Longboaters line up early for annual Christmas Bazaar

The St. Mary, Star of the Sea's annual Christmas Bazaar opened at 10 a.m. Saturday, but shoppers were lined up a half-hour early. This is one event where if you snooze, you lose. Only an hour in, and “sold” stickers were dotting nearly every tree and several collectibles. 

The Ladies Guild holds the event and hand crafts almost every item from crocheted to baked goods. By 11 a.m., members had already moved some inventory around so the hall didn’t look as cleared out. 

Luckily, there was a hand-knit unicorn hat and purple tutu left for Ellie Reynolds, who wasn’t waiting for Christmas. She donned both immediately and wore them home.

“We come every year and look at all the decorations,” her mom, Rebecca said. “My mom and my sister come to my house just for this event. We make it a girls' weekend.”

Sisters Pam DeRidder and Patty Bochicchio had the same idea after seeing the bazaar in the newspaper calendar.

“We’re big bazaar people. We grew up with Christmas bazaars at our Catholic school, and it’s just a tradition.” Bochicchio said. “If you see one, you’ve got to go to it.”

Both sisters bought spiffed-up paint brushes reimagined into sand brushes, a simple tool to get the sand off your feet before getting back into the car after being on the beach.

DeRidder also picked up a hand towel because it says, “Sparkle.”

“My dad’s nickname for my daughter was Sparkle Plenty, so I’ve got to get it for her,” she said. 

As second year church members, Joe and Diane Collins knew about the bazaar ahead of time, but were just browsing and showing their support. They left with a glass vase that held a miniature Christmas tree inside. 

“We’re not even going to be here for Christmas, but we have to decorate somehow,” Diane said.

With an array of crafts and cookies for all tastes, no one left the bazaar empty handed or hungry. As an added treat this year, the Maine Line food truck pulled up in front of Pick Hall to serve crab and lobster.