OXFORD — Exhibitors at a new display building at the Oxford Fair said the venue offered a chance to demonstrate traditional wares and to market their products.

The Working Homestead features a number of crafts and agricultural trades, including beekeeping, soap making, canning, cooking, basket weaving, sewing and spinning. Marty Elkin, an owner of Wrinkle in Thyme Farm in Sumner, has been demonstrating the spinning of wool into yarn and has also completed pieces of needle felt artwork during the fair.

“I really think this is bringing a big piece of agriculture back to the fair, which is really needed,” said Elkin. “I’m glad we’re doing it.”

Julie Daye of Norway had a station set up next to Elkin to show her baskets and other crafts, which are woven with Florida pine needles and artificial sinew. She said the fair was looking for atypical crafts to demonstrate, and that artisans were allowed to set up displays free of cost.

“I really haven’t sold a lot, but I’m getting a lot of publicity,” she said.

Daye said one woman from Florida spotted her woven hat from across the building and offered to buy it. Daye said the hat wasn’t for sale, but eventually agreed to ship it down to the Sunshine State after the fair when the woman offered $135 for it.

Bill Harmon of Sumner weaves pack baskets for use by ice fishermen and trappers. He has a piece of a brown ash log set out to show where the flexible wood used in the baskets come from. Harmon said he usually doesn’t display at events like the fair, but was urged to do so by an artisan neighbor and fair organizer.

“I’ve sold every basket I could make,” he said. “I’ve got an order right now for 18 baskets.”

Harmon said he is also hoping to get younger people interested in the craft.

“I’d love to teach somebody,” he said. “I thought if I got one young person interested in it, I could get them interested in doing something good instead of interested in doing something bad.”

Lee Holman, owner of Whippoorwill Hill Farm in Hartford, has a similar outlook. Located just outside the building, she has a wood stove and other implements set up to give out samples of sweet corn and demonstrate food canning.

“I thought, ‘Here’s a real great opportunity to advertise the farm,’” she said.

Holman said the stand has attracted people of all ages, many of whom are interested in the canning process. She said she received the most interest on Thursday, Senior Citizens Day.

“People have really liked this a lot, particularly on Seniors Day because people remembered their mothers canning or did a lot of canning themselves,” she said.

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