One of my favorite Spring art fairs is in my local area and takes place in May. I am referring to the East Lansing Art Festival and MSU Spring Arts & Craft Show which is a multi fair hosted on the same weekend. I was excited to attend it this past Saturday.
This year was the 52 annual Michigan State University event coordinated by the Union Activities Board and located on the beautiful college campus by the student Union building. It featured over 300 artisans with many new vendors as well as returning favorites.
I was very excited to see my favorite Michigan landscape photographer and friend, Neil Weaver Photography, had a booth again this year. Neil recently captured a great shot of the Northern Lights over Eagle Harbor Lighthouse and Lake Superior called “Electric Sky” which you can view here. I almost purchased this at the show and definitely added it to my wish list.
The East Lansing Art Festival is a juried event and is located across from the MSU campus on the downtown area streets. I would estimate an additional 300 artisans were featured. Live music performers entertained guests as they browsed. An Artist demonstration area by City Hall featured demos, workshops, poetry readings and more during the festivities.
Between the two fairs, there was quite a selection of handmade items including clothing, glass art, home and yard décor, jewelry, leather, metal art, paintings, photography, pottery, soap and candles, sculpture, toys and much more. Plenty of food vendors were available at both fairs and I was happy it was a warm enough day to enjoy a snowcone or two. One snowcone offered soft serve ice cream at the base which was quite unusual.
Some of my favorite vendors for treasures this visit included Sporck Tile Art, MI RootsWear, Nudge Printing, Creative Cottage, OfNature and StickIt Vinyls. I was happy to find assorted Michigan treasures and purchased some fun decals for our camper. I even found a birthday gift for my best friend.
Admission is free to both events and there were several reasonably priced parking lots & ramps available. We spent the entire afternoon at the event and only paid $6.00 for parking. CATA also has local routes available if you want to take the bus instead of drive to the event. You may also bike or walk if you live in the area.
This combo fair draws quite a crowd so be prepared to spend extra time walking and browsing. I would recommend packing sunscreen, a hat and a tote bag to any art fair. Something I hope to not forget again this season. It is also a dog friendly activity and we saw plenty of pooches in attendance. Gucci and Tucker are still disappointed that they were not allowed to go with us. Maybe next year!
