Magic, pure magic out there in New England

Ok, I stole the title of this post. Anita of Castles Crowns and Cottages commented on my Hamilton Coaches post and she coined the phrase about pure magic. Anita's words are always pure poetry and so are the images she chooses. You need to visit her blog after reading this post. I think pure magic describes Autumn in New England perfectly. I have always felt it is magical here and especially in Autumn.

The photo above was taken at my favorite store, Nesting on Main in Concord. Yes, Nesting is heaven but Heaven right here describes my home state and it's surrounds. All the stores, like Nesting, are decked out in their Autumn finery inside and out. I just love all the vibrant colors.

At Zuzu's Cafe in Wakefield yellow leaves were everywhere on the outdoor patio. Inside it was nice and cozy.

Butternut squash apple soup, a staple of my diet this season. Pure magic! And who can resist the best grilled cheese in town? Half a sandwich and the soup is plenty enough for lunch.

You can find some of the best foliage in cemeteries in Autumn. This one was in Concord.

And this one was in Wakefield. This is close to my home so I go here often. It's by the lake which makes it especially nice.

This Wakefield cemetery had been moved from the town green to this section of land by the church and the lake. I am not sure why but I am always drawn to cemeteries in Autumn.

I was photographing this structure when an older man with long white hair and a straw hat approached me. He asked about my camera and what I was shooting. I didn't want to tell him that I was also using Instagram on my phone because I thought he would think I was cheating.

I asked about this stone structure. He said it was a very old burial crypt. The family, he said, had planted grass on top of it so as to disguise it. The left side door had been pried open a bit so there is a large piece of stone blocking the entrance. I thought the building was interesting and I tried to give it a romantic feel in my shot.

It's hard to imagine that some of these graves are from the sixteen and seventeen hundreds. They have certainly withstood some harsh Winters but their carvings remain in fairly good shape.

Amazingly, very few graves were broken. I think I only saw one completely cracked in half. The crunching of the leaves made spooky sound effects as the sun started to set.

The man in the straw hat said he had photographed the cemetery and the lake many times and he showed me where the light hits the trees at the end of the day.

And there was more magic going on in Concord. Drummer, the abused horse who was rescued by a nice Concord family, was having a great time in the Autumn sunshine. I am so happy to see him again. Last time I drove by his corral he was not there. But he's back and he has a friend. Good for him.

He has some nice scenery to look at all day. I guess he can take refuge in that building in the distance.

And speaking of horses, I don't think I shared this photo of these two beauties in Hamilton. Another shot with my phone.

After all that travel this weekend I stopped by a favorite coffee shop, Jitters Cafe, for an Autumnal favorite. No ones does a cinnamon mocha better than Jitters in Melrose.

Entering my driveway I see I have some raking ahead of me but it can wait.

I still have some magic to photograph.

Wakefield Uncommon Antiques and ZuZu's Cafe

I took another vacation day on Friday.  I still have many left, yipee!  Since snow was coming on Saturday I thought I should get out on Friday and get some foliage shots. With high winds predicted I figured all the leaves would be off the trees and on the ground soon.

This shot is of a tree in my yard. I love multi colors on a single leaf.

I took a quick trip up to the Canal Street Antiques and bought the chandelier I blogged about in an earlier post.  Now I have to contact the electrician to hang it. Will post a photo when it is up.

Back to the foliage shots, it was actually a disappointing day. Foliage was not that great this year so I had to find other things of interest.  Like this old cemetery in Reading.

Another disappointing foliage shot.

It was getting late and I was starving. I realized it was hours past lunchtime.  So I headed to ZuZu's Cafe for a second visit to this little cafe. The food here is fantastic!  I am thinking of using their catering for my Christmas Soiree!

I love their menu, so many choices! Shocking for such a little place.  My goal is to try every item on the menu.

Last Summer, I came here for lunch and sat outside.  They have more outside seating than indoor seating.

I opted fot the deep dish quiche. This quite possibly was the best quiche I ever had.  Spinach, feta, red pepper, yum!  It was mile high yet light.

