Getting Crafty: Delaware Tech’s 31st Annual Craft Fair
By Tiffany Towles
If you’re feeling particularly artsy, the Corporate Community Department is organizing the return of the Annual Craft Fair to the Delaware Technical Community College in early November.
The fair will be open to the public in the Carter Partnership Center at the Owens campus on Friday, Nov. 7, from 3-7 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 8, from 9-3 p.m. Admission is free; and for a fee, participants can reserve a table and become a vendor.
Sellers can set up Friday afternoon prior to those times. The Carter building will also be locked down Friday evening; so vendors attending both days can safely leave their wares overnight.
A majority of the building will be blocked out for the event, said Corporate and Community Programs Administrative Assistant Louise Rathfon.
"We have [tables] lined down the hallway, on the pond side; down some other hallways, in the lobby, they're everywhere," Rathfon said. "We have a great opportunity to do some awesome Christmas shopping."
Rathfon worked on the craft fair for several years, and described possible craft products like wood carvings, embroidery, scarves, and various jewelers. Additionally, commercial tables are also available that sell products for larger, commercial companies like Avon or Mary K, she said.
Georgetown Middle School librarian Kathy Dodson is attending the Craft Fair for her first year, and greatly anticipates it being a success, she said. Dodson has been working her craft for two years now, and has been attending roughly four art shows a year.
Dodson creates a variety of organizers, windows, hooked shelves, jewelry organizers, and a plethora of repurposed items for a unique new life for old pieces, she said. She often finds architectural or artistic structures at antique stores or thrift shops and then creates something new from the existing material, she said.
"So, see, I go into these shops, see something and think 'I can do something with that,'" Dodson said.
Some of Dodson's work can be found on Etsy, (https://www.etsy.com/shop/UniqueOrganizers) and a sample of what to expect to see from her at the Craft Fair come this November, she said.
Anyone who wants to sell can, regardless of if they attend the school or live around Georgetown, said Community Programs Project Coordinator Brenda Whitehurst. From word of mouth to fliers and other venues, vendors as far as Virginia will be in attendance.
"We are looking forward to people coming in from north, east, south, and west," she said. "The word is out and we're really pleased about the marketing."
There is a startling ratio for registered attendees, Whitehurst said. While several vendors are returning from previous years, a vast majority of them are new faces, she said.
The craft fair is a wonderful opportunity to be creative and make lasting connections, Whitehurst said.
"What was interesting was to see all of the people who said 'Please put me next to someone else' that they've worked with or had the opportunity to meet here," Whitehurst said. "They want to be back again, they want to be next to one another, it promotes a kind of camaraderie."
With the application of pre-prepared registration packets, the Corporate Community Department might be open to collecting registrations for another week, Whitehurst said.
For more information, contact the Corporate Community Department or Brenda Whitehurst at 259-6360.