Abingdon plans 10-day festival

Abingdon, Virginia, is home to the award-winning Virginia Highlands Festival, a 10-day festival featuring an antiques and vintage show, an arts and crafts show, live music, local history, outdoor adventures, and more.

This year, the antiques show runs July 23 - August 1, from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., inside the Southwest Virginia Higher Ed Center. The 13,000-square-feet grand hall will be full of an assortment of formal and primitive furniture, high–end collectibles, jewelry, porcelain, china, rugs, vintage clothing, linens, paintings, pottery and more.

Entry fee is $5 per day, or purchase a season pass and come as much as you like for $15. Early bird shopping is July 23, 8 a.m. - 10 a.m. and the cost is $20.

To complement the antique and vintage show, there are a series of additional events, lectures and walking tours, many free or included in the show’s entrance fee.

The festival will conduct an antiques discovery day, at which a panel of regional antiques experts will help identify your family “treasures” and give you an informal appraisal of their worth.

Ken Farmer of Charlottesville, Virginia, who has appeared on the popular PBS series “Antiques Roadshow” for over 20 years as a specialist in folk art, furniture, decorative arts and musical instruments, will serve as the lead expert.

That event will be held on Sunday, August 1, from 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. at the festival tent, adjacent to the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon.

The cost for the identification and appraisal of one item is $10, or three items for $25. Tickets should be reserved in advance at vahighlandsfestival.com/calendar/antiques-discovery-day.

For more information about the Antiques & Vintage Show, visitvahighlandsfestival.com/antiquesandvintageshow.