And there was a lovely view from my table. Aw, there's some foliage!

And here are the tables used for outdoor dining.  Friday was a blustery day.  I don't know what the wind chill was but it felt like sub zero.  I could tell it was going to snow soon.

The wrought iron chairs and tables were so cute! It is so pleasant to sit here in Summer.

Almost next door to ZuZu's is a cool little antique store called Wakefield Uncommon. I spoke with the owner and asked permission to take some shots. She was happy to oblige.

There are three small rooms in the building.  A number of dealers share the space.  Seemed everything I picked up belonged to vendor #99. Whoever she is she has excellent taste!

Loved the little beaded purse.

Displays were nicely arranged. Loved the lamps and the blue and white theme.

This lamp also caught my eye. Although honestly I have plenty of lamps. I always seem to be drawn to them. I don't know why.

 A nice collection of evening bags.  These would be pretty just for display in a bedroom.

 What a lovely screen.  I need one but this one is too pretty for my purposes.  ( I need one to hide a cat litter box).

Another one of the rooms in the shop.  Love the chair and the paint color!

I did pick up a few items at Wakefield Uncommon, a Victorian tray, a book and a cameo.

A very nice day off I would say.  I will be back to Wakefield soon.  It is easy access for me, about 10 minutes from where I live. 

Thankfully last night's snowstorm and high winds did not do any damage to my condo.  I did have to take several detours due to downed branches across roads today.  Some people in the state still do not have power. I just heard on the news 640,000 people are still without heat and electricity.  I hope the problem is resolved soon.

This snowstorm was just way too early!

Trolling Estate and Yard Sales

A forecast of Fall-like temperatures and a rare Saturday off made me decide this morning was a perfect time to go yard saling.  I checked online and set my GPS.  I added a few estate sales in the mix and I was off  to one estate sale and three yard sales in Wakefield and one estate sale and one yard sale in Melrose.

I set up a still life in my side yard to display my finds for you. The hydrangeas have a little story but that's for another post.

The estate sale in Wakefield was pretty good. It started at 9AM and I arrived after 10.  So I think a lot of the really good stuff was gone.  I got the small teapot, tea cup and 2 saucers there. I like to shop estate sales because you can often get a real bargain but they also bother me. I am conflicted.

I was conversing with a woman at the estate sale and I said although I love to go to estate sales I find them unsettling.  Think about it, the occupants of the house have died and throngs of people are walking through their home.Today at the estate sale, people were rifling through drawers and cabinets.  I saw a young man sifting through a woman's closet. I find it kind of creepy. The woman I was speaking to said she thinks of it as giving a second life to the deceased's possessions. I shall try to view it this way.

Here's a closeup of the teacup and one of the saucers.  They don't match but I don't care.

In Melrose, I went to an estate sale, nothing there of interest to me.  And I felt so bad because the granddaughter was there and she was crying.

I then went to a few yard sales in Melrose. At one yard sale, I got three fur pieces.  The first one was a small collar. The inside was satin and it was in excellent condition.

The second piece was a hat.  It's on the small side bur it will fit Vivienne, my dress form perfectly.

Here's the teapot from the estate sale in closeup.

The third piece from the same yard sale.  A fur muff.  If I ever go ice skating again I can use this!

Here's the cool satin lining on the fur collar.  This collar is so elegant.  I think I can probably tack it on to one of my cardigans.

The teacup and saucer don't match as you can see but they look good together.

 This saucer is from the estate sale.  The old keys are from an antique yard sale in Wakefield.

I guess I pretty much covered these chairs with my finds I got them in Melrose at another yard sale. They were a steal. Made by Burrowes, they are in almost pristine condition! They will serve as extra seating and I can also use them as props in photo shoots.  So cute!

Here's a closeup of the seat of the chair. I absolutely love the color of the wood.

I worked up an appetite after all that rummaging.  So I gave my friend Debbi a call and she and one of her friends met me for breakfast at Aroma Cafe in Reading. 

A nice day all around.  How about you? Any interesting weekend plans?