We flew back into Dublin this morning, very, very early. I’m trying out a new jet-lag conquering technique that involves giving a three hour walking tour to 8 Canadians and then having Michael boss me through a boxing workout before coming home to unpack. I’m exhausted and will hopefully wake up tomorrow morning back on Dublin time!
I hope you’re having a nice Monday! I’ll be back tomorrow with a little more regularly scheduled programming, including possibly a peek at my new haircut!
Only a few weeks ago, I wrote a post about the wonderful day I spent exploring Belfast, Ireland, so I thought it would be fun to show you another Belfast I’ve been exploring! Maine (and most states in America) has a lot of towns and cities named after other places around the world. In fact, in addition to Belfast, we have a Vienna (pronounced Vy-enna), a Paris, a Berlin, the list goes on of names we’ve stolen from our ancestors’ home countries.
Belfast is one my favorite Maine coastal towns. It has lots of little shops and galleries to explore, right on a beautiful harbor, but not too mobbed with people. We went wandering on a kind of soggy warm day and discovered a few shops we’ll be visiting every year from now on!
We saw a few incredible exhibits at the Northern Lights Fine Art Gallery, which showcases art from First Nation and Inuit artists. We loved the landscapes painted on aluminum that sparkled as you moved around them. And it doesn’t hurt that the outside of the building has an awesome color combination.
We picked up a jar of Blonde Salted Caramel from Northwoods Gourmet Girl and had it over ice cream for days afterward. It was delicious and the shop was adorable – lots of jams, chutneys and sauces made locally.
Fiddlehead Artisan Supply was my favorite new-to-me find – a giant selection of beautiful fabric and art supplies. I wish I knew how to sew! It would be my go-to if I knew how and lived in Maine.
Books plus antiques at Bella Books was a super combination had me browsing for quite a while. They had such a nice selection of Maine authors and lots of lovely antiques.
We always stop into Old Stuff Lamps and Shades, although we rarely look at their lamps and shades! I’m a bigger fan of their selection of other random antiques. They often have whole crates of antique cutlery and beautiful old Mason jars.
Since Michael wasn’t with us, we didn’t have to make our usual trip to Three Tides Brewery, but it’s by far his favorite beer in the state. He swears by the oyster stout, just in case anyone is trying to convince their husband or boyfriend to tag along and these shops don’t really appeal!
I just got back from 24 hours in the Maine woods and I can’t wait to tell you about it….just as soon as I take a shower and wash off all the sunscreen, bug spray and camp fire smoke smell! Maine is such an incredibly special place and I’m so grateful to have the chance to get out in it these last few weeks.
I’ve been ticking away at a very small bucket list for exploring Maine while we’re here this summer. High on the list was visiting the Urban Sugar Donut Cafe, Portland’s only donut truck. I stopped last summer when I think they were only new and only had plain sugared donuts. But I’ve been following their Instagram account and they have seriously jacked up their donuts.
The Urban Sugar Cafe truck is run by husband and wife donut duo, Kevin and Valeri. They do mini donuts in boxes of 6 or 12, and they have 6 flavors, half savory and half sweet. I was tempted by all, but we landed on a box of the pecan, caramel and chocolate covered donuts. They were excellent, and not even too sweet, if you can believe it.
Michael looks so concerned with making the right choice in this photo – but I liked how his tattoos fit in with Valeri’s!
The Urban Sugar Cafe doesn’t have a set schedule, but you can find them through their social media – they’re at all the fun events around Portland and even do weddings!
Happy Monday, friends! We spent surrounded by water, albeit much colder and less picturesque than the water I’m going to show you today. Hurricane Arthur meant we were bundled up and staying warm and dry with a few driving adventures, and we relaxed with my family with a few festive drinks. Not quite the way we had envisioned celebrating the Fourth of July, but we’re hoping our last week in Maine makes up for it!
A few weeks ago, Michael and I climbed aboard the Schooner Heritage in Rockland, Maine, for two nights and three days of sailing. It was such a special adventure for the two of us, and such a treat to get to do something so adventurous. I hadn’t slept aboard a sailboat since junior high, and Michael hadn’t since college, so we were a little nervous about how we would fare, but I don’t think I’ve slept so soundly in months! All that fresh air and hauling ropes and chatting with the other passengers wore us out, in the best possible way.
