East Grand Forks annual Arts and Crafts Fair set for this weekend at Civic Center

Pamela Knudson, Grand Forks Herald
·2 min read

Oct. 6—GRAND FORKS — The East Grand Forks Arts and Crafts Council is hosting its 51st Annual Arts and Crafts Fair on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 7 and 8, at the Civic Center Arena, 300 15th St. N.E.

Admission is $5; children 10 and under are admitted free.

Hours for the event are: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday.

The event will feature a broad array of craft and art pieces created by more than 65 artisans and artists from throughout the region.

Items will include hand-crafted wooden toys, baskets, pottery, mittens, caps, quilts and other textiles, clothing, home decor items, Christmas decorations, custom-etched cake pans, pottery and candles.

Also available for sale will be paintings, books, emu personal care products, items for babies and dogs, as well as baked goods, fudge, honey and other specialty food items.

Vendors will include Mike's Handcrafted, of Grand Forks, which sells wooden military plaques and pens; Heartland Ranch Pottery from Drayton, North Dakota; The Speckled Loon, of Grand Forks, selling home decor; King Jewelry, Minneapolis, which sells handmade fine jewelry; and Crafts by Elaine, of Bagley, Minnesota, which features crocheted items.

Local vendor Happy Camper Coffee, described as a "mobile coffee shop," will be parked outside the front of the arena to sell coffee, acai bowls and baked goods.

Proceeds from the event will be used to support the fine arts in East Grand Forks and art and music education programs in East Grand Forks schools. The East Grand Forks Arts and Crafts Council has raised more than $510,000 for such programs since it began organizing the arts and crafts show 51 years ago, said Heather Kraus, the council's vice president.

Because of COVID, the council has reduced its fair sites to just one location — a second site, the VFW Memorial Arena, will not be used this year. But, as the pandemic subsides and more vendors apply to participate, the council's board members are hoping to return to staging at two sites in the future, Kraus said.