Park Delta Bay looks forward to the opening of the Delta Bay Foundation’s Spring Market, which will again take place in its central meadow. The opening Market will be the Spring Market, Sunday, May 07th, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The vendors and volunteers invite you to join them and celebrate spring and Mothers!
The Park’s roving reporter continues to explore some of the amazing hand-made wares which customers can purchase at the Market, with these week’s installment featuring Melissa Stolte, with her Lavender Lovelies.
Melissa’s Lavender Lovelies began as a small booth at the original Sunday Market in its inaugural year, 2020. Using locally grown and harvested lavender, she sold goat’s-milk soap, lotions, and linen sprays for the first two or three years.
Recently, she has qualified for a Cottage Kitchen permit. Now,in the well- appointed but compact kitchen of her tiny house at Park Delta Bay, she has stretched her repertoire to include finishing salts, infused sugars, tiny cookies, and delectable candies.
Melissa reflects on her evolution as a home creative. “My love for lavender started when I became a mother, she remarked in a recent interview. “Raising four children was wonderful, but there were times I needed some ‘mom time’. ‘Mom time’ meant spending a day at the spa.” She smiled, remembering the relaxation of that escape. “Lavender and eucalyptus are huge in the spa industry. Every time I would walk in the spa, the smell of those two scents made every ache, pain, and stress from my very busy life melt away.” As she talks, Melissa holds a tray of some of her hand-made items. A gentle fragrance fills the room. She remembers telling herself, “‘If these scents have this affect on me, why not my family?’” She goes on to explain: “I decided to make my home smell like a spa at all times. The kids would always come home from school and love the smell of the house.”
Melissa began growing lavender and filling her home with bouquets of eucalyptus. She researched the benefits of lavender. She learned that it is thought to have many medicinal and therapeutic benefits. “Now that I am older and my kids are all grown, whatever free time I have away from work I spend either with my grandchildren or my brother’s grandchildren, or crafting with lavender.” Her face beams as she notes that her children, now living in distant states, know that if she is not with them or one of the grandchildren, “whatever mom is doing, it has something to do with lavender”.
With her cottage kitchen permit, Melissa has added all sorts of yummy goodies to her inventory, all of which incorporate either lavender or other culinary spices and plants. She enjoys making whatever space she occupies smell inviting and welcoming. Now that she has a cottage kitchen license, that welcoming fragrance can be incorporated into delicious bites and delightful seasonings.
All the lavender that Melissa uses for consumption is Culinary grade, with the batch for the Spring Market having been ordered from a reputable online source. However, for her soaps and other lavender items, she continues to use lavender picked from a friend’s farm house in Crocket and from Araceli Farms in Dixon. As soon as the Araceli Farms season opens, she will be able to get her culinary-grade lavender from that local source.
Melissa is exploring various discounts for returning customers and possible availability of gift baskets. Check out her booth at the Spring Market, where you will be able to select gifts for your mother, your home, or yourself.
The Delta Bay Foundation welcomes returning food vendor Taqueria Mexico, who will sell their tacos and other wonderful and authentic Mexican fare at the Spring Market. A much-loved regular Market performer, Randy Carey, will entertain guests with his mellow selection of originals and covers. Vendors will show and sell Delta-made jewelry, painted glass, upcycled decor, hand-sewn linen goods and so much more. Silo Farm Organics returns with their spring crop of vegetables and herbs. Their selection fluctuates as the season progresses, so visit them in the park at each Market or check out their Walnut Grove farm stand, open weekends now and daily through the summer and fall.
The Delta Bay Foundation brings its Sunday Market back to Park Delta Bay throughout the summer and fall. Here is its 2023 schedule:
Spring Market: May 07, 10am to 2pm at Park Delta Bay
Summer Markets:
June 11 & 25, 10am to 2pm, at Park Delta Bay
July 09, 10am to 3pm, will be a special event to be held at BRANNAN ISLAND STATE PARK
July 23, 10am to 2pm, at Park Delta Bay
August 13 & August 27th, 10am to 2pm at Park Delta Bay
Harvest Market, October 22, 10am to 3pm at Park Delta Bay
Holiday Market, 12 Noon to 4pm at Park Delta Bay in the Community Room
The Delta Bay Foundation is an independent California not-for-profit with 501(c)(3) status.
The mission of the Delta Bay Foundation is to promote the culture, commerce, conservation, and community of the Sacramento-San Joaquin California Delta.
For more information about the Delta Bay Foundation or the Sunday Market, contact the Foundation secretary, Corinne Corley, via email at ccorleyjd@gmail.com or via cell phone at 816-520-9152.
For directions to Park Delta Bay, please call its office at 916-777-5588.
Park Delta Bay provides a venue for the Delta Bay Foundation events without charge as a service to the Delta community. The Foundation does not charge a table or booth fee thanks to a generous grant from an anonymous donor. All vendors must have a Delta connection by family, residence, or employment.
