Market Mornings, Local Art & the Triangle at Its Best

There’s a particular kind of Saturday morning around here that I never get tired of. You start out thinking you’re just going to pick up a few tomatoes, maybe some peaches while they’re still ridiculously good, and before you know it there are flowers tucked under your arm, bread in your bag and a conversation happening with someone you ran into near the coffee.

That’s summer in the Triangle. The markets are overflowing, local artists are out showing their work, and our weekends have that wonderful combination of having plenty to do without feeling as though we need to schedule every minute of them.

I think that’s one of the things I appreciate most about living here. Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and Raleigh each have their own personality, but there’s a shared affection for things grown here, made here and created by people who are actually part of our community.

And no, I’m not going to attempt to list every farmers market and art fair in the Triangle, because we’d be here until winter. These are simply a few that make me want to grab a market bag, put on comfortable shoes and go see what I find.

Carrboro on a Saturday Morning Is Hard to Beat

The Carrboro Farmers’ Market is one of those places where going for groceries feels like a very loose description of what you’re actually doing. There are beautiful vegetables and fruit, locally raised meats, eggs, flowers, baked goods and all sorts of things that can immediately change whatever you thought you were making for dinner.

What I really love, though, is everything happening between the shopping. You wander, you talk, you spot someone you haven’t seen in a while and suddenly you’re catching up in the middle of Town Commons, while people walk by carrying bouquets so gorgeous that you start reconsidering your perfectly reasonable plan to buy only vegetables.

Everything sold at the market is produced within 50 miles, and during the summer the Saturday market runs from 7 a.m. to noon, with the Wednesday market open from 3 to 6 p.m. It’s worth getting there while the day is still relatively cool and Carrboro is waking up around you.

If breakfast somehow turns into lunch afterward, that’s hardly unusual around here. Carrboro has a way of making a quick Saturday errand last a little longer than planned, and I’m perfectly fine with that.

Chapel Hill Has Its Own Market Morning, Too

The Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market absolutely belongs in this conversation. Held at University Place on Saturday mornings, it has that easy neighborhood feel where you can pick up beautiful seasonal produce, flowers, baked goods, meats and other locally produced favorites without turning the morning into a big production.

What I especially like is that it feels very much like part of a regular Chapel Hill weekend. You can wander through the market, see what looks good, chat with the vendors and then grab coffee, breakfast or keep the morning going somewhere nearby.

And this time of year, it’s hard to walk past tables filled with North Carolina summer produce without changing your plans for dinner. The tomatoes, peaches, peppers, melons and flowers practically make the decisions for you, which may be the best kind of farmers market shopping.

Durham Is Where Market Morning Meets Local Art

Durham Central Park is especially fun because you can go for the farmers market and very easily find yourself browsing local art and handmade pieces too. The Durham Farmers’ Market brings together producers from within 70 miles, and its Saturday main-season market runs from 8 a.m. to noon.

During the main season, the Durham Craft Market sets up next door, while Art Market Durham is nearby at Hunt and Foster. That means produce, bread and flowers can quickly be joined by ceramics, jewelry, photography or something else you had absolutely no intention of buying when you left home.

There’s something especially enjoyable about buying something directly from the person who made it. A handmade bowl or mug feels a little different when you remember the artist, the conversation and the Saturday morning when you found it.

Durham is particularly good at this mix of food, art and city life. You can browse the markets, wander downtown and let lunch take care of itself once everyone realizes nobody is quite ready to go home.

We Have Art Happening Right in Our Backyard

Closer to home, Chapel Hill and Carrboro make it very easy to add a little art to an ordinary week. The 2nd Friday ArtWalk brings galleries, exhibitions, opening receptions, music and other happenings together each month, so there’s always a reason to wander around and see what’s new.

Right now, FRANK Gallery in Carrboro has a new featured artists exhibition running from August 18, with an opening reception on August 21. FRANK showcases artists from around the Triangle, and it’s the kind of place where you can walk in because something caught your attention and end up staying much longer than you expected.

That’s what I like about experiencing art this way. You don’t need an art history degree or a plan to buy anything, because you can simply look around, talk to someone about their work and enjoy seeing what people in our own community are creating.

Cary’s Lazy Daze Is Worth Putting on the Calendar

If you feel like making a day of it, Cary’s Lazy Daze Arts & Crafts Festival is happening August 22 and 23. It’s one of those big local art weekends where wandering is really the whole point, with artists and makers filling downtown and plenty to see as you make your way around.

This is definitely not the occasion to announce that you’re “just going to look for an hour.” Someone will find a booth they want to revisit, somebody else will get hungry, and before long you’ve made an afternoon of it.

The Best Part Isn’t Really What You Bring Home

I love coming home from a farmers market and putting everything on the kitchen counter, especially this time of year when North Carolina produce makes it look as though you tried much harder than you actually did. I also love finding something made by a local artist and eventually forgetting there was ever a time when that bowl wasn’t on the table or that piece of art wasn’t hanging on the wall.

But I don’t think the things we bring home are really the reason these places matter so much. It’s the farmer who tells you which peaches are best this week, the artist who explains how she made the piece you keep looking at, and the friend you bump into when neither of you knew the other would be there.

Those are the little pleasures of living in the Triangle that are easy to take for granted. We have talented people growing beautiful food, making interesting things and sharing their work right here in our own communities, and summer gives us plenty of reasons to get out and enjoy it.

So take the market bag, leave a little room in the trunk and don’t make too many plans for afterward. You may go out for tomatoes and come home with peaches, dahlias and a piece of pottery, but around here, that sounds like a Saturday very well spent.

Masha Halpern | Chapel Hill, North Carolina Real Estate