THIS IS THE BIG ONE
Among Baltimore-area craft shows, where else can you find such an array of handmade items that runs from the predictable in the way of gifts and personal wear, to the exotic -- conversation pieces such as a wooden teapot, brick earrings or glass knives and a glass chair?
The American Craft Council is conducting its 20th annual Craft Fair at the Baltimore Convention Center, with public sessions beginning at 10 a.m. today. The show closes Sunday night.
Organizers are expecting about 35,000 people to attend.
More than 700 crafts-people will sell at this year's juried show. They were chosen from more than 3,000 applicants nationally. The 700 figure is a high for the Baltimore show -- and a record 10 percent of the exhibitors are new to this area.
The council suggests that visitors allow four hours to see all the exhibits and vendors. The wares you'll be able to explore include leather work, jewelry, glasswork, woodwork and items made from slate, ceramics, glass and metal.
Today's hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tomorrow: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday: 10 a.m. 5 p.m. Admission: $7; a two-day pass is $12; children younger than 12, free. Information: 962-1122. Can you concoct a "bicycle helmet" that will let you run an uncooked egg -- safely -- down a 6-foot ramp and into a wall? Or how about building a "Mars surface landing vehicle" capable of protecting two raw eggs from the impact of sliding down a 12-foot rope?
Elementary, dear reader. Or at least elementary-school age children from around Maryland will test their answers to those two questions during the Baltimore Museum of Industry's '95 Engineering Challenge competitions from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at the museum, 1415 Key Highway. Admission. Information: 727-4808.
Maryland middle and high school students still are devising answers to comparable challenges and will test their inventions at the museum in late April.
This weekend's challenge is part of National Engineering Week. The competitions are co-sponsored by the Engineering Society of Baltimore and the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers.
OTHER STUFF
In honor of Black History Month the National Aquarium will admit everyone for $1 Sunday. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information: 576-3800.
* Storyteller Fellisco Keeling will present the final installment of 11 the Saturday Stories at the Top from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. tomorrow at the Top of the World, atop the World Trade Center. She will tell tales of Aansi the Spider and Br'er Rabbit. Admission. Information: 837-4515.