Newly opened in a subterranean space near Post Office Park, The Salt Cellar is a celebration of just one thing: the humble sodium chloride, the only rock that we eat on a regular basis. Modeled on their flagship store in Portsmouth, NH, and, in a larger sense, modeled after a specialty salt store that the co-owners [...]
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Maybe it’s the holiday display in the window (including the wonderful snowman apron and old sewing machine). Maybe it’s the riot of color from row after row of practical, fanciful bags. Maybe it’s the giant paintings. Or maybe it’s the fact that all this is a reflection of the bubbly personality of Kim herself. Whatever [...]
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Last night I had a wonderful time strolling around the Society for East End Arts’ 2012 Holiday ‘Art on the Hill’ show. Over 70 vendors — many of whom were not, I was totally pleased to note, the ‘usual suspects’ that I’ve seen at every vaguely craft-fair like show I go to. Admission is free, [...]
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Located on Congress Street, directly across from the Portland Museum of Art, Yes Books is something of a local institution. Like a cat with nine lives, it has survived a location change, a change in ownership, changes in the face of the city, and the move toward digital content, and yet it continues to be [...]
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So, how was your summer? Here are a few images from Saturday’s annual Picnic Music + Arts Festival, probably the premiere showcase for independent artisans and craftspeople in the city. Enjoy! Please visit the Picnic website (www.picnicportland.com) to learn more about the vendors whose work is featured here. You can also follow them on [...]
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Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of things I love about Portland, but one of my least favorite things is this: it’s really hard to pick up a pie (not made at the supermarket) at 6 pm on your way home from work. Foley’s closed at 5, and Two Fat Cats is always [...]
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On the back of my business cards, there is a single line: “The secrets of Portland, secrets no longer.” It’s catchy, but it’s rarely true. Much of what I write about here is well known both within our community and in the world at large. So you can imagine my glee at discovering, tucked away [...]
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*Cue Muppet Happy Dance* Saturday marks one of the days I look forward to through the entire long, cold, bleak Maine winter: the first day the Farmer’s Market returns to Deering Oaks park. The market runs from 7 am until noon, and will feature over 35 farmers and vendors selling seedlings, meat, fresh eggs, spring [...]
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This morning we spent some time visiting the opening day of the new Portland Flea For All craft and vintage market. Judging by what we saw today, they’ve managed to strike a balance right between Elmer’s Barn and Picnic Arts Festival. Here are a few photos; if you like what you see here, they’re open [...]
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“Would you like to see a bee being born?” With those intriguing words, owner Phil Gaven graciously welcomed me into The Honey Exchange, where I learned more about bees and honey in a short visit than I knew it was possible to know. Located in a beautiful converted center-hall cape on Stevens Avenue, The Honey [...]
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