Barbour + Tattersall + Gulls + Rain

Photos by Salt Water New England

Out and About

August Flowers

Photo by Salt Water New England

The New Sonos Beam Television Soundbar

Photo by Salt Water New England

Sonos has often been called the Apple of sound devices.  The company's products are high quality, well built, expensive, and adaptive.  Sonos products work better together, so while one of their products is great, two or three (or ten) are better.

It is easy to imagine that their new soundbar, the Beam, will be the first Sonos product for quite a few households, which have not been overly obsessed with sound (and whose old graphite Bose Wave Radios - their last splurge - still work just fine for NPR, thank you very much).

The Sonos Beam is a soundbar to park under the modern television.  It does immediately invoke such terms as "home theater" and "expansive" in a small or medium size room.  Watching The Crown, one picks up dialogue previously missed, and feels the pipe organ as well as hears it.  (Season One, of course.  Season Two did not seem to, er, warrant rewatching.)

• Sonos Beam <https://amzn.to/2OvbWax>

Some nitty gritty:

For the Glorious Twelfth

Father, with 1952 MG TD, Shooting Ruffed Grouse, Maine, 1952 - Photograph by Salt Water New England

"Old, Comfortable, Not Posh"

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New Englanders are inclined to differentiate between good and bad by determining whether it's old or new. Frugality, reluctance to change, reliance on the "tried and true", abhorrence of things showy or gaudy, pride in the past, a strong need for tradition and continuity – all these natural inclinations in our personalities result, not surprisingly, in our wearing slightly threadbare old clothes, joining old, comfortable not-posh social clubs, owning old boats, attending old schools and colleges, living in old houses, marrying into old families, and so forth.

- Judson Hale, Inside New England, 1982

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Juxtaposition

Photo by Salt Water New England

Farm Dinner Prep

Tweed and Tartan

Photo by Salt Water New England

An Old Friend, New Haven, Mid-1960s

Photo by Salt Water New England

Reader Question: Where do you find quality bathroom towels, flannel robes, and table linens?

Photos by Salt Water New England

A reader question:

Hello, we are delighted to read your blog. Thank you for informative and lovely posts. We are curious: Where do you find quality bathroom towels, flannel robes, and table linens? We are happily using grandparents' hand-me-downs, but will have to supplement with a growing family. We are trying to find well-made products using natural fabrics (preferably in the United States). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Berry Bowls

Photos by Salt Water New England

If there is ever a time of year to use all of those berry bowls...

Today's Organic Blackberries

A Sweden 34

Photo by Salt Water New England

Does J. Press Have a Future in the Northeast?

J. Press' Cambridge Store - Photos by Salt Water New England

 A reader sent a note that J. Press was closing its Cambridge location <http://www.mr-mag.com/j-press-to-close-its-cambridge-store/>.  This is in addition to the displacement of both of their New Haven and New York stores.  Those who have shopped at the various location also noted a lack of sizes and other stock issues.  The York Street line was clearly a failure on all counts.

With the erosion of the suit and tie as a business staple (see The New Business Uniform), and their congenital inability to grow into tangential areas, one has to wonder if J. Press has a future.  Alternatively, perhaps, J. Press - if the Washington D.C. store is doing well, and given a significant fan base being below the Mason–Dixon line - will increasingly become more of a Southern brand.  Would it be more at home in a thriving community similar to Charleston?

Or does J. Press still have a path to success in Ivy League cities?

Summer Stripes

Made in the U.S.:

• Sero Fun Shirt (bought in the 1970s) <RIP>

• Jack Donnelly Dalton Pant (Back in business) <https://jackdonnelly.com/collections/pants/products/original-fit-khakis>

• Patsy Kane's sterling silver Navigator Bracelets <http://www.patsykane.com/navigator-bracelets>

• Mercer and Sons Classic Classic Blue 1/8" Bengal Broadcloth Stripe <http://www.mercerandsons.com/swatches_and_pricing-stripes.htm>

• Mariner Rope Belt: Green <https://yorkrivertraders.com/collections/sailing-rope-mariner-belts/products/the-mariner-belt-green>

Battered Portrait

Photo by Salt Water New England

Maine Coast Cruising

Photo by Salt Water New England

British Tweeds in Camden, Maine, 1960s

Photo by Salt Water New England

Father Up the Mast

Photo by Salt Water New England

Old Fenwick Friends

Photo by Salt Water New England

Seen Around

Photos by Salt Water New England

Reader Question: Wool and Moths

Photos by Salt Water New England

A reader has the following question:

Greetings, 

I’m currently struggling to control a clothes moth issue (old house, many hiding places, they are probably feasting on a dead mouse behind a wall somewhere...). What measures do you take to rid moths and keep them out?   

I grew up in the age of synthetics and I don’t think we had a single wool item in our house.  I’m learning quickly of the many mistakes I have made in my household in regard to the wool items I’ve purchased or brought home from antique stores. Any advice or suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated.  

A Bit of Afternoon Iced Coffee in the Sherry Glasses

Photo by Salt Water New England

Drying Linen Shirts

European Linen from Sailor Rose - Photos by Salt Water New England

The difference in wrinkles between five minutes in the dryer (above) compared to no time in the dryer (below)...

Some Produce Currently in Season

Photo by Salt Water New England