Nantucket Flowers

Jeffrey picked these from our garden.....a little bit of everything!

I bet there will be lots of flowers this week at the Farmer's Market....see you there! xoxo

Copperplate Calligraphy

I took a copperplate calligraphy course this weekend at The Abbey Studio in Hingham with Maryanne Grebenstein. I was lucky enough to have a private lesson....but let me tell you....it's all about PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE!!!!

Here is her whimsical logo....

I had done an Illustration last year for Illustration Friday....of course, you can tell it was before my lesson!

I was searching for copperplate calligraphy on the internet and found this lovely site....I Dream Of Letters...Danae's style is beautiful and affordable....her etsy site is here

I love this envelope done in pink raspberry gouache....

..

Here's my fun little map....

And here's Danae's....Georgeous! Danae has been doing calligraphy since she was 12 years old.....I better get busy!Thanks for the lessons, Maryanne....and thanks for the inspiration, Danae..... xo

Mermaid Mobile

I drive a 1993 Subaru Legacy...runs swell....but there's one problem....the Bookstore parking lot is shared with The Brotherhood of Thieves Restaurant and Pub.....There are delivery and sanatation trucks going in and out all day, and it's a cramped space for big trucks. I think the drivers wake up in the morning and think...."hmmmm...let's bash that Subaru in Bookworks parking lot today! Yee Haw!" I've been bashed 3 times and never caught the culprets....so I have a bunch of dents in my bumper( and a crooked bike rack,too) Well, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade! I painted a mermaid and a whale right over those dents (although I was tempted to paint a big ole' bulls eye)....The mermaid's tail looks as if it is waving in the sea....but really, it is waving over a big dent. And I put my blog address on it too. What a hippie...ha ha ha!

Mermaid spotting

Hey....They're spotting us....in Israel....go girls....

Here, too

Daryl Hannah is one of my customers....of course! xo

The Mermaid Inn

Where's a Mermaid to go when they need a break??????

Here's the Mermaid Inn in Mystic Ct...only a stone's throw away from Mom and Dad.....pretty.....a really historic and beautiful town..... I love the shop "Nest" , but they don't have a web site that I can show you....so you'll just have to go....next door is a clam shack that has the best fried full bellied clams EVER! YUM!

My Son, Marty is moving to Philadelphia next month....hey! Take me to the Mermaid Inn..... Good music,too!

I thought it was an Inn, but I think it's a restaurant.....kind of a vague web site, but looks good! Here's a review ....and HERE are directions and a little more info....Jeffrey goes to NYC for his classes in Polarity 4 times a year, and he stays in the East Villiage....and we will go to The Mermaid Inn....Check out their gallery...that lobster roll looks yummy! xo

Handpainted Frames

I've been at the Studio all week long.....getting all of my frame orders done!

here's a few best sellers....pink ribbon design.....

Flower bouquets..............

and a new one with a nantucket theme...the photo I found in a magazine ad....it looks just like my landlord....off to the beach! And I'm off to the Shop....see you there! xo

Gillette Castle

Jeffrey has been avoiding going to the Gillette Castle for about 2 years now......My Father loves to be a tour guide and both of my Parents live about a mile or two away from this State Park attraction....it's just that Jeffrey really isn't the tourist type. But this visit, he had no excuse....we were on a mini vacation.....so Dad got up early and off we went.....

I had already been to the castle, and I love it! I wish I had lived here myself......Here's a little history...

The castle is built of Connecticut rocks.....way on top of a hillside overlooking the Connecticut River, home to the Goodspeed Opera House

Jeffrey was so nice to pose for a few photos.....

He is so nice to point the way to the castle.....He knew there was no way out of it, so why not have some fun????

William Gillette AKA Sherlock Holmes, had a steam locomotive running around his property...why not? This is the little station he had built...

freakin' nice arch, wouldn't you say, Watson?

He loved cats and had about 15 of them hanging out with him.....

In you go....nice latch....everything is hand made inside the castle.....we will concentrate on the doors....

but first to the main room.....

awsome ceilings....all wooden..........

Door 1....I love the flower...

Door 2.....

This door was incredible....I know all of the carpenters who read the Nantucket Mermaid Blog will love this!

All woven and carved.....

and the door knob...............

Another door.............


Mister Gillette had employed carpenters and masons to work on his castle, and they did a stuning job........

The levers on the right hand side are modeled after train levers and were used to turn the lights in the castle on and off..... Outside is the view of the Connecticut River and his gardens......

There's the little ferry we take over to the other side to a little town called Chester in the summer....saves a bunch of time instead of going over the bridge near the Opera House.........

Dad lives here but can't resist being a tourist..............

Down the stairs and away we go! Visit the Castle if you are in the area....it's beautiful.....even Jeffrey thought so! xo

Framed Prints

I have been printing on archival acid free matte paper for a series of prints that I am selling at the Studio....Here is the first....A Nantucket Shopper.....in a limited edition of 50.....

Here she is framed with a beautiful glare....

a close-up of the frame.......

and my busy studio! I'm off to the beach today for a much needed rest.......xo

Mermaid and Pirate t shirts

And a new summer-y tag....

aye matey.......

coming to an etsy shop near you! xo