Louisville Free Public Library’s How-To Festival

April 30, 2024 Family Fun, Indoor, Outdoor, Spring

The Louisville Free Public Library is hosting the 11th annual How-To Festival at the Main Branch of the library on May 11 from 10 am – 3 pm.

As Louisville gears up for 150^th running of the Kentucky Derby, the Louisville Free Public Library is busy laying the finishing touches on the 11^th annual How-To Festival. Taking place on the second Saturday in May, the Library’s How-To Festival has become an annual tradition for thousands of Louisvillians looking for something entertaining, interactive, and educational to do after Derby is over.

The How-To Festival offers attendees the chance to learn how-to-do more than 50 different things in five hours, all for free!

Want to learn how to grow bananas? Make delicious gluten-free cookies? Keep bees in your backyard? Play the violin? These are just a sampling of the free, interactive learning experiences offered by local experts and small businesses at the How-To Festival. “How-to” sessions last approximately 45 minutes and cover a range of activities—from business to fitness to gardening.

This year’s festival is a mix of past favorites—how to practice self-defense, grow delicious tomatoes, or do basic car maintenance—along with new lessons, such as how to weave a rug, create cheesecake in a jar, and break up with your smart phone. Kid-friendly activities include how to paint with diamonds, make shadow puppets, or create a friendship bracelet. And thanks to the ongoing partnership with the Louisville Urban Agriculture Coalition, How-To will feature twenty gardening sessions presented by Urban Ag member groups, including how to raise urban livestock, identify poisonous plants, grow mushrooms, and more.

The How-To Festival takes place on Saturday, May 11, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Main Library, 301 York Street. Sessions will be located in more than twenty areas throughout the building and surrounding grounds, transforming the entire library into a giant classroom. Food trucks will be available.

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