Detroit Urban Craft Fair has come and gone! It’s a wild weekend that is over all too soon.  

The Drill Hall held us all! 110 vendors and sponsors, helpers and staff and 8,500 enthusiastic shoppers! 

 

We made it! WE ALL, together, made it so fun and smooth and memorable. We made the crafts, the food, the memories!

The guests that visited were so thoughtful and interested – they explored the whole show and went back around again, and again to make their purchases. Our shoppers on Friday evening who helped us raise $3,000 for Girls Rock Detroit – our largest charity donation yet! The Masonic Temple staff — the program directors, managers, techs, elevator operators, security – gave us extra help and time, as always, even though we’re always one of many things happening that weekend at the same time!

There are so many others who made this weekend so special. Girls Rock Detroit and our special Friday night participants, Avalon Bakery who provided pastries and sweets for our vendors to make those mornings easier to wake up to, and DJ Dave Lawson for his perfect playlist year after year. Big thanks also go to our amazing, local, independent business-persons that sponsor our event, Delectabowl for their fine food and great service that made our meals stress-free, our volunteer team lead by the amazing Liz, and frontline DUCF Crew managed by the incredible friends we have in Justin and Amy.

A few more people who made this weekend more fun: Chris Gorski who made a quick activity idea happen, Austin took trophies to the next level, Dan Nixon spoiled us with his web-mastering, Doug Coombe who has photographed the greats of Detroit and continues to make time for us, which is unbelievable, and the local media who help us get the word out each year.

And the vendors. These artists and entrepreneurs are SO talented and kind and patient. They traveled and planned and crafted and printed and stitched and stressed and double-booked sitters and took time off their day jobs. And when the doors opened they were ready to show you the results of all that hard work! Each year we are blown away by what people are making, and every year the bar is raised higher. To all our vendors: Thank you for inspiring us and lifting our city up!

Beth and I created the foundation of DUCF with Amy, Lish and Steph, and when anyone compliments us on the craft fair being better every year, it’s because of the core 5 that we’re able to build upon that strong foundation of ethics, authenticity and keeping it real. We’re Michigan women building a show in our community – a community that we love and are proud to be part of!

We sincerely thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for being a part of this show year after year.

Yours in the handmade revolution,

Bethany & Carey