Registration opens May 7 for the State Fair of Texas Creative Arts contests

Registration opens Wednesday, May 7, for the 2025 State Fair of Texas Creative Arts competitions, which feature more than 1,100 arts and crafts and 26 cooking contests.

“There is something for every Texan, including opportunities for kids,” a spokesman said. “Whether you prefer to display your artistry by cooking up tasty treats in the kitchen or through arts and crafts, the State Fair’s Creative Arts’ competitions are for you.”

Download the guidelines online at BigTex.com/CreativeArts or access the PDFs below.

To register as a contestant, visit https://bigtex.com, click on “Get Involved” in the top menu bar, and then click on “Register.”

The 2025 arts and crafts contests include fine art; ceramics; designer craftsman; dolls; canning; hobby collections; holiday corner; needlepoint, crewel, and counted cross-stitch; needlework and sewing; afghans, rugs, quilts, and bedspreads; photography; scale models; Glue-a-Shoe; and The Great Pumpkin Challenge.

The deadline to submit online entry forms and fees for the arts and crafts contests is Monday, July 28.

Contestants can submit their entries via mail by July 28 or hand-deliver items to the Creative Arts building in Fair Park in Dallas from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Aug. 1-3.

Entries will be judged in the weeks following, and contestants will be notified once the results are finalized. Entries awarded a ribbon will be displayed during the 2025 State Fair of Texas.

The 2025 cooking contests include bread; cooking with cheese; Honey, the Magic Ingredient; beekeepers honey; farm to fork; chocolate; pizza cook-off; youth cooking contest; Best of Show-Down (invitation only); Play with Your Food; Dough-Re-Me Pastry; soup or salad; ice cream freeze-off; The Ultimate Grilled Cheese Challenge; charcuterie board; Texas chuck wagon; international cuisine; speedy dishes; fair concoctions; chicken or the egg; cobbler cook-off; Tex Mex; and candy.

Online registration for the cooking contests closes Monday, July 28.

The State Fair of Texas will host its Battle for the Blue Ribbons from May 16-18. Register now for the only spring cooking competition featuring three of the fair’s most popular Creative Arts Cooking Contests: cookies, cakes, and pies.

Amateur home cooks of all ages may enter for the chance to be awarded first, second, third, and honorable mention. All 40 blue-ribbon winners will be invited to compete in their respective contests at the exclusive Best of Show-Down in the Competition Kitchen during the fair on Oct. 5.

One contestant from each of the three contests will be awarded a Best of Show ribbon, allowing them to advance to a head-to-head battle for the Best of Show-Down grand prize.

For more information about the competition and to register, visit BigTex.com/Battle.

For all contests, participants are encouraged to use the online registration system, which allows the creation of a family account that permits adults in the household to add additional contestants to the account and register youth contestants.

Youth contestants will have their own designated entries for Creative Arts competitions, but all communications regarding those entries are sent to the primary adult on the account. Although there are paper registration forms in the Arts & Crafts and Cooking Contest Guides that can be mailed to the fair, using the online registration portal ensures contestants receive helpful reminders and judging results.

Sign up for the Creative Arts email newsletter here.

The 2025 State Fair of Texas opens Friday, Sept. 26, and runs through Sunday, Oct. 19, at Fair Park in Dallas.

Information collated by Jo Ann Livingston/ITKE.