Water festival arts market popular with crowds and vendors

Burlap pillows, brightly colored shirts and the low hum of a sewing machine filled the Okie Dokie Stitches and Personalized Gifts tent.

"Hey y'all," "Shut up and fish," and "Make a wish upon a starfish" were among the sayings stitched upon dozens of decorative pillows, each offering a piece of Southern, coastal charm.

This is owner Veronica Moras' first time as a vendor at the Beaufort Water Festival Arts and Crafts Market, but she is no stranger to Beaufort or the 10-day festival.

After getting engaged at Hunting Island State Park in 2006 to her husband, Jay, the Columbia couple built a vacation home in Coffin Point and have visited Beaufort every month since.

But their favorite time of the year to visit is during the Water Festival.

"Everyone is so friendly," she said. "There is always something fun for our kids to do, and you really can't beat the beauty of the waterway."

The festival's Arts and Crafts Market is open every weekday of the festival from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in front of the marina. It will be open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, the final day. The market features about 30 vendors, including wooden jewelry, pottery, customized lawn dècor and handmade clothing.

Despite the heat and summer rays beating down on the shoppers' shoulders, dozens of visitors took their time picking through the treasures at each booth.

Rebecca Brown of Sycamore said the market is always a treat when she visits the festival each year.

"The vendors are always great," Brown said. "There are plenty of unique and attractive things. ... No junk."

With a view of the marina and the soft ringing of wind chimes from a few booths down, Moras said nothing could be better than her office for the next week.

"Being able to work at a festival and see the dolphins come above the water is a true gem," she said.

Moras taught herself to sew and stitch about 15 years ago, before quitting her full-time job and building her own stitching studio above her garage.

The self-taught crafter makes personalized monograms and stitches on bags and clothing items on site.

But for the festival, Moras chose to feature her customized burlap pillows to offer a clean and rustic variety to passersby.

"When I combine a unique stitch to a pillow, it's like a little piece of art that can fit any personality," Moras said.

Down the long line of vendors, Pam and Ricky Cassel hope to relieve festival-goers of chronic pain and illnesses with their unique jewelry.

Their Beyond Jewelry is made with jewels made of hematite magnetic therapy, they say. The couple said they believe in their products so much that they both quit their full-time jobs to open their own business.

Over the last eight years, the Summerville couple have traveled across the country selling the necklaces, bracelets and anklets at festivals, including in Colorado and New York.

But the couple said they always make the Water Festival a priority stop.

"We always have a great time here," Pam Cassel said. "It's like coming home."

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 5:41 PM with the headline "Water festival arts market popular with crowds and vendors."