'Grown to this big event': Yorkton celebrates 45 years of Sunflower Art & Craft Market
Yorkton’s Sunflower Art and Craft Market is returning for another year this weekend.
Blooming for 45 years strong, the event consists of more than 100 vendors from across Canada offering a wide range of homemade items.
"We have old exhibitors who have been coming here for 30 years, and you also have new people who have heard about us who say, ‘Let's go to sunflower,’” said Abanti Banerjee, office administrator of Yorkton Arts Council (YAC).
Due to its success of bringing in over 3,000 people to the city, YAC’s president said the market takes up three different rooms at the Gallagher Centre.
“The Sunflower Art and Craft Market started in 1979 outside on the lawn of Victoria School and has grown to this big event every weekend after the long weekend at the Gallagher Centre in Yorkton,” explained market president Tanya Vermette.
Aside from promoting different vendors unique arts and crafts, Vermette said the event helps support the arts council financially.
“Everyone here is the creators of their own product, be it food, clothing, jewelry, photography, woodworking, and other stuff,” Vermette said.
"This is our big fundraiser for the Yorkton Arts Council (YAC). This is how we keep our office doors open and how we present seven concerts coming up this year, story slam and culture days event. This is how we keep the doors open and the lights off."
This year, the market consists of vendors from Yorkton, Melville, Langenburg, and Regina, as well as people from outside the province specifically from Manitoba and Alberta.
Yorkton’s Sunflower Art and Craft Market will be taking place this weekend. (Sierra D'Souza Butts / CTV News) One vendor from Yorkton is selling Christmas shaped trees made out of old wooden doors.
"I'm selling Christmas trees that are truly vintage. They are old doors, that I have make shifted into a tree,” said Jodie Rusnak, pointing to her booth of crafts.
“The beauty of them is they are all unique. Each tree has its own little story on where it came from, as well as the hardware adds a little extra pizazz.”
Rusnak told CTV News she has been going to the market for years and that this is her first time attending as a vendor.
“I've always been a crafter, so I just wanted to try it for year one, this year, and see if it brings me as much excitement as it does as a patron,” she said.
Another vendor who came from Tofield, Alta. said the sunflower market helps promote different lines of crafts including his family’s brand: Beary Berry Honey.
"What we sell is a lot of different things made with honey,” said Sam Thiessen.
“We do barbecue sauces, we do vinaigrettes for salads, we do some tea, honeys where we've blended.
“We came to sunflower because it's a great little market. A lot of people come out. Yorkton is a great community, so we love coming out here.”
The market will open Friday at 5 p.m. and run until Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian family stuck in Lebanon anxiously awaits flight options amid Israeli strikes
A Canadian man who is trapped in Lebanon with his family says they are anxiously waiting for seats on a flight out of the country, as a barrage of Israeli airstrikes continues.
Suspect in shooting of Toronto cop was out on bail
A 21-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Toronto police officer this week was out on bail at the time of the alleged offence, court documents obtained by CTV News Toronto show.
Scientists looked at images from space to see how fast Antarctica is turning green. Here's what they found
Parts of icy Antarctica are turning green with plant life at an alarming rate as the region is gripped by extreme heat events, according to new research, sparking concerns about the changing landscape on this vast continent.
DEVELOPING 2 dead after fire rips through historic building in Old Montreal
At least two people are dead and others are injured after a fire ripped through a century-old building near Montreal's City Hall, sources told Noovo Info.
Yazidi woman captured by ISIS rescued in Gaza after more than a decade in captivity
A 21-year-old Yazidi woman has been rescued from Gaza where she had been held captive by Hamas for years after being trafficked by ISIS.
A 6-year-old girl was kidnapped in Arkansas in 1995. Almost 30 years later, a suspect was identified
Nearly 30 years after a six-year-old girl disappeared in Western Arkansas, authorities have identified a suspect in her abduction through DNA evidence.
Dolphins 'smile' at each other when they play and to avoid misunderstanding, study finds
For humans, flashing a smile is an easy way to avoid misunderstanding. And, according to a new study, bottlenose dolphins may use a similar tactic while playing with each other.
Pit bulls in B.C. pet mauling tested positive for meth, cocaine, says city
Three pit bulls involved in a deadly attack on another dog last month in Kamloops, B.C., tested positive for methamphetamine and cocaine, and the city is going to court to have them put down.
Tax rebate: Canadians with low to modest incomes to receive payment on Friday
Canadians who are eligible for a GST/HST tax credit can expect their final payment of the year on Friday.