Stoney Kill's STONYART Event Happening!

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Stony Kill Foundation Flyer for STONYART

It's finally here! You've seen the flyers, you've mentally marked the date in your mind, and now you get to go to the STONYART live auction featuring local artists to support the Stony Kill Foundation this Sunday, October 26! 

For only $20, you are directly helping the Stony Kill Foundation stay alive and well and beautiful along 9D. The event is easy-peasy to attend. It's at the Howland Cultural Center on the East End of Main Street on the big curve. It's from 3-6pm on Sunday, so you have plenty of time to do your Main Street thang after a brunch in Beacon, stop in for wine and cheese and maybe even a little auctioning of local art! You will be amazed by the art you find there, so don't miss it!

For other events and opportunities such as yoga days and kids classes, visit the Stony Kill Events page.

Honey for Fall Days - A Boutique's New Staple

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Fall's chill is in the air! And so are scratchy throats. Beaconites know how to face harsh weather, and it's to embrace it and treat ourselves to nature's deliciousness - honey. And boutiques are fully stocked with local honey!

UTENSIL
480 Main Street
East End of Main Street on the Curve
Visit Utensil's Facebook Page
Catskill Provisions makes a seriously amazing raw honey. Why? Because their motto is happy bees make happy honey. Their bees must be very happy and sweetly fed. New to your tastebuds and sure to warm your body is Mike's Hot Honey which has been infused with chilis. Like you needed the extra spike of awesome! But you did because your butternut squash needed to kick into high gear. Utensil always picks the best selections for your culinary needs.



HONEYBROOK FARMS
Beacon Train Station
Beacon's Farmer's Market on Sundays
www.beaconfarmersmarket.org
Not only can you find raw honey at the Beacon's Farmer's Market, from Honeybrook Farms but you can find the Honeybee Pollen for those of you who want to eat local bee pollen to help build resistance to local allergies. And can pick up a big jug of pure maple syrup while you're down there...



LAUREN & RILEY
462 Main Street
East End of Main Street Before the Curve
www.laurenandriley.com
Normally found in Lauren & Riley are party dresses, cute tops, adorable little girl's dresses, and Betsy Johnson-esque shoes. But this season they are offering you honey with tea! Or is it the other way around. Hudson River Apiaries honey is on the shelves at Lauren & Riley.



BEACON PANTRY
267 Main Street
Middle of Main Street Across from Key Foods (who also has honey)
www.beaconpantry.com
Known for French selections, Beacon Pantry of course has specialty raw honey, and stocks the often sought after Lavender honey, in addition to Acacia, Chestnut, and Cinnamon Creamed honey (!?!). Dips and spreads for chicken just got a lot more interesting...  



Drink up! Or for you serious honey lovers, spoon it up.

A Little Beacon Blog is Hiring - Part Time Editorial/Production Assistant

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UPDATED: This position has been filled! Thank you so much for your interest! We may be hiring again, so keep your eyes here and sign up for the newsletter!

We're hiring! Looking for a part time editorial production assistant to help keep A Little Beacon Blog up to date with guides, social media, and some graphics work. Ideal candidate lives in or near Beacon, and loves Beacon and all of the neat things going on here. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to experience the business of blogging, and what's involved with running and growing a blog, which is one of today's most trusted media sources by readers. This is a production position, so some writing skills are required, but mainly in the form of writing descriptions of classes or events and short social media posts. Familiarity with social media such as Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook is a must. You will be working virtually at your location, so self-motivation and dedication is a must. This is contract, part-time work.

Responsibilities include (but not limited to):

  • Researching current dates for Guide pages, such as Kids Classes, Weekend Festivals, Best Brunches in Beacon, Swimming Classes for Adults and Kids, etc. and making edits to those Guide pages on the blog.
  • Linking and writing some descriptive copy for Guide pages.
  • Pinning blog posts to pin boards in Pinterest.
  • Scheduling photo and plain text tweets in Twitter.
  • Bonus (but not required)! If you have graphic skills and can crop photos using a basic photo applications like Preview and Grab (in Macs) and creating photo collages using Fotor. 
Rate: $15/hr, 3hrs per week

BONUS:
If you have graphic design skills, this job can involve some low level designing for a different rate.

