Cue the confetti, fire up those hot glue guns, and save up those dollar bills to support your creative community—it’s Unglued Craft Fest time!

March 8-9, 2024 will be bursting at the seams with creativity and inspiration at West Acres Mall for the 14th Annual Unglued Craft Fest. Our Fest jury has curated both up-and-coming new Fest makers and also returning Fest vendors coloring outside the lines to help you dive into the crafty world of 70+ creatives and their handcrafted work. Plus, to help you keep that endless winter cabin fever at bay, you’ll find a Friday Night ticketed Crafty Lounge along with free Friday Night Fest flair stations to get your DIY on, local DJs creating the vibes, and the largest Saturday Fest schedule yet of free creative workshops for both kids and adults to enjoy.

The 2024 lineup of Fest makers and artists covers the creative gamut of craft categories—all with an alternative or modern flair. You’ll find candles to ceramics, jewelry to goat milk soap, screenprints to hot sauces—plus this 14th annual fest will be bringing about a whole new variety of handmades to enjoy and discover that will blow those winter mittens right off.

This year in the mall hallways, you’ll discover brand new crafted goodness to the tune of freeze dried candy, handmade ceramic lamps, and polymer clay mushroom earrings! Some new featured makers include Sylvan Moon of St. Cloud, MN bringing butterfly terrariums created with hand sculpted mushrooms, freeze dried jello and fruit roll ups by Harlow Grace Designs of West Fargo, ND, more-is-more maximalist ceramic Lamps by Love, Kathy of Moorhead, MN, and original stained glass designs like cat faces and ramen bowls by Ben Hill of Foiled Again Glass of Fargo, ND.

This year will also see the return of some makers you’ve seen in the earlier days of Unglued Craft Fest with a new twist or completely new handcrafted businesses! Studio Bladel will be heading back to their college-base from their newer home of Philadelphia to showcase laser cut jewelry. Katelyn Bladel previously was a Fest maker showcasing printwork, but this year will be returning with an entirely new small business of jewelry with a combo of modern design with a distinct vintage feel—and disco balls. And I hope you’re sitting down for this – because another returning maker of your dreams will be back—Laura Holewa of Lolamade Monsters! She’ll be bringing her monster universe back of sculpted polymer clay figurines with a totally new line of crocheted monsters of her own design and stickers.

And back by popular demand will be the Young Makers Market on Saturday of the Fest in the Food Court hallways! Eight makers ages 16 and under will showcase their own handmade work from utilizing tech with 3D printed lizards and unicorns or going traditional with blacksmithed magic wands.

You’ll also get the chance to be the captain of your own creative adventure throughout the Fest weekend. Grab a ticket mid-February for the Crafty Lounge Friday night March 8 to enjoy a cocktail, cupcake, and three crafts or watch for the fully loaded free schedule of craft opportunities for kids and adults on Saturday of the Fest. The Local Libations Lounge in Buffalo Court of West Acres will be the spot to plop down for a craft and shopping break to enjoy a cocktail and live DJs or you’ll find our Coloring Lounge in the Fountain Court to sit back in natural light to the sounds of the mall fountain and color in our epic poster by Max Patzner of Minot!

The Unglued Craft Fest kicked off in the dead of winter in 2011 to showcase the modern side of traditional craft and grow this creative community in the midwest and our local area! We can’t wait to cheers with pots of coffee to all things craft, creative, and community this March with you.

Crafty Details