The Westport Museum for History and Culture opens its holiday season today, Sunday, November 15, with the Pop Shop Holiday Market on its grounds at 25 Avery Place, just off the Post Road in downtown Westport. More than 30 vendors are setting up from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., selling handmade clothing, one of a kind gifts and other goods from small businesses. Admission is free.

The market runs alongside the museum's Fall Harvest Bake Sale, held the same hours, with regular and gluten-free sweets from local bakers, including Lorilynn Bauer, an alum of the television competition Iron Chef America. The bake sale is a museum fundraiser, so what is bought there goes back to the museum.

What to expect at the market

The holiday edition is built around gift shopping: handmade clothing and smaller items from independent makers and shops. The vendors set up on the museum's grounds in the middle of town, beside its restored 19th-century barn.

Because it is a free, drop-in market, there is no ticket or registration. Plan for a few hours of browsing and arrive early in the day for the widest choice.

Getting there

The museum lists parking on Myrtle Avenue, on Avery Place itself, behind Westport Town Hall, and in the Baldwin parking lot. By train, the museum points visitors to the Westport (Saugatuck) station on Metro-North's New Haven Line, about 2.3 miles away, with a short rideshare from there. The Norwalk Wheels bus stops on Post Road West at Myrtle Avenue, about a seven minute walk, when it is running.

The rest of the museum's holiday calendar

The market is the first of several holiday events the museum has scheduled through mid-December:

  • Vintage Ornament Sip and Shop, Thursday, November 19, 6 to 8 p.m.: an evening of vintage finds, handmade pieces and themed ornaments, with mulled wine or hot cider and light snacks.
  • Holiday Wreath Workshop, Saturday, November 21, 3:30 to 5 p.m.: participants build their own evergreen wreath under the direction of Kelle Ruden, a Westport Garden Club certified master gardener. Registration includes a 20 to 26 inch wreath, bow, trim and embellishments.
  • Cultural Fellowship winter holiday celebration, Thursday, December 3, 5:15 to 7:30 p.m.: the museum's fourth annual free gathering marking winter traditions from around the world, with a fire, music, treats and activities.
  • Gingerbread cookie decorating, Saturday, December 12, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.: a drop-in session to decorate an oversized gingerbread cookie shaped as a person, tree or house, for $15, with icing, candy and a gift box supplied.
  • A Christmas Carol, live dramatic reading, Sunday, December 13, 6 to 7 p.m.: actor Greg Porretta reads the Dickens story in the museum's restored 19th-century barn. Tickets are $10, with hot chocolate and sweets for a donation.

The museum's Revolutionary War escape room, Real Revolution: Washington's Spies, also remains on its calendar through December 31.

If you go today

Pop Shop Holiday Market and Fall Harvest Bake Sale, Sunday, November 15, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Westport Museum for History and Culture, 25 Avery Place, Westport. Free admission. Questions go to the museum at 203-222-1424, and the full holiday schedule, with registration for the ticketed events, is on the museum's events calendar.

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