In Maine, even seaweed is beautiful. Click here to see the larger version of the video.
3,000 miles of rocky coast, clean water, and the large tidal flow make Maine very seaweed friendly.
Seaweed is a $7-billion global industry. It’s used for food, fertilizer, chemicals, even medicine. Maine’s entrepreneurs are taking notice.
As if lobster wars weren’t enough, now the seaweed battles have begun.
You’ll have few shopping hassles, surfing Etsy for perfect gifts, handmade by amazing local talent in Maine. You can even be in your pajamas and the prices are great. Just look at what you can find:
Click on the images to go to the item’s Etsy page.
Above, QuenchMetalWorks, South China, Maine was featured on MaineMaven’s blog.
Fingerprint sterling silver ring, Fabuluster, Topsham, Maine.
Bookwright, Richmond, Maine.
Cassy Lain Totes and great key fobs on Etsy.
Building a new house in Maine lead to selling LampGoods on Etsy.
Etsy was launched in 2005 as an online marketplace to buy and sell anything handmade – - photography, jewelry, clothing, toys, art, beauty products, and edibles for a fee — $.20 per listing and 3.5% per sale. A tidy $10-13 million in sales per month are generated mostly by young people in their pajamas.
The Etsy Maine Team is a good place to start your Maine search. Use the tag “maineteam” in your search.
Smitten, in Wiscasset, is where Santa gets his ideas for big kids who are a bit hip, with great taste, who’ve been very, very good.
He’s very smitten with this fantastic, silvery, shimmery, delicately cut, metal, snowflake forest. (Would be surprised if it’s still there when you go, however. But maybe they have more.)
It’s where you too, can find scads of ideas to brighten up your shopping chores.
Like tablescapes ideas to make entertaining even more fun.
And lots of elegant surprises for those very lucky friends.
Just a few steps away from Smitten, the gifted owner, Erika Soule, also owns another amazing shop – - Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Where you’ll find oodles of wrappings, ribbons, stationery, papers, cards, games, toys, accessories . . . and even a mouse!
Previous post on Smitten and previous post on Rock, Paper, Scissors
Smitten, 68 Main Street, P. O. Box 140, Wiscasset, ME 04578, 207-882-9930
Rock, Paper, Scissors, 68 Main Street, Wiscasset, ME 04578, 207-882-9930
Treats, are just what you’ll find at this charming, French influenced, shop in lucky Wiscasset. The trick is to go as often as you can.
Treats is a delightful spot to gather supplies, share a meal with friends, or get some work done.
You’ll find an excellent selection of fresh breads, coffees, wines, cheeses, baked goods, and pantry items mixed in with the crowd of characters, both local and from away.
(What follows is a correction. The previous version of this post indicated the owners were the Mrozinskis.) Formerly owned by Paul and Sharon Mrozinski, who own the Marston House across the street, Treats has been in the skillful hands of Ryan and Stacy Linehan for the past 4 years.
Originally from Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and from a long line of chefs, Stacy has been in Maine for over 15 years. She came to Wiscasset by way of Bowdoin and is even a Maine Guide.
While her two lucky children, 2 and 4, are growing up in the kitchen, the lines are forming at the counter.
Their wines come from all over the world, and if you don’t find what you’re looking for, they’ll order it.
Members of the American Cheese Society, their cheeses are carefully selected from speciality suppliers in the US and Great Britain.
Who needs Dean & Deluca? Everything they offer is of the utmost quality and style, and selected with extraordinary care. All the freshly baked goods are prepared with local, organic, ingredients.
Treats, 80 Main Street, P.O. Box 156, Wiscasset, Maine 04578, Phone 207-882-6192, Toll Free 866-882-6192, Fax & Kitchen Phone 207-882-8112
Treats – Food and Wine
Treats – Catering
PS Be sure to visit the Marston House just across the street to visit the former owners Paul and Sharon Mrozinski. If you read Martha Stewart’s blog, you may have read about her July visit to the Marston House, and the lunch she had there. Here’s a link if you missed it.
Marston House, Main Street at Middle Street, P.O. Box 517, Wiscasset, Maine 04578, Phone 207-882-6010, Fax 207-882-6965
Marston House – Bed & Breakfast
Marston House – American and French 18th, 19th, and 20th Century Furniture, Textiles, and Decorative Objects
Marston House Rentals in France
Stylish ghouls will find just the right Halloween gear in this hauntingly cool shop.
