Christmas Craft Market & Holiday Book Fair on the Way

The Williamson County Pavilion will play host to the first (and what organizers hope will become an annual) Southern Illinois Christmas Craft Market later this year during the first weekend of December.

Glenda Kelton & Alexis Wilson of Yarn Creations out of Carterville are organizing the event. The Williamson County Tourism Bureau is co-sponsoring it.

"Crafting is becoming a lost art. We want our show to be a rue craft show, no buy/sell items, no items from kits, etc.," the pair explains in their letter to crafters going out this week.

Selection will be a jury process and the organizers will be asking for photos to be enclosed with the application forms.

I'm looking forward to this event because I think it will be pull together the various Christmas season events that normally take place on that weekend.

While the craft market is taking place in the Expo Hall, we're also looking at filling the ballrooms with a Holiday Book Fair focusing on authors from around the region and neighboring states.

For more information on the Christmas Craft Market contact Glenda Kelton & Alexis Wilson at either 618-922-4815 or at 618-771-2956.

For more information on the book fair contact us here at the tourism office at 618-997-3690.

We're also looking at a third event for the ballrooms, but details on that won't be released until we have everything in place.