The 103rd Arden Fair will be Saturday, Sept. 4, 2010, 10am to 6pm
Rain Date: Sunday, Sept. 5,
11am to 5pm
in Arden, Delaware
Click here for map.
Every year, the Arden Fair and Antiques Market is held the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend. The Fair features handmade crafts (many of which are local), antiques, used books (inside Gild Hall), plants, live music in the Shady Grove, children's rides, a variety of foods, an Art Show, Gild booths and more. Admission and shuttle buses are free. The Arden Club is a non-profit organization with the proceeds from the Fair going towards the Arden Gild Hall where the public can come and see many concerts and shows and participate in many instructional programs available throughout the year. For questions about the Arden Fair, please call Sima at 302 475-7268.
Most of the event is outdoors which includes macadam, grassy hills and knolls, but there are two indoor exhibit venues - Gild Hall and the Buzz Ware Village Center. Also, there is covered seating behind The Buzz, near the food vendors, so people can eat in the shade. Also, there is plenty of shade down in Shady Grove, where food and refreshments (including wine and beer for those 21 and over) are offered for sale, plus free non-stop live music.
Friendly pets are welcome but the owners need to be aware that they are responsible for cleanup from their pets, they must be on a leash at all times, and that the Fair is full of people creating many tantalizing smells and sights – which could prove very stressful to them.
Photo: Many Shakespeare Gild costumes appeared at the 100th Arden Fair. Click here to see all the photos of the 100th Arden Fair.
The 2010 Arden Fair:
Free Admission- Free Shuttle-Bus Service Park free at the Hanby Outdoor Center on Chestnut Road between Marsh and Darley Roads. Click here for a map.
- ATM Machine On Site.
- Craft Exhibitors include many Club members and new craft vendors. Click here to see the vendor information further down the page.
- Antiques Market: over 50 vendors with a small admission fee. For details, call Lynda Kolski at 475-1658 or Mary Marconi at 475-6819.
- In the Shady Grove:
- Free music by a variety of talented musicians.
- Drink: Beer and Wine by the glass, soft drinks and bottled water are for sale.
- Food: Swim Gild Meatball Sandwiches, Dinner Gild Grilled Corn on the Cob, and other delicious items are for sale.
Peddlers, Potions and Practitioners:Exhibitors who aspire to improve our health, wellness, and quality of life. In the Buzz Ware Village Center.- Shakespeare Gild children’s games, rides, including pony rides (11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.). Tickets can be purchased for all games and rides. Prizes: maybe you’ll take home a goldfish!
- Upper Food Court (behind The Buzz) with hamburgers, veggie-burgers, hot dogs, sodas, iced tea, hand-dipped ice cream, fruit cups, smoothies, Hawaiian shaved ice, french fries, pizza, funnel cakes and more!
- Library Gild Book Sale with thousands of books (inside Gild Hall)
- Gardeners' Gild Plant Sale
- There will be a FOLK Dancing demo/audience participation on Gild Hall stage from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. and an Israeli Dancing demo and audience participation session on Gild Hall stage from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
- Baked Goods, Kettle Corn, Balloons, T-shirts and more!
- An exhibit of Ken Mabrey's paintings in Gild Hall's Backstage Gallery. Click here to learn more...
- Also open will be the Arden Craft Shop Museum.
PARKING:
There is plenty of free parking at the YMCA Hanby Outdoor Center with shuttle buses every few minutes. Click here for a map. Location: Parking is on Chestnut Road, between Marsh and Darley Roads, just north of Arden.
The Arden Fair: Volunteers Make It Happen!
September 4, 2010 is the date, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Here are some volunteer opportunities:
- Fair set-up on Friday (we’ll feed you dinner afterwards, including vegetarian items) Children are more than welcome to help. There’s a lot that goes into setting up the fair – ALL HANDS ON DECK!
- Fair Day opportunities on Saturday include helping with children’s games, sandwich stand, soda/beer booths, baked goods, balloons, books, plants, T-shirts, face painting, and more.
- Fair take-down on Sunday (we’ll give you breakfast afterwards: bagels, fruit, etc.)
- If you want to stay at home instead, cook us some sugar goodies and drop them off 12:00 - 8:00pm Friday the 3rd in the Upper Gild Hall – someone will be there to receive them or you may drop them off by 8:00 a.m. on Fair Day, Sept. 4th at the Moonlight Theater. Please include your name and a description of your dessert on your donation.
I can guarantee you won’t be bored if you volunteer – we’ll fit you in somewhere. Call for questions/comments. Remember, the proceeds from the Fair help to provide services for those inside and outside of Arden. I can’t wait to work with each and every one of you and look forward to your input.
Thanks in advance, Sima Krusheski, Arden Fair Chair, (302) 475-7268.
Artists:
Ken Mabrey will be the featured artist at the 2010 Arden Fair. Come see his fantastic paintings in the Backstage Gallery of Gild Hall. The entrance is to the left of the main entrance, near the portable ATM machine.
Some previously featured artists at the Fair were:
David Burslem (2009)
Linda Celestian (2008)
Linda Parks (2006)
Hunter Clarke (2005)
David McClintock, Roberta Perkins and Danny
Schweers (2003)
Google Map
Attention craftspeople!
Area craftspeople are invited to apply for registration in the 103rd Annual Arden Fair to be held Saturday, September 4, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Arden Gild Hall, 2126 The Highway, Arden, Delaware, 7 miles north of Wilmington, Delaware.
Artisans interested in exhibiting may send slides or photos of what they make with a self-addressed stamped envelope to ensure their return, to the Arden Fair Craft Committee, 1501 Beech Lane, Ardencroft, DE 19810 before June 1, if possible. Or, click here to send an email.
If accepted, registration forms are mailed the first week in June with one month to respond, but it is on a first-come, first-served basis, with past exhibitors given preference to previous spaces. The fee per space is $50 for 2010 (to be enclosed with registration form) and 10% commission on sales of the day.
We will set aside a cooperative booth for residents of the Ardens and Arden Club members if they would like to share an 8' booth that can accommodate 2-3 artisans; club-member fee, (was $34 in 2009 for may change for 2010), to be shared but each vendor to donate 10% commission on sales of the day.
Past exhibitors need not re-submit photos. Past exhibitors will be notified in early June with registration forms or rejection letters.
Thank you for your interest in the Arden Fair!
--Dorsey Lebeis
Come to the Fair! You Are Welcome Hither!
The Arden Fair was originally conceived as a farewell to summer, in the days when Arden's population shrank perceptibly after Labor Day. Today the fair is the Arden Club's premier fund-raiser of the year, the proceeds going to the maintenance of Gild Hall and to our many activities.
The Arden Club, Inc.
2126 The Highway, Arden, DE 19810
Site design and maintenance, Danny Schweers
Graphics by Connee McKinney & Danny Schweers