Our Weekend at the 3rd Annual Stars Hollow Fall Festival

We spent this past Friday and Saturday, October 9 and 10, at the 3rd Annual Stars Hollow Fall Festival in Schaefferstown, and what a weekend it was! We are proud OG vendors of this event and have been lucky enough to be part of this magical weekend all three years. This year we were set up under our sister business, Caffeinated Chaos, pouring delicious gourmet coffee and loose-leaf tea, and we brought along a few Ember Oak Studio pieces for a little soft launch ahead of our official start on January 1, 2027. If you stopped by our tent, thank you! If you didn’t make it this year, here is a peek at what you missed.

A Little Slice of Stars Hollow, Right Here in Lebanon County

Kind Bird Events puts on the Stars Hollow Fall Festival at the Historic Alexander Schaeffer Farm in Schaefferstown, just a short drive from our home base. For one weekend every fall, the farm turns into a cozy small town straight out of everyone’s favorite fall comfort show, complete with plenty of coffee, flannel, and good company. It truly felt like the organizers’ promise came true: a weekend spent with family, friends, and strangers who become family.

This Year’s Highlights

The weather was perfect. Last year was bitter cold and windy, so we were holding our breath this time around. This year could not have been better. You couldn’t ask for a more iconic fall day in Stars Hollow.

The biggest crowd yet. Saturday brought the biggest crowd we have seen in all three years, which was so exciting to be part of. Our booth sat directly across from one of the coffee trucks, and its line wrapped around the truck from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. without a single break. Kudos to that crew, because they were putting in WORK!

Baby animals! Heritage Farms showed up with the cutest baby animal petting zoo, and it made Baby B’s toddler heart soar. We visited those animals at least five times on Saturday alone.

A visit from Mrs. Kim herself. Emily Kuroda, who played Mrs. Kim on Gilmore Girls, was there for meet-and-greets and a breakfast event. Seeing a real piece of Stars Hollow walking around the farm was such a treat for every fan there.

What We Brought to the Table

Alongside the coffee and tea, our table held the first Ember Oak Studio wood-burned cutting boards and decor pieces ever shown in public, each made by hand in our little husband-and-wife shop. A few of the designs that drew smiles:

• Cardinals Appear When Angels Are Near, a sweet keepsake for anyone remembering a loved one
• Our shaggy Highland cow, who quickly became the unofficial mascot of our booth
• You Jump, I Jump umbrella boards, a nod to Rory’s very first Life and Death Brigade adventure
• Gnome Kicking Says a Lot About a Man’s Character, which got more than a few laughs
• Butterflies and mushrooms on a darker stained board for the nature lovers

Every design is burned into the wood using heat, then finished by hand. Our food-safe boards get a good coat of butcher block oil, and our decor pieces are sealed so they hold up for years. It was so much fun watching people pick up a board, run their fingers over the design, and ask how we make them.

A Festival With a Big Heart

One of our favorite things about this event is where the money goes. For another year in a row, admission proceeds went to Susquehanna Service Dogs, which trains and places service dogs with people in our region. Knowing that every person who walked through the gate was helping put a service dog with someone who needs one made the weekend even more special for us.

More Than a Vendor

I am more than a vendor at this event. I am a die-hard Gilmore Girls fan, and I love being surrounded by people who share that same vibe: a little quirkiness, a love for sarcasm, and an unwavering compassion and grace for everyone around them.

One moment summed it up perfectly. A woman stopped at our table and realized she had left her wallet at another booth, so she rushed back to get it before making her purchase. When she returned, she told me how wonderful it was to be at an event where she didn’t have to worry about anyone stealing her wallet, even though she had left it sitting at someone else’s stand. I couldn’t agree more. These are my people, and they are all so wonderful.

Thank You, and What’s Next

A huge thank you to Kind Bird Events for having us, to the Alexander Schaeffer Farm for such a beautiful setting, and to every single person who stopped to chat, laugh at the gnome, or take a board home. Your support means the world to a small shop like ours.

Did you see a design you loved but didn’t grab it? Or have an idea for something custom, like a board with a family name, a favorite quote, or a design that means something to you? Reach out to us on Facebook, and we would love to make it for you. Ember Oak Studio officially opens January 1, 2027, so keep an eye on our page for launch news and upcoming market dates. And if you fell in love with a cup from the Caffeinated Chaos side of the tent, you can find us on Facebook too. It was a perfect weekend, and I can’t wait to come back to Stars Hollow next year with even more boards to share with my fellow Gilmore Girls!