The city of Kechi, KS has a day filled with fun planned for Saturday, September 22, 2018. It’s a Kite Festival, fall festival, outdoor antique market, arts fair, and small business open house day all rolled into one.
Related:
Kite-Flying Events in the Wichita Area
Kechi Kite Festival
For the kite festival, which is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., enjoy free kite-flying activities on the south end of town in the area west of Oliver, north of Highway 254.
Get a new kite from Wings of the Wind or bring your own. You’ll see the kite-mobile: they’ll have kites flying and kites for sale and some kites that you can even try out.
During the festival, watch pro stunt-flying kite demonstrations from expert flyers! Also, look for a candy drop (from a flying kite) for the kids!
Kechi Vintage Market
In addition to all the high-flying fun of the kite festival, they’ll have an outdoor vintage market at Junk in the Trunk Emporium on E. 61st Street.
35 antique and vintage vendors will sell their wares in this neat little vintage, artsy town. When I was in the little Kechi restaurant recently, I saw a cup that proudly proclaimed Kechi was the “Antique Capital of Kansas.”
Kechi Open House
Not only is Kechi, Kansas known for its antiques, it’s also known for its art. Throughout the day, Kechi merchants all along Artisan Lane will be holding open houses and doing demonstrations.
- Geno’s Bar B-Q (see my comments about it below!)
- Kechi Playhouse (built in 1920)
- Kechi Quilt Impressions
- Honey Bee Hut KS (I have one of her “Sunflower” lotion bars, made with beeswax)
- Cindy’s Quilts-n-More
- Richard’s Wood Shop
- Karg Art Glass
- Turkey Creek Weaving Studio
If you haven’t yet been to Karg Art Glass, make that a priority on your list, and then check out the other shops in the 61st and Oliver area. In fact, you might want to venture to Karg’s Friday night for the free (and awesome) opening reception of From Clay to Art ceramics show. They’ll have wine, hors d’eouvres, live music and a pottery demonstration!
Rollin Karg at the Wichita Art Museum Art and Book Fair, describing how they make the steel sculptures that provide a base for some of the art glass.
Festival Schedule
Although the kite-flying fun is in the middle of the day, there will be something to do pretty much most of the day in Kechi on September 22. Here’s an overview of events:
- 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Outdoor antique market at Junk in the Trunk Emporium, 4535 E. 61st, Kechi, Kansas, KS 67067
- 9 a.m to Noon Glass blowing demonstrations at Karg Art Glass
- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Let’s Go Fly a Kite with Wings of the Wind
- 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fall open house at Vintage Rhinestone
- 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Weaving demonstrations at Turkey Creek Weaving Studio
The Kechi Kite Festival will also have some food options, like a hot dog stand, a bierock stand, and some food trucks, so you won’t go hungry. But you could also go to a Kechi restaurant. I can heartily recommend the Geno’s Bar B-Q two-meat dinner with brisket and ribs. We just had dinner there for the first time in August, and it’s fantastic food at even fantastic-er prices. (Yum.)
For more information about the Kechi Kite Festival, visit their event listing on Facebook.