Rock, Paper, Scissors, in Wiscasset is the sister shop of Smitten, and shares the same stylish gene pool.
If the thought of encountering a store where you want everything you see makes you uneasy, then you’ll be horrified at what you find here.
Terrified at the sophistication.
Frightened by all the shelves packed with beautiful papers and stationary. (Very much like shops you see all over Europe, but rarely in the US.)
And spooked by all the cool kid gear.
It’s positively chilling how many great treats you’ll find here. But don’t be scared.
Rock, Paper, Scissors, 68 Main Street, Wiscasset, ME 04578, 207-882-9930
Veer off the beaten path just a tad, and if you’re lucky, you’ll end up at Rayr, the wine shop, in Rockport, Maine. Quirky and stylish, it’s a treasure trove.
Rayr is the perfect pairing for all the great food sources bubbling up in mid-coast Maine. Great food deserves great wine.
It’s bursting with an amazing selection of wines and beers from all over the world. Just perusing the labels can be great entertainment in itself.
They have 250 wines under $25, as well as oodles of higher end selections. You’ll also find foreign and domestic beers, ports, aperitifs and desert wines
The charming, and talented, owners have eclectic backgrounds, and have lived, and worked, all over — Europe, the West Coast, and even Texas.
When one of the partners came to Rockport to attend the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, they just couldn’t leave. (Sound familiar to anyone else?)
When you go, have some of their delicious, locally roasted, Rock City coffee, and Vermont Tea Company teas. The perfect compliment to browsing their stacks of wine, and the furniture craftmanship on display in the back.
As the days get shorter, Rayr would be a terrific spot to meet friends for coffee, delve into the mysteries of wine, and pick up the perfect red for your Boeuf Bourguignon.
Rayr, the wine shop – 67 Pascal Avenue, (just off of Route One) at the corner of Pascal and West Street, Rockport Village, Maine, 207-230-7009.
Lucky Rockport – - – just around the corner from the new Farmers Fare (see this post below) you’ll find the classic Market Basket on the corner of Routes One and 90.
Soho had Dean & Deluca, Napa Valley had Oakville Grocery, and Rockport had The Market Basket — the quirky pioneers who followed their instincts to satisfy appetites for really fine food. The folks who follow the ‘if you build it, they will come,’ philosophy.
Under new owners, Larry & Lynette Platt, it continues to be a popular purveyor of fine food to mid-coast Maine.
The Market Basket’s known for making fresh bread, pasteries, sandwiches and prepared dishes, on site.
They were one of the first to bring a complete selection of fine wines to the area.
And along with their scrumptious prepared foods, they have a huge selection of speciality food items. A good cook will be able to find just that right esoteric ingredient. They often offer cooking lessons.
The shop’s packed with personality, fun, great food, wine, tourists, and locals. It’s the perfect spot to pick up picnic fare for the boat or hike, a birthday cake, wine and cheese, inspiration, or morning pastries for the office.
The line may occasionally be long, but the conversations are interesting, and the the food worth the wait. But just a warning, you may end up hungry for more.
The Market Basket, corner of Routes One and 90, Rockport, ME 04856, 207/236-4371
It’s not easy catching up with Dave Getchell — to find a time when he’s not manning exhibit booths at trade shows, installing docks in Rockland Harbor, or singing with dogs. These don’t seem like the normal range of duties for someone with the very important duties of an Associate Publisher. But Dave’s not an ordinary associate publisher. He works for Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors magazine, headquartered in Rockland — not an ordinary magazine.
Dave’s exuberance might explain why Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors is so popular. Some say that it’s what Downeast magazine used to be — full of detailed information, and quirky, intelligent stories, always reflecting the fascinating, and hard working people, and the beautiful areas of Maine.
As with many from Maine, the more he went away, the more he didn’t. And now he makes a living out of where he loves to live.
Maine and publishing are in his blood. Most likely helped along by his early childhood inoculations by the black flies.
Why do you live in Maine?
The more I’ve traveled over the years (a lot, especially when I was doing TV production and traveling 150 days annually), the more I appreciate what’s right here.
