pizza is yummy!

This place has some of my favorite wines and the ambiance for a girls night or a date night is…read moreperfect. There wines tend to be on the sweeter side, but they do have some dry options. The staff is very knowledgeable. Just tell them what you like and they're very good at suggesting.