Weekend Agenda: Tax Free on MV

What's up this "tax-free weekend" on Martha's Vineyard?  

First, here's the deal on the "tax-free" part, from the Massachusetts Association of Retailers:

During the two day holiday weekend, no sales tax will be charged on purchases that meet the following criteria:
• Purchases must be for personal (non-business) use;
• single-item prices must be $2,500 or less; and
• purchases must be made on either August 10th or 11th, 2013.

What's not included, according to the trade group:

Prior sales, layaway sales, and sales of telecommunications services, tobacco products, gas, steam, electricity, motor vehicles, motorboats, meals, and items priced over $2,500 are exempt from the holiday and remain subject to the sales tax.

Clothes costing less than $2,500 are already exempt. But that still leaves quite a lot of merchandise in Martha's Vineyard stores and galleries that will cost you 6.25 cents less on the dollar this Saturday and Sunday.

Of course, there's a lot more than shopping to do this weekend — Just take a look at our Events calendar to see all the things that are going on around the Island and there'll be no doubt that summer is in full swing.

Here are a few tips to help get your weekend started. Find more things to do by following our Today on Martha's Vineyard and Weekend Planner groups.

1. Look up! The Perseid meteor shower is already underway, with peak viewing expected between midnight and dawn on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. We have some viewing tips and Perseid trivia here.
   
2. It's a big weekend at Alex's Place at the Y, with Community Open Stage Friday featuring guest guitarist Shun Ng and 14-time Boston Music Award winner Ellis Paul performing Saturday as part of the Wintertide Concert Series.
3. "This is sure to be an Island love fest," says Vineyard artist Margot Datz, who celebrates tax-free weekend with a one-night, one-woman show at the Grange in West Tisbury. "The Illuminated Heart," Saturday from 4 to 8 p.m., introduces 12 paintings about love and the heart. Datz will also sign her books and sell signed, limited-edition prints.
4. If you're heading up-Island any time from Saturday till Aug. 18, be prepared for detours and delays: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are scheduled to be back on the Vineyard for their first summer vacation here since 2011. Also, the Chilmark Road Race is this Saturday.
5. The Oak Bluffs Open Market takes place Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Washington Park. Get eggrolls, a Tarot reading, honey or any number of other goods.

Looking for more things to do on the Vineyard? Check our Events calendar, Today on Martha's Vineyard and Weekend Planner pages for lots of options and keep an eye on our home page for last-minute additions.

Do you have another weekend event to recommend? Tell us in the comments.