| Festival of Trees | |
| Where Tree Tops Glisten |
Attractions |
ART EXHIBIT – Sponsor: Iowa-American Water
A very special area that showcases the artistic talents of our high school students. This is one of best viewed attractions, showing how much our community appreciates the creativity of our youth. All mediums, two and three-dimensional, from painting to pottery will be featured. Watch for the Best of Show winner to be featured in the front window of the Quad City Arts Center Gallery following Festival.
CELEBRITY BASKETS – Sponsor: DHCU Deere Harvester Credit Union
Area celebrities will garnish and fill to the brim holiday baskets based on a unique theme centered on their notoriety, their hobby, or some Festival feature. Local dignitaries, specialty shops owners, and radio and television personalities are some of the folks who design these treasured items. These delightful baskets will be displayed on multi-shelved display trees. Simply buy a $1 raffle ticket from any of the sellers on the floor for your chance to own any of these personality plus baskets!
CENTERSTAGE - Sponsor: Modern Woodmen of
A variety of delightful local talents are presented during general admission hours. Dancers, singers, bands, and choirs fill the Great Hall with wonderful holiday entertainment to add to the magic at Festival. More than 3,200 individuals of all ages entertain the Festival audiences each year.
CHILDREN’S TOURS - Sponsor: Otis Elevator
Each year, thousands of school children enjoy the sights and sounds of Festival of Trees. This year, visiting children will receive an informative study guide to accompany their experience at Festival. Puzzles, counting games, and interesting facts about attractions at Festival are included in this new component. To complete their holiday learning adventure, they can watch ongoing live performances on CenterStage.
CHILDREN’S TREES - Sponsor: First Midwest Bank
Children’s Trees find their home in the upper concourse. This stroll-through exhibit showcases the efforts of budding young designers, providing the opportunity to celebrate the arts by participating in Quad City Arts Festival of Trees. Ornaments, handmade by elementary school children, will be displayed on 4-foot-tall trees.
CHILDREN’S WORLD - Sponsor: Salzman International
This wonderland of activities sparks the imaginations of the thousands of children attending Festival. From miniature-tree decorating to face painting, this area is filled with fun activities and bubbles with energy. Activity tickets will be available in the nearby ticket booth.
DESIGNER DOORS - Sponsor: Rhythm City Casino
This attraction will be showcased in a new location and will serve as a wonderful welcome to Festival. With a broad range of styles from traditional to whimsical, you are sure to find the perfect fit for your home. Displayed on a variety of colored doors, you can imagine how your favorite design will look as it welcomes your guests.
DESIGNER HEARTH AND HOME DISPLAYS – Individually Sponsored
These unique and expansive displays offer coordinated mantle, table, and door arrangements cleverly designed to complete a total holiday atmosphere for a room in your home. Many displays include enough pieces to carry a look from the front door all the way through the house. The choices are varied – traditional, elegant, fanciful, or celestial. Each display is its own work of art and is individually sponsored.
DESIGNER
A highlight in the design area, these festive holiday entries offer you the opportunity to put a fun, fresh look in your foyer or hall. Individually sponsored, the designs feature a decorated staircase and rail paired with a matching door wreath. One of these entry designs would be perfect for adding new pizzazz to your home’s holiday look.
DESIGNER TREES – Individually Sponsored
What brings thousands of people to Festival each year? The TREES! As the heart of the event, these spectacular designs showcase creations by our area’s most talented professional and non-professional designers and will truly delight. Most trees and trees in rooms will be for sale for the first time at the Grand Premiere Party via silent auction or raffle. Those trees not receiving the opening bid will be on continuous silent auction until 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 26. Designer Trees are individually sponsored with the designer time and materials being donated. Included in the unique designs this year:
Back by popular demand, a Christopher Radko tree filled with hand blown and hand painted Christopher Radko Ornaments. This tree will be sold by raffle. Among the unusual trees this year are:
Tree created from arrows and decorated with Indian style ornaments
Mickey Mouse Tree
Pepsi tree
Tropical trees
Victorian trees
An upside down tree!