The Schooner Heritage is run by Captain Doug and Captain Linda Lee, who built the boat themselves (!) thirty years ago. They are an incredible couple, so charismatic, so talented, and so welcoming to their home away from home. They both regaled us with stories of their adventures sailing over 600 trips in the past several decades. Doug inherited his love of maritime history from his father, and we enjoyed his stories about famous inhabitants of the various islands we passed, and the history of the towns and villages we passed.
We also got to pretend to steer, and spent a lot of time gazing out to sea and looking at the beautiful houses along the shore.
There’s the gorgeous Heritage anchored in Boothbay Harbor for Windjammer Days. We were the biggest schooner in the harbor! She only has three of her six sails up right here, but when she gets them all up, she can really go!
Here’s a little peek at our cabin on the left. Some of the cabins have bunk beds, and all of them have sinks with running hot and cold water. Two cabins have bathrooms attached, but everyone else uses the heads (toilets and a shower) on deck. Michael was a tad too tall for the bunk, but he’s too tall for our bed at home, so that wasn’t new. We tucked ourselves in with the heavy woollen blankets and Heritage monogrammed sheets and slept like logs.
The galley of the Heritage was so impressive – a giant woodburning stove that powers the hot water for the whole boat and it is used to cook and bake all of the meals for the passengers. I’m realizing now that I only have photographs of Captain Linda working on meals but that doesn’t give you a clear picture of what she was up to all day – hauling lines, giving orders to the crew, singing songs to motivate the crew and passengers to get the sails up, and manning the little boat called Superman that would push the Schooner off the dock. I was in awe of her.
The wood for the stove is stored below deck and they go through 3-4 cords each summer. Each morning, the crew has to get up early and get the stove going to make coffee for 7am.
And here is Captain Doug giving us the lay of the land. He had a great sense of humour and a wealth of knowledge about the Maine coast.
We didn’t give much thought to the food before the trip, although we did stock up on a few snacks since we tend to eat frequently, to say the least. Well, we needn’t have bothered. The food was delicious – homey but better than what you’d make yourself. The first night, we had strawberry shortcake on the deck while watching the sunset over lobster boats. It was bliss.
We had a wonderful adventure and we’d recommend it to anyone – just try to predict good weather, since even hot days on shore were chilly out on the water!
And here’s a little bonus proof that I was at least trying to be helpful with all those sail lines! A little Instagram video of me lending a helping hand. Thanks so much to the Heritage for having us aboard!
I have to admit that each time Michael and I come to Maine in the summertime, we get overwhelmed by the heat and humidity. For all of Ireland’s rain, it rarely gets warm enough for humidity to be uncomfortable, but in Maine when it hits 85 and the breeze dies down, we can barely cope in the first weeks we’re here. We get so sweaty and sometimes a little grumpy, let’s be honest!
The heat and humidity mean winding down with my usual glass of red wine doesn’t sound that appealing, and since I’m having a hard time finding elderflower for my Elderflower Mint Lemonade, I’ve come up with a new go-to cool-down drink. It’s a summer berry spritzer, delicious with vodka or rum, but equally refreshing without.
Here’s how you make it:
Fill a tall glass with ice, then fill the glass half-full with cranberry juice. I use light cranberry juice to cut down on the sugar. Add the juice from half a lemon, and then fill the glass with diet tonic water. If you’re planning to add vodka or rum, use a little less of everything so you have enough room in your glass and add a shot of your preferred spirit. Garnish with mint, or even muddle some in. I love mint with everything, so I always muddle mint in the glass before I get started.
I’ve made one or two of these every day for the last week and they really are so refreshing. We’re finally coping with the heat – of course, just in time to head home to much cooler Ireland in a week!
And here’s a little fun summer news for readers in the EU. Yankee Candle UK has just launched their new Indian Summer candle range, and to celebrate, they’re giving you a chance to win an Indian Summer Escape to Paradise £5000 bespoke holiday! To enter, visit the competition page on their website. 10 runners up will win four large candles from the new Indian Summer range plus £50 to spent on Yankee Candle’s online website. The competition is open to all European Union residents and closes on September 16th.
