New England nature lovers are never bored. In addition to the endless options for exploring nature solo, there are also numerous learning centers in each of our six states with an emphasis on kid-friendly education and entertainment. Here is a list of five family-friendly nature sites that celebrate and preserve the relationship between nature and […]
maine
Hydroponic gardening is the art and science of growing plants without soil. For hundreds of years mediums other than soil have been used with great success to grow plants. Today hydroponic trends include succulents growing vertically as living walls and room dividers and roof top plantings designed by landscape architects to absorb rainwater run-off and […]
Photographer and longtime contributor Kindra Clineff captured the pristine beauty of the Maine woods and Bold Coast Trail in Cutler, Maine in our May/June 2012 feature “Bold Coast Trail in Maine | A Trail for Bold Walkers.” We’re pleased to share a bonus collection of her images here.
There’s a huge granite millstone paving the way to the front door of Skinner Mill, the house in Wells, Maine, that Tom Joyal, of Old House Parts,built for Elaine Triplett and Bob McLaughlin. A small white dog named Tarragon is jumping up and down on it, barking loudly. The sound of Branch Brook, which runs […]
Joyce Tenneson is famous for her ethereal, romantic photographs of women, flowers, seashells, and now trees. She is one of the few serious photographers who dares to tackle obvious beauty in an age of ironic ugliness. I have long regarded her as the Andrew Wyeth of photography. Just as Wyeth painted as though […]
How To
Crafts | Make a May Basket
When I was a child growing up in Maine, my grandparents came to our house each and every May Day with little baskets filled to the brim with candies, animal cookies and popcorn. These vibrant baskets were decorated with frilled papers and tissue flowers and were a delight to look at, even after the contents […]
Magazine
The Many Faces of F. Holland Day
Fred Holland Day (1864-1933) was a colorful and controversial character in his time, a wealthy Bostonian who championed photography as an art form. A noted Pictorialist himself, he created romantic photographs that aped paintings. In this he was eclipsed in his own time by his rival Alfred Stieglitz and in history by the rise […]
Magazine
Wally Warren’s Roadside Attractions
Wally Warren has been described variously as a folk artist, a faux folk artist, an outsider artist, an earth artist, an environmental artist, an assemblage artist, a found object artist, and a recycle artist. He just thinks of himself as a sculptor. In 2011, Warren had a rare institutional exhibition of his colorful, […]
The Spring Equinox is just a few weeks away, which gets “the winter that wasn’t” closer to being part of our collective history and further from our current reality. But wait; that does not mean it’s time to stow your skis and board. Despite having somewhat lackluster all-natural conditions, snowmakers across New England pounded the […]
At the risk of turning into a Portlandia cliché, I’m really fond of birds’ nests as a decorative motif. Exhibit A: this ring, purchased at a shop in, ahem, Portland (Maine, not Oregon). The symbolism may be heavy-handed, but nests do make me feel happy and cozy. Fortunately, the marketplace agrees with me. Any vaguely […]
In 2002, the University of Maine Museum of Art, which had resided on the campus of the state’s flagship state university in Orono, moved off campus and into Norumbega Hall, a former dance hall, bowling alley, and Sears store on the Kenduskeag Stream canal in the heart of downtown Bangor. “If we were […]
New England
Best Cozy Mountains in New England
There’s nothing like a mountain getaway. When it comes to great skiing and comfy inns, everybody can find something to enjoy. So whether you want to hit the slopes, or just huddle up inside and enjoy the view, these New England peaks are some of the best cozy mountains the region has to offer. 1. […]