  • Design banner ads for sponsors who place ads on A Little Beacon Blog.
  • Design branded graphics for A Little Beacon Blog to feature special Categories and highlighted pages.
Rate: $20/hr, 3hrs per week

If this floats your boat, please email Katie@alittlebeaconblog.com with your interest, why you want this job and why you'd be great at it.

A Sukkah Comes to Beacon in Celebration of Sukkot: "Open to the Sky: The Beacon Sukkah Project"

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The people of Beacon were given a communal celebration of bounty, vulnerability and appreciation of the harvest, with "Open to the Sky: The Beacon Sukkah Project", a non-denominational celebration around the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. People visiting and walking through the park near the Visitor's Center at the West End of Main Street near the train station were able to experience this deliberately rickety structure with a roof of bamboo built by the project partners, Beacon Arts, Beacon Hebrew Alliance, the Laba House of Study at the 14th Street Y, the Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Arts, and other organizations. This time of reflection came at a good period to give thanks for the rain this past week, as local reservoirs are hitting lows that are causing Hudson Valley leaders concern.


“It's hard to be vulnerable, to be open to the sky,” says Rabbi Brent Spodek of Beacon Hebrew Alliance. “It’s easier, however, to be open as part of a community. The ancient festival of Sukkot invites us to come together and give thanks for the harvest and also to be aware of the fleeting nature of life.”

For a period of eight days, the Sukkah was home to discussions, learning, workshops, stories, singing and more. Members of the Beacon community and beyond participated by sharing their knowledge of everything from Celtic folk traditions to hidden Jewish identities to a Beacon time capsule.

Did you visit the structure and what thoughts did you leave with? Please share them in the comments below.

Secret Gardener Vicki Raabin's Streetscape Project

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What's being said more and more about Beacon NY is that the citizens are making it great. While that's a pretty good political slogan, it's ringing true. As one walks by the pleasantries and stops to smell the roses, one may notice they are admiring sunflowers, lavender, basil and other herbs in addition to the potted and hanging floral arrangements that adorn Main Street. What you are witnessing is an "urban streetscape project" by one of Main Street's most known citizens, Miss Vicki Raabin. She is one of several, independently driven, "secret gardeners" that keep the streets looking nice.

Several garden plots started and maintained by Miss Vicki Raabin outside of stores
including Play, Towne Crier, The Pandorica, and across the street from
Poppy's next to Beacon Bread Company. 

In May of 2014, Miss Vicki, most commonly known as the local music teacher and music venue organizer, decided to put some action to her critical thoughts as she walked Main Street and grew dissatisfied with the sidewalk trees. "I got tired of seeing all of the gravel around the trees. My feeling is, if you're complaining about something, you need to step up and do something about it. It bothered me and I felt we could do better." 


Miss Vicki Raabin feeding and watering her plants in her urban streetscape project along Main Street.

Raabin started the project a few years ago with small tulip beds. But this year, she committed to herself to "take over small spaces and make them viable again." Working closely with several local businesses on Main Street, Raabin has received strong support from a growing number of storefronts with beds near their buildings, including Tito Santana Taqueria, Towne Crier, Bank Square, Mountain Tops, Beacon Bread Company, and Key Food.

Donations from the businesses have come in an unusual form: egg shells and water from Towne Cryer; coffee grounds from Bank Square and Beacon Bread Company; bags of mulch from Key Foods, more water from Kamel Jamel, owner of Tito's who fostered a partnership with Green Teen by way of putting in the Common Greens Garden at Tito Santana which has a water collection system. Local residents have given Raabin shubbery when splitting plants in their own gardens which is helpful for acquiring butterfly bushes, creeping thyme, lavender and maybe hostas for next year.

One of many planters designed and maintained
by the Tioronda Garden Club.

