Island Ride

 

Even though I had just ventured home a few weeks earlier, I felt that I needed one more small getaway to tide me over until my next school break. I needed just a little more nature. Luckily, when I arrived back at my parents house, the two had already planned a day trip to Vinalhaven. We boarded the ferry early the next morning with road bikes and backpacks for a short island adventure.

I couldn't believe how many raspberries and blackberries we saw during our ride! Of course, I had to stop and try a few each time we spotted a patch. Before we hopped on our bikes, we stopped for a quick brunch at Vinalhaven's best breakfast spot. The ARC, Vinalhaven's arts and recreations community center that just so happens to be an excellent breakfast and lunch nook, boasts local produce, farm fresh eggs, and a breakfast sandwich on a homemade biscuit that will make you yearn for your childhood Sunday morning.

We just couldn't believe how perfect the weather was. We welcomed the breeze off the Maine coast as we chugged up the island hills and as we soared down the other side.

a little trip home

The city during the summer becomes a muggy, mushy, and simply uninviting sauna of full to the brim with tacky tourists and frustrated locals. I needed to get out. The hottest week the city has seen in over 50 years happily coinscided with my weekend off. I jumped at the chance to hop on the Downeaster, and visit my parents in Maine. Upon my arrival, lunch time, a craving for seaside dining and fried fish beckoned us to Shaw's Wharf, in New Harbor. I got my childhood classic; fried haddock dinner. With every buttery bite, nostalgia for my hometown grew. 

My travel outfit is a mix of borrowed (thanks, Gracie!) and the sale rack at Urban Outfitters. Perhaps not the smartest choice for swabbing the deck... My mom insisted that I take a photo in the lobster head, despite the roll of my eyes. She reminisced about my first trip to the wharf. Apparently, my infant self was toted around all day in a baby backpack. Those were the days... 

 

When we arrived at my parents place, the coastal weather cooled my hurried Boston thoughts and I spent the afternoon relaxing on my screen porch drinking ice tea and catching up with Sage, my best childhood friend. My mom's garden's looked stunning and I ran around the backyard (11 acres!) and snapped some shots. She had so much beautiful and fragrant lavender! Of course I'm partial to those photos...

Hello, again!

What a whirl wind life has been the past couple of months!

First of all, apologies that I haven't updated in quite sometime. The end of semester was absolutely insane, and all of my time and energy went into acing my finals and singing well on my jury (both of which went very well!). Summer is in full swing, and I'm finally getting into some sort of a rhythm with working full time and spending as much time outside as possible. I'M BACK!

Here's a little taste of what summer has been like for me... Regular posts have returned.

And besides, who wants to be in front of a computer when summer weather beckons?

these cupcakes are the irish car bomb

I am always in the mood for a cupcake. The other week I was searching for a cupcake recipe with some new flavors and a chance for me to attempt creating a pastry more with slightly more complicated steps. After browsing a few food blogs, I turned to Smitten Kitchen, one of my new favorites, for some inspiration. Even though St. Patty's had passed, I decided to try my hand this delectable Irish Car Bomb cupcake. Obviously, several types alcohol (Guinness, Irish whiskey, and Bailey's Irish Cream) gave these little guys their kick-ass flavor! 

I had never baked with alcohol before. As I was simmering the cup of Guinness with a glorious amount of butter, the mixture was not combining. The oil from the butter and beer looked like a sad mess. No matter how many times I whisked the liquid it looked disgusting. I was about to throw up my flour clad hands, throw off my apron, and pout on the kitchen floor. I'm happy to report that I pulled myself together and decided to add in the flour mixture anyways and hope that all the ingredients combined in harmony. They did. All was right in the world. Your beer will not ruin the cakes. Attempt the recipe here!

Though aside from the near Guinness catastrophe, the problem with making cupcakes in my apartment is that Erin and I can only eat so many! Suddenly, after a day of gazing at their lovely piped buttercream and wistfully thinking of the ganache filled centers, I realized I still had 20 cupcakes sitting in my fridge. They needed to GTFO of the apartment before us two college students started using them as meal substitutes. Mmmmm, buttercream...

