It’s finally sweater weather folks! The Westhampton Beach community rang in the beginning of the new autumn season by hosting a festival on Main Street and the Great Lawn on Sunday, October 8th. The event was coordinated by the Westhampton Beach Chamber of Commerce and took place from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Friends and family gathered together to experience a fun day of festivities ranging from sidewalk sales and vendors to a petting zoo and circus show! Community members of all ages were able to enjoy the day with the wide range of unique things to do in town. The younger kids were dazzled by the creative arts and crafts, as well as the blowup slides and bouncy castles. Parents and teens were able to enjoy the different retailers and pop-ups.
As someone who attended the event, the different food options and cute shops were extremely fun to visit, such as the stromboli tent and essential oils booth. I was able to purchase a custom-made porcelain bead bracelet from one of the boutiques and support a small business at the same time. Lovely Little Boutique, LLC is owned and run by a mom and oncology nurse who found a passion in making bracelets and decorating sunglasses.
Apart from the main tent set up on the great lawn, the art vendors were focused on the other side of the street by St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. Many of these artists and their work have been coming to the Fall Festival for years, including Janice Jaworski. Janice is the owner of the company Beads & Boards, a jewelry shop she started at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Janice is a Connecticut native and recently moved to Southampton when she was released from her job due to COVID-19. Beads & Boards is a returning booth and has won awards through the arts portion of the festival many times. In the last couple of years, Janice has gotten into the top three, and last year finally received first place. She credits her niece for helping her formulate her signature style that is “dainty but elegant.”
The whole road was packed with sidewalk sales from all of the local businesses, as well as a bunch of restaurant tents. Some of WHB’s favorite shops such as Mixology, High-End Hippie, MINT, TOLA, and Tweed were all having sales and displaying their clothes on the sidewalks. There was a taco truck, pretzel press, and other types of entertaining food from restaurants located in town. Also, in the heart of town, a circus act, petting zoo, and live music entertained all. Bidawee also had a truck where you could meet and pet puppies, which was absolutely adorable.
The jam-packed and exciting day was one members of the community will remember for a long time. It was great to catch up with friends and experience a not-so-lazy Sunday after the weather has been raining out every weekend for the last couple of weeks. If you missed the bright and breezy event, make sure to try and catch it next year in early October!
