Home Page Home Page
Front Page News Digest Cardinal George Observations The Interview MarketPlace
Learn more about our publication and our policies
Send us your comments and requests
Subscribe to our print edition
Advertise in our print edition or on this site
Search past online issues
Site Map
New World Publications
Periódieo oficial en Español de la Arquidióesis de Chicago
Katolik
Archdiocesan Directory
Order Directory Online
Link to the Archdiocese of Chicago's official Web site.
The Catholic New World

Catholic New World /Sandy Bertog
Christmas Craft Fairs

By Patty Gayes
Contributor

Christmas shoppers got an early start at parish-sponsored craft fairs around the Chicago area starting in November.

Nov. 18-19 was an especially popular weekend, with at least eight parishes featuring craft fairs and bazaars.

Shoppers browsed through 70 booths Nov. 18 at the annual craft fair at Divine Infant Parish in Westchester. The booths featured a wide range of products, from painted glassware to handmade scarves to wreaths and other Christmas decorations. Increasingly, sellers are featuring non-craft items, such as Tastefully Simple food products, Pampered Chef cookware, and Avon items.

“Our craft show has been going on for probably 30 years,” said Genny Panek, this year’s organizer at Divine Infant. “This is the largest show we’ve had, though—we added about 20 booths this year.”

She and Julie Klemp were responsible for all aspects of the fair, including advertising, finding crafters, renting booths, arranging electricity for the booths where necessary, organizing raffle sales, and selling concessions.

“I come here every year, and I’m not even from the parish,” said Pat Grossmann of Wilmette. Her sister, a member of Divine Infant, told her about the fair more than 20 years ago. “This fair has good quality vendors selling at very fair prices. It’s a nice way to support the church and to do some Christmas shopping. I buy all my little office gifts here.”

Profits from the craft fair go to the church and school, Panek said, and indirectly back into the community. “Part of the money funds scholarships for students to attend the area Catholic high schools,” she said.

Parishes make money from the craft fairs through booth space rentals, raffle sales (a flourishing business at the fairs), admission fees (at some locations), and concessions. One woman shopping at Divine Infant said the parish’s yearly chili was the “best she ever had.”

Pricing booth space varies greatly among craft fairs and appears to be a big factor in craft fair success. Divine Infant, for example, rents booth space at $40 a table, a very competitive price, since area fairs price booth rentals up to $75-80. Shopper Pat Grossman said she thinks this accounts for the great deals she finds year after year.

St. Juliana on Chicago’s Northwest Side held its first craft fair in about 20 years, according to organizer Nancy Keely. “We are so happy with the turnout!” she said. “We had just a skeleton group of organizers, but it has worked out very well. The craft fair will benefit the school. The copiers there are on their last legs, so we will help replace those.”

The fair also benefits the parish as a whole, she said, by bringing together people in the parish and encouraging volunteerism. “I talked to several long-time parishioners who commented that they were glad to meet others they haven’t seen for years,” Keely said.

One booth at St. Juliana was rented by two women who began their business specifically because of the craft fair. Kelly Mayer and Jennifer Emery had made some very popular chocolate truffles for a Mom’s Club event last year. “We decided, ‘hey, we can do this on a larger scale,’ so we gave it a try,” Mayer said. She and Emery sold fudge, truffles and baked goods at a booth, providing free samples to shoppers. “At 9 a.m., not too many people were interested in chocolate, but as the day went on, we have done pretty well,” Mayer said.

For more craft fairs, see Around the Archdiocese

> Front Page