GOSHEN -- Local artists are opening the doors to their studios, galleries and homes for this weekend's Open Studio Tour, which is being held in conjunction with First Fridays.

The monthly block party's theme for November is Fall Arts Festival, and the themed activities will continue into Saturday.

Open Studio Tour is a biannual self-guided tour of Goshen artists' studios and galleries. Many of the studios are located at the Old Bag Factory, 1100 Chicago Ave., the Mill Race Center, 212 W. Washington St., and along Main Street, but some of the sites are scattered around Goshen and even in the artists' homes.

The Open Studio Tour has occurred in the fall and the spring since 2005, and Grace Hunsberger, director of First Fridays, said she and Ben Stutzman, who organizes the Open Studio Tour, tried to coordinate the events to help each other out.

Even though a lot of the Open Studio sites are away from Main Street, which is usually the hub of First Fridays, Hunsberger said she still expects downtown to be about as busy as usual for a First Friday.

"A lot of people still come downtown on Friday and do their First Fridays stuff, and then really the big day for the artist stuff is on Saturday," Hunsberger said.

First Fridays is moving almost entirely indoors this month now that it's getting colder, Hunsberger said, with only a couple food stands and a photo opportunity with a reindeer in front of Woldruff's Footwear, 129 S. Main St., outside.

Kids' activities, other than the reindeer photo, are mostly on east Washington Street, with the new First Fridays Kids Book Club in Better World Books, 118 E. Washington St., and a craft activity inside Accents Framing and Gifts, 120 E. Washington St. Most music will be in the Goshen Theater, 216 S. Main St.

Also in the Goshen Theater, the Goshen Street Tree Board will present two Growth Ring Awards, one to Hertzler Systems and Evan Miller for planting 600 trees in Goshen's South Industrial Park and one to the Goshen Downtown Economic Improvement District Board for creating treescapes in downtown Goshen.

First Fridays will be, as usual, from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, and Open Studio will be during those hours and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Stutzman, who owns Eyedart studio gallery, 213 S. Main St., said the Open Studio tour gives the artists a chance to introduce their work to local shoppers.

"There's just so many artists in the area, and they spend a lot of time and energy selling things around the country and didn't necessarily have the recognition of people in the immediate area," Stutzman said.

Stutzman said the weekend attracts people from all over northern Indiana, the Chicago area and Michigan, but said most of the customers are local people who read about it in the media and want to participate in a weekend community event.

Stutzman puts together a "scavenger hunt," for the tour, where participants look for items such as a cow's skull at the Goshen Painters Guild and a wooden football at Sycamore Fine Arts. He said the activity often keeps kids busy while their parents shop.

This week is also the 25th anniversary of the Old Bag Factory, and Diane Overmyer of Sycamore Fine Arts said there will be artist demonstrations and a reception Saturday at the Old Bag Factory.

FIRST FRIDA/FALL ARTS FESTIVAL GUIDE

Music 5:45 p.m. — Voices N’Harmony, Goshen Theater, 216 S. Main St. 6 to 6:45 p.m. — CSA String Ensemble, Goshen Theater 7 p.m. — New Horizon Band, sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church, 215 E. Lincoln Ave. 7:15 to 7:45 p.m. — CSA Children’s Choirs, Goshen Theater Food 5 to 8 p.m. — Sloppy joe dinner and bake sale at First United Church of Christ, 110 S. Fifth St. 5 to 9 p.m.— Fish Lake Organic Berry Patch will roast fresh chestnuts, outside Goshen Theater All Friday night — The Wiener Circle will have a cart downtown All Friday night— The Elkhart Area Career Center culinary students will sell food Kids’ activities 5 to 7 p.m. — Art activity at Accents Framing and Gifts, 120 E. Washington St. 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. — First Fridays Kids Book Club, Better World Books, 118 E. Washington St. All Friday night — Holiday photos with live reindeer at Woldruff’s Footwear, 129 S. Main St., $8 Other presentations/events 5:30 to 9 p.m. — Dr. Glen E. Miller will do a signing for his newly released book, “Empowering the Patient: How to reduce the cost of healthcare and improve its quality,” Better World Books 6:45 p.m. — Spacious Heart Yoga demonstrates “Yoga as Art,” Goshen Theater 7 p.m. — Goshen Tree Board announces winner of “Growth Ring Award,” Goshen Theater

OPEN STUDIO PARTICIPANTS

Open studio participants (self-guided tour from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday) • Joe’s Fiber Tools, 201 N. Second St., Friday only • John Mishler Studio, The Old Bag Factory, 1100 Chicago Ave. • Lehman-Goertzen Pottery, The Old Bag Factory • Sycamore Fine Arts, The Old Bag Factory • Quilt Designs, The Old Bag Factory • Clay Artists Guild, The Mill Race Center, 212 W. Washington St. • Goshen Painters Guild, The Mill Race Center, Suite 16 • Spacious Heart Yoga featuring Lynne Zehr’s photography, (Friday) Leah Schroeder’s Yoga photography; (Saturday) 203 S. Main St., second floor • Eyedart studio gallery, 213 S. Main St. • Adam and Megan Fleming’s home studio, 1202 S. Eighth St., Saturday only • Graber Designs Gallery, 208 S. Main St. • Accents Framing and Gifts, 120 E. Washington St., Friday only • Shutterhugs Custom Framing and Gifts, 132 S. Main St. • Janis Martin at Studio at Greene and Berkey, 2211 Berkey Ave., Saturday only For more information about the specific vendors, visit www.goshenopenstudio.com.