Beats and Eats

Celebrate local music and art at one of Richardson's most popular festivals

Get your groove on when Richardson's beloved Wildflower! Arts & Music Festival returns with well-known musical acts, exciting performers, family friendly activities, interactive games, local art vendors, and more.

Held May 17-19 at Galatyn Urban Park, Wildflower! is a three-day celebration began as a small community gathering in 1993 and has since become one of the most popular cultural events in North Texas.

Here are six things you need to know about this year's festival, including who's performing, where to eat, where to shop, and how to get tickets.

Jam out to big-name bands
This year, Wildflower! boasts an impressive musical lineup, with big-name acts like Fitz and the Tantrums, Judah & the Lion, Neon Trees, The Jacksons 50^th Anniversary Tour, Blue Oyster Cult, The Guess Who, and more. An Aerosmith tribute band from California, Aeromyth, will perform all weekend long. There's a little something for every music lover, with over 100 national, regional, and local headliners performing on six stages.

Check out amazing performers and entertainers
Located in front of the Eisemann Center, AMLI Performance Row is home to dazzling street performers, acrobats, magicians, and artists, including Mango & Dango and the Grace Hula Dance Company. If you're feeling inspired, sign up to be part of the 2019 Budding Talent Vocal Competition, the Al Johnson Performing Songwriter Contest, or the Songwriter Workshop, and don't miss the annual Battle of the Bands.

Shop and support local artists
There's more than just killer music and live entertainment at the fest. At the LegacyTexas WF! Marketplace, festival-goers can shop for unique local and regional goods, everything from art and home decor to specialty clothing. In addition, the Wildflower! Art Guitar Auction invites local artists to transform an electric or acoustic guitar into a creative work of art, and guitars are then sold in a silent auction that's open to all attendees.

Indulge in craft brews and delicious eats
When hunger strikes, WF! Eats & Drinks is the place to be — vendors offer an array of local cuisine as well as tasty festival treats like kettle corn, corn dogs, and snow cones. In the mood for an adult beverage? Choose from a variety of craft beers and wine at the Wildflower! Craft Beer Garden and the Cupcake Vineyards Wine Garden. The beer garden also has plenty of shaded seating and family style lawn games.

Have some family-friendly fun
Children of all ages will love the activities at WF! Kids. Presented by First Baptist Richardson, this is the perfect pit stop for families who want to escape the crowds. Kids can belt out their favorite tunes at Rock Star Karaoke, get their faces painted (for free), and get in touch with their creative sides at WF! Art.

Festival and ticket info
The 2019 Wildflower! Arts & Music Festival is Friday, May 17, through Sunday, May 19, and there are several ticket options. A three-day general admission package is $65, and single-day admission tickets are available as well: Friday and Saturday tickets are $30, while Sunday tickets are just $15. Kids one-day general admission tickets are $5 throughout the weekend. To purchase tickets, head here. For more info on this year's festival, check out its website or follow Wildflower! Arts & Music Festival on Facebook.

This year's Wildflower! is May 17-19 at Galatyn Park in Richardson.

Photo courtesy of Wildflower! Festival

This year's Wildflower! is May 17-19 at Galatyn Park in Richardson.

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Well-to-do Dallas suburb lands on top-10 list of holiday big spenders

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

Flower Mound residents have the No. 7 biggest holiday budgets in the U.S. for 2024.

It looks like Santa Claus is going to be competing with residents in Flower Mound to see who brings the most lavish holiday gifts this year.

Festive Flo-Mo ranked No. 7 in WalletHub's annual report on U.S. cities with the biggest holiday budgets in 2024.

Residents in this well-to-do Dallas suburb are expected to spend $3,541 on their Christmas gifts this year. But tsk-tsk: That's down $56 from the $3,485 they were ready to drop in the 2023 ranking — bumping them down two spots from their previous ranking at No. 5.

The U.S. Census Bureau says that Flower Mound's estimated population of 79,445 had a median household income of $154,471 in 2023. No wonder they have the extra cash to spare.

Flower Mound consistently makes the list of the top 10 U.S. cities with the biggest holiday spenders, outshining its nearby neighbor Frisco, which took a precarious drop this year from their previous high ranking of No. 3 in 2023.

They've now fallen off the top-10 list altogether. The average holiday budget in Frisco is still an exorbitant amount – $3,412 – but that only garnered the city No. 11 in the overall ranking out of 558 U.S. cities. You gotta spend to stay on top.

The No. 1 city in the U.S. for biggest holiday spenders in 2024 is Newton, Massachusetts, a wealthy suburb right outside of Boston, where the median income measured in 2022 was $176,373. Slots 2 through 5 were all cities in California's Silicon Valley: Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Milpitas.

Seven additional North Texas cities landed in this year's top 100 biggest holiday budgets, including:

No. 18 – Allen ($3,070)
No. 32 – Plano ($2,658)
No. 45 – North Richland Hills ($2,484)
No. 52 – McKinney ($2,386)
No. 76 – Richardson ($1,980)
No. 81 – Carrollton ($1,932)
No. 92 – Lewisville ($1,848)

Meanwhile, Dallas landed at No. 213 this year with an average holiday budget of $1,406, and Fort Worth ranked No. 359 with a budget of $1,082.

Each year, WalletHub calculates the maximum holiday budget for over 550 U.S. cities "to help consumers avoid post-holiday regret," the website says. The study factors in income, age of the population, and other financial indicators such as debt-to-income ratio, monthly-income-to monthly-expenses ratio, and savings-to-monthly-expenses ratio.

Whether a Dallasite's holiday budget is under $200 or more than $1,000, it's better to prioritize remaining within that budget instead of racking up the credit card bill, according to WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

"There are plenty of ways to enjoy the holidays and show you care without spending much money, like hosting potlucks or giving handmade gifts," said Lupo.

Other Texas cities that made it into the top 100 are:

No. 13 – The Woodlands ($3,395)
No. 15 – Sugar Land ($3,214)
No. 23 – Cedar Park ($2,930)
No. 25 – League City ($2,897)
No. 39 – Round Rock ($2,538)
No. 60 – Pearland ($2,223)
No. 87 – Austin ($1,905)

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