The Vintage Bazaar, Salisbury, Massachusetts

The emu greeted us at the entrance to the Vintage Bazaar and he/she had a lot to say.  Probably because there was a lot going on at the Vintage Bazaar.  There was much to see and we had only a few hours to see 130 + vendors. Obviously, we weren't going to get to everyone.

It was a little cool in the morning so it was perfect for shopping. The grass was a bit wet but I didn't mind. Later in the day it was much warmer.

The displays were first rate. I have never seen such beautifully merchandised spaces in my life. Everyone had such unique booths. They were pure eye candy.

I told this woman I was giving her the best booth award. Her booth stood out from the sea of canopies. Anyone who adds a chandelier to their booth is tops in my book.

See the chandelier? Not only was the display great, the jewelry was lovely too. Nicely done.

Ooh, I really liked that chalkboard in the silver frame! Of course it caught my eye, I have a chalkboard obsession.

I love this. Christina calls herself a Treasurer Broker. Wouldn't that be a great job? I might just have the qualifications.

Wish I could have taken this home. It made me laugh and many others chuckled too.

This woman had  the Asylum sign in her both. She sold some wonderful soaps and she gave me a free sample. It was called sleeping angels. Smells heavenly!

We stopped by the Buttermilk Baking company tent for some molasses cookies. They were delicious and I will be visiting their shop in Newburyport soon. Lovely people too.

These dogs were so cute! The older dog led the puppy. The puppy obediently had the older dog's leash in his mouth. The two of them were adorable and they were never going to be separated.

Another great display. Nice sign at the booth's entrance. I enjoyed speaking to the ladies in this booth.

Loved the coasters and the drawers holding them. Very unique and practical.

Pauline Gould does absolutely beautiful work with crochet and knitting.  The colors she uses are fantastic!

My sister modeled the mittens that I eventually purchased. They are so soft! I love fingerless gloves and mittens for Winter Photography. Keeps my whole hand from getting cold.

Pauline was more than happy to model her work for us. I loved the scarfs too. Pauline has an etsy shop too  in case you were wondering.

This woman was a sweetheart. She did wonderful artwork inspired by vintage children's books. Lots of kitties in her pieces so of course I was interested.

Here is one of her pieces. So adorable! Lovely frame too. She had quite the selection.

I stopped by Pop and Circumstance's booth. Becky was enjoying her first Vintage Bazaar as a vendor.

Of course I had to buy a few of these cute "tea" spoons! They will make great package toppers.

I really, really wanted to bring this little cabinet home but I didn't. It was in great condition.Looking at the photo now, I wish I had purchased it. It would look great in my new office which is still unfinished.

What a great space! The vendors really went all out at this fair. The name of the shop is Bohemian Cottage. I am sure I will do business with them at some point. After all, I loved everything in the booth.

What a cool bench! I was thinking this would be great in my dining room at one side of the table. Have you ever seen that in a magazine? One side is a bench and the other side is chairs.

There were so many nice things in this booth. I wish I had more time to look but I had to leave to go home for an appointment.

Such lovely linens. The vendor had a beautiful selection of pretties. I could have dropped a bundle at this bouth given more time.

I think this dress form is a sister to my Vivienne. My dressform is more into clothes. This one is clearly into jewelry. This vendor, Sand, Sea, and Steam had the most innovative displays.

I love steampunk so this was right up my alley. And the vendor was the nicest young woman. A real joy to speak to. She is so passionate about her work. And as I said her displays were phenomenal.

My friend Diane is a painter. She had a fabulous display of her work. You may remember her as my cat Oscar's foster Mom.

Diane sold cards too. I love her artwork and someday I will own one of her paintings.

This vendor was busy and you can see why.  She had great salvage pieces. I almost went for the spindles.

Ir was a perfect Fall day and my first exposure to The Vintage Bazaar. I am sure it will not be my last.

Beth's Bakery and Cafe, Sandwich, Massachusetts

The first day of vacation in Sandwich, we lunched at Beth's Bakery and Café on Jarves St. It was within walking distance of the inn so it was the perfect spot for a quick lunch.

Of course, I am a sucker for any chalkboard menu so I knew I would like the place. Hmm, homemade mac and cheese, yum!

It was quite warm that day but we still sat outside on the deck. Good people watching and there was a breeze.

The café used to be a Puritan Church. My sister wanted to know if Jarves St was church row because the inn used to be a church, the café was a church and the stores down the street were formerly the first Catholic Church in Sandwich.

We both had the mac and cheese. I opted for the fruit cup instead of the salad. It was all very good.

Here's the inside of the café. Lots of goodies to choose from. We didn't have any fancy drinks or desserts.

 

This is the view from the deck.

 

One morning I walked down to Beth's for my morning coffee. They had just opened and I was the first customer. I ended up meeting Joe ,the owner, and he gave me the history of the place. Beth is his wife's name.

Yes, the place was a Puritan Church once and much later it was a USO Hall.

Now it is a cute café with beadboard walls and simple decoration. A nice local place for coffee, breakfast or lunch. The owner told me he changed the name from Beth's Special Teas to Beth's Café and Bakery because people thought it was a tea shop. He said he rarely had male customers when the name was Beth's Special Teas.

There was quite the collection of antiques hung high above the restaurant. I love the old sewing machine table. I just got one at a recent yard sale.

He told me he got the stain glass windows from a builder who had salvaged them from an old building. Joe had them in his basement for years. He thought they were pretty but he had no idea how he would use them.

When he bought the building, he realized he had the perfect spot for the doves. He said unfortunately because of the way the glass was cut he could only put them in as descending doves. Either way, they are beautiful.

I enjoyed speaking with Joe, and Gail, who made my cappuccino. She was so pleasant and efficient I was sure she was Joe's wife. I asked if she was Beth. She laughed and said no she was not an owner.
Everyone on staff was great.

If you are in the Sandwich area check out Beth's Bakery and Café on Jarves St. You'll be happy you did.

Susan Branch book signing- Sandwich, Massachusetts

The main reason I chose to visit Sandwich, Massachusetts in August was because Susan Branch was doing a book signing there. Susan had tweeted that she was going to be signing her new book, A Fine Romance, on Martha's Vineyard August 15th and 17th.  As much as I wanted to go to the Vineyard for one of the signings, I knew I couldn't. The 15th is/was my Sister's birthday and the 17th was the date of a big birthday party I was throwing for her. So those dates were out.

I am a follower of Susan on Twitter so I tweeted to her asking if she had any other signings scheduled for Massachusetts. Susan tweeted back to me that she was going to be at Titcomb's Bookstore on August 19th. I googled Titcomb's and found out it was in Sandwich. The next day I made a call to Titcomb's and purchased two tickets. Vicky (the owner) told me the tickets she was putting aside for me had a low number, meaning we would be one of the first people to meet Susan. The excitement began to build. I made our reservations for the Belfry Inne and waited anxiously for the day to arrive.

The event was held at the Sandwich Town Hall, a beautiful and historic building. Inside, it looked like every seat was filled. Susan has many fans in the New England, after all she lives on Martha's Vineyard.

My sister and I got in line to purchase books and calendars.  That is where we met Wendy. Wendy had come alone to the book signing and I started chatting with her. She wasn't as familiar with Susan Branch as I was so I started to fill her in. She was excited to meet Susan too. I snapped this photo of Wendy and my sister.

I invited Wendy to sit with us as we had seats in the front row. We got there early and I wanted the best spot for taking photos. So we chose seats at the end of the first row.

As you can see, the Town Hall was filled with Susan's fans or girlfriends as she calls them.

Susan arrived on time and quickly engaged her audience. She decided to read some excerpts from her book. She showed us Petey, a toy her husband received as a boy.

Susan kept a journal of her trip and this journal turned into her newest book, A Fine Romance. She gave us a sneak peek. 

She wrote in her journal every day and she also added photos and drawings to it. The real journal looked like the printed book right down to the handwriting. Yes, the book is beautifully handwritten!

 

She held the journal up for everyone to see. I wished I had been sitting right in front of her instead of to the side.

 

 

Susan took questions as well. She was as sweet as she looks. Not at all impressed with herself.

 

She did not limit the number of items she would sign for each person. I was hoping she would sign three for me. A book, a calendar for my friend Kim and my Autumn cookbook.

 

Here she is signing the cookbook. She was interested in each person and she chatted with everyone. Amazing really.

 

She signed a few items for my sister too. I think one might be a gift for someone.

Susan's book contained recipes of course and the refreshments were made of Susan's recipes.

The cookies were absolutely delicious. I thought this was a nice touch.

While we all enjoyed refreshments, Susan was still signing books. She made sure everyone got their time with her.

She even posed for photos with some of her adoring fans, young and old.

I spied Joe (Susan's husband) taking photos from the balcony during Susan's talk. Then he came downstairs. I saw he had the journal in his hands so I asked if I could see it.

He flipped through the pages and let me snap some photos. He likes to stay in the background he told me.

I'm so glad I called for tickets earlier in the month. I would have been very disappointed to see a sold out sign.

It was time for an early dinner after the book signing. I asked my sister if she minded if I invited Wendy to dine with us. She thought it was a great idea. Wendy accepted the invitation and we decided to walk to the Daniel Webster Inn. We passed a small home with a beautiful garden. I wanted to live there.

This house was pink on the front and was also quite charming. The houses on Main Street were a nice manageable and unfussy size.

The weather was fantastic for outside dining. Not too hot or too cool. We practically had the patio to ourselves.

We all ordered the same thing. Pan seared scallops, half order. None of us wanted leftovers because where do you put leftovers when you are on vacation?

I do believe my meal is smiling at me. I loved the presentation. Compliments to the chef.

Here's the menu. You can read about our pan bronzed scallops if you like.

We all had the petite treats desserts. Wendy and I chose mudpies and my sister had a chai
tea crème brulee. She said it was the best she ever had.

I was in my happy place by the end of the day. A book signing and meeting with someone I admire, making a new friend in Wendy, and ending the day with a delicious dinner. And this was the first day of vacation. It was perfect!

The Painted Lady of Sandwich

In the last post, I mentioned I would tell you about the Painted Lady, one of three buildings that comprise the Belfry Inne property.

We stayed at the Painted Lady and we were not disappointed.  This was my room.

I woke up in a light filled gorgeous room to a glorious morning. I loved my little stained glass window. The Abbey was not the only building with wonderful stained glass windows.

I actually booked this room because of two features. One was a stained glass window, the second was because of the private patio.

The outside is so appealing if I were driving by I would have to make note of the place.

The flowers were colorful and plentiful. I could not stop taking photos of them.

Were the flowers carefully chosen to match the colors of  the Inne? Perhaps.

This is the path outside my patio. Charming, just charming. Made me want to just stay in my room and watch the bees and the flowers.

The bath towels were folded like fans. I took this photo for reference in case I want to try it at home.

I got to read my new book on the patio and I liked to spend my mornings out there too. The book is A Fine Romance by Susan Branch and we went to her book signing at the Sandwich Town Hall. I will tell you all about it in the next post.

Speaking of mornings, this was my breakfast on the second day. I think this looks like the Sydney Opera House don't you? We got to eat breakfast in the Abbey, the converted church. I would rate the food A+ and so was the service and the ambience.

Back to the Painted Lady, yes there really were bats in the Belfry Inne. This was painted on the walls of the tower. Such a cute sitting area.

I hope you enjoyed your virtual stay at the Belfry Inne. Next, I will take you to the Susan Branch book signing.