Local makers and craft fairs — Sebastian, Florida

Sebastian's craft fairs are held in Riverview Park, the city's waterfront event ground at 600 U.S. Highway 1, on the corner of U.S. 1 and Sebastian Boulevard.

The City of Sebastian facility page calls Riverview Park the primary event and gathering point for the City of Sebastian. Its listed features are a pavilion, picnic areas, picnic tables, a playground and restrooms, and the city adds the splash pad, the Veterans War Memorial, sand volleyball courts and twin piers on the Indian River Lagoon. Rentals of the park go through the city at (772) 228-7054. The city also describes the park as the starting point for walkways along the shore of the Riverfront District, so a Saturday show sits at the head of the Indian River Drive waterfront.

The park has hosted the same kind of show for a long time. Vero News notices from 2011 to 2014 placed Craft Club of Sebastian shows at Riverview Park, giving its address as 650 Indian River Drive (Vero News, January 31, 2014). In 2009 the paper described the location as the corner of U.S. Highway 1 and County Road 512 (Vero News, June 30, 2009), the same corner the city uses today.

The City of Sebastian calendar lists Craft Club of Sebastian shows in Riverview Park on Saturday, October 10, 2026 and Saturday, October 31, 2026, each from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The first listing is titled Craft Club of Sebastian October Market Day and marks the cost as free (City of Sebastian calendar). The second, three weeks later on Halloween, is listed simply as Craft Club of Sebastian, with the same hours and the same Riverview Park address (City of Sebastian calendar). In early November the park turns over to the Sebastian Clambake, which the Sebastian Clambake Foundation schedules for November 7 to 8, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, with free admission and craft vendors alongside the seafood.

Later 2026 to 2027 dates were not yet on the city calendar on October 10, 2026. The club's past seasons show the usual rhythm. Vero News reported on April 20, 2011 that the season's final show would be on May 7, with a rain date of Sunday, May 8, and no further show until October 1 (Vero News). The 2014 to 2015 dates approved by the city followed the same October to May pattern, so the Riverview Park craft season has stopped for the Sebastian summer for well over a decade.

Craft Club of Sebastian shows sell handmade work only, made by the vendor at the table.

The rule is old and specific. In 2009 Vero News reported that all items for sale must be handcrafted by the vendor, as no mass-produced items are allowed (Vero News, June 30, 2009). By 2012 the club was describing its shows as juried, handmade crafts, and calling itself a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) that commits part of its proceeds to local charities (Vero News, November 10, 2012). Juried means each crafter's work is reviewed before a space is granted, which is how a Sebastian show keeps resale goods off the lawn.

The mix follows the calendar. Vero News reported on October 2, 2011 that the season's first show drew several hundred shoppers and browsers to Riverview Park, including people looking for Halloween decor (Vero News). The May show in 2011 was billed as the Mother of all shows, with items for Mother's Day, and the club's February show in 2014 was its 28th annual Valentine's Juried Arts and Crafts Show, held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with free admission and parking and with music and free dance lessons (Vero News, January 31, 2014).

Buyers who want handmade goods outside the Sebastian season can browse the studio collection on Digital Towns Market. Digital Towns Market is our marketplace.

The Craft Club of Sebastian is a membership club of crafters from north Indian River County and the neighboring Treasure Coast and Space Coast counties.

Vero News counted nearly 100 members in June 2009, when the club was celebrating 25 years of crafting in north Indian River County (Vero News, June 30, 2009). By January 2014 the paper reported more than 100 members representing Brevard, Indian River, Martin and St. Lucie counties (Vero News). Sebastian sits at the north edge of Indian River County on the Brevard line, which is why a club based in Riverview Park draws makers from both sides of the county line.

The club has also recruited new vendors in the off season. The 2009 notice was itself a call for crafters to join the Craft Club of Sebastian before the fall shows, and the 2012 and 2014 notices listed a club phone contact for crafter space and membership. Those contacts are more than a decade old, so the City of Sebastian event listing for the next Riverview Park show is the current public record of when the club is selling.

The Sebastian City Council approves each season's Riverview Park craft show dates, usually as a routine item on its consent agenda.

On April 10, 2014, Vero News reported that the Council approved official dates for the Craft Club Annual Show, the Sebastian River Art Club Annual Shows and a Sebastian River Middle School 5K on its consent agenda (Vero News, April 10, 2014). The Craft Club dates covered a full season: Oct. 4, Nov. 1 and Dec. 6 to 7 in 2014, then Jan. 3, Feb. 7, March 7 to 8, April 14 and May 2 in 2015, with Sunday rain dates and hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The city has also treated the two clubs as community partners on fees. In July 2010 the Council let the Sebastian River Art Club and the Craft Club of Sebastian pay half the required permit fee for their weekend shows, $25 instead of $50 per event to rent part of Riverview Park (Vero News, July 16, 2010). Those 2010 fees are history, not current rates; the facility page directs current rental questions to the city at (772) 228-7054.

The Clambake shapes the November date. In 2009 Vero News noted that the club moved its November show from the first Saturday to the second because of the Sebastian Clambake Festival (Vero News). The festival still claims the first weekend of November in Riverview Park, and the Clambake Foundation reports granting over $1,000,000 to local charities.