The 17th annual Four Corners Home and Garden Show drew gardeners and decorators of all ages to Cortez over the weekend.
More than 60 local vendors crowded into the Montezuma County Fairgrounds building on April 7 and 8 to show off everything from landscaping supplies to fashion. Although attendees spent most of their time shopping for home decor, the event included plenty of other activities, such as a car show for adults and rides on Cortez firetrucks for kids. Event coordinator Jaynee Crockett said she was pleased with the turnout.
“We’ve had a steady run of people all day so far,” she said on Saturday.
The show wasn’t quite as well attended on Friday, but Crockett did say the vendors’ dinner that night had an “amazing” turnout.
She also said she was pleased at the number of vendors who participated this year. This is the third time she has organized the show, and she said in past years she’s struggled to sell all the booths. This time around, all the indoor spots were full.
New guests at this year’s show included firefighters from the Cortez Fire Protection District. Several members of the district, including assistant fire chief Shawn Bittle, gave rides to kids on their parade vehicle and let them “put out” blazes in a cardboard house while teaching about fire safety.
As always, vendors at the show competed to sell their wares, with style. Booths were judged for the “best in show” award based on creativity, the vendor’s friendliness and the amount of work that went into the displays. Some went the extra mile to demonstrate their product in an interesting way, like A-1 Affordable Landscaping, which set up a patio complete with a fountain, a bonfire and decorative plants. The classic car show was judged by the public, who could vote for their top three favorite entries.
Although Crockett said she was proud of the way the show turned out, she and vendors hope to make it better in the future. Not many of the area’s greenhouses were represented this year, as they have been in the past, and longtime attendee Brenda Hindmarsh said she missed their displays.
“It’s not quite as pretty as it used to be,” she said of the show. “But it’s still a lot of fun.”
Crockett said she always hopes to get more greenhouses involved, but the show’s timing can work against that.
“I think it’s a hard month for businesses like that,” she said. “It’s early enough that not much has bloomed yet, and they’re just getting to that time before Mother’s Day when greenhouses are really busy.”
Just like in years past, the event is designed to do some good in the community as well as entertain garden enthusiasts. Proceeds the weekend raffle and silent auction will go to fund the Home and Garden Show’s two annual high school scholarships, and Crockett said it’s also a good way to give more recognition to local companies.