FESTIVAL EXPRESS - Sponsor: KJWW Engineering Consultants
On nearly 600 square feet of the Festival of Trees floor, there is a magical train display called the Festival Express! Wind your way through the Austrian village surrounded by mountains, stars illuminated with fiber optics, suspended snowflakes, and Christmas spirit. Kids of all ages will enjoy the whistles sounding and the lights sparkling as the engines carry the train lover off into a world of enchantment. A $1 ticket from the Children’s World Ticket Booth will buy a child an opportunity to become an Engineer as they navigate their locomotive across the tracks and through the mountains. All aboard!
They’re alive… right on the Festival floor! Our
A Festival all-time favorite, the
HANDCRAFTED STOCKINGS –Sponsor opportunity still available!
Make one or more of these lovingly handcrafted stockings a new holiday favorite in your own home, or give it as a unique gift. Designed and generously donated by local and regional crafts people, each creation is unique, original, and won’t be found anywhere else. Incorporating a variety of traditional to contemporary techniques, each design becomes a creative holiday work of art. These eye-catching stockings are sure to bring warm smiles when filled with goodies and hung by the chimney with care.
HANDCRAFTED ORNAMENTS – Sponsor opportunity still available!
Handcrafted and donated by local artisans, these one-of-a-kind ornaments reflect the spirit and artistry of the holiday season. From traditional design to contemporary artwork that pops, this display has something for everyone! Lovingly hung on the tree, these ornaments will create lasting memories for you or someone you love.
Stroll through an elegantly designed four-room show house, exquisitely decked out for the holidays. Each room will include furnishings from local vendors and custom designed holiday décor. The contents of each room will be sold via silent auction, raffle, or continuous silent auction. Furnishings include items from Younkers, Knilan’s, Klavohn’s Home Furnishings, Flooring Xpress, and Sofa Mart. This one-of-a-kind show house was designed and built by Saddlebrook Homes, Inc.
HONOR TREES - Sponsor: Wheelan Funeral Homes
Dedicated to loved ones, Honor Trees offer a beautiful way to remember or honor a very special person during the holiday season: birthdays, anniversaries, soldiers serving our country, honor roll members, as well as those dearly departed are but a few of the ways friends and family may be honored on these freshly decorated trees. A fitting tribute to the very special people in our lives! Adorning brilliantly lit trees in a peaceful forest setting, lovely personalized ornaments will celebrate the lives or accomplishments of our loved ones. The ornaments will be displayed throughout Festival and will be mailed to buyers before December 25. Take a few minutes out of your visit to Festival, rest on the benches provided among these trees, and reflect on the true meaning of the holiday.
Have a question about Festival? This is where
you can get the answers! It's the hub of activities for Festival
guests, designers, and volunteers. Purchase your raffle tickets for
Celebrity Baskets, raffle trees, the Isabel Bloom miniature and
other designs here. Lost and found items find their way to the
MINIATURES – Sponsor: IPSCO STEEL, INC.
You won’t be able to miss the miniatures! More than 50 adorable 2-foot trees, decorated sleighs, angels, Santas, and other unique holiday specialty creations reside in this section. A highlight of the miniature area each year is the Isabel Bloom sculpture designed just for Festival. The sculpture, “Carolers” will be offered as a raffle, so don’t pass on your chance to win. Some of these unique mini-creations are available for immediate purchase; others by raffle throughout Festival.
SANTA’S THRONE – Sponsor opportunity still available!
Santa’s Throne sits in the heart of Children’s World. Located in the lower concourse of the RiverCenter, this area beckons children of all ages to take a moment to visit with the jolly old elf himself. Walk up the ramp (wheelchair accessible) to see Santa in his workshop surrounded by toys. If you are good, Santa will autograph your hand and give you a picture of the Santamobile! Catch those wonderful expressions with our photographer Mark’s Place. Specially priced packages will be available during Santa’s visits.
Click here for Santa’s scheduled times at Santa’s Throne.
