The Brandywine Museum of Art’s annual Holiday Critter Sale returns Nov. 30 to Dec. 3. Each year since 1971, these distinctive ornaments have been carefully handcrafted by a dedicated group of Brandywine volunteers using all-natural and foraged materials such as teasel, pinecones, acorns, eggshells, flowers and seed pods. Critters come in all shapes and sizes from whimsical animals—like reindeer, foxes, bears and woodland creatures—to heavenly angels and stars, and cozy cottage tabletop scenes. Held offsite this year at the nearby Chadds Ford Historical Society, this year’s sale will feature more than 10,000 unique and fanciful Critter ornaments and tabletop displays to choose from. 

The public sale hours run Nov. 30 through Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Dec. 3, from 10  to 3 p.m. Brandywine members are also invited to enjoy early access during the member preview sale on Nov. 29, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The sale will be held offsite at the Chadds Ford Historical Society, located at 1736 Creek Road in Chadds Ford. Critter prices range from $5 to $35, with specialty items from $50 to $250. Credit card sales only. All proceeds benefit the Brandywine’s Art Education and Public Programming. Over the years, more than $1.5 million has been raised from the sale. 

For those who can’t make it to the in-person sale, a smaller selection of Critter ornaments and houses are also available for purchase online and can be shipped across the country by visiting www.brandywine.org/critters. Visitors to the Brandywine Museum of Art can also enjoy hundreds of Critter ornaments that adorn the towering trees inside the Museum’s atrium during the holiday season. Beginning Dec. 4, all remaining Critter ornaments from the public sale will also be sold inside the museum’s gift shop, while supplies last.

Also on view for the holiday season at the Brandywine Museum of Art, the Brandywine Railroad model train display features trains running on 2,000 feet of track and includes more than 1,000 pieces, such as locomotives, passenger and freight trains, and trolleys that pass through a small village, a farm, factories, a drive-in movie theater and even a carnival. For more than 50 years, this iconic O-gauge model train display has been a cherished holiday tradition for generations of Museum visitors. Several interactive components are also incorporated into the display, operated by buttons and foot pedals that allow for further engagement. The Brandywine Railroad will be on view through January 7, 2024. 

Now through January 7, 2024, the Museum will be open seven days a week for extended holiday hours, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closing early at 1 p.m. on Christmas Eve and closed on Christmas day).

For more information, call 610-388-2700 or visit brandywine.org/museum.