Sherratt’s All Hallows Art Fest brings spooky artists to Petaluma

“I’m a Halloween nut, I admit it,” says Stephanie Sherratt. “My husband is really into Christmas, and I’m really into Halloween. My mom was obsessed with Halloween, too. Every year, she always made it special for us kids. For me, Halloween is a warm, wonderful thing, a nostalgic feeling that I keep alive in my own house, and also through the Halloween art show.”

That’s why, around Petaluma, Sherratt has become known as “The Halloween Lady.”

It’s a nickname she delights in. She’s certainly earned it.

Sherratt, a Petaluma resident since 1998, is the owner-operator of All Hallows Art Fest, a reincarnation, of sorts, of the Petaluma-based Halloween-inspired art and collectible showcase formerly known as Halloween and Vine. That supernaturally popular show, held for 22 years every September at Hermann’s Sons Hall, has been co-owned for five years by Sherratt and another owner, who, according to Sherratt, sold her share to a pair of new owners — who elected to split from their partner, and are now operating their own show in the South Bay.

“There’s always been confusion about the name,” Sherratt says. “A lot of local people didn’t know quite what it was. People thought it was some sort of winery event. ‘All Hallows Art Fest’ is a lot clearer. This show is about two things — Halloween and the work of amazing artists inspired by Halloween.”

Speaking of those artists — many of them ranking among the top hand-craft artists in the country — Sherratt is quick to point out that one thing that has not changed is the line-up of national art-makers who annually come to Petaluma to show off and sell their latest one-of-a-kind creations.