One of the vendors at Crafts & Drafts is Perfectly Imperfect, selling cards and home décor.
By: Mary Genson | Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle | Published March 23, 2026
BLOOMFIELD HILLS — Cranbrook Institute of Science invites the community to bring friends and family to enjoy Crafts & Drafts on Sunday, March 29. Visitors can drink beer from the outdoor beer garden and explore a marketplace of arts and crafts from over 50 vendors.
The arts and crafts will be nature-inspired and science-themed. There will be no AI-generated goods in the marketplace.
Lizz Parkinson, the head of the Freshwater Forum and Crafts & Drafts event organizer, said, “a lot of times it feels like, lately, they’re a little bit oversaturated with, like, three printed goods or things that are AI generated, and we just really wanted to stick to the heart of having vocal artists and local vendors that were putting out there, you know, their true, unique artwork and really getting a good variety and supporting those artists.”
Among the many vendors are Sanne Life’s homemade skin care and aromatherapy items, Tammy Lynn Décor’s wreaths and centerpieces, and Perfectly Imperfect’s cards and home décor.
Sipping local brews
The event will include Michigan craft beer and cider.
“Anybody 21 and up will be able to walk around the museum while they consume and check out the vendors and everything.”
Cranbrook Institute of Science Works with Chartwells, a part of Compass Group, for food service. Lucy Hale, the Susan Flint Cooper director at Cranbrook Institute of Science, said this experience involved them finding partners in local craft breweries.
“It was sort of like tapping into a different skill set that that group of people has that they don’t get to flex every day here. And so that’s been really fun, too. I think this has just been for us, as a whole institution, a way to think about how we work differently to really serve our whole constituency,” Hale said.
Valuing togetherness
“As a museum, we’re also a place that we know the No. 1 reason people come to institutions like ours is actually to spend time with somebody that they care about. It could be a child, a spouse, a partner, a relative, a grandparent, but it’s really to spend that time together,” Hale said, referencing research done by the American Alliance of Museums.
“We just felt it was really important to double down on that reason for visiting, to spend time together, and to create an experience that was adjacent to our mission,” Hale said.
This event is for all ages and is included with museum admission. Visitors looking to purchase drinks must be 21 or older and show ID. For more information, visit science.cranbrook.edu/visit/events/2026-03/crafts-drafts.