Where does a Belmont holiday gift budget end up? In late November and early December, the town's best-known holiday sales are run by volunteer groups. The Beech Street Craft Fair raises money for the Beech Street Center's programs, the Lions Club sells the trees, and a congregation on Concord Avenue holds a gift fair whose sales benefit "worthy causes near and far."
The calendar starts Saturday, November 21, five days before Thanksgiving, and the last community fair is on December 6. That leaves about two weeks for buying things handmade by people in town, and the order of the dates matters.
| Date | Event | Where | Who it supports |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 21, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. | Beech Street Craft Fair | Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. | Friends of the Belmont Council on Aging, for the Center's programs |
| Opens Fri., Nov. 27 | Belmont Lions Christmas tree sale | Belmont Lions Club | Run by the Belmont Lions |
| Sat., Dec. 5, 2–3 p.m. | Holiday and Special Occasion Cookie Swap | Belmont Public Library, 336 Concord Ave. | Library program |
| Sun., Dec. 6, from noon | Social Action Holiday Gift Fair | First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist, 404 Concord Ave. | "Worthy causes near and far" |
| Mon., Dec. 14, 6–8 p.m. | Craft: Cork Caroler | Belmont Public Library, 336 Concord Ave. | Library program |
Saturday Comes First, and It Comes Before Thanksgiving
The Beech Street Craft Fair listing on Patch puts more than 60 crafters in the Beech Street Center on Saturday, November 21, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The listing covers jewelry, pottery, hand-designed greeting cards, knitted baby hats, mittens, blankets, hats and scarves, plus quilts, photography, soaps, candles and holiday decorations.
Entry costs a $1 donation at the door, and children under 12 get in free. The Friends of the Belmont Council on Aging sponsor the fair, and the proceeds go to the Center's programs.
The fair has three ways to spend money beyond the crafters' tables:
- The Bake Sale, with homemade breads, pies, cookies, cupcakes and brownies to take home.
- The Vendor Raffle, drawn later in the day. Each crafter donates one item, so with more than 60 crafters, the raffle holds more than 60 donated items.
- The Quilt Raffle, for a handmade quilt by the Beech Street Quilting Group. The quilt will be on display, with tickets for sale.
Since the Vendor Raffle is drawn later in the day, a morning visitor who buys tickets has a reason to come back in the afternoon, and that extra time at the fair also helps the Center. The timing matters too. Because the fair falls before Thanksgiving, it is the earliest chance on Belmont's community calendar to buy knitwear, cards and holiday decorations from crafters. People who wait for December miss these vendors entirely.
The Day After Thanksgiving Belongs to the Lions
Six days later, the season moves outdoors. On the Belmont Lions Club's tree sale page, the 2026 season begins Friday, November 27, the day after Thanksgiving. Hours are 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, and the club notes that times may change.
The trees have the longest history of anything on this calendar. The Lions say the same family farm in Nova Scotia has supplied their trees since 1957. Beyond trees, the sale includes wreaths, mantel pieces, baskets and other holiday items. That makes the lot a second place to shop for gifts, especially for anyone who wants a wreath for a neighbor or a relative's door.
The Lions' 2026 page doesn't give an address or a beneficiary. In 2024, the Belmont Voice reported the sale at the Lions clubhouse at 1 Common St. and said most proceeds went to the Massachusetts Lions Eye Research Fund. That was the setup two seasons ago, and the club's own page is the place to check for this year's details.
The First Week of December Moves to the Library
Once the tree is up, Belmont Public Library's December 2026 calendar fills the weeknights with holiday programs. Two of them are online and need no trip out:
- "Bird Kings & Christmas Demons," a program on holiday traditions, Wednesday, December 2, 7 to 8 p.m.
- "A Very Rockwell Christmas," Thursday, December 3, noon to 1 p.m.
On Saturday afternoon, December 5, the programs move into the building at 336 Concord Ave. The Great Library Bakers: Holiday and Special Occasion Cookie Swap runs from 2 to 3 p.m. in Morrissey Hall. Each participating family bakes one recipe of its choice and brings it ready to share, and hot drinks are provided. The calendar listing includes a registration link.
The swap falls between the Lions' opening weekend and the last community fair, and it is the one event here built around trading homemade food and recipes.
December 6 Is the Last Fair
The next day, the season's final community fair opens at noon at First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist, 404 Concord Ave., a short walk down the same street from the library. The Social Action Holiday Gift Fair listing on Patch describes the fair this way:
"Please join us for a not-to-be-missed holiday tradition where you can do your holiday shopping and help others at the same time."
This fair reaches further than the one on Beech Street. The listing describes work by both local and international artisans: jewelry, clothing and accessories, bed and table linens, cards, soaps, children's items, and African and Latin American crafts. All sales benefit "worthy causes near and far," and entry and parking are both free.
Seen together, the two fairs cover different ground. On November 21, the Beech Street Center offers about 60 crafters' worth of knitwear, pottery and quilting, with proceeds that stay in one building's programs. On December 6, First Church fills a hall with linens, clothing and crafts from several continents, with sales going to causes "near and far." A gift list that needs both a handmade hat and a table runner has a stop for each.
December 14 Is for Making the Gift Yourself
For anyone who skipped the fairs, or wants one more homemade piece, the library has a workshop a week and a half before Christmas. Craft: Cork Caroler runs Monday, December 14, from 6 to 8 p.m. in Morrissey Hall. Rachelle Toth leads the session, and participants make a small cork caroler to give as a gift or keep as decor. This listing also includes a registration link.
That evening is the last event on the calendar. It runs from a $1 door donation at the Beech Street Center in November to a craft workshop at the library in mid-December, and it stays on Beech Street and Concord Avenue the whole way, with the Lions' trees opening in between.
As a family-led team, we know how much a town's community calendar shapes its season. If you're thinking about how your own home fits into Belmont's next chapter, The Marrocco Group would be glad to talk it through. Schedule a complimentary market consultation whenever the timing suits you, even between a craft fair and a tree lot.
