5 things you can’t miss at Cricket Cringle 2017

Ardmore comes alive with the spirit of the holiday season for Cricket Cringle 2017. | Provided
Provided

On Dec. 1 and Dec. 2, Ardmore will get into the holiday spirit with the fourth annual Cricket Cringle event along Cricket Avenue in Downtown Ardmore.

Inspired by holiday markets found in Europe over 40 merchants and food vendors will be on site for this special shopping experience.

“Cricket Cringle is one of the events in our area that signify the start of the holiday season and we are pleased to see it continue along Cricket Avenue”, says Christine Vilardo, executive director of the Ardmore Initiative. “We thank our 2017 Presenting Sponsor, PECO, and are pleased to announce that with their donation we will light trees, holiday snowflakes and bring back the lighted A’s throughout Downtown Ardmore for all to enjoy.”

Here are five things you can’t miss at Cricket Cringle 2017.

1. The shopping
Have a lot of holiday shopping to do? Merchants at Cricket Cringle 2017 will offer everything from jewelry to housewares to clothing to wreaths to spruce up your home for the holidays. What’s more, many of the products being sold are handcrafted, so you can be sure you’re getting something unique. Keep an eye out for ornaments from A Piece of the Beach, jewelry from Gigi Singh and women’s apparel from Alice Alexander.

2. The food
All of that shopping sure does make a person hungry! Lucky for you, there will be plenty of food purveyors on-hand like Bonjour Creperie, Baby Blues BBQ, All of a Sudden Desserts, Dos Hermanos and Say Cheese.  For the adults, Iron Hill Brewery will also be serving up craft beer.

3. The entertainment
Each day of Cricket Cringle is jam-packed with live music and dance performances. Merion Mercy Handbells and Choral Ensemble kicks the party off on Friday along with Song for Seeds and First Position Dance Arts. Saturday will feature music from Main Line Classical, Bethel AME Youth Choir, Philadelphia Studio Ballet and more.

4. An appearance from Santa
Do your kids want to see Santa this weekend? He’ll be at Cricket Cringle on Friday night, arriving to the entertainment stage at 7:30 p.m. via fire truck. The reindeer had the night off, apparently, but St. Nick still knows how to ride in style.

5. The first 500 attendees get a free tote bag!
As the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm and in the case of Cricket Cringle 2017, you get a cool tote bag with goodies too if you’re one of the first 500 attendees.

If you go:

Cricket Cringle 2017
Friday, Dec. 1
5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 2
10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Cricket Avenue, Ardmore
Free to attend
destinationardmore.com