Happy Fourth of July, everyone! We’re in America again for the holiday and sadly, it’s quite soggy here! Hurricane Arthur is raining out fireworks and festivals all over New England, so we’ll be celebrating with indoor activities while my whole family is home for the weekend. Hopefully we don’t drive each other too crazy!
I hope you have a safe and happy weekend, filled with family and friends and festive treats!
(Those strawberries are from my mom’s garden – they’re growing like crazy!)
I wrote a little post over on Confetti online that I thought you might enjoy. They’re the fastest, simplest painted flower pots. I think they’d make great centrepieces for a garden wedding or for a backyard barbecue. The best thing about terra cotta pots is that the paint dries instantly. Nothing better than a DIY project that can be finished in 10 minutes!
You can see more photos and a little explanation over on Confetti.
Today I’m really excited to share with you the work of a new company that I’ve recently discovered: Isle Jewellery. I discovered them perfectly by chance a few months ago when they followed me on Twitter (I love when I find amazing Irish businesses this way – it feels like such a gift!), and when I clicked onto their website I instantly fell in love with them. Isle Jewellery’s pieces are exactly up my alley – their collections are inspired by Ireland and its landscape and people, but in such a beautiful, modern and well designed way.
I asked Geraldine, Isle’s founder and designer, if I could borrow a few pieces to show you and she very kindly obliged. I chose to pull out a few pieces from the Fionn collection, which is inspired by the Giant’s Causeway. I desperately wanted to drive up and take some photographs at the Giant’s Causeway, but time and scheduling just didn’t allow. So instead, you get me in front of a beautiful green hedge.
Can you see the facets on the pendant necklace, inspired by the craggy rocks of the Giant’s Causeway? Geraldine grew up in the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland, and earned a fine art degree from the University of Ulster, specializing in jewellery design. She now lives in Tokyo, where she has been teaching art and English at an international school.
The Fionn collection is so named for the Irish folktale of Fionn the giant and the Giant’s Causeway, which you can learn about on the Isle website (another lovely bonus!).
The story goes that a long, long time ago the giant Fionn built the causeway to Scotland. A Scottish giant called Benandonner who was bigger and meaner heard about Fionn and used the bridge to come and challenge Fionn Mac Cumhaill. When Fionn heard the giant was coming he realised he needed to outsmart this larger rival to protect his land. He dressed as a baby and his wife told the Scottish giant that the baby was Fionn’s son. Benandonner was so shocked at the size of the ‘baby’ that he fled in fear of meeting such a large baby’s father. He tore up the bridge as he went, never to return, leaving behind what we can see today. Victory for Fionn!
Isle has two other collections on the go at the moment, Cloch, or stone in Irish, and Lása, or lace in Irish. They are both inspired by those traditional Irish crafts, and the pieces are equally as beautiful and modern as the Fionn collection.
Each piece is printed with a tiny ISLE on one of the facets, which I love, and Isle Jewellery also has quite a few pieces for men. Michael loved the men’s faceted Fionn ring, so I’ve added that to the possible Christmas list! It’s chunky and manly while still having a little sparkle from the facets.
And because the facets are a little hard to photograph, here’s a little peek at the collection from the Isle Jewellery website. I love those geometric rings that can also be worn as pendants!
And I nearly forgot! Their packaging is downright beautiful.
You can order directly from the Isle Jewellery website, where you’ll also want to have a peek at their blog, shared between Geraldine and her sister, Helen, who helps run the business in Ireland. They’ve been sending each other links and ideas and finds for years, and now they’ve decided to put those finds into blog form. It’s sweet and full of great finds.
Thanks to Michael for taking these photos. He’s no Julie, but we managed not to kill each other, so we’ll count it as a success!
I’m in the market for a hair cut, probably brought on by the warm temperatures here in Maine, but also brought on by the fact that my hair has gotten quite long and there is a lot of it. It’s a good problem to have, considering the alternative, but it means it takes so long to dry. So I’m considering a shoulder length chop! What do you think?
Clockwise from top left: One / Two / Three / Four