Cherry Hill hosted its initial craft fair of the year at the township library on March 30, an event that benefitted the facility.
Meredith Meyer is the library’s volunteer coordinator. She was also one of the main organizers of the free fair, and began gathering vendors in late February.
“It’s technically a fundraiser for the library,” she explained, “so vendors pay money, and we use that to make money so that we can provide other programming for free.”
Meyer was also in charge of setting up the library for the fair and ensured things ran smoothly.
“It’s been crowded since we opened,” she said on the day of the event. “There was a line outside the door when the library opened … It sells out as far as vendors in about two weeks, so it’s a hot commodity. People want to come to it.”
The fair took place on the library’s main and lower levels, in its lobby and in meeting rooms, where craft vendors from small businesses and crafters from all over South Jersey were on hand. Fifty-five sellers offered various handmade goods for sale.
Katie Carpenter and Linda Flatley were selling birdhouses made out of wood from old barns and other farm structures.
“My dad lives on a horse farm,” Carpenter noted, “and they’re solid oak. And he only takes them down when a horse breaks one. So then he takes the wood and makes it into bird houses … He has entirely too much time on his hands, and he’s having a great time doing it.”
“Farmers don’t like to waste things,” Flatley added.
Other items for sale included crocheted clothing, plushies and accessories, novelty ceiling-fan pulls, baked goods, teas and flavored butters. Sharon Davis’ offerings varied, but centered on soaps and lotions she made herself at home.
“My main focus is being an inspiration to people when they use my products,” she said.
Art was also represented and sold throughout the fair, in different mediums and techniques from fiber art to digitally created graphics turned into prints. Jena Wong sold candles and stickers she began making during COVID in 2020. Her table also featured clip-on earrings with a clear resin in a horseshoe shape to stay on the ear.
“My sister, she can’t have her ears pierced,” Wong pointed out. “So she found a concept from Japan. So these are not your traditional clip-ons, where they pinch you and your ears hurt afterwards.”
Several fair vendors promoted the sustainable practices used in the creation of their goods. Aimee Eckert creates blouses and skirts from thrifted or second-hand quilts and blankets, as well as new pieces of jewelry from old and broken antique pieces.
“I’ve met so many new and nice customers and people that are really appreciating my work here,” she observed. “It’s been crowded, and everyone’s been super, super nice.”
The fair began at 1 p.m. and ran for three hours. Another is usually held in late fall or early winter, in time for the holidays.
