Holiday Sparkle

Make your holiday decor in your home an unexpected delight all season long.

An upside down Christmas tree festooned with glimmering white ornaments like a chandelier. A branch sweeping diagonally across a window, wrapped in ribbon, decorated with flowers and shimmering glass. A collection of deep-red goblets, each filled with a golden apple or pear. At Casabella Home Furnishings in Sandwich, you will always find unexpected creativity, especially during the holiday season. Read more…

Posted in Seasonal: Winter, Style & Fashion

Nantucket for the Holidays

From the first of November until New Year's Day, Nantucket lights up with fun, revelry, and good cheer.

As temperatures plummet and the countdown until the holiday season begins, Nantucket prepares for a festive season. Islanders blend the old with the new this year, mixing tradition with creativity. In addition to the eagerly anticipated Christmas Stroll and the Nantucket Historical Association’s Festivals of Wreaths and Trees, the island has a special surprise in store this year: the first community-wide Nantucket New Year’s celebration. Islanders invite you to be a part of their holiday season, from the first of November, until the last horn blows on New Year’s Day. Read more…

Posted in Family Fun, Music, People, Seasonal: Winter, Social LIFE

By Plane, By Ferry, By Sleigh

More than 10,000 people flock to Nantucket for the three-day-long 39th Annual Christmas Stroll, the highlight of Nantucket Noel, a month-long celebration of the holiday season hosted by the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce. The festivities begin the day after Thanksgiving with the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, but the stroll, which begins on Friday, November 30, is the main event.

Elaborately decorated Christmas trees and storefronts illuminate the cobblestone street, while carolers enchant all within earshot. Santa and Mrs. Claus arrive on Saturday to everyone’s delight via a coast guard vessel. “It’s all very Charles Dickens-y,” said Jean Cawley of the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce. New this year is the Nantucket Sleighride, a bus service that brings pedestrians to must-see destinations outside the town center, including Bartlett Farms and Arrowhead Nursery. Call the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce at (508) 228-3643 or visit www.nantucketchamber.org for more information.

Posted in Seasonal: Winter, Travel

A Cold Sweat

In the winter, believe it or not, some folks stay outdoors while the rest crawl back inside. There’s the surfer who paddles through ice cream headaches to ride empty waves. The runner who primes her lungs for the Boston Marathon while ice thaws under her feet. The fisherman who finds massive fish in frozen ponds. Sure, they wear thicker layers and more of them, but to these three Cape Codders, cold is just a four-letter word.

Home Sweet Holiday Home

“There’s no place like home for the holidays.” Those words ring especially true for Denise Barker of East Sandwich. Her charming Cape is a constantly evolving expression of her love for Cape Cod, photography, nature, and her family, especially during the holiday season, with two crackling fireplaces spreading warmth and freshly baked Christmas treats piled high on pretty pedestal plates displayed on the kitchen counter. Denise makes the holiday season special with all her festive, uniquely creative touches.

In 2002 when Denise and her husband, Scott, were house-hunting they had a punch list of wants and needs for their family of five. The couple loved the historic character of East Sandwich, and coming upon an unfinished Cape with a yard full of pear and apple trees they knew they had found the right place.

Good Things in Life – Nov ’11

Must-Have Articles, Accessories & Products

CAPE COD KEEPSAKES

Two Cape Codders have collaborated to transform their love of the Cape’s natural world into Dune Jewelry and Beachsand Snowflakes—handcrafted gifts that are making a splash online and in several regional shops. Sterling silver necklaces from the Dune Jewelry line (www.dunejewelry.com) feature a simple yet sophisticated pendant ($130) inlaid with sand gathered from your favorite Cape beach (sand has been collected from 300 beaches worldwide). Beachsand Snowflakes ($24, www.beachsandsnowflakes.com) are the perfect gift for beach lovers from Bourne to Provincetown. These items are available in more than 20 Cape stores, including Trees Place in Orleans, Fein Things in Centerville, and Village Trading Co. in Mashpee.