When the State Fair of Texas opens Friday, Sept. 25, visitors will find plenty of local talent among the award-winning entries inside the Creative Arts Building.

From an intricate crocheted blanket and a landscape made from nearly 58,000 seed beads to handmade baskets, digital art and spicy pickles, local creators are taking their talents to the State Fair.

Entries were submitted in July and judged before the fair’s opening. The competition encompasses an extensive range of creative pursuits, with major categories including Canning, Craft Creations, Dolls, Fine Art, Glue-a-Shoe, Hobby Collections, Holiday Corner, Needlework, Photography, Scale Models, Sculpture, Sewing and Quilting and Yarn. Each is further divided into individual contests and classifications.

Wylie resident Melissa “Missie” Rick earned one of the highest honors, Best in Show in the adult Yarn category, for “Astrid’s Wood,” an interlocking crochet blanket that took approximately 225 hours to complete.

Rick’s State Fair experience began only last year, when she entered two smocked dresses and came away with second- and third-place ribbons.

While visiting the fair afterward, she saw the Yarn Best in Show entry and decided to set herself a new challenge.

“I saw the Yarn Best in Show and figured I could make something that could win,” Rick said.

She searched for patterns before settling on “Astrid’s Wood,” which uses a difficult interlocking crochet technique. Essentially, she said, two blankets are crocheted together, with the pattern determined by which color is brought to the front.

“I hadn’t seen one using that same technique so I thought it would be different and stand out,” she said. “And it was a challenge. It was a pretty difficult technique to learn.”

Learning she had won brought another surprise.

“I was pretty surprised and ecstatic when I found out that I had won,” Rick said. “My family was excited for me and we have our fair day picked out.”

She is already considering future entries, including another smocked piece or possibly designing her own interlocking crochet blanket.

“I told my friend I’m probably more fearless than talented,” Rick said. “I say ‘why not’ quite a bit.”

Another Wylie resident, Peggy Ludwig, 70, is no stranger to seeing her work displayed at the State Fair.

Ludwig earned second place in Craft Creations — Miscellaneous for a 20-by-28-inch framed East Texas landscape painstakingly constructed from 57,750 size 11/0 seed beads. Inspired by Caddo Lake, the scene features pine trees and a creek and required about 100 hours to complete.

“I was looking for something that was statewide because it is the state fair,” Ludwig said of choosing the scene.

She has entered the competition for nine years and has earned either a ribbon or honorable mention every year, including a first-place ribbon her first year.

Her technique grew from her earlier experience with cross-stitch. Ludwig had been making jewelry with a friend when she began wondering what else she could create with her supply of beads. She eventually adapted cross-stitch patterns to beadwork, using fishing line and tiny beads laid in rows. 

Ludwig has been selling her beadwork and jewelry at craft shows for about 15 years. She works on pieces regularly to maintain an inventory for the shows she attends.

“It keeps me motivated,” she said. “I do like the competition. Like when you go to the fair and you see all the different stuff and who beat you out.”

Nevada resident Joey Cox was a first-time State Fair competitor this year, but his only entry was enough to earn a first-place ribbon.

Cox took first in the canning competition for his Spicy Sweet Pickles, a simple recipe made with cucumbers and serrano peppers. He has been canning pickles, beets, peppers and other foods for about seven years, but had never entered his work at the State Fair.

His uncle, Ray, who also competes in the State Fair canning contest, encouraged him to give it a try.

“I was very surprised to learn I had won first place, especially considering this was my first and only entry,” Cox said.

The experience convinced him it won’t be his last.

“I will certainly be participating again in the future,” he said. “The administrators and volunteers made the whole experience easy and enjoyable.”

Sachse resident Hope Costello earned second place in Fine Art — Digital Illustration for a drawing depicting two girls performing in a school talent show, one playing guitar and the other piano.

Although Costello has been drawing since she was 3, she began working digitally only two or three years ago and said adjusting to drawing on a tablet presented its own challenges.

This year marked not only her first State Fair art competition, but her first art competition of any kind.

“I was extremely happy!” Costello said of learning she had placed. “I’ve always been told that I’m good at drawing, but actually placing in this competition shows that other people that don’t have a bias for me like my art, too!”

Princeton resident Kimberly Lindsey also earned a second-place ribbon, in Craft Creations — Handmade Baskets of Any Material, for a piece carrying special meaning.

Lindsey made the basket for her best friend, Stacy Konrad, who died before Lindsey could finish it.

“I thought entering it would be a good way to honor her,” Lindsey said.

She began basket-making about five years ago after retiring and taught herself through Pinterest and YouTube. She is also a returning State Fair winner; one of her baskets earned first place in 2023.

“Winning a ribbon at the fair lets you know you have reached a new level in your craft,” Lindsey said.

For the winners, the payoff comes when the State Fair gates open and months — or, in some cases, hundreds of hours — of work are displayed for thousands of fairgoers to see.

Ludwig hopes others might be inspired to try the competition themselves, noting that entering doesn’t require a major investment.

“In reality, it costs 5 bucks to do an entry in the fair,” she said. “It’s dirt cheap to do an entry. So even if you lose, you had fun.”

Editor’s note: Other residents from the communities we cover also earned ribbons and honorable mentions in the State Fair of Texas Creative Arts competitions. This story highlights local winners who responded to requests for information about their entries.

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