Fortunately, tropical storm Cindy posed little problem for the downtown Sevierville farmers market on Friday. Other than a strong breeze at times, the weather was great and the sun was shining. Here is how my visit went at the market.

The downtown landscaping is beautiful! They are really doing a good job and it is a sight for the eyes.

It is always a pleasure to see this flower seller at the market.

These soaps smelled so good! They also had infused olive oils.

I love these sunglasses! You can see your reflection in them too.

Artist, Chuck Ottolini, and helpers, are shopping for fresh produce.

There was a crowd around Henderson’s produce tent. They always have good things. I often stop at their store during the summer.

Wondering where to begin!

The pastry booth has a variety of things. The caramel brownie pictured above is very rich and could be shared among 4 people. She sold out of bagels before I arrived at the booth; however, it is good to see brisk sales in the farmers market.

Alex Johnson buying produce to take home.

Sevierville Commons members, Jim McGill, and Sophia Conerly, are happy to see a busy market day.

You can buy pretty little bouquets for the table at the Sevierville farmers market.

This reminded me of the wonderful pineapples in the Dominican Republic a few weeks ago.

I finally ordered a lemonade from the hot dog vendor booth. I had wanted one for a year. You can order lemonade with sugar or Splenda. He had an interesting technique of shaking it with the entire lemon in the container. I am going to try that at home some time.

It was one of the best lemonades that I have ever had. I’ll get a large next time. So good!

A gust of wind caught a couple of tents on the east side and caused several moments of excitement. People rushed to help so it was OK. Maybe it was the last of tropical storm Cindy passing through the market on her way up the coast.

I enjoyed talking to these vendors, a husband and wife who used to live in Florida, but retired here to the Wears Valley area.

Ernie was an executive chef in West Palm Beach, Florida. He worked as a dietary manager in diverse settings such as hospitals, nursing homes, and restaurants. At first, post-retirement, they were traveling in a motor home. Soon, they found a real estate agent and moved to the Walden’s Creek area. When I asked about retirement and the products that you see on the table, Ernie replied that he wasn’t ready to quit everything yet. He said that cooking was never a job to him. In fact, he always felt a satisfaction seeing someone smile after eating something that he had prepared. This couple was so friendly. Ask him some recipe questions the next time you visit the market!

As I walked back to my car through the arcade, I realized that I missed the ‘make-and-take’ sessions by the Sevierville Commons Arts Council that we had enjoyed since last year. They had received a grant that enabled them to offer the sessions during the farmers market.  The grant has since been used and there are no remaining funds at this time; however, a business or organization could help sponsor some ‘make-it-and-take-it’ sessions in the future. If you are interested then contact the Sevierville Commons Arts Council at their website. Here is a link https://www.seviervillecommonsartscouncil.org

The ‘make-and-take’ sessions by the Sevierville Commons Arts Council were wildly popular with young and old. Families and children loved to do them. I found myself doing several, like the ‘church doll’ that I gave my niece yesterday. It was great fun to have someone at the sessions coaching you through the process and then being able to take it home as your own. Fingers crossed that they come back soon. In the meantime, I will try to visit some art galleries and stores downtown. Support your local artists! They are helping with the Renaissance of downtown now.

This is a good shortcut to the courthouse and the parking lot across from the bank.

See you next Friday at the downtown farmers market when we are out and about in Sevierville.