We’ve rounded up the latest free events, activities and crafts going on at various locations in the Twin Cities, Minnesota area and also nationwide this weekend (4/20-4/22). Please leave a comment if you know of any others and we’ll add them to this list.
Be sure to check the Earth Day Freebies 2012 post for more free offers good this Sunday only.
Your turn: What other free weekend events and activities do you know of?
Nationwide Events
American Girl Store
Girls ages 8 and up can enjoy various crafts, cooking classes and tours at the American Girl Store. At the Mall of America location, this week’s free events include:
- Molly’s Victory Garden Craft: April 22 from 12-2pm
- American Girl Historical Character Scavenger Hunt: April 22 from 12-4pm
- Molly’s Embroidered Card Craft: April 22 from 2-4pm
- Molly’s Tap Dance Steps Demo: April 22 from 2-4pm
- McKenna Bracelet Craft: April 25 from 4-6pm
- McKenna “Take the Challenge” Scavenger Hunt: April 25 from 4-8pm
Barnes & Noble
Check your local Barnes & Noble for events. My closest store has Children’s Storytime on Tuesdays and Fridays at 10am.
Cabela’s
Cabela’s is hosting Ladies Day Out this Saturday with events, seminars and refreshments all day long and a free t-shirt for the first 100 women through the doors. Events vary by location, but the Rogers (MN) location is hosting seminars on camping cooking, archery for ladies, GPS adventures for the whole family, and more.
Guitar Center
Guitar Center offers a free recording workshop every Saturday from 10-11am. This Saturday’s lesson is about Effects. Find a Guitar Center location near you.
Home Depot
This month’s weekend adult workshops include Raised Gardening Bed, Create Entry Door Appeal and Door Lock Basics, Outdoor Power Equipment, and How to Choose a Countertop. Check the Home Depot website for dates and times.
Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft Stores
Check out one free demo on Saturday: Fabric-Crafting with iLoveToCreate from 11am-12pm.
Lakeshore Learning
Kids can make a Little Gardener Apron craft this Saturday from 11am-3pm. Find a Lakeshore Learning Store near you.
Michaels
Kids ages 3 and up can participate in the Body Art Make-It Take-It craft on Saturday from 1-3pm or the Earth Day Tote Make-It Take-It craft on Sunday from 1-3pm. It’s possible that a purchase is required to participate in these events, but their website doesn’t specify that.
Pottery Barn Kids
Visit Pottery Barn Kids on Saturday or Sunday to receive a free packet of sunflower seeds from PBK and National Geographic in honor of Earth Day. Find a Pottery Barn Kids location near you.
Target
Select your city to find free and/or reduced-price admission to arts and cultural events in your area, sponsored by Target. If you live in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, the Walker Art Center is free every Thursday night as a part of Target Free Thursday Nights.
Walmart
Enter your zip code in the Walmart Event Finder to see what’s going on in your area. Events at my store include a Hormel Pepperoni Minis and Ragu Pizza Sauce Sampling Event, a Life Choice Bars Sampling Event, and a Kraft Salad Dressing and Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Treats Sampling Event.
Local Events
Thanks to A Traveling Thought for some of this information.
Friday, 4/20
- Global Youth Service Day (Three Rivers Parks)
- Spring Flower Show (Como Park Conservatory – St. Paul)
- Party for the Planet (Como Park Zoo & Conservatory – St. Paul): 10am-6pm
- Healthcare Careers Education Fair (Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis): 10:30am-1:30pm
- Cloud Computing: Microsoft Office Web Apps and Google Docs (North Regional Library – Minneapolis): 11am-1pm
- Cloud Computing: Microsoft Office Web Apps and Google Docs (Franklin Library – Minneapolis): 1-3pm
- Kids Club Earth Day Gardening (Whole Foods Market – Minnetonka): 3-5pm
- Family Night (Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis): 5-8pm
- Twelve Strands Opening Reception (Textile Center – Minneapolis): 7-9pm
- Scott Wrobel Reads from Cul De Sac (Magers & Quinn – Minneapolis): 7:30pm
Saturday, 4/21
- Community Shred-It Event (Bloomington, Burnsville, Fridley, Lakeville, Minneapolis)
- Global Youth Service Day (Three Rivers Parks)
- National Park Week
- Spring Flower Show (Como Park Conservatory – St. Paul)
- North St. Paul and Maplewood All Park Clean Up: 8am-1pm
- Earth Day (Harriet Alexander Nature Center – Roseville): 8am-3pm
- Earth Day Event with Free Green Inspections (Victory Auto Service & Glass locations): 8am-3pm
- Sweatastic Saturday! (lululemon athletica – St. Paul): 9-10am
- MayDay Public Workshop (In the Heart of the Beast – Minneapolis): 9-11am
- Great Cloth Diaper Change and Baby Expo (All Things Diapers – Blaine): 9-11:45am
- Bird Banding (Lowry Nature Center – Victoria): 9am-12pm
- RITE of Spring Event (Mahtomedi School District Education Center): 9am-12pm