Miss Vicki isn't the only one making Main Street beautiful. The potted plants you walk past at major street corners, and all of the hanging petunia baskets are put together by the Tioronda Garden Club, which fundraises for its yearly budget with individual donations and events, like a Wine and Cheese night. In fact, the Tioronda Garden Club gave Raabin some of their flox to act as ground cover for tree plots, as flox is a hearty plant that spreads easily over the years and looks beautiful with masonry.

Hanging baskets on Main Street are put together by the
Tioronda Garden Club and watered by Mayor Casale.

As for the watering of all of these flowers and plantings, you'll see Miss Vicki pulling her red wagon from the Visitor's Center at beginning of Main Street all the way to Towne Crier where she gets another water fill and picks up egg shells to be used as plant food. But who waters those hanging baskets? Years ago, the hanging plants were on the chopping block down at 1 Municipal Plaza during Mayor Gold's tenure. Then council member, Randy Casale volunteered to do the watering, since the Tioronda Garden Club supplied the hanging baskets through their fundraising efforts. He woke up to drive the cherry picker truck in the early mornings when it was still dark. 

As for now Mayor Casale, he still wakes up early to water.  "I do it because it I believe the beautiful flowers that are put together by the hard work of all the volunteers of the Tioronda Garden Club makes our Main Street vibrant and attractive. This is also a way for me to mentally relax. I would like to thank all our volunteers who help to keep our city the city that it is."

Gardening certainly is relaxing. And right now, it's helping Beacon to stay original and special as a train town along the beautiful Hudson River. Secret gardening is offering ways for citizens to dig in, literally into the earth of Beacon to keep it vibrant and ever-changing.



Rite Aid Gets Upgrade - And Sliding Front Doors!

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Rite Aid, in the middle of Main Street, across the street from the wine store and Yanarella Dance Studio and the Dance Bag, has gotten an upgrade. Such an upgrade in fact, that this Rite Aid is unrecognizable from its former self, and is now on par with suburban drug stores that offer sliding front doors, wide open isles, and plenty of walking room. According to a post at Wigam, Rite Aid leased the space next door, a formerly empty auto parts store, and the space behind it near the parking lot for more storage.

No matter what your preference in local business, a fancy Rite Aid is certainly better to look at and walk through. Rite Aid was one of the more challenging stores to get into with a wheelchair or single or double wide stroller. The clunky, crowded, two-door system made getting in to grab something quickly quite a challenge. Not to mention the poles in the middle of the office supply isle, making shopping with a stroller or wheel chair down that isle impossible. Now, the front doors slide open and there is a lot more breathing room.


To spread the wealth, my primary pharmacy remains with Vogel, where I've learned first hand that prescriptions can be transferred within moments of a phone call between pharmacists at different pharmacies in different states.


Stocking the shelves continues, with new surprises on the shelves weekly. The school supply isle leaves room for more, as Walgreens still corners the market on most eye-candy-ish school or office supplies (at the drug store level...Target is the most fun), but as you can see, there are plenty of items to shop for, from diapers to batteries to makeup. Just as there were before, only now you won't be so claustrophobic when you run to the drug store for a bottle of laundry detergent.


Yes, you could pick up breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert at Rite Aid if you so desired. You will find the regular, big name brand items like Ben & Jerry's and Blue Moon. You won't find local names or craft beers, but there are plenty of other options to find unique brands like at The Hop, Beacon Pantry, KeyFood (artisan brands have really increased on the shelves here), and even the convenience store in the Beacon Dental plaza who carries a large beer selection and occasionally organic milk.

 Price-wise, Rite Aid has never been cheap, and prices itself on convenience. This Suave shampoo (the Aveda version), which is on prominent display at the front door, is $4.29, which is $3 more  than it is at Hannaford on Rt. 9. But - the convenience is nice.


The fun isles, for toys, costumes, and greeting cards remain, and have more choices in them, including greeting cards. A lot of greeting cards actually, and now party packaging supplies.

