Ode To The Makers

When planning your intimate celebrations at the dinner table especially this holiday season, I’m praising the makers, the makers here in Maine. Ode To The Makers is a dedication to all those craftsmen and women who work day in and out to put together a piece that tells a Maine-made tale. Maine is celebrating its 200th birthday this year and has a long history of makers from potters to metalworkers to fashion designers and so much more. There are many ways of including makers in your intimate celebrations including the taste, the table, and your look. Each day this week I will be showing you how each piece of this celebration can include a variety of diverse Maine makers. Come along and celebrate this holiday with me as we invite over 35 Maine makers to our table.

The Ode To The Makers is a preview to the celebration as it only showcases some of the makers but as you can see everything is Maine, not just the makers, the cuisine, the look, everything.  Now let’s turn on the Ballroom Thieves holiday jam, (anywhere but) Home For The Holidays, to give it a listen and sing along to my ode.

The table filled with Maine made pieces ready to take on the food.

Items included in this photo: Chilton Concord Chairs, Campfire Pottery Charcoal Dinner Plate, Campfire & Jennifer Bravo White Pasta Bowl, aluckiergirl embroidered napkins, Night Moves Country Bread, SOFTSET Ceramics Big Serving Platter, The Cultivated Thread Towels, Campfire Charcoal Pitcher, Watershed Floral.

On the first hour of this Maine made celebration, there was so much to do, I had to slurp the salty goods...

I decided to invite over our family friends to this occasion as they’re in our inner circle and we felt safe in having them in our home. Justin and his partner helped me in slurping down some Glidden Point Oysters. Their Oyster Starter Kit ($125) includes three dozen oysters, a shucking knife, glove, and a how-to-shuck postcard. Ryan McPherson, the owner at Glidden Point, taught me a better way to shuck oysters over the summer as I typically shuck them on a cutting board...now I can shuck them in my hand. The how-to-shuck postcard is great for newbies and those who want to improve their shucking skills! The oysters were displayed nicely on an oyster plate I made over at Campfire Pottery’s studio in Westbrook for my 30th birthday in December 2019. What a great experience that was; I was big and pregnant and my lower back was killing me but Kristen Camp helped me every step of the way and I think the plate turned out quite nicely. Even though I can shuck better, I can still get quite messy so I wear my Woodlore Designs Apron ($88) which is handcrafted with linen, has many pockets to store my glove and shucking knife, and easily adjustable so my husband wears it sometimes (shh don’t tell him I told you that…). Hanna Woodbury is an amazing designer as she puts together beautiful, eco-friendly apparel options as all of her pieces are crafted with linen. I also clean up with a piece I hate getting dirty but sometimes I have to, the Original Maine Flag Tea Towel ($15) which is crafted by my previous podcast guest Bethany Field who also handmakes the Original Maine State Flag.

The Maine based cheeses, jams, meats and crackers all displayed nicely on a Maine made cutting board.

On the second hour of this Maine made celebration, there was so much to do, I had to cut the cheese and keep slurping on the salty goods….

Now many folks when they think of Maine cuisine they think of seafood, lobsters, mussels, oysters but what about the cheese? Yes, cheese is a highly popular item here in our state and I wanted to provide a mix of options as appetizers and it pairs nicely with oysters and good white wine. Annie Lampen with Gathering Board helped me put two amazing charcuterie boards together that was filled with Maine made items including Crooked Face Creamery’s Ricotta Cheese Sampler Pack ($32) that sits on a Maine made cutting board handmade by Daybreak Designs ($199.99). Annie throws together such lovely curations of cheeses, meats, crackers, and more out of the Fork Lab in Portland. I was happy to get Amy Rowbottom from Crooked Face Creamery involved as she makes amazing cheeses and she introduced me to not just her award-winning ricotta which is sold at Whole Foods but other Maine-made meats and crackers I’ve never heard of. To have this delicious food placed beautifully on a cutting board made by Jared Sher and out of live edge cherry and a deep blue epoxy had me very excited as everything paired nicely together.

On the third hour of this Maine made celebration, there was so much to do, I watched the chef work his magic, I had to cut the cheese and keep slurping on the salty goods...

Not only did my friend help me out with the oysters, but he also put together all of the food! He put together a dreamy dinner of Stoneybrook Lobster Pound Lobster, Scallops and Hake as well as Bangs Island Mussels. He chopped up many herbs with Nick Rossi’s 8’ German Chef’s Knife ($500) to throw into his dishes. Nick Rossi is a metalworker and began his career with a boyhood fascination with knives and swords. His work is mostly influenced by Japanese, Southeast Asian, and Scandinavian design. Then Justin topped off his dishes with Slack Tide Sea Salt blends. This small business hand harvests sea salt made in small batches from the deep ocean waters of Maine and is solar evaporated in greenhouses on York's tidal river. Their sampler pack ($40) is a perfect gift or even to get for yourself to try out all of their products and see which one you like best. More about the taste of this celebration will be provided in greater detail later this week.

On the fourth hour of this Maine made celebration, there was so much to do, I lit the pine candle, I watched the chef work his magic, I had to cut the cheese and keep slurping on the salty goods...

When stepping into our moody lit dining room that was designed by a renowned interior designer Abigail Shea, joy fills the air as smells of delicious cuisine and Viand Vintage’s porcelain candle filled with Near and Native’s pine scent, mix together. On a side note, I can repurpose this lovely porcelain container once the candle has completely burned out by refilling it at Near and Native, learn more here. While this dinner is intimate and small, name tags designed by Gert & Co gives off a formal vibe with its cursive font and natural element of the twig and berries. There are even name tags for the kids! Gert & Co was started in 2019 by Jill Jones as she creates bright, colorful, and unique stationery & home decor. While her last day to order in time for the holidays was yesterday you can order her beautiful work anytime for any occasion.

On the last hour of this Maine made celebration, there was so much to do, I sat down in the best darn chair, I lit the pine candle, I watched the chef work his magic, I had to cut the cheese and keep slurping on the salty goods...

Sit down with us in Chilton’s newly launched Concord Chairs in walnut as they are inspired by a Windsor style spindle chair taken down to its simplest form. They’re the perfect complement to a table I purchased in Maryland before moving to Maine eight years ago. Chilton pieces certainly wrap nicely with pieces in your home that you just can’t let go of. To sit in a seat that is crafted by hand in Lewiston makes one feel proud of the craft that is happening in Maine. Now let’s get to serving in Campfire’s Charcoal Looped Serving Bowl which was featured in NY Times and stay tuned for more fun throughout the week of the Ode To The Makers celebration.

Thank you to Good to Go studios for the wonderful video series.