- Celebrate Earth Day (Tamarack Nature Center – White Bear Township): 9am-2pm
- Minneapolis Parks Clean-Up Event (Minneapolis Parks): 9:30am-12pm
- Free Family Flick: We Bought a Zoo (Mall of America): 10am
- The Great Earth Day Buckthorn Pull (Lowry Nature Center – Victoria): 10am-12pm
- Archery in the Park (Fort Snelling State Park – St. Paul): 10am-3pm
- Businesses at The Edge Wellness Event (Minneapolis): 10am-3pm
- Party for the Planet (Como Park Zoo & Conservatory – St. Paul): 10am-6pm
- African Family Week (Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis): 10am-8pm
- It’s Our Birthday! (lululemon athletica – Minneapolis): 10am-9pm
- Master Gardener: Container Gardening (Excelsior Library): 10:30am
- Panel Discussion (Open Eye Figure Theatre – Minneapolis): 10:30am
- Publication Party for A Secret Keeps by Marsha Wilson Chall (The Red Balloon Bookshop – St. Paul): 10:30am
- Uncle Sam Worked Here: History Conversation Series (Landmark Center – St. Paul): 10:30am
- Childish Films: Film Festival Shorts Season Finale (Minneapolis Central Library): 10:30am-12pm
- Paws to Read (Pierre Bottineau Library – Minneapolis): 10:30am-12pm
- Volunteer Opportunities Open House (Baker National Golf Course – Medina): 10:30am-12pm
- Anoka County Earth Day Celebration Clean-Up Projects (Anoka County Parks): 11am-12pm
- Meet Isabelle Fisher Cat from Calico Critter Land (Creative Kidstuff – Edina): 11am-1pm
- Celebrate Earth Day…All Weekend Long! (Whole Foods Market – Edina): 11am-2pm
- Brooklyn Park Crime Prevention and Safety Expo (Brooklyn Park Community Activity Center): 11am-3pm
- Earth Day Celebration (Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis): 11am-3pm
- Free Water Hardness Testing (Menards – Maple Grove): 11am-4pm
- A Passage to China (Mall of America): 11am-5pm
- Minneapolis Print & Drawing Fair (Minneapolis Institute of Arts): 11am-5pm
- Free Zumba Class (Steele – Edina): 12-1pm
- Minnesota Community Sings (Martin Luther King Park – Minneapolis): 12-1:30pm
- Orchid Society of Minnesota Monthly Meeting (Bachman’s – Minneapolis): 12-4pm
- Family Earth Day Celebration (Wargo Nature Center – Lino Lakes): 12:30-3pm
- Master Gardener: Edible Landscapes (Northeast Library – Minneapolis): 1pm
- Meet Kate DiCamillo (Nokomis Library – Minneapolis): 1pm
- MayDay Public Workshop (In the Heart of the Beast – Minneapolis): 1-3pm
- Make This: Fashion Design (Southdale Library – Edina): 1-3pm
- Spring Tune-Up! (North St. Paul Community Center): 1-3:30pm
- Author Talk: Born Into War (Augsburg Park Library – Richfield): 2pm
- DNA Day: Genetics of Autism and Related Diseases (Brooklyn Park Library): 2pm
- Hosmer World Music Concert Series Presents Carlos Lumbi and El Taller del Amatl (Hosmer Library – Minneapolis): 2pm
- Jennifer Allison, Gilda Joyce: Psychic Investigator (The Red Balloon Bookshop – St. Paul): 2pm
- Friends of the Wildflower Garden Invasives Plant Action Group (FIPAG) Weeding Event (Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary – Minneapolis): 2-4pm
- Paint It Green: Full Circle (East Lake Library – Minneapolis): 2-4pm
- Meet Ricky Rubio (Cub Foods – Crystal): 3-4pm
- Free Felted Earth Ball (Heartfelt – Minneapolis): 3:30-5:30pm
- Saturday Night Movie (Jackson Street Roundhouse – St. Paul): 5:30pm
Sunday, 4/22
- National Park Week
- Spring Flower Show (Last Day) (Como Park Conservatory – St. Paul)
- Minneapolis Recycle Run Free Kids’ Half Mile Run (Lake Harriet – Minneapolis): 8:45am (register online in advance)
- Sweaty Sundays with Barre Bliss (lululemon athletica – Minneapolis): 9:30-10:30am
- Party for the Planet (Como Park Zoo & Conservatory – St. Paul): 10am-6pm
- Celebrate Earth Day…All Weekend Long! (Whole Foods Market – Edina): 11am-2pm
- Earth Day Recycle-a-thon (Whole Foods Market – St. Paul): 11am-3pm
- A Passage to China (Mall of America): 11am-5pm
- Minneapolis Print & Drawing Fair (Minneapolis Institute of Arts): 11am-5pm
- Wishes for the Sky (Harriet Island – St. Paul): 11am-5pm
- Archery in the Park (Fort Snelling State Park – St. Paul): 12-2pm
- BandWidth 2012 (Landmark Center – St. Paul): 12:30-5:40pm
- Paws to Read (North Regional Library – Minneapolis): 1pm
- Celebrate Mother Earth (Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park – Brooklyn Park): 1-3pm
- Free Family Fun Day: Herons (Carl Kroening Interpretive Center – Minneapolis): 1-3pm
- Silverwood Park Day Camp Open House (Silverwood Park – St. Anthony): 1-4pm
- Hosmer’s World Film Festival Presents My Tehran for Sale (Hosmer Library – Minneapolis): 1:15-3pm
- Adele Porter, Birds in our Backyard (The Red Balloon Bookshop – St. Paul): 2pm
- Club Book with Richard Louv (Ridgedale Library – Minnetonka): 2pm
- Celebrate Earth Day! (Richardson Nature Center – Bloomington): 2-4pm
- Vacation Inspiration Party (Creative Kidstuff – St. Louis Park): 6:30pm (registration required)
- South of the River Community Band (Edinborough Park – Edina): 7pm
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About Laura Wales