All in all, we're stepping up in the world! It's a pleasure to walk through and shop in the new Rite Aid!

$10 Dresses and Costumes on Sale at The Dance Bag for Halloween

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On your way home from work, or while pushing your brood down Main Street, take pause at the sale rack outside of The Dance Bag (opposite corner of Rite Aid). Little imaginations think that some of these $10 ballet dance dresses look like "Elsa dresses". You'll also find cheer leader-ish dresses, girl pirate looking dresses, and just a fancy dress to add to a girl's dress-up box. Most material is elastic, and straps are easy enough to stitch shorter until little ones grow. Sign says "$10 Cash" so...bring your dollas.

Saturday Class Combo - And Sauna!

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Saturday mornings before noon are a sacred time around here, and as a small business owner (of this blog, Tin Shingle, and Katie James), have always been used as a time to travel within projects without the distractions of work-week expectations and pings from the email inbox. It is for this reason that I've never signed up for a Saturday morning class - an adult yoga class for instance, or a kid music class.

Now that kids are in the life, Saturday mornings involve...stuff. Multiple rounds of breakfast, bathroom breaks, emergency grocery runs, "Saturday Morning Netflix" girl vs. boy negotiations, etc. So I've given in to the Saturday class mindset and signed up the family for Alice Sipple's Dancing Tree Yoga for Kids class on Saturday mornings. Take into account that this class is at All Sport, I wanted to be sure to take advantage of the offerings of a fitness club if we were going to be there anyway, so I double-dutied our yoga class to be a full morning at All Sport, with the end goal being sitting in the sauna.

Keep in mind - this is the "goal," so it doesn't always happen. The first week totally didn't happen, but the second week did, and it was awesome...Check this out (I'm normally not a schedule person, so this has been kind of fun bouncing between times):

Alice and her daughter.
10:30am: Kids Yoga! We all get to class - 4 yoga mats in tow just barely in time - and move like elephants, horses, chickens, with a few break dance moves from little ones. We hadn't planned for both of us parents to do it, but it was really quite nice.

11:30am: Snacks (ideally...if I remember to pack them...or smoothie from the juice bar), and walk the kids into the childcare room aka Kids Club and help them get excited about climbing the big jungle gym, scooting radio flyers, and engaging with coloring books.

12:00pm: Parents Exercise! Dad to the bike so that he can watch seven TV stations at once, and Mom to jog outside (yes, they do have very nice treadmills but I prefer running outside). Then back inside for the "Express Circuit" weight-machine routine, which at first was very scary until a nice trainer showed me how to work them all and gave me a chart and a pencil to check-off my routine.

Sauna at All Sport Fishkill
12:30or45pm (this is where it gets tricky with the time because Kids Club closes at 1pm on Saturdays): Sauna!!!! The ultimate goal of my morning is to sit in the dry heat of the sauna, completely giving my mind over to the extremely hot room without moving. And for being on the go all week long, sitting still is something that must be forced, but is possible if you feel and melt into the warm wooden benches and imagine that you are in Arizona. Once you give yourself over to the still, hot air, thoughts and ideas swirling in the mind can swirl into focus, and any brainstorms going on can get baked in, sealing their fate that they get completed in the coming week. In the sauna, what feels like fifteen minutes is probably only three. But so worth it.

12:50pm (pushing it with the time!): Write an email to myself with the ideas mapped out during the sauna (not doing this in the sauna as the heat would probably break the phone). Then shower in the nicely tiled private showers - if I remembered everything. During the second week, I did forget shoes and makeup, so I attended a birthday party right after this excursion in a dress from Echo, but with Saucony shoes instead of Fly Londons.

1:00pm: Slide into home base and pick up the kids from Kids Club. Then off to lunch somewhere in the area!

 Disclosure: All Sport is a sponsor of this blog, but did not sponsor this post. This article is pure editorial. Review our Editorial Policy.

