Five Things to Do This Weekend

1 Shop local.

New Mexico Artisan Market

Hotel Albuquerque hosts the New Mexico Artisan Market this weekend, where you can shop goods created by more than 100 of the state’s coolest makers. Tinwork, paintings, jewelry, stationary, ceramics, stuffed animals, bags, tarot decks, lip balms, photographs, and textiles are just some of the goodies in this stunning display of New Mexican talent.

Look for Alexandrea Gowan's tarot cards at this year's New Mexico Artisan Market. Photograph courtesy of New Mexico Artisan Market.

“Our main mission is to provide opportunities for the creativity community and multiple cultures in this state,” says Rebecca Tuccilla, executive director of the New Mexico Multi-Cultural Foundation, which helps host the market. “The market provides a significant platform for these artists so share their histories, stories, and craft. It’s a place to get your holiday shopping done, but ultimately to support what it means to be from New Mexico.”

While many favorites return this year, Tuccilla is excited about new additions like Ashley Fathergill, who started candle-maker Upside Goods Co. during the pandemic. Also keep an eye out for newbie David Estes’s DE Mobiles, which use repurposed and upcycled materials, botanicals, and flowers. “Looking at one, you can’t help but wonder how it’s balanced so perfectly,” says Tuccilla.

The New Mexico Artisan Market happens 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Buy tickets here.

Holiday Art Market at the Wheelwright Museum

The third annual Holiday Art Market takes over the Wheelwright Museum on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Shop silver jewelry by Cippy Crazy Horse (Cochiti Pueblo), ceramics and storytellers by Felicia Fragua (Jemez Pueblo), fetishes and carvings by Robert Weahkee (Zuni), kachinas made by Ronald Honyouti (Hopi), miniature silver pots and jars by Norbert Peshlakai (Diné), and the stunning jewelry of married duo Janice Black Elk-Jim (Sicangu Lakota) and Daniel Jim (Diné).

Look for tinwork, santos, and other traditional mediums at the Traditional Spanish Market Artists Show. Photographs courtesy of the Traditional Spanish Market Artists Show.

Traditional Spanish Market Artists Show

Head to the Santa Fe Community Convention Center on Saturday and Sunday to see the Traditional Spanish Market Artists Show. It includes works by more than 30 artists who create santos, tinwork, colcha embroidery, straw appliqué, and furniture, as well as jewelry, weaving, micaceous pottery, and ironworks. It is free to attend and open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival at Expo NM

Head to Expo New Mexico and catch the Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival’s 22^nd annual Holiday Show, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m.–4 p.m. on Sunday. The festival offers tons of handmade goods from artists who work in mediums such as leatherworking, painting, and silversmithing. Live performers will serenade shoppers with holiday classics from two stages. Work up an appetite while finding the perfect present—there are food vendors on-site.

Winter Jamboree Arts & Crafts Market, Taos

The Chamisa Ballroom inside the Sagebrush Inn & Suites in Taos becomes a winter wonderland during the second annual Winter Jamboree Arts & Crafts Market this weekend, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Peruse gift options from jewelry to quilts.

2 Walk it off.

Las Vegas Turkey Trot

Work up an appetite at the Las Vegas Turkey Trot, which starts bright and early on Thanksgiving morning. You can register and run/walk, starting at 7:30 a.m., from Cinder Road to the finish line at the Plaza Park. You may be tired, but you will feel so much better about that heaping pile of stuffing (and mashed potatoes, and pie) you’re having later in the day.

Turkey Trot, Ruidoso

Run off all the Thanksgiving carbs on Saturday at the White Mountain Recreation Complex in Ruidoso during the Turkey Trot. The 5K walk/run starts at 10 a.m. and follows the Links Trail. The entrance fee is one or more cans of food, which go to the Lincoln County Food Bank. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. at the dog park next to the White Mountain Recreation Complex.

Reindeer Dash, Ratón

Bring your pup to Memorial Park and run or walk a 5K on Saturday at Ratón’s Reindeer Dash, when most of the tryptophan, an amino acid in turkey that makes you sleepy, has worn off. It happens from 9 a.m. to noon and has a $25 entrance fee.

3 Learn about Pueblo nativity sets.

Get a peek into the cultural center’s permanent collection with its curator of collections, Amy G. Johnson, during her Saturday morning virtual lecture on Pueblo-made nativity sets. She will show examples from the collection and discuss the sets’ similarities to storytellers, as well as the master ceramicists who created them.

4 Check in with Santa.

Las Vegas hosts a Santa’s workshop full of holiday fun on Saturday, with three events happening from noon to 6:30 p.m. It starts with Santa in the Park, when kiddos can visit with Santa and get their picture taken at Plaza Park downtown from noon to 3 p.m. At 5:15 p.m., witness the spectacle of the town’s towering Christmas tree lighting up for the first time. Finally, the Electric Light Parade starts at 6:30 p.m. Christmas-themed floats parade around the plaza, where the streetlights are turned down low. Look forward to bedecked firetrucks and tons of holiday cheer.

5 Party on the mountain.

Celebrate the start of ski season at Ruidoso’s Ski Apache on Saturday during Party on the Mountain, a family-friendly day of fun. Ride the gondolas, hike the trails, ski and snowboard, eat scrumptious food, and catch live tunes at the event from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., where you can also buy discounted season ski passes. DJ Joe Blaze plays a live set from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and you can even go mountain biking if the weather permits.

Read more: For more things to do, check out our online calendar of events.