Tomorrow morning, Wilmore’s Main Street and Downtown Green will be transformed into a bustling arts and crafts festival with vendors taking over the areas.
This is the 23rd year of the festival where “small-town charm meets big-time talent,” their Facebook page said. The event takes place the first Saturday of every October and has become a hallmark of Wilmore festivities.
This year’s festival is set to be the “biggest one ever,” according to WKYT. The fair said in a post that the growing size of the event can be seen in the increase of vendors, which expanded from 50 to over 80 booths. The additional 35 booths will be placed in the Downtown Green and accompanied by live music and children’s activities.
Earlier this year, Wilmore built a new stage on the green that will host live music performances.
With the vendor’s list “bursting at the seams,” the festival promises beautiful handmade arts and crafts and an extensive list of food and drink options.
Food options are extensive, ranging from chocolates, baked goods, kettle corn, pizza, ice cream, BBQ, tacos, burgers and breakfast. Some of this year’s vendors include The Local Confectionary, Drinklings Coffee House, Wake and Bake Food Truck, Kirk’s Blue Smoke BBQ, Comfort Kitchen, Hippie Tom’s Concession and a taco truck, according to a post on the Festival’s Facebook page.
Musical artists at the event will include The Barely Shaken String Band, Cane Run Bluegrass, TDH, aka Tall Dark and Handsome, Pat Geary and Blake Jones and Dale Adams.
All of the handmade crafts have been juried before being accepted into the festival to ensure the best quality possible.
Plans for this year’s festival started all the way back in mid-February, with the Wilmore Community Development Board in charge of the event.
“We ask precious vendors to commit in Mid Feb and then put out a vendor call on Facebook in Early March. By late March this year, we were fully booked and running over,” Tara Hall, the Wilmore Community Development publicist said.
With record attendance expected, the Wilmore Community Development Board has planned to provide shuttles from local churches to residents.
For Asbury students, it is just a short walk down to the tracks and something Hall encourages students to check out.
“This is a great way to venture into downtown, see the shops open daily and explore all these vendors as well,” Hall said.
She recommends that students grab a tote bag to carry back their items to the dorms.
“There is something indescribable about the atmosphere Downtown during this festival,” Hall said. “It’s one of the best Wilmore experiences you’ll not want to miss.”
The Arts and Crafts Festival will last from 9 am to 4 pm on Oct. 7.