The Grand Finale of Arts & Antiques Month

Arts & Antiques Month in Salem (known to most as "November") concludes this weekend with the Peabody Essex Museum's 36th Annual Antiques Show.

Up to thirty top antiques dealers from the United States and abroad will feature exceptional American and English furniture, paintings, porcelain, jewelry and decorative accessories.

All proceeds from the 36th Annual Antiques Show support the museum’s educational and public program initiatives which benefit thousands of families and schoolchildren each year.

Expected 2008 Dealers:

American Decorative Arts, Canaan, NH

Boston Art Club, Boston, MA

Birchknoll Antiques, Wolfboro, NH

Bradford Trust Fine Art, Harwich Port, MA

David Brooker Fine Art, Woodbury, CT

CIRCA Antiques & Fine Decorations, Rockport, MA

The Country Squire Inc., Milton, MA

Carl L. Crossman, Wellington, FL

Colette Donovan Antiques, Merrimacport, MA

East Dennis Antiques, Cape Cod, MA

Federalist Antiques, Kenilworth, IL

B. Fine Art, Beverly, MA

Hanes & Ruskin, Old Lyme, CT

Heller Washam Antiques, Portland, ME

Sandy Jacobs Antiques, Marblehead, MA

Landry & Arcari Oriental Rugs & Carpeting, Salem and Boston, MA

Maxine Antiques, Oakland, CA

Jane McClafferty Antiques, New Canaan, CT

Charles Edwin Puckett, Akron, OH

Steven J. Rowe Antiques, Hanover, NH

Running Battle, Newagen, ME

F. Russack Books, Inc., Danville, NH

W.M. Schwind Jr., Yarmouth, ME

Silver Plus, New York, NY

Christine Crossman Vining, Wellington, FL

David A. Weston Associates, Kent, England

Michael J. Whitman Antiques, Ft. Washington, PA

Downtown Salem's Tree-Mendous Event!

Come downtown this weekend when Mayor Kimberley Driscoll, The Salem Beautification Committee, and Salem Main Streets will hold their Tree-mendous Event - a Holiday Tree lighting in Derby Square at Old Town Hall.

The tree lighting and festivities will begin on Friday Evening, November 28th at 6:00 p.m. when Mayor Driscoll lights the City's 18 foot Holiday Tree. There will be Victorian Carolers, hot chocolate and cheer. And, get a jump on your holiday shopping at the shops on Front Street!

Activities continue through the weekend when there will be Christmas Trees for sale on Artist’s Row and hot chocolate, hot cider and cookies made by the Lobster Shanty. "Shanty Clause" will make special appearances on Saturday and Sunday between 4-6 pm.

November 28 - 3:00pm to 8:00pm
Saturday, November 29 – 9:00am to 8:00pm
Sunday, November 30 – 9:00am to 6:00pm

Proceeds from the events will benefit the Salem Beautification Committee and Salem Main Streets.

Visit and Vote! Salem's Downtown Window Contest is Underway...

Downtown Salem has never looked so festive and bright!

More than 30 Downtown Businesses and Organizations are participating in the Downtown Salem Holiday Window Contest this year, and you are the judge! So come downtown, pick your favorites and vote at any participating business. Your vote will enter you into a raffle to win a holiday stocking.

Winners will be announced December 12 at noon at

Derby Square.
Participating Business Include:

• For Kids Only (224 Essex St.)
• Laura Lanes Skin Care (242 Essex St.)
• Sacred Gear (118 Washington St.)
• Crunchy Granola Baby (72 Washington St.)
• Salem Wine Imports (32 Church St.)
• Penelope’s (99 Washington St.)
• Coon’s (226 Essex St.)
• Caffé Graziani (133 Washington St.)
• Treasures Over Time (139 Washington St.)
• J. Mode (17 Front St.)
• Fiddlehead (24 Front St.)
• Trolley Depot (191 Essex St.)
• Angelica of Angels (7 Central St.)
• Signatures (181 Essex St.)
• Peabody Essex Museum Shop (East India Square)
• Angels Landing (131a Essex St.)
• Fool’s Mansion (127 Essex St.)
• Rouge Cosmetics (322 Derby St.)
• Chulamama (320 Derby St.)
• Boys and Girls Club (13 Hawthorne Blvd.)

In Museum Place Mall:

• Bewitched In Salem
• Bruce Rossmeyer Harley Davidson
• Christy’s Dry Cleaners
• Daily Bagel Cafe
• Hair Design by Linda
• Rose Medallion
• Turtle Alley
• Witch Tees

On Pickering Wharf:

• Cat N The Fiddle Uniques
• Living With Pets
• The Picklepot
• Quintessentials
• Salemdipity

This program is presented by Salem Main Streets.

