This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

Unique Items, Familiar Faces at Fall Arts and Craft Fair

Customers and vendors flocked from miles away to purchase and sell handmade goods at the Fall Arts and Crafts Fair on Saturday, Oct. 9, in Tinley Park.

Tissue boxes resembling miniature couches. Chocolate covered dehydrated pineapple pieces.  Ornamental seashell flowers.

Those were just a handful of the goods sold at Tinley Park's biannual arts and craft fair, held Saturday, Oct. 9, at the Tony Bettenhausen Recreation Center.

About 100 vendors and 700 customers flocked from miles away to purchase and sell handcrafted trappings and trinkets ranging from the conventional to the unique. For over a decade, the fair has attracted vendors from as far as Oswego and Kankakee. The most recent event took place last March.

Find out what's happening in Tinley Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Grace Moore, a Joliet native and administrative assistant, made the journey to sell the handcrafted silk floral arrangements and wreaths that she creates in her spare time. It was her fourth time at the Tinley Park fair, but for her it is more about the experience than trying to turn a big profit.

"I really enjoy [making the floral arrangements] and it's kind of profitable," Moore said, "but you're not making a million bucks… Sometimes you might not get reimbursed for your time, but I don't really care because it's a hobby so I enjoy it."

Find out what's happening in Tinley Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Moore began creating the pieces a few years back after receiving numerous complements on the floral arrangements she fashioned for her brother's wedding. Her work sells for $5 to $25 per arrangement, and she enjoyed "quite a bit of sales" Saturday.

One of those sales came from Marilyn Hide, an 87-year-old Tinley Park resident who spent the day at the fair with her two daughters and granddaughter.

"The floral arrangement was different," Hide said. "It had style to it.  Each one of these booths is that way.  You can go to any store, and they're [all] so similar. But this wasn't."

Hide also used to sell goods at craft fairs, she turned antique buttons into pins and earrings. Nowadays she comes for a more leisurely and enjoyable shopping experience.

The fair does not permit vendors to sell prepackaged or resale items. While some sellers had business cards listing a website where their goods could be bought, for many, craft fairs provide the only opportunity to sell their creations. The result is a tightly knit community where crafters befriend each other and faces become familiar.

"They all know each other," said Meghan Fenlon, the recreation supervisor at Tinley Park Park District who has handled the operations of the fair for the past 3 years. "They do shows together. I get a lot of referrals [from them] if they meet somebody elsewhere and like their product."

Returning vendors have priority registration for future craft fairs, as well, fostering the sense of community and building loyalty among local customers.

"We have a few people who follow us from show to show," said Shawn McCarthy, a Tinley Park resident who was selling a variety of crafts, including photo albums and beverage charms. "We have our own little cult following."

Still, McCarthy said the fair was well advertised, meaning he saw many new faces in addition to the familiar ones.

Prices at the fair ranged from under a dollar for baked goods to $170 for tailgate bean bag toss set.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?