By Charles Brandt

This weekend, the RiverCentre in downtown St. Paul is hosting the American Craft Show, a national gathering of over 250 top contemporary jewelry, clothing, furniture and home décor artists from across the country. If you’re a craft lover or even if you are just looking for special and unique gift ideas, this is the only major show in the midwest put on by the American Craft Council during 2017, and it’s huge.

The American Craft Council is a national, nonprofit public educational organization founded in 1943 by Aileen Osborn Webb, that “actively promotes the understanding and appreciation of contemporary American craft.” This organization’s philosophy comes to the forefront at events like the craft show, giving artists from around the nation a forum to share their craft, and sell their creations. From homemade glass objects and ceramics to high fashion, hand-crafted furniture to one-of-a-kind metalworking, the craft show will feature talented artists that hand make their pieces in a wide variety of mediums. A complete list of artists at the event is available here.

The event will also give emerging artists around our nation some special recognition at different “Hip Pop Pods” stationed around the event. Each pod will feature different artists from all backgrounds and styles.

Event Hours and Ticket Pricing
The Preview Party runs tonight from 6 – 9 p.m.; tickets are available at the door tonight for $85. However, the show is also open to the public Friday through Sunday, and a day pass is only $11 if you buy online, or $12 at the door. If you’re interested in attending, tickets can be purchased at the American Craft Show’s event website.

Thursday, April 6 (Preview Party): 6 – 9 p.m.
Friday, April 7: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday, April 8: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday, April 9: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Special Friday Evening Admission
Get into the show for just $5 after 5 p.m. on Friday. This pricing applies to onsite ticket purchases only.