SEARCY — For more than 30 years, the city of Searcy has given local artists and vendors the opportunity to share their talents just in time for the holiday season.
The 37th annual Holiday Craft Fair will take place Dec. 3, and the Prelude to the Holiday Craft Fair will take place Saturday. Both events are free and will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Carmichael Community Center, 801 S. Elm St.
“We still to this day do it because we know there are a lot of talented people around here,” said Barbara Hubach, office manager for Searcy Parks and Recreation. “We started this out for the community so people
would have a place to bring their talent and share their gifts by offering them to the public, and in turn, people love it. They buy some of their Christmas gifts here. It’s a place for [vendors] to come at a very inexpensive price.”
Hubach has been coordinator for the fair for 36 years, she said. The city’s craft fair was originally spearheaded by the Searcy Newcomers League and included only handcrafted items. When Parks and Recreation took the craft fair into its own hands, it grew to include a variety of items.
“It can be anything that people sell retail — as long as it’s not garage-sale items,” Hubach said. “It’s got to be new items suitable for gift-giving.”
The Prelude to the Holiday Craft Fair is on a smaller scale than the December fair and includes fall decor and more Thanksgiving-themed items, Hubach said.
“We have a lot of baked goods at this first one [this month],” she said. “We have jewelry. We have skin care. A lot of the new things this year [include] the shabby-chic vintage accessories, whether it’s decor or clothing or just old pins or whatever. A lot of the people that have those [for sale] also have some small furniture items.”
The fee for vendors is $35, and the Parks and Recreation Department does not make money from the fairs.
Hubach said she enjoys viewing what crafts vendors bring in to sell.
“I’m always amazed at people who make their own jewelry out of older things,” she said. “To me, that nostalgia is awesome. I love anything that has to do with the holidays. There’s one lady that was here last year — she’ll be here again this year — she has snow. You add water to this item, and it becomes snow. It’s cold when you touch it. I had a tray of it on my coffee table at Christmas last year.”
Andra Hatchell, a Searcy Parks and Recreation staff member, said she has purchased jellies from the craft fair and has seen creative decorations for sale.
“It gives people an opportunity to shop for Christmas presents,” she said. “It’s a tradition that the Parks and Recreation Department has been carrying on.”
More than 1,500 visited each fair last year, said Hubach, who added that she enjoys seeing customers leave with handfuls of Christmas gifts and new items.
“It’s just so exciting because we always hope the best for everyone, that they will sell and it will be successful for each individual crafter or vendor,” she said. “It helps them be able to make some money for Christmas or whatever they have a need for, but they don’t have a business place to show their talent.”
Hubach said one or two of the vendors who will be at the craft fair have been with the event since its beginning and that visitors will likely find something they like.
“It’s just a very exciting time, and they won’t be disappointed if they attend,” she said.
Staff writer Syd Hayman can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or shayman@arkansasonline.com.