Thanks to everyone who made The Buried Treasure Appraisal Event a Success!

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Buried Treasure Appraisal event on Sunday. We had a great time! We fought back the cold weather with fantastic food and lovely music from a quartet from the Lexington Symphony Orchestra. And Grogan & Company Fine Art Auctioneers provided verbal appraisals on some very interesting items that were brought in by our guests.

The most interesting was a necklace that I didn't get to see, but heard it was estimated at $20,000. That's a happy Sunday surprise!

I also heard one attendee comment that he was relieved to know he could give away a chair without hesitation... it was not an original piece of modern art. A handsome chair, though it was.

The food was really fantastic, and many people commented on how the restaurants could be their own event. I think that's (I have to say it) good food for thought!!

The Regatta at the Waterfront Hotel provided awesome mini crab cakes with a cucumber salad that had us going back for seconds. They also had a lovely apple crisp.

Sixty2 on Wharf wowed the crowd with their warm toffee pudding. This pudding is a destination in and of itself. It was amazing. Sixty2 also served braised short ribs over polenta, and that was delicious, but the toffee pudding is a show-stopper.

Capt.'s brought duck - yumm! - that was served on spinach and a little piece of garlic toast. It was amazing. Capt.'s also brought scallops wrapped in bacon, but with a twist! They had a filling of polenta that was really great.

Moving along down the line, Finz thrilled the crowd with gazpacho served with grilled shrimp (and a wedge of lime!). It was the perfect shot of veggies after the duck and ribs.

Coffee Time Bake Shop brought pies, marvelous pies, to get us ready for the weeks ahead. They also had cups of tiramisu and some of the cutest cookies I've never eaten.

And, last but certainly not least, Caffe Graziani brought a wonderful pasta dish from Italy - Pasta alla Ciociara. It had peas, ham, mushrooms and a yummy cream sauce. It was the cold-weather-buster of the day.

Clearly the food was fantastic! We had a great time with the restaurants, Grogan & Company, and the staff from WCRB including Laura Carlo. Hope to see you next year!

Join us for the Buried Treasure Appraisal Event this Sunday!

The Buried Treasure Appraisal Event
1-4 pm
Salem Waterfront Hotel & Suites
225 Derby Street, Salem, MA
$20 per person, cash bar

Find out if your own personal bail-out plan is lurking in your attic by bringing treasure to the Salem Waterfront Hotel on Sunday, November 23 at 1pm.

We have a fantastic afternoon planned for Sunday - Grogan & Company Fine Art Auctioneers will be providing verbal appraisals. Classical 99.5 WCRB's Morning Program Host Laura Carlo will be the event host, music will be provided by a trio from the Lexington Symphony Orchestra, and food - wonderful food! - will be your for the tasting.

Appropriate treasures include paintings, silver, estate jewelry, oriental rugs, and decorative arts (glass, china). Please bring a photos of any large items (don't lug the desk or armoire to the hotel! A photo is fine.) Guests are asked to bring only one item.

Items of particular interest may be evaluated publicly, and prizes will be awarded for the most interesting items of the day!

A sampling of Salem restaurants will be provided by Finz Seafood, Sixty2 on Wharf, Capt.'s Waterfront Restaurant, Caffe Graziani, The Regatta, and Coffee Time Bake Shop.

Prizes will feature gift certificates from Treasures over Time, Sixty2 on Wharf, Strega, and others.

Discover the magic of your buried treasures, and Salem's wonderful restaurants, on Sunday!

Salem Artists Open their Studios this Weekend

Download your copy of the map and the key to the map at the Salem Arts Association website. This is a great weekend to explore Salem's arts community and kick-start your holiday shopping.

Discover the magic of the arts in Salem!

Destination Salem, Cultural Tourism, and Ireland

You may have noticed that I haven't posted anything in about a week - I've been in Dublin, Ireland, where I was privileged to be invited to speak at the Failte Ireland annual tourism conference, which was about the assets and opportunities that lie in cultural tourism.

It was a tremendous opportunity to discuss Salem as a successful case study in cultural and heritage tourism, and learn a bit about what our destination marketing counterparts are doing in Ireland.

I'll be back on track with blog posts by week's end. In the meantime - have you purchased your tickets for the Buried Treasure Appraisal event on Sunday? I hope to see you there!