Grab your map, grab your transportation and grab something to hold your haul: the Cowichan Valley Craft Crawl is happening Saturday, July 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
There’ll be more than 85 vendors at 62 different spots from Ladysmith to Mill Bay and everywhere in between so it’ll be an adventure for all.
“This helps out our local arts and crafts vendors while craft fairs and vendor shows are not running,” explained Tara Howard, one of the volunteer organizers. “We wanted to provide a way for people to get out of the house in a safe manner while still respecting government guidelines and keeping our island and communities safe.”
Howard and her friend and neighbour Kerry Bass came up with the idea one day while chatting.
“As COVID-19 hit we came to the realization that the craft fairs weren’t going to be going ahead this year, and one by one they were all cancelled. We would normally be getting our crafts sold at a few local craft fairs; we thought wouldn’t it be a great idea to set up something similar to the farm stands, with vendors out at booths set up in their driveways. This way, local craftspeople who would normally be set up at a craft fair or vendor show, still had a way to sell items in a safe manner,” explained Howard. “We thought there may be five or six vendors at first and things quickly snowballed into the Craft Crawl. We realized there was definitely a need for something like this from both the vendors side as well as the locals up and down the island.”
The last crawl they organized had more than 30 vendors but the one coming up on June 18 will feature close to triple that amount.
The group spearheading the project is small but mighty and deserving of some recognition.
“We would very much like to thank the other members of the admin team as well as anyone that has offered their time and expertise in getting everything organized in such a timely manner, and all the vendors who joined us on this fun journey,” Howard said.
Intrigued? For more information, including a map of vendors, check out the group’s Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/cowichanvalleycraftcrawl