Holiday Shopping Destination: Jamesport, where old meets new
“Things you find from your childhood,” is how store clerk Maria Bua describes some of the offereings at Jamesport Country Store. Credit: Randee Daddona
Hallockville Museum Farm will host its annual Country Parlor Holiday Folk Art & Gift Show from Nov. 25 to 27, featuring handcrafted decorations and goods made by local artisans and craftspeople.
“It’s a beautiful shopping experience and a beautiful holiday experience at Hallockville,” said Joan Cear, recording secretary of Greater Jamesport Civic Association, who also volunteers at the museum.
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Hallockville Museum Farm will host its annual Country Parlor Holiday Folk Art & Gift Show from Nov. 25 to 27, featuring handcrafted decorations and goods made by local artisans and craftspeople.
“It’s a beautiful shopping experience and a beautiful holiday experience at Hallockville,” said Joan Cear, recording secretary of Greater Jamesport Civic Association, who also volunteers at the museum.
On Nov. 29, Jamesport Fire Department hosts the holiday tree lighting with caroling, hot cocoa, cookies and a visit from Santa at 6:30 p.m. at the Honor Garden, Main Road and South Jamesport Avenue.
Other area events include a Historic Christmas at Hallockville on Dec. 4, when the homestead will be decorated for a Victorian Christmas, and Jamesport Meeting House’s Carols and Cookies on Dec. 16 and Holiday Concert on Dec. 18.
Shoppers at Jamesport Country Store (1299 Main Rd., 631-722-8048) will find an array of nostalgic wares, including retro candies — jelly beans, fruit slices, Violet mints, candy buttons and more. “Things you find from your childhood,” said store clerk Maria Bua.
Among the wide assortment of locally made products are honey, potholders, blankets, fruit spreads and pickles.
There are Christmas wreaths, pine-scented candles and miniature trees, vintage signs, books by local authors, sweatshirts and hoodies that say “North Fork” and “Jamesport,” Fiestaware, Long Island calendars, Grumman hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts, goat’s milk soap and body lotion, framed nautical prints and beach-glass designs by local artisans.
Sculptures by Orient artist Dominick DiLorenzo at the William Ris Gallery in Jamesport. Credit: Randee Daddona
“Ever changing, always original,” is how owner Mary Cantone describes William Ris Gallery (1291 Main Rd., 631-408-5203, williamris.com). Originally opened and named in 1966 in Pennsylvania by Cantone’s brother, William Ris, Cantone moved the shop to its current location, overlooking Sherwood House Vineyards, in 2016. “All the art I have is original: sculpture, paintings,” she said.
Currently exhibiting the works of East Moriches-based Full Moon Arts Collective (through Nov. 27), the gallery will hang “Just In Time . . . for the Holidays” on Nov. 28; the collection of American crafts will run through Jan. 15.
“I always stop at the galleries,” said Connie Happ, 58, an art teacher from Smithtown who was browsing William Ris for a piece for her den. Happ said she was ready to buy something “that resonates with me.”
Gift items include handblown glasses, functional and sculptural ceramics, and gift certificates for anything in the store, including exquisite cold wax art mounted on blocks of wood by Jane Kirkwood of Riverhead, cherry and walnut wood sculptures by John Cino of Patchogue, free-form mixed media and figures with gossamer wings by Orient artist Dominick Di Lorenzo, pottery by Massapequa ceramist Bill Shillalies and works by the late Massapequa artist Daniel Pollera, who was known for his coastal depictions.
Vintage green glass sherbet coups, a lantern and books, French selzter bottles with taper candles in a wooden tote and salvaged chandelier crystals beckon at Lumber + Salt in Jamesport. Credit: Randee Daddona
A short drive north, at Lumber + Salt (5570 Sound Ave., 215-704-6588, lumberandsalt.com), repeat customer Hanna Keenan, 25, a coffee shop manager from Sound Beach was browsing. “I bought a house recently,” she said, “so I’m just looking for inspiration. If I see any pieces that fit the character of my house, I’ll buy it.”
The shop carries an eclectic mix: salvaged shutters, doors, vintage bar stools, huge wooden Buddhas, saddles, wood and metal baskets, mortars and pestles, vintage Coke bottles, tables, chairs, sofas, paintings, vintage French seltzer bottles, antique cutting boards, rustic German stoneware and more. For Christmas, there are nutcrackers from Germany and locally made ornaments.
“Most things are vintage, reclaimed and upcycled,” said owner Brooke Cantone, whose mother owns William Ris gallery. “We’re getting things from auctions. Everything is one-of-a-kind.”
For aficionados of local products, there are North Fork Moto coffee, hats, mugs and candles, and Herricks Herbs & Heirlooms stocking stuffers — all made in Jamesport. You’ll also find balsam fir-and-eucalyptus-scented candles from Montauk’s Of Sea and Sand, Southampton’s Solstice Garden Co.’s houseplants in vintage vessels, totes made in Mattituck, and Sasha Samuel jewelry from Greenport.
“What we do is celebrate the North Fork and its creative culture community,” Brooke Cantone said.
On weekends in December, Lumber + Salt plans to run a holiday mart where patrons can purchase and sip hot cider, latte or espresso while shopping for jewelry and more from local artisans.
And there’s more:
Chef Fran’s Kitchenware (1560 Main Rd., 516-713-0373). Here, a former chef sells gadgets, knives, bowls, cutting boards, espresso machines, Scanpan cookware and grills from Denmark — everything for the home cook — plus gift bags, decorative colanders, colorful ceramic guinea hens from France and picnic baskets with wineglasses, flatware and plates.
Jamesport Art and Framing (1572 Main Rd., 631-298-8610, jamesportartand
framing.com). Besides frames and artwork — North Fork photography, prints, paintings and wood carvings — there are mirrors, signs, wicker baskets, ornamental tins and seedpod birds from Zimbabwe, Unpossible Cuts earrings, locally made North Fork signs, sea glass, paint and resin jewelry, and Wild Woolies ornaments from Nepal.
Shade Trees Nursery (1875 Main Rd., 631-722-4041, shadetreesnursery.com). This nursery carries garden pottery, birdbaths, bird feeders, gazing globes, slate cutting boards and coasters, terrariums, retro hanging lights, equestrian- and garden-themed jewelry, North Breeze Farms’ honey, jams, sauces, soaps and lip balms, blankets and local wines.
A buttermilk biscuit with orange marmalade at Main Road Biscuit Co. in Jamesport. Credit: Randee Daddona
quick | bites
Main Road Biscuit Co., 1601 Main Rd., 631-779-3463, mainroadbiscuitco.com: Biscuits? Yes. Plus plenty of other breakfast and lunch offerings in a cheery country café nestled along Jamesport’s main drag. Watershed Kitchen, 46 Front St., South Jamesport, 631-779-3454, thewatershedli.com: More off the beaten path, Watershed serves weekend brunch with a menu heavy on salads and sandwiches, plus all the breakfast staples. Later, the kitchen turns out heartier entrees, from marinated skirt steak to local duck.
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