Hoptember is Hopping! At 11:30am People Have Arrived

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On a thickly cloudy Saturday morning, the second annual Hoptember festival is on in full force in what normal people might think is a potentially rainy day, but is most likely a hops farmer's delight during this month of harvest. As of this blog post, the crowds are growing and the brewers happily pouring.

Sloop Brewing based in Poughkeepsie had gourds and mini pumpkins on sale next to their tap, and as I was in search for pumpkins as paperweights for our sponsor table, I was delighted to stop by! You'll see many more brewers you recognize, including Dennings Point Distillery!

Big Sale at Mountain Tops on Clothes, Shoes, Kayaks

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I'm a sale junkie.

So when I see a sidewalk sign that says 30-50% off, I take a hard turn to the right and go into that store. Then I become that person in the early Chase commercials when they were advertising their app to make it easy for you to check your balance, and I check my balance to see how creative I can be with a sale at a store I love.

Mountain Tops is having such a sale, but watch out, because the brands you love like Prana are at your fingertips in these last days of summer. But Fall clothing is also coming in on the racks, so you'll see all kinds of must-have sweatpant-style dresses that will make your entrance into Fall that much easier.

These purple shoes pictured here are Keens and are perfect for outdoor parties where you want to wear a cute shoe without the heel or wedge. And yes, select styles are on sale, and yes, this is a picture of my feet returning for a second pair in another color. I don't think I've ever done that before.

The rumors are true, there is a sale on kayaks, so if you were itching to own your first kayak, or upgrade what you have, now might be a good time...

Hoptember! Celebrating the Fall Harvest of Hop Plants aka "Hills" (Partner)

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Hoptember from Dutchess Hops, Eastern View Farm and Hudson Valley Hops

Craft brewers usually start brewing beer in their basements, gathering supplies from their trusted home brewer suppliers. New York is a mecca for craft beer and is soon to be a Napa Valley of Beer. With the farm to table trend, comes the farm to basement trend, or farm to brewer trend, where breweries and craft beer enthusiasts can buy hop plants, aka "hill" straight from the fields.

Enter Dutchess Hops, located on the farm of Eastern View Nursery, the first commercial hop farm in the Hudson Valley. Situated in the heart of Dutchess County’s agricultural region, Dutchess Hops will bring back an industry that the State of New York once flourished in. Spring 2013, Dutchess Hops planted 4000 hills (hop plants) on 4 acres. These will be ready for harvest in fall 2014, which will be celebrated with the second annual festival, Hoptember Harvestfest on September 13, 2014!

Hoptember is also hosted in collaboration with Hudson Valley Hops, which was created in 2013 to act as a cooperative for both Farmers and Brewers. Hudson Valley Hops’ mission is to help build Hop farms, promote the craft beer industry and assist in creating the Freshest, highest quality Hops throughout the Hudson Valley. Hoptember 2013 was able to raise enough money to help further develop 4 additional Hop Farms in 2013, with 4 additional coming online in 2014.

Hoptember showcases Brewer, Distiller, Cider and Wine Artisans from the Hudson Valley, as well as culinary artisans, and is your chance to meet over 20 Brewers and Distillers all from the Hudson Valley. Included in the ticket price are both food and beverage tastings, and all food will have Hops incorporated in it. The Event will run from 1pm-5pm for General Admission ticket holders and run from 11:30am – 5pm for VIP ticket Holders.
  • General Admission Tickets: $50 and includes unlimited food and tastings. Admittance begins at 1 p.m.
  • VIP Tickets: $75 also in addition to the General admission benefits, there will be a culinary Hop treats along with rare beer tastings, a tour of the Hop Yard, and a commemorative glass and T-shirt. Admittance begins at 11:30 a.m.
  • Designated Driver Tickets: Designated Driver ticket is for anyone that won't be drinking but wants to still attend the event 
LOCATION:
Eastern View Farm & Nursery (View)
1167 Noxon Road
Lagrangeville, NY 12540

