Inflation has arrived at the worst possible time — the holidays. The costs associated with the traditional 12 days of Christmas gifts is up 5.7 percent from 2020, with this […]
Home / Making
Inspiration for the crafty, projects for the practical, spaces for dreamers.
Browse all Home / Making stories below or dive into a topic:
SHADES OF HISTORY
What Color Was This Old House?
Paint followed practicality and the swinging pendulum of styles from overseas
Edward Penniman, considered one of the most successful sea captains in New England, traveled the world hunting whales in the mid-19th century and amassed enough wealth to retire to Eastham […]
MEET THE MAKER
In Search of the Elusive Perfect Beach Stone
Stacked, looped, and paired, the right rocks are for recollecting the Outer Cape
EASTHAM — Kathleen Masterson-Lavalley doesn’t go to the beach for its waves or for its sunsets. Instead, her eyes sweep the sand for the perfect stones — flat, round ones […]
MEET THE MAKER
Beanies That Blanket Babies, Near and Far
Carolyn Souza keeps on knitting because it tickles her pink
Carolyn Souza first learned to knit when she was in the Girl Scouts in Truro, where she grew up. “We all knitted little squares,” she says. Then all the girls’ […]
MODERNISM
On a Tour, Glimpses of How Architecture Inspired a Way of Life
At the Kepes and Hatch houses, brief encounters with modernism’s inhabitants
WELLFLEET — Down a sand road along the back of a kettle pond sits an austere one-story plywood-skinned rectangle on low stilts. Barely discernible from its surroundings, it was designed […]
MEET THE MAKER
Agostino DiBari Molds Beeswax Into Light
In the end, even for a mold maker, it’s not the shape of the candle but its glow
The air in Agostino DiBari’s shop on Main Street in Orleans smells slightly sweet. But not in that Jolly Rancher way that can make scented candles so fearsome. It’s a […]
PLANTCRAFT
How to Make a Fall Wreath for Stick Season
A circle of branches can serve as a starting point for decorations through the year
Wreaths aren’t just a Christmas thing. At different times in history, their circular form has suggested eternity, or feminine power, as in the floral wreaths atop a maypole, or victory, […]
MEET THE MAKER
Paul Townsend’s After-School Sewing Success Story
Making key fobs takes an eye for detail and skill at the machine
WELLFLEET — Sewing spans the generations in Paul Townsend’s family. His grandmother, Theresa Townsend, remembers how, as a toddler, he would sit on her lap while she sewed quilts, fascinated […]
DEEPLY FELT
A Study Designed for Haiku
In a felt-covered room, a scholar of Japanese literature savors silence
J. Keith Vincent’s Wellfleet study is covered in felt, the ceiling, walls, and floor lined in a soft-to-the-touch oatmeal and gray. He didn’t choose it for himself. He lets his […]
MEET THE MAKER
Lisa Ventre Is Provincetown’s Accidental Hatmaker
Evolving designs in a place for playing with mistakes
“I call myself the accidental hatmaker,” says Lisa Ventre. Ventre is renowned in Provincetown — and beyond — for her original hat designs. But she never meant that to happen. […]
COLLECTIONS
Ken Merrill Has a Surfboard Museum in His Basement
150 vintage boards tell stories of surfing’s heyday
Ken Merrill’s first encounter with a surfboard did not go well. He was at Eastham’s Coast Guard Beach, on a borrowed board. “I got sandbagged a few times,” he says. […]
LIVING SMALL
Fixing Up a ‘Mini,’ the Kitchen Comes First
Three good moves make for a bright and workable space
Her 600-square-foot house is not technically a “tiny house,” says Hannah Oakland. “But it’s a mini. I like to say it’s a house where expectation management comes into play.” The […]
MEET THE MAKERS
How Do You Want Your Kaftan? ‘Flowy’ or ‘Extra Flowy’?
Friends create a design to go from beach to dance floor and home again
Eric Bomyea and Iryna Teixeira, who had met years earlier when they were working at the same marketing agency, were podded together in Quincy during the early months of the […]
MEET THE MAKER
With His Plates, Michael Ceraldi Leaves It to the Materials
For this chef, ‘making ceramics is a lot like cooking’
Before he sends a plate to the dining room, Michael Ceraldi makes sure it looks beautiful. If you have been to his Wellfleet restaurant, Ceraldi, you know his idea of […]
PUSHING THE ENVELOPE
Act Now If You Want a Passive House
How one energy-efficient home in Wellfleet produces more power than it uses
If you haven’t heard the term passive house, Bob Higgins-Steele would like a word with you. As a member of the Truro Climate Action Committee, he is trying to spread […]
