Forget folk art. This weekend, I’m interested in folk mart.

It’s time once again for thousands of folk festival fans to descend on the Bangor waterfront for a weekend full of great music, belt-busting food and unique, Maine-made handcrafts.

Things have changed a little since last year – the National Folk Festival has wrapped up its three-year run in Bangor, and the new American Folk Festival has set up camp on the banks of the Penobscot River. By the looks of things, the shopping quality has remained the same.

I like to think of the marketplace as a well-edited craft fair. In other words, you won’t find any painted wooden “lawn butts” (you know, the bent-over ladies that adorn flowerbeds and front yards throughout the state). Instead, you can pick up stunning jewelry, herbal remedies, scrumptious food products and my favorite, yarn and knitted goods.

Beeuw van Kuijeren of Vermeer’s Lace & Fiber Studio will be there with her cozy mittens, and I’m sure I’ll be tempted once again by Paula Farrar’s handspun yarn at the Done Roving Farm & Carding Mill booth. If the word crochet makes you think of toilet paper holders and ugly afghans, Jo Eaton’s adorable creations – oh, the hats! – will make you think again. Joan McAfee of A Touch of the Past also has a unique take on crochet with her pineapple-style pattern.

Speaking of pineapple, the foodstuffs in the marketplace are enough to make anyone’s mouth water. I’m in love with the pickles at Stanchfield Farm, and I’m eager to try its bourbon barbecue sauces. Have a sweet tooth? You can get your fix at Breakneck Ridge Farm, which sells all-natural maple syrup, and White Oak Apiary, which features honey products. Jack’s Gourmet Pickles appeal to hot pepper aficionados, while health nuts and gourmets will be drawn to the offerings from Blueberry Bliss and Worcester’s Wild Blueberries.

It’s enough to make me want to sit down with a piece of toast slathered with blueberry jam and a cup of hot herbal tea from Common Folk Farm, created by herbalists Betsey-Ann and Dale Golon. Other herbalists will be on hand with nonedible offerings, such as the Stinky Feet Soap at Knot II Bragg Farm, the “Soft as a Baby’s Behind” salve from Mountain Mama of Maine, Maine Coast Herbals’ soaps, which smell good enough to eat, and Naturally Bee-Ewe-tiful’s beeswax-based toiletries.

Of course, I think the folk festival is the bee’s knees. The only downside is that it marks the end of summer as we know it. However, this gives shopaholics such as myself the perfect excuse to stock up on cool-weather essentials such as quilts and fleece.

The modern, stylish quilts of Ginger Phelps and Gabriella d’Italia are a highlight, as are Nora Flanagan’s pictorial quilted designs. New to the festival this year is H.O.M.E. cooperative of Orland, known for its fiber arts and handcrafts, as well as its social outreach.

The sweet fleece buntings and hats from Sew ‘n Wild Oats will leave you and your baby snug as a bug in a rug, while the rugs from Braids and Wiskas, Braided Works and Hutton Handwovens will warm your floors in style.

You can step out in style wearing one of Robert Dickens’ fabulous hand-tooled belts (perfect with this fall’s trendy Western-style jeans and cowboy boots), or tread lightly in Quoddy Trail Moccasin Co.’s handmade mocs and shoes.

If you’re as wild about accessories as I am, try Terrence Williamson’s affordable, handmade gemstone and wire jewelry. For a one-of-a-kind piece of wearable art, visit Rosemarie DiLernia’s booth for hand-tied linen jewelry – being knotty never looked so good – or Frances Frey, whose designs give the American Indian tradition of beadwork a thoroughly modern feel. In addition to jewelry, Stanley Sayers will offer traditional Micmac Indian crafts, including turtle clocks and bags and horn rattles for babies.

Rather accessorize your home? Visit Mark Wren, who will light up the festival again with his stained glass, or Mildred Crocker, whose designs revive the lost art of tatting. Got game? Bet you don’t have one of Ed Croy’s cribbage boards crafted from moose horns and deer antlers. Susan Dickson-Smith’s Proper Clay Stoneware is a subtle and lovely addition to any home; I’m especially fond of her vases.

Looking for something a little more substantial, such as furniture? Take a chance on Abba’s Workshop. Bob Mowdy makes Windsor chairs as well as furniture inspired by Shaker, Colonial and Arts and Crafts designs. Jim and Linda Leach of Fine Pine Designs craft hand- and machine-tooled furniture, but they’re also known for their collapsible baskets. And if you’re looking for baskets, Dorothy Lawrence of The Basket Tree creates packs for camping, ice fishing and fly fishing.

Woodworking dominates the marketplace, with such offerings as Christopher Beyer’s Cabin Creations – woodburning art on driftwood, fungus and other natural material. Jeff Peterson’s Swedish bowls, pickle forks, spoons and rolling pins are beautiful and functional. Ralph and Deen Hicks of Island Intarsia craft quiltlike scenes in wood, while Gary Poisson’s bird carvings elevate decoys into home decor. The craftspeople at Norumbega Woodcarvers also carve traditional Maine duck and fish decoys.

Throw all these decoys in a wooden canoe from Island Falls Canoe Co. and you’ll be good to go, even if you’re just headed across the river to Brewer, which could get you there a lot faster than driving – Have you seen the traffic during the folk festival?

ShopNotes

. We have three winners! The August giveaway of beauty products from Stila, Becca. N.Y.C., Goldie and more netted 550 responses. Congratulations to Almira Parady of Rockwood, Sandy Bailey-Bowen of Bradley and Peggy Staples of Ellsworth – your cosmetics are in the mail. Keep reading – the next giveaway will be announced in early September. As always, happy shopping!

. As usual, I bought it when I saw it at Marden’s. Recently, a shipment from a large department store whose name rhymes with Eileen’s had me all aflutter – I picked up a pair of sneakers, two dressy tops and a tweedy blazer as well as a $1.39 top from Delia’s, all for under $40. If you’re shopping for back-to-school clothing, check out jeans by Mudd and L.E.I. as well as a great selection of junior’s-size sweaters and tops. Hurry, though, before someone like me scoops it all up.

. I’ll be on vacation next week, but my column will resume Sept. 10.

ShopGirl would love to hear from you! Send questions, comments or suggestions by e-mail to: kandresen@bangordaily

news.net, by U.S. mail to: Kristen Andresen, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor, ME 04402-1329, or by fax to: 941-9476. Tune in to ShopGirl at 5 p.m. Fridays on WLBZ-2.