ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) — VikingFest returned this year to the Castle Bridge Event Center, attracting fans of Norse mythology and local artisans showcasing handmade goods.
The festival featured merchants selling everything from handmade decorations to specialty foods, with many local businesses relying on such events to reach customers and promote shopping locally.
Leslie Ford of Atlantis Farms in Leavenworth, Kansas, showcased her unique line of goat milk soaps inspired by pop culture.
“I hand milk my goats for all the goat’s milk,” Ford explained. “I try to have fun with my names and themes, bookish themes, folklore, cryptids like Mothman and Loch Ness. I wanted to incorporate all my nerd stuff into something everybody would use, even if they don’t understand my references. Soap was the answer.”
“Most of the time when you make soap, you use a water base. So instead of using water, I use the goat’s milk. So when the goat’s milk goes through the saponification process, that is what the finished product is, almost like a more of a lotiony lather than when you use other kinds of like when you use a water base. So it helps with keeping your skin smooth and soft and all of that kind of stuff.”
Allison Sasso, owner of Veil and Vow Tarot, offered tarot readings throughout the event, emphasizing the interpretive nature of the practice.
“First and foremost, we look at every reading as a projection rather than a hard and fast prediction,” Sasso said. “Ultimately, you are the master of your own destiny. We don’t take all our life advice from a deck of cards, but it’s still fun to see what they have to say.”
Addressing common misconceptions about tarot, particularly regarding cards like the Death card, Sasso noted, “The Death card doesn’t represent literal death, it represents change. What matters is how we react to unstoppable change.”
She added that tarot appeals to diverse audiences, stating, “You don’t have to be pagan to pick up a deck of cards and have fun with it.”
The festival continues to serve as both a celebration of Norse culture and an important marketplace for local artisans and small businesses in the region.