Listing and Advertising Opportunitites for Businesses Listed in Guides

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Being included in a Guide is part of an organized experience of living in and around Beacon. What follows are overall requirements for being included in a Guide, how to advertise in one, and how to get listed without advertising. Guides include: Second Saturday Entertainment + Dining, Pop-Up Shops! and the Holiday Shopping Guide.
  • Beacon Businesses: For businesses located in Beacon, there is no fee to be in a Guide, but a business must meet certain requirements of a Guide listed with that Guide. 
  • Hudson Valley Businesses: Businesses located in the Hudson Valley, such as Peekskill, Cold Spring, Garrison, Poughkeepsie, Newburgh, and beyond who want to be featured in a Guide can purchase placement via an ad. 
  • Sponsors Outside of Beacon: Sponsors of A Little Beacon Blog who have a prominent banner ad displaying on this website who are in the Hudson Valley or anywhere in New York can be listed in one Category of a relevant Guide.
  • A Website or Social Page: You do need a website or online presence for us to link to and for people to get more information. Need one quick? Just fill out your Google Plus page or start a Facebook Business Page.
  • Not Listed Yet? If you feel that your business would be a great fit for a Guide, please email your suggestion with details to editorial@alittlebeaconblog.com.

ADVERTISING:
Enhance Your Listing with a Photo
If your business is in a Guide, you can give it some flare with a photo of the interior of your shop or experience. Your photo and mention of your business will also be shared in A Little Beacon's Blog Twitter and Instagram accounts and added to popular hashtag streams like #beaconny, #hudsonvalley and #keepitlocal! If your business is featured more than once in a Guide because you cater to different audiences, you can feature a different photo in each spot. Discounts are available on multiple months. To book a photo, just click on a button below to add it to your cart. We will come to your establishment to take a photo that fits the style of A Little Beacon Blog, if you don't already have a photo on hand that fits the style of this website.

GUIDE ADVERTISING PACKAGE 1
1 Photo in a Guide Category
Duration: 1 month
Additional Photo in Other Categories Your Business Is Listed In
Duration: 1 month
GUIDE ADVERTISING PACKAGE 2
Photo + Specials and Sales Text
To list specific sale information in addition to the regular editorial used to describe your brand, you can list additional text below your listing. This is useful for if you're running a special sale or have other specifications you'd like to highlight with your listing. This comes with 1 photo.
Additional Photo and Text
If your business is in more than one category and you'd like to add a photo + specific text, you can.

SPONSOR A GUIDE
If you want to reach people who are reading a certain Guide, you can sponsor that guide with your logo at the top of the Guide. Your logo will also appear with the main logo of the Guide in the right side column of this website. As a sponsor, you can have your own dedicated page on this website that highlights what our readers would love about your business. We design your ad and write your copy on your special page. Please email katie@alittlebeaconblog.com to sponsor a Guide.

EDITS TO LISTINGS:
Please email editorial@alittlebeaconblog.com if you:
  • need to change hours or information in a listing
  • need to change a photo

New Health Business in the Beacon Building

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NuSpecies in Beacon NY
NuSpecies in Beacon NY
NuSpecies in Beacon NY

You've walked by it a bunch, but now you can go inside of the Beacon Building to check out one of Main Street's newest businesses: NuSpecies, a back to health company based in the Hudson Valley that has designed whole food based (herbs and green food) formulas to help the body cleanse and rebuild itself.

This isn't their first location, in fact, the couple who founded NuSpecies live in the Hudson Valley but started their stores closer to New York City. The manager of this Beacon location, and its personal health and nutrition coach, Evey Trautman, is a recent Brooklyn transplant (and southern transplant from NC truth be told), and is rooted in entrepreneurialism herself. If you're familiar with Brooklyn's Plan B bar and restaurant, Evey and her husband are also on the cusp of opening Cooklyn, a foodie's delight.

Inside NuSpecies, you'll find bee pollen, detox cleansing systems, and more formulas designed to help the body rebuild itself. You'll also find sweet Evey, who will talk to you about inflammation, and how it's a root cause of many problems in the body. Happy Learning!