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Friday, March 5, 2021

Walking in a Window Wonderland

Above, competition’s People’s Choice winner, The Downtown Beauty Lounge, dazzled with bright colors in the midst of the winter season.

By ALLEN RAU

Downtown Jonesborough recently hosted the third Annual Window Wonderland contest and Winter Sale to support local businesses and allow those merchants to show off their window painting skills.

Downtown Beauty Lounge won the People’s Choice, which combined online voting and ballots cast in person, while Downtown Sweet won the Judge’s Choice, picked by three local art professionals. Each prize was $300 in cash and a $150 Lowe’s gift card.

Downtown Sweet on Main Street in Jonesborough displays its winter scene.

Melinda Copp, the Main Street Jonesborough director said, “It was something to add to our downtown and our Main Street to keep the community feel.” She added that the event was “kind of a way to spruce up downtown after Christmas … and bring some life back to downtown.”

Downtown Beauty Lounge employees Katie Williams and Jessica Grindstaff spent eight hours painting their windows with candy canes and a gingerbread house as well as hanging decorations made completely out of recycled materials along the storefront. “That’s why I wanted to do it, it was bright and stood out” Williams said. Thanks to their hard work and painting skills they were the People’s Choice winner and were happy to take home the prizes.

Downtown Sweet took home the Judge’s Choice Award in the Window Wonderland competition. Local professionals opted for the window display complete with winter scenes in each window pane. The display won the business $300 and a Lowe’s gift card. The Window Wonderland event was created to liven up downtown during the winter months, as Downtown Sweet did with their winter activities scene.

The Judge’s Choice winner was Downtown Sweet, whose windows featured small characters based on owner Davy Funderburk’s five children. Funderburk said he “created this imaginary world, with the panes interacting with each other.” Using his children as models for the window characters, he sketched them onto paper and taped them to the window. The final step involved tracing the sketches with paint pens to create an intricate and humorous scene on his storefront window.

Also taking place during the Window Wonderland event was the Winter Sale. Copp said, “We highlight all the things the merchants have on sale at that time of year.” However walk-in traffic was limited by the frigid conditions over the weekend of the event.

But that did nothing to take away the effort and community spirit that was present throughout downtown. Funderburk said it’s a “fun thing to be able to walk downtown.”