Old bags have style at Cornwall Christmas Fair

In the spirit of reuse and recycle, visitors to this year’s Cornwall Christmas Fair are being asked to bring a favourite vintage Cornwall Christmas Fair shopping bag to the festive event.

Taking place at the Eden Project on 23 and 24 November, all those sporting an old bag at the annual Christmas fundraiser will be entered into the Lillicrap Chilcott prize draw to win a limited edition signed print kindly donated by Jim Moir. Better known as household name Vic Reeves, art has always been a first love for Jim and his bold, vibrant and often surreal artwork reflects the anarchy and wonderful eccentricity for which he is synonymous.

The limited-edition jute shopping bags sponsored by Lillicrap Chilcott are a popular annual feature of the Fair. Ian Lillicrap, co-founder of the Cornish estate agency and long-term supporter of the Fair, explains: “Over the years we have seen a wide range of bag designs and this year is an opportunity to celebrate and remember them all – the clever wordplay, the iconic illustrations and most recently, Paul Jackson’s contribution.

“It seems appropriate to return to the spirit of using what we already have and so we are encouraging visitors to hunt out a favourite old bag and bring it along to carry festive purchases.”

Old bags from previous years will be available to buy at the Fair for those who either do not already have one or want to add to their collection. With up to 70 independent stalls from within Cornwall and beyond, fair goers will be able to fill their bags with Christmas gifts, home accessories and skincare, as well as a diverse range of artisan food and drink produce from the Ginsters Food Hall.

Ian continues: “We also want to make sure everyone has a special Preview and Shopping evening, so we are delighted that Cornish singer-songwriter Tom Cary will be back to entertain guests during Healeys Cocktail Hour. Tom’s single “Something in the Whiskey” went to Number One on the itunes chart, and this summer Tom was nominated in 2 categories in the UK Country Music Awards. The Cornwall Christmas Fair is a very important event for us, enabling us to directly support Cornwall’s communities.”

Tickets to the Cornwall Christmas Fair are now on sale here and can only be purchased in advance.

Cornwall Christmas Fair opening times and ticket prices:

Thursday 24 November 2022 – Day Fair, 10am – 4pm.  Tickets £18 including lunch, wine and free admission to Eden

Wednesday 23 November 2022 – Preview & Shopping Evening, 5pm – 9pm.  Healey’s Cocktail Hour from 5pm-6pm.  Tickets £30 including supper and two glasses of wine

 Dales VIP Parking; £10 per car