Are you from Maine?
Yes, and, well, no. My dad is from Bangor but thanks to the US Army, I was born out of state. Moved back at age 2. If that doesn’t make me ‘from here’ I guess I’m guilty of being from New Jersey.
Where do you live?
A little 1920s bungalow on the Megunticook River, downtown Camden. I like to say I have “in-town waterfront” property. I have an ocean view, too — if I stand on the very peak of my barn roof, that is.
How did you find it?
Originally rented the house, and liked the place so much we bought it in early 90s. Every so often I get the itch to try another location, do a bit of house shopping, and then am cured of this silly idea for several more years.
What’s the best, and worst, part about living here?
Best–the change of seasons, one of the things that progress hasn’t managed to screw up yet. Worst–the change of seasons, especially the advent of mud season. Perversely, one of my favorite seasons is when the black flies come out…they’re what keeps the coast of Maine from ending up like southern Connecticut. My dad calls ‘em the ‘guardians of the forest.”
What are you giving up?
Nothing, at least that I can see.
What are you getting?
Everything that makes Maine into Maine–lakes, mountains, rivers, the amazing coast, the fact you don’t have to lock the car every time you walk more than 5 feet away from it.
What is your favorite — boating destination?
A tiny island in Penobscot Bay that stands out for its Caribbean-like white shell beaches. It’s not named on the charts; I call the island Petit Phoque (baby seal) because one time I fell asleep on the sand there, only to wake as a baby seal hauled out a few feet away. i think it was disappointed I wasn’t it’s momma, because it bleated a few times, I said, “quit yer whining, go out there and catch some mackerel” so he swam away.
Food?
Foraged steamer clams and mussels on an island, cooked over a driftwood fire. A close second is lobster served no further than a few feet from high tide line, cooked over that driftwood fire and then served up on a driftwood plank. In either case, you toss the leftover shells below tide line, a feast for the crabs and seagulls who come later.
Colors?
That particular “red sky at night” sunset, which means we probably won’t need the rainfly on the tent that night.
What kind of boat do you have?
A Lund Alaskan, a 20-foot open skiff; it’s small enough to launch/land with just one person, yet seaworthy enough so I’ve taken it to Maine’s farthest offshore islands. It’s built out of aluminum, the only material tough enough to withstand regular landings on Maine’s rocky islands. I’ve had the boat 11 years now, and expect to have it many many more.
It thrives an a steady diet of island-hopping, beach BBQs, striper fishing, handlining for cod, towing my screeching nieces around on a tube on Megunticook Lake, big-water adventures on Moosehead, fall sea-duck-hunting, exploring coastal rivers (often finding new uncharted rocks along the way) and spending the winters on its trailer in a snowbank.
Best compliments on the Lund have come from lobstermen, usually from their boat to mine while we’re bobbing in a big surge off an island someplace; their usual reaction is, “Nice boat!”
Read on to to learn more about Dave, Cap’n Henri, and Maine, Boats, Homes and Harbors.
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Kimber Lee Clark’s wonderful Saturday Cove has been missing for a while now. But it’s back!
Her parents definitely had a sense of humor and she continues the whimsey in her art work. Her great taste, and sense of style, have been a magnet for fans from all over the world. Stop by and say hello, she’d love to see you.
Saturday Cove, Route One, Atlantic Highway, Northport, ME 04849, 207-338-3654. Here’s the website. (You’ll find it five miles south of Belfast and 11 miles north of Camden.) Open – June –Wednesday-Saturday — 10-5, Sunday –12-4 / July and August — Daily — 10-5.
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Here are just a few of the participants in the Maine Home + Design Show over the weekend at beautiful Point Lookout in Northport.
Downeast Doormats were there with their very clever doormats made from lobstermen’s float lines. Great idea!
Tyson Weiss was there with his amazing fish that thrive in gardens.
Alec Brainerd of Artisan Boatworks was there with a gorgeous sample of his skills, along with his wonderful family. What a lucky guy he is!
Debby Neve of Castine browses through the wonderful Kennebec Company booth.
The very popular Dave Getchell, Associate Publisher of Maine, Boats, Homes & Harbors magazine was also there.
Were you?
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Required Reading:
