Bonanza at Cabin Fever

I had the pleasure of going to the Cabin Fever Indie Gift Show yesterday and I thought I'd share some of the hot finds I stumbled upon.  There were close to 80 artists, designers, bakers, illustrators - an inveritable whirlwind of creativity packed into the Cathedral High School Gymnasium.  Here are some of the highlights:


24 year old and Little Rhody resident, Stephen Fitch of Moondust Macarons, has mastered the art of the macaron.  I can honestly say they are light and crispy and très authentique.  Picked up a lovely box for dessert.

image : GoLocalProv

For clever and attractive vintage design tees, hoodies, and other great stuff.

 

I'm such a fan of Leah Giberson.  I first saw her art on a post from beachbungalow8, and then

met her this past Fall, at West Elm's We Heart Handmade Art event.  Not only is she local-Brookline talent,  she's a very warm person and a delight to chat with.  Her work has been featured many times on the blogosphere - and elsewhere, but one can never tire of her appealing photography, paintings, collages, and images.  I find them absolutely captivating.

-And seeing as St. Valentine's Day was right around the corner, a shiny gemstone caught my eye.  Sara Danielle Designs - handcrafted precious and semi-precious gemstone jewelry,  was a lovely place to linger and play dress-up.  Only, it wasn't just dress-up.  I did manage to pick up a couple of gems for myself.  Happy Valentine's Day, Karen.

There were also beautifully designed and handcrafted note cards and prints from everythinglittlemiss -

Following our stroll around from artist to artist, I managed to forget to circle back and grab a couple of crazy-delicious-looking brownies.  I know.  Easy enough to replicate, but these just seemed spectacularly good.  From Yummy Mummy Brownies.

Treats for all the senses.  Cabin Fever was a great indie show and I'm looking forward to checking out more events in the area for handmade artistry.

So cool with lemon granita

This is what I'm doing this weekend::

 (image from mangio da sola)

We've enjoyed some amazingly hot and steamy days in New England this summer.  I've had my Del's fix, and some Italian ice from Boston's North End, but I can't think of a better way to cool off then with this home-made-not-too-sweet granita.  Enjoy.

Granita di Limone (Lemon Granita)
from epicurious

2 to 3 large lemons
1 cup filtered or bottled still water
1/3 cup superfine granulated sugar

Remove zest in long pieces from 2 lemons.  Squeeze 1/2 cup juice from lemons.

In a small heavy saucepan heat water and sugar, stirring until sugar is dissolved.  Stir in zest and transfer to syrup to a bowl to cool.  Chill syrup, covered, until cold.  Discard zest and stir in lemon juice.  Serve.  Yields approx. 2 1/2 cups or 4 servings.

The Summer Holiday

I've been slow to post lately.  Apologies.  We've slipped into Summer Mom Camp, which means I have two kids I  have to entertain daily from basically 8am until 9pm.  For free. They don't tip, either.

But - it's not all bad or boring.  I have a visor, clipboard, and a whistle.  And I use them well.  Yet, this weekend we're all heading to Rhode Island for the long holiday weekend....which seems to make Summer Camp a little more palatable.

The 4th of July is by far my favorite holiday.  It's smack in the middle of summer (at least in Kansas it was - here in New England, maybe not so much), the ocean is warm enough to swim in, and it seems to me that time moves a little more slowly with days of surfing, playing pickle, and staying up late with a bonfire.

It's all about  Del's lemonade, mosquito bites, and Coppertone.  And fireworks on the beach.  Have a safe, happy holiday weekend.

Dad's favorite cocktail

We're heading to Little Rhody for the weekend with weather that's purported to be in the 90s. And after the beach on Father's Day, we'll have this:


A gin and tonic with Angostura ice cubes and cucumber slices.

The how-to from the nytimes.

Ocean House, Watch Hill, R.I.

Summers on the shore, black-tie affairs, decked out ballrooms with the likes of Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, and Nick Carraway--the glorious yellow hotel known as the Ocean House that gazed over Watch Hill, Rhode Island, for almost 150 years harkened back to an earlier time.



From theoceanhouse.org:
Built in 1868, the Ocean House remained the only standing hotel from the glory days of the Victorian era. Mid-way between Boston and New York, the big yellow hotel became, at the turn of the Twentieth Century, an innovative landmark physically and socially. For instance, Watch Hill's Ocean House was the first resort hotel in the country to offer telephone service, which made it a target for businessmen from major cities since they could access their offices while away on vacation. Perhaps even more importantly, the Ocean House was the first hotel to offer indoor plumbing!


In 2003 this grand dame, after many years of back and forth financing, ownership, and struggles shut it's doors for good.


Six years after the original Ocean House, built in 1868, was torn down the new version will open this summer seeking to recreate that elegant era with a few modern touches--year round dinning and accommodations, eco-friendly practices, farm to table dining, a spa, and an ocean view lap pool.







Originally one of five hotels in town, the Ocean House was one of the last Victorian era hotels in mainland Rhode Island. In 2003 the hotel closed, and in 2004 when it became clear the Ocean House's historic structure couldn't be saved, it was torn down. The local community rallied together to save the site from development forming Bluff Avenue LLC with the goal of persevering both the site as a hotel and the Ocean House's 136 year history.




The 2010 Ocean House hotel was built in the likeness of the old incorporating many of the original hotel features including the main fireplace, front desk, some wick furniture, and of course the yellow paint.

The Ocean House reopens this May 17th as a member of the Preferred Boutiques.