Great Escape: Sawdust Festival

Each week, we’ll tell you about one great idea to give you a much deserved break or make your life a little easier—maybe a whole lot easier.

Each summer I look forward to one of my favorite Great Escapes: the Sawdust Art Festival in Laguna Beach. The Sawdust Festival features the art and crafts of more than 200 local artists in a casual outdoor setting. Each artist has a booth, and most of them are there to show you their work and answer questions. Artists display work in hand-blown and fused glass, painting, jewelry, surf art, ceramics, clothing and textiles, wood and metal sculpture, scrimshaw, photography, and much more.

In addition to booths, the festival offers workshops and live demonstrations, so you can see the glass blowers creating vases from molten glass, or try your hand at the pottery wheel. There are several restaurants offering an array of foods from hamburgers and tacos to fried pickles and kettle corn. While you eat or drink a cold lemonade, you can enjoy live entertainment at the Tavern or Main Deck stages.

The Sawdust Festival was started more than 40 years ago as a way to feature the art of local artists while  entertaining and educating viewers. This year the festival runs daily from June 24 through Aug. 28, and an adult ticket for your escape is only $7.50.