Santa Monica-Street Surfing @nancy_fire
Quick trip to LA to remind this New Yorker that street life in Santa Monica is a bit more chill than in NYC!
Always great to get my LA fix and reality check while visiting the west coast…my type A personality is quickly downgraded to type B.
Spending a week on the idyllic island of Isleboro Maine with 20 of our nearest and dearest was truly a “close encounter of the 3rd kind”…. But only in a positive manner, seriously…we had a blast!
Isleboro Island is a narrow 14 mile island that is located approximately 3 miles off the coast of Lincolnville in the Penobscot Bay in Maine. It was incorporated into the United States in the 18th century after being settled by fisherman and farmers. Today 600 residents year round live on the Isleboro while in the summer months that number easily expands to a few thousand!
Our week was great on so many levels, kayaking, boating, hiking, fire pit fun, tennis, paddle board, great food and friends! When you vacation with many people it’s important to have a common bond and in our case, it was the great outdoors and of course food!
Since Isleboro is a small island and limited to only a couple of food stores we needed to plan ahead and bring food with us in order to be organized and feed 20+ people for 7 days. Meals were planned in advance and each family had their day or meal to cook! Last night Neil and I grilled cedar salmon along with homemade mango chutney, garlic broccoli, orzo salad and a fresh garden salad. All meals were innovative as well as delicious with each family creating some of their favorite foods!
Loving photography the way I do, I was able to incorporate my art inspired photos into every activity….while posting for Instagram for three different accounts…HGTV HOME, nancy_fire and designworksinternational. Combing the great outdoors and my love of photography was the perfect inspirational blend for me! Inspired by all I see…enjoy my memories!
Sunrise over Isleboro Island, Maine.
Wooden Hot Tub
Ready for Kayaking
Transportation to the “Boston Whaler Motor Boat!
Sunset over Isleboro Island, Maine.
Sunset over Isleboro Island
Island Humor at the local Ice Cream Shoppe
Retro Dodge Truck-Wish List! Amazing “retro red” color❤️
Togetherness-Pastel Palette
Smooth Sailing before the Storm
Color Inspiration “Green with Envy” Island Shed
“Free Maps” in Belfast Maine-Fun DIY using recycled letters from license plates!
Island Inspiration at The Summer Shop on Isleboro Island.
Lobster Bake
“Sitting on the dock of the Bay”
“Fire Pit Feast” S’mores
Kayaking on the Bay
Fern Forrest
Light House Isleboro Ferry
Stonehenge on Isleboro
Mid-Day Lighting
Sunrise Kayak Adventure
Outdoor Inspiration Climbing Clematis
Lobster Boat Belfast Maine
Bouy Decor-Fun outdoor DIY decor!
Words to Live By! ENJOY!!
The perfect view…while hiking in Bratten Fleming, a small village in North Devon U.K. I stumbled upon the “perfect view”! Perfect you might ask, how can something actually be this perfect….I will tell you….it’s a moment in time that was not staged for a photo shoot, it’s a moment in time that does not appear on a catalog cover (not yet) but a moment in time that one can appreciate if they just stop and enjoy. It has all the right ingredients: perspective, texture, saturated color and natural charm.
I bet if we started to look at our surroundings a bit more we would learn to appreciate more of these “perfect views”. Take that walk that you have been putting off, enjoy that city block that we were meaning to explore, find that beach during a sunset…because there are so many “perfect views” in our life that do not always come in the form of this photograph…sometimes we just need to create them within ourselves!
Color, Chaos & Creativity 