It's a Jolly Lobster Trap Christmas (Tree)

 

The Lobster Trap Christmas Tree in Stonington, CT

One of my goals for this holiday season was to visit places I hadn't been before during this time of year. I will return to old favorites -- Rockefeller Center, the Metropolitan Museum and window shopping on Madison Avenue -- but I was/am eager for some new sights. I started my "New Sights Tour" with my visit to the Bronx Zoo last month and adding a place that I love in the summer, but haven't visited in the winter, Stonington, CT.

I love the small towns of New England, and especially those in Connecticut, where I grew up. I'm not able to choose a favorite town -- there are so many lovely ones -- but Stonington, in the corner of the state on the Rhode Island border, is definitely near the top. My cousins live a quick car ride away and during a visit last weekend, they suggested we visit the Lobster Trap Christmas Tree. Despite the cold, I was an immediate yes. 

Inside the tree, a pyramid of lobster traps and lights. 

That's me in boots, hat, hood, scarf  and down coat.

I knew nothing about  the existence of lobster trap Christmas trees, but after a little research found that the first one began in Gloucester, MA in 2001 and now there are lobster trap trees all along the New  England coast. 

The tree is a display for 460 buoys, all hand painted

Here are a few facts on our tree. In addition to the 460 buoys (an anchored float used as a navigation mark) the tree is made of 460 lobster traps. Forty of the buoys were created by the children of Stonington and twenty-two are devoted to the commercial fishermen of the area. The tree is a popular site for wedding proposals. There were three in 2021, the first year the tree was built and fourteen last year. My bet is that there will be twenty proposals this year. What's your thought?

I loved looking at the buoys and was fascinated by the different styles and themes. A major goal of the tree -- besides a wonderful community focus -- is to encourage the artists of the area. Cheers to the town of Stonington for creating this beautiful new holiday tradition. 

A salute to the 250th anniversary of the Navy

Thanks, Stonington!

I'm back in New York after my Connecticut weekend. For a quick forty eight hour visit, we managed to include a lot of fun. Lunch with cousins, a visit to our favorite doughnut store, a walk with the pups, seeing the lights at Olde Mistick Village -- hope to do a post of this in the next few days -- and a tour of a senior community. The last activity is just "fact  finding." 

As  ever, thanks for visiting and keep cozy!

Welcome to The Velvet Mill

Welcome to The Velvet Mill

In a world not that long gone, in Connecticut and all of New England, much of the employment was in mills and the factories that later replaced the original mills. When I was growing up in Hartford in the 1950s and 1960s, Hartford wasn't just the "Insurance Capital of the World," but one of the leading sites for manufacturing typewriters. Both Underwood, later bought by Olivetti, and Royal typewriters were made there and employed thousands, including my father, who worked at Underwood for eighteen years. 

But much of the manufacturing world of New England is now history or remains in a different ways. When I visited Connecticut in September we found a fascinating repurposed velvet mill in Stonington, The Velvet Mill. It's now an event space and home to restaurants and small businesses.

Once this was the home of Wimpfheimer Velvets manufacturing, which moved to Stonington from Astoria, New York in the early 1890s because of a malaria epidemic. The building had been built by the town of Stonington to encourage industrial development. 

Years ago -- before the company moved to Virginia in 1996 -- looms to make velvet filled these spaces. 

Some of the men and women who worked at those looms. 

 

We found this fun-looking ice cream shop -- a genuine old-fashioned soda fountain -- at the end of one of the aisles. Unfortunately it wasn't open so we couldn't sample the ice cream. However, since Sift Bake Shop was our next stop that day, we didn't spoil our appetites. 

I posted the picture of the beautiful black velvet dress above on my Facebook page. Several friends asked if I was tempted to buy it. Perhaps in a different time I might have been tempted. But I can only remember wearing a dress once in 2020, and my clothing purchases are mostly replacements for the few things I've worn out this year. Once we're socializing in person again -- how's that for optimism! -- I'm pretty sure I will look for a new dress for the first big event I'm invited to.   

On a different note, Wimpfheimer's Velvet is still producing fabric at its Virginia location. I noted on their website that they sell small orders to home sewers. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and take care. 

Pink Saturday Goes to Stonington

 

The view from Stonington, Connecticut 

I  know we all enjoyed our visit to Mystic last week. But after we've had one last cookie at Sift Bakery and stopped for a slice of pizza, we would be remiss if we didn't drive east to one of the loveliest towns in all of New England, Stonington. You'll know you drove too far if you see signs that you're in Rhode Island. 

Stonington is at the far southeastern corner of Connecticut. It was first settled by European colonists in 1649. This area of what would become Connecticut was then land belonging to the Pequot people. The town began to thrive when its fleet became active in the fur trade in the 1790s. A remnant of Stonington's seafarer years is the Lighthouse Museum, built in 1840.

Alas, the museum is only open on weekends after Labor Day, so I wasn't able to see the interior and the exhibit. One more reason to return to Stonington. 

The day is sunny and mostly clear, but the winds were not calm. It was so windy that it took at least three tries before I could close the car door.   

We'll be returning to Stonington in the next post for a look at The Velvet Mill, that's now become an event space and a home to restaurants, craftspeople and shops. My visit to Stonington wasn't long enough and I missed getting photographs of the beautifully preserved houses in the center of town. That, too, requires another visit there. But even with this omission I'm glad I can share one of my favorite places as part of Pink Saturday.  

It's truly autumn in New York now. It's socks weather and I've come to the realization that eating outdoors may get a lot less pleasant as the weather is less cooperative. I'm trying to enjoy as much of the time outside as possible and remember that there is no bad weather, just bad clothes, or so I am told. I do think there will be some weather that will be much less conducive to enjoying lunch out of doors, even with heaters and tenting. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and take good care.