PS- And why haven't I posted on my bike?! I keep forgetting to take my camera with me when I unlock it from my basement below. I need a sunny day (Friday, I'm hoping!) and the little Fuji will get it's very own shoot! It's a beaut.

trinkets

The looming, disconcerting, and simply uninviting Boston weather kept me indoors this afternoon. After a short jaunt to Jamaica Plain to my favorite kitchen store Kitchen Witch with my darling friend Leia, I settled back into my apartment to try out my new stock pot with a new recipe. While waiting for my load of laundry to tumble-dry and my chicken stock to simmer, I grabbed my Nikon and snapped some some photos of the collection of dearly loved trinkets that cluster around my apartment. 

My mother is Swedish and was sure to send me off to school with little reminders of my heritage; Tomtes (Swedish elves) and a Carl Larsson tin! Aren't they precious? Also before moving back to Boston for the school year, I had this urge to make a boatload of paper flowers to decorate my room. You know, those ones you made in 3rd grade for May day, or whatever. I ended up buying an obscene amount of colored tissue paper by mistake...Geez.

What are some of your favorite treasures? I love my collection of vintage saucers. I have them in so many colors! A post on those is soon to come... Have a fabulous week!

a fenway treasure

Gosh, I just took quite the hiatus! Midterms week at the conservatory and a recital monopolized my time completely. I barely put on a nice outfit all week, let a lone had time for a shoot! Oh well, I'm now relaxed and rested after a little weekend skiing with family and will be back on top of things! It is lovely to be home in Maine for a few days before heading back to the city to get some work done over spring break. I never get over how quiet the nights are here.

A few weeks ago, I took a trip to Boston's Museum of Fine Arts in between my morning and afternoon classes. As an arts student, I get free admission whenever I please, so decided to go in the morning before the school groups had arrived, and the swaths of retirees swarm the impressionist wing. What a magnificent feeling of solidarity, tranquility, and a rush of inspiration I felt walking alone in the marble rooms. It was just me and my relationship with some of the world's greatest art. Oh, and my camera!

 

Where do you feel most creative? Where are some of your favorite museums? What a magical place, the MFA!

burbank

Boston's Back Bay has some lovely little neighborhood gems. Last summer when I was wondering around the city I walked past this abandoned conviance store. Burbank Street, is actually only a few blocks away from my apartment and I had no idea these boarded up and collaged windows were there. I knew I wanted to use these windows in some sort of photo project. When I was thinking where to shoot this outfit, I imagined my dainty sweater and delicate lace collar would contrast nicely with the faded and dirty mess of outdated posters and graffiti. 

This is the new sweater that I picked up from Goodwill last week and I am in love with it! It is so snuggly and warm and goes with everything. The blue and white striped blouse is from 40 South Street, a small vintage shop in Jamaica Plain. The small brooch is also vintage. Those old black pants are from Marshalls, I think. 

School starts again on Wednesday. I'm ready for some structure in my life, that's for sure. I have some Schubert and Mozart I'm working on for my first lesson and I can't wait to see all of my voice class together again.

My lovely roommate/best friend Erin made some amazing brownies last night. Is it bad to have one for breakfast? ;)

playdate

That blizzard was so entrancing. The snow swirled outside my 4th story window all day on Wednesday, as I watched with a cup of tea in hand. I did nothing but bake cookies, and lounge around finishing my latest Tudor biography (I'm in a bit of an obsession with that English era, lately). Though yesterday, once the road had been cleared and the sky turned back to its lovely shade of blue, I headed out of my tiny apartment and back into the real world. My good friend Molly had never ventured to the neighborhood of Jamaica Plain, so I offered to give her a little tour and hopefully grab some great thrifted items from a few choice shops down that way.  Before we caught the 39 bus down Huntington, Molly and I stopped to snap a few shots of my bright outfit against the new and clean white snow.

