Show off your hobbies, skills at the State Fair of Virginia
June 2025
No matter your hobby, you can show off your skills in one of the State Fair of Virginia’s hundreds of competition categories. (courtesy Virginia Farm Bureau Federation)
by Alice Kemp, Virginia Farm Bureau Federation
Do you know how to bake a delicious pie that disappears in seconds? Do you grow roses that are the envy of neighbors? Now’s your chance to celebrate your skills and earn a coveted blue ribbon.
Each year, hundreds of bakers, gardeners, cooks and crafters from across the commonwealth enter the arts, horticulture and culinary competitions at the State Fair of Virginia. Competition guides, deadlines and category descriptions for this year’s fair (held Sept. 26 through Oct. 5) are available at statefairva.org.
“The State Fair of Virginia has a competition for everyone,” says Sarah Jane Thomsen, the fair’s manager of agriculture education and strategic programming partnerships. “From livestock competitions and various artistic expressions to preserved foods, culinary favorites and homegrown produce — get involved and try to win your own blue ribbon.”
Open to both adults and youth, the fair’s contests welcome beginners and seasoned pros. While some categories award small cash prizes, the real rewards are bragging rights and celebrating your work.
ENDLESS OPPORTUNITIES
Have a green thumb? Gardeners and growers can vie for top prizes in horticulture and field crops competitions spanning fruits, vegetables, row crops, flowers and succulents. There are even categories for fairy gardens, hanging baskets and terrariums.
Culinary creatives can showcase their breads, cakes, cookies, jams, sauces, syrups, pies and more. New this year are fun twists like protein balls or bites, a picnic potluck recipe contest and a special milkshake challenge.
Just as creativity is limitless, so are the categories for the state fair’s arts competitions. Artists can show off their skills in countless media, with new categories like amigurumi crochet, slow stitch quilting, blown glass, punch needle, hat burning and more.
Have a Virginia Farm Bureau antique or interesting object? You can display that too. This year’s fair also introduces fresh new youth categories. Young artists can create masterpieces with their pets, while budding chefs can whip up chocolate or crockpot candy, gluten-free snacks or after-school treats.
A STATE FAIR TRADITION
Longtime knitter and quilter Mary Kay Beasley has been entering fair competitions for over 25 years and has the ribbons to prove it. She’s won over 20. “I try to enter at least four or five items every year,” Beasley says. “My whole reason for doing it is to show that knitting and quilting can still be interesting and cool. It’s allowed me to keep the crafts in front of people’s eyes.”
It’s also an opportunity to connect with old friends and fellow fiber enthusiasts.
“We’re all like, ‘What do you have in the fair?’ And we’ll walk around to see what items we’ve entered. It’s a really nice thing” she says. Last year, Beasley entered a Wizard-of-Oz-themed quilt made for a neighbor expecting her first baby — whose nursery was inspired by the film. After winning a ribbon, she gifted the quilt to the new mom. “It’s one of my very best memories!” she exclaims.