TABLE TRIMMINGS - Sponsor:
Back by popular demand, Festival will offer
attractive centerpieces for sale on a cash and carry basis. Each
centerpiece is unique, and was handcrafted especially for our
Festival. These lovely gift items will be displayed in a very
visible location as you enter Festival, near the
TALKING TREE - Sponsor:
This amazing magical evergreen will likely
welcome you as you enter Festival Great Hall and Children’s World!
Sporting “granny” glasses and a Santa hat, the surprising Talking
Tree will give you directions, tell stories, maybe even recite a
poem or pass along a holiday joke. Mr./Mrs. Tree will even notice if
you’re wearing a special outfit. Listen in at various times and
you’ll discover this jolly old tree has many different voices, but
it will always have a cheery word for visitors. Kids, especially,
will be awestruck when they ask the Tree a question and it answers
while rolling its eyes to the mystical ringing of bells. Talking
Tree is an important stop as you begin or end your stroll through
the magic of Festival.
TEEN TREES Sponsor: Coca Cola Bottling Company
Teen Trees, located in the Upper Concourse of the RiverCenter, showcases the talents and concerns of young adults in the community. Teen groups create their own tree displays, giving them a great opportunity to get involved with Festival of Trees and Quad City Arts.
“TINSEL TREASURES” THE GIFT SHOP AT FESTIVAL OF TREES - Sponsor: U.S. Bank
Find your holiday gift giving treasures here…even if the gifts are for you! Find unique treasures not easily found in this area, suited to all tastes and price ranges. Make this your first stop for your holiday shopping.
TREATSHOPPE - Sponsor: Whitey's Ice Cream
You’ll find treats that tempt your taste buds here; so good that you’ll likely stop back for more! Quad Cities’ own Whitey's ice cream will be available. Other delicious goodies include flavored fudge, a wide assortment of chocolates and candies, and, of course, the all time favorite – warm, freshly popped popcorn of many varieties. Are your taste buds tingling, yet?
TREE SHEPHERDS - Sponsors: Bill's Moving & Storage, Inc.; Steve Gripp, Inc.
When the Festival closes, the staff at Quad City Arts, with assistance from the youngsters at Arrowhead Ranch, carefully package each tree purchased at Festival. In just two days, the trees are delivered to their new homes, either a residence or a business of the purchaser or raffle winner. That’s right! Within a 30-mile radius trees are delivered free! (Outside areas delivered for a minimal charge).
More than 2,400 people volunteer for one or several shifts at Festival of Trees each year in addition to the 100 others who plan and organize the event for months, some even for the full year before. All volunteers receive a complimentary admission pass to visit the event again. But most say their true reward is bringing the joys of the holidays to Festival visitors, and knowing they are contributing to the arts by donating their time and talent. Be a part of the Festival family. Volunteers are vital to Festival and always needed. So please contact the Festival office today to indicate your interest (563)324-FEST.
WELCOME TREATS - Sponsor: Jewel-Osco
Free for visitors entering Festival of Trees, this fun candy treat is given by our friendly and welcoming ambassadors. Dedicated volunteers greet visitors at the doors, and help them start their journey through the spectacularly be-decked halls of Festival.
ZOO TREE - Sponsors: Royal Neighbors of
This giant tree of cuddly animals is indeed a Festival favorite! These huggable friends, filling the 20-foot-plus tree, are collected throughout the year and distributed to ill and needy children throughout the community after the close of Festival. Over the past 13 years, more than 12,000 Zoo Tree animals have been collected and distributed. Festival visitors are invited to bring new stuffed animals to be used for next year’s tree and watch them travel up and down the Zoo-A-Lator in Children’s World.
ZOO-A-LATOR - Sponsor: Otis Elevator
A fun attraction in Children’s World, this unique “escalator” will transport stuffed animal friends on a magical ride. Don’t take your eyes off the fuzzy little critters as they make the two-story ride to the top and slide back down again! Purchase tickets right nearby at the Children’s World ticket booth.