These are some of my favorite pieces. Until recently, I really thought that mustard yellow just didn't look right on me, but when I dyed my hair dark brown (no, that isn't my natural color!!), I finally decided that my J Crew blouse actually looked good. The cardigan came from a thrift store in my hometown years ago and has no tag. The red belt and floral skirt came from a Goodwill in Maine, and those tights are probably from Urban Outfitters. I bought that Fossil watch last semester when I was trying to get through finals in one piece, and it really cheered me up!

I found some lovely vintage treasures in Jamaica Plain! A 40s plaid hatbox, a few rose China cups and vases, a bamboo cutting board, a gold painted mirror, and yellowish ottoman, a vintage white knit sweater and a men's sateen shirt I am using for a project all for under $80. I did well, I must say. The swanky shops on Newbury have nothing on Boston's best neighborhood finds! Where are some of your favorite places to thrift/shop vintage?

a winter wonderland

The Balsams Grand Hotel & Resort c. 1918

Finally, the holidays have come to a close and 2011 has arrived bearing optimistic thoughts of wistful accomplishments for the coming year. Though in lieu of looking into the future, my family and I delved into the past with a vintage Christmas at one of New England's oldest and most famous grand hotels.

Tucked away in the northern New Hampshire mountains, The Balsams was first opened just after the Civil War in 1865. The summer inn, then called the Dix House because it was situated in Dixville Notch, boasted 25 rooms. It was later purchased by a wealthy developer from Philadelphia in 1895, when he renamed the inn The Balsams. Steadily, the inn was expanded and enhanced to house 400 guests, as it does today. Originally opened as a summer destination, the chilling beauty of New Hampshire's "winter wonderland" mountain scape, and sea of pine trees attracted guests from all over the nation to experience a breath-takingly beautiful and truly relaxing respite.

In the 20s- Vintage flare with only a few  modern additions

It is Christmas eve. The hotel has not lost it's vintage spirit amongst the decorative garland and twinkling lights and red poinsettias. Uniformed bellmen shuffles our luggage up to the 3rd and 4th floors and to our rooms while my parents check in, and I wander around the lobby. I'm surrounded by comfortable arm chairs and several roaring fireplaces, scattered around collections of bookshelves and letter desks. It looks more as though I've entered the home of some wealthy relative, and they have lead me into their cozy study rather than a giant hotel. Vintage magazine ads with pink cheeked skiers in bright red hats, photographs of 1920s summer wedding parties outside on the lawn, and antique photos panoramic views of the small pond and majestic hotel are displayed on the walls. There are families working on a puzzle of the Boston harbor. An older couple sits silently drinking cocktails by the fireplace enjoying the soft hum of guests exploring the length of the building. I find the activities list and note that hors d'oeuvres are going to be served soon. I cannot wait to eat the four star dinners complete with 5 courses and people in tall chef hats walking around the dining room.

My family hardly ever sits still and lounges during a vacation. There is usually some sort of athletic activity required each day before any member is deserving of their dinner. The Balsams owns their very own alpine skiing mountain, the Wilderness. It is no Sugarloaf, or Jay Peak, but there are no lines, the trails are wide and well groomed and the glades are plentiful. My mother, an avid cross-country skier takes advantage of the many trails that weave around the grounds of the resort and through the surrounding forests.

All photos are property of The Balsams Grand Resort & Hotel

During my evenings at The Balsams, post-skiing, I wandered through the library, the pool hall, and all the sitting rooms of the hotel searching the faces in photos of happy guests who frequented the Balsams decades and decades ago. Mostly, the walls were lined with giggling couples, newly weds, of course. My favorite photo was of these two lovely people. There was no caption under the framed photo, and I can only hypothesize to which year it was taken. I suppose it was taken in the late 1920s. There are so many things that I love about this photo. The vintage love that I am, couldn't help but feel inspired by her chunky heeled, two toned Mary-Jane's, or the asymmetry of her floral patterned dress. I wish all men would wear striped pants! How classy, especially with the slightly rolled leg. His hat, well, let's just say I have a thing for men in hats. I'm sure they had a lovely honeymoon. They looked fantastic!

Pretend you are going on your winter get-away! (with added florals for a hint of seasons to come...)

Mary-Janes: Barney's, Lip stick: Chanel, in Emotive, 
Shift dress: Top Shop