How Many Cans Can a Canner Can if a Canner Can Can Cans?

[wraavr]

Answer: Lots!

Now that summer fruit is ripening, it's time for putting things up: canning, freezing, dehydrating.

Now, if you can things, I think you should enter your jams, jellies, salsas, sauces, pickles, etc. in county fairs! I did last year, and I won prizes! Woo!



More observant viewers will have noticed there's a distinctly non-canned temari sitting amidst the jars and ribbons; I entered that in one of the arts & crafts contests, and got ribbons for that too! There are also lots of contests for baking, quilting and sewing, knitting, crocheting, photography, art, and various kinds of crafts. If you enter something, you stand a very good chance of winning a prize. You might even get prize money!

Local fairs (with entry due dates) include:

• The Big E (W. Springfield, MA) - Canning, Baking, Photography, sewing/quilting, knitting, crocheting, crafts - August 1 (late entry August 15)
• Topsfield Fair (Topsfield, MA) - Canning, Arts & Crafts - September 3; Baking, Honey - September 26 (yes, the website is down as of post time)
• 3 County Fair (Northampton, MA) - Canning, Baking, Arts & Crafts - August 20
  

I'll see what I can do about summarizing info and providing links to things for each fair.

Big E - West Springfield, MA - September 14-30

Big E contests have entry fees; however, they're inexpensive ($2 for most, $5 for others), and the prize premiums are larger. You can mail in your form, or complete your entries online.

• August 1 - Entries due for canning, baking, photography, textiles
• August 15 - Late entries due
• September 7 - 3-6pm, drop-off time for exhibits
• September 8 - 9am-1pm, drop-off time for exhibits
• September 14-30 - Fair run dates
• October 1 - 9am-6pm, pick-up time for exhibits
• Links for different departments: canning, photography, creative arts (sewing etc.), cupcakes, cake decorating, one-day specials
• Link for online entry instructions

Topsfield Fair - Topsfield, MA - September 28 - October 8


Topsfield has a lot of contests. Their website is down, so I'll have to update this later with the links. There's no entry fee for the contests. You can list as many things as you might enter, and you can decide not to do some of them when it's time to bring in the exhibits. Entry forms need to be mailed in.

• September 3 - entries due for canning and crafts
• September 8 - 10am-4pm, drop-off for canning department
• September 15 - 10am-4pm, drop-off for creative arts
• September 26 - entries due for baking, honey/beekeeping
• September 28-October 8 - Fair run dates
• October 9 - time tbd, pick-up time for all exhibits
• Links for departments: canning, creative arts, honey/beekeeping
• Entry Forms

3 County Fiar - Northampton, MA - August 31 - September 3


I haven't entered this one before, but I'm thinking about it for this year

• August 20 - entries due for all contests
• August 31-September 3 - Fair run dates
• September 4 - 4-7pm, exhibit pick-up time
• Links for departments: exhibit hall (pdf), baking (pdf)
• Entry form (pdf)

Maybe I'll put this information on a standalone webpage too.