The Pleasantville Farmers Market is offering a new addition this month to its usual Saturday collection: a Holiday Makers Market.

Among the six New York-based artisan and craft vendors is Hudson Valley Fiber Arts. Martha Belardo, a full-time fiber artist from Pine Plains, New York, sources materials from eight Northeast farms and describes her work as “farm to needle.” She specializes in needle felting and creates small creatures using hand-dyed blends of alpaca and wool.

“I am primarily a needle filter, but I am also a hoarder of wee things for small mice to live in,” Belardo said. “I have all kinds of mostly woodland [creatures]. Sometimes in the spring, I go over to barnyard animals.

“I have helpers that are very happy helpers. Some of them are knitters, some of them are felters, and some of them are hand sewers.”

Sarah Natlo is the artist behind Sticks ‘N’ Stones, based in Pleasantville.  She makes custom art pieces made from stones and sticks and other things she finds in nature. Natlo said that she often frequents the market as a patron, but participating in this month’s market marks her first time as a vendor. 

“I’ve made many pieces of my stone pebble art,” she said. “I’ve also brought some paintings that I’ve made, some holiday ornaments, and other framed pieces made from felt and watercolor.”

Some of Natlo’s work has been displayed at the Black Cow coffee shop on Wheeler Avenue.

Another vendor for the Holiday Makers Market is Living Edge Designs, a woodworking business based out of Rhinebeck, New York. Living Edge Designs sells cutting boards and serving platters of various sizes, made from Hudson Valley wood such as walnut, maple, cherry, mulberry, and Osage orange. 

“We’ve been coming to this market for 11 years now, so we’re thrilled to be here,” said Todd Young, Living Edge’s owner. “We’ve met so many wonderful people down here, so many amazing customers and other vendors. Even the management of this market is incredible. So we’re very happy to be here.”

Shar Orlowsky, a member of the Farmers Market board, said brainstorming for the Makers Market began several months ago. “Not specific vendors at that point, but ideas about what kinds of things we would want at the market.”

Steven Bates, the executive director of market operations, said planning for the makers market was volunteer-driven, like the rest of the market. “Volunteers help conceptualize, do some of the early recruitment and tracking down potential candidates, and then the staff will then support the volunteers’ effort by getting involved with the logistics and all the finalizing of contracts.”

Bates said vendors are selected to align with the market’s mission of supporting regional farms and artisans. Vendors come from across the Hudson Valley and beyond. The market’s butter producer, for example, is based at a farm about a four-hour drive upstate, while a fisherman comes from the eastern tip of Long Island. 

The market emphasizes local sourcing and environmental friendliness. “We consider ourselves a cook’s market and a market that’s very focused on making sure that we are good to the environment,” Orlowsky said. “During the summer, we have volunteers who staff recycling bins to make sure that we’re not adding to the waste stream.” 

The Farmers Market also aims to select vendors that complement Pleasantville businesses. “We highlight constantly that we have a really great downtown area full of craft stores, cheese shops, and bookstores,” Bates said. “We hope that bringing people down into Pleasantville makes them aware of Pleasantville as a multi-level destination. We’ve got a lot of great eateries as well.”

The final date of the Makers Market is this Saturday, December 21. The Farmers Market will continue as usual the following Saturday. The Farmers Market is open 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. through December. From January until March, the market will be open 9:30 a.m. to noon.

See the full list of participating vendors for the Makers Market here.