Days
Hours

August 22 - September 1, 2025

General Entry & Fine Arts

What is the General Entry Office?

General Entry is one of three competitive departments at the Colorado State Fair! This department hosts non-animal competitions called still exhibits. General Entry offers judged competitions in baking, canning, sewing, crocheting, quilting, agriculture, arts and crafts, beer and winefine arts, and more! Thousands of entries are submitted each year that showcase the best of Colorado. Check out the Special Contest page for sponsored competitions and fun contests for children.

Why enter?

Many people engage in hobbies and have passions. We stand in our kitchen separating egg yolks to make the perfect meringue. We sit beside table lamps and write the last line. Next to trees, we harvest grapes and work long into hot summer evenings baling hay and reaping crops. We enter many midnights with wet paintbrushes and sore hands. Some of these things we do give us creative outlets to play. Some of them put food on the table. Some of them are traditions. All of them give us pride to be able to build, create, sustain, and nourish. And once a year we come together as the state of Colorado to show each other what we can do!

Life of an Entry

  1. Create something great that falls into one of the offered competitions!
  2. Register by entering online and submitting the appropriate fees beginning June 10 and anytime before the deadline (Most online deadlines are July 17, 2024, check specific competition for details). Participants can also submit their entry and payment through the mail, or stop by in person! (In-Person Entry: Tuesdays & Wednesdays 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. Beginning June 10, 2024 through July 17, 2024)
  3. Bring in your awesome work on the receiving day set aside for the department(s) you are entering.
  4. Your item will be judged by experts in the relevant art/craft/hobby.
  5. Attend the first day of the Colorado State Fair for our Creative Arts Building grand opening to see how your item did!
  6. Check each department for a release day to know when you can pick up your entry. Non-placing entries are typically released at the same time as placing entries; however, some departments differ (e.g., baked goods are donated to the Soup Kitchen to help feed people in need).
  7. Start planning what you will enter next year!
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