The Paine Art Center’s Festival of Spring returns Saturday, May 16, to celebrate the season with its annual plant sale and a curated market of local vendors.

“We love seeing everybody come out,” The Paine’s Marketing Manager Noell Dickmann said. “It’s just this wonderful celebration of spring finally being here, so it’s a really great time to get outside and get into the spirit of the warm weather being here.”

The Festival of Spring is a free outdoor event that highlights the beauty of the Paine’s spring gardens and offers visitors the opportunity to shop a wide variety of plants and local goods.

The event is located along the 1600 block of Congress Ave., where the streets are blocked off to make room for the many local vendors.

Dickmann said the Paine’s plant sale offers many classic annuals and perennials as well as cut flowers and everything else you could want for your garden.

“There are vegetables if you’re into vegetable gardening,” Dickmann said. “There’s so many different types of plants.”

Garden experts from the Paine will be available during the plant sale to help shoppers decide which plants are right for them, Dickmann said.

“They can tell you what the plant is, how you use it, and answer questions like does it need sun or shade or give general tips on how to be successful with it,” Dickmann said. “There’s definitely guidance if you have no idea what you’re doing and you just want to show up and buy some things.”

Visitors can also shop nearly 150 vendor booths featuring handmade crafts, jewelry, art and more at the festival’s farmers-market-style event.

“It’s local people, handcrafted items, textiles, jewelry, art, I mean, it really runs the gamut,” Dickmann said. “You never know what’s gonna be there because there’s a huge variety of things to see.”

Local music duo Jim n’ Nancy will perform a wide variety of energetic music from many genres during the event, Dickmann said.

“They’ve been doing this for years,” Dickmann said. “They’re really great to listen to and very interactive with the crowd.”

The Paine mansion and gardens will be free to explore during the festival for visitors to enjoy the springtime blooms, as well as the Dancing with Life: Mexican Masks exhibit during its last few days on display, Dickmann said.

“It’s a good chance if you haven’t seen it, and you want to wait till the last minute, come in during the Festival of Spring and see it for free,” Dickmann said.

Dickmann said the Paine is encouraging those who are interested in membership to sign up before the festival for early access and a 10% discount on all plants.

“If it’s your first time coming, come early, like right when the doors open, because it goes fast,” Dickmann said. “Paine members can start shopping an hour earlier, and they do a good job shopping.”

The festival will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., while Paine members will have early access to the plant sale beginning at 8 a.m.

More information about festival parking and activities is available at www.thepaine.org/event/festival-of-spring/.