Mermaids are Great for Nautical Gifts & Beach Decor!

We adore mermaids here at the Seafarer, and not just any old mermaid.... We love the Nantucket style (as opposed to the fantasy type you see in paintings, cards and figurines) which is so hard to find - so when we find some, we celebrate~!

Here's a new find, she's a beauty... Painted dimensional metal - just $44. A perfect nautical gift for someone special or for your own beach decor! http://seafarergiftshop.com/mermaids.html

Artist in Residence - Storm Buoy day

Will be painting in the window again today, on the agenda is my Storm Buoy series... What are Storm Buoys, you ask? I started painting on buoys years and years ago when seeking painting surfaces. Being from a seashore community, I considered and tried painting on abandoned lobster pot buoys that had washed ashore during storms, hence the name, Storm Buoys! They had charachter - they were ripped and scraped, and barnacled....I started painting boat portraits on them, and have been selling stock designs and custom boat portraits on them for ages. I have exhibited them at the Greenport Maritime Festival in Greenport, the Long Island Seafood Festival at the West Sayville Maritime Museum, and the Apple Festival in Sayville, and a few others. Now I sell them here at my gift shop, the Seafarer Gift Shop, in Sayville.

New Prints in by D. Elias!

I LOVE these lovely framed prints I just got in today! This North American Artist has wonderfully colorful watercolor paintings of seaside beach scenes. This one is called Beach House & Bouys! They are matted and are framed with whitewashed hardwood frames - very good quality. My favorite is her lighthouse paintings on nautical charts! I have the Fire Island Lighthouse painted on a chart, available as a matted print or framed matted print with a driftwood and rope style frame. Gorgeous! The prices are fantastic and larger sizes can be ordered. I have a panoramic framed print in the store right this second of a beach scene with a bicycle, beach umbrella, & chairs, sand, sea that is hand signed by the artist that makes me sooo happy every time I look at it - so pretty and serene. It may be following me home if you don't get it first....

Welcome to the Seafarer Gift Shop's Blog!

My very first blog post.....

Let's get started with introductions. About me: my name is Barbara Whitbread, and I own the fabulous Seafarer Gift Shop, an actual downtown bricks & mortar store. I am married and have 4 1/2 year old twins. I opened the shop about 3 1/2 years ago in the seaside town of Sayville, New York. Yes, with 1 year old twins. With me. In the store. I know, insane. Seemed completely rational at the time, but what can I say. Anyway, Sayville is on the south shore of Long Island, east of NYC by about 35 miles.

I grew up working on my family's boats and commercial fishing docks. I have gift shop experience, and lots of creativity... I am a professional artist and I create all sorts of things for the shop, as you'll see.

I am feeling really techie these days - I just finished creating the first phase of my gift shop's website and went live with it http://www.seafarergiftshop.com/ but that is just the start of it, as now I'll be adding tons more product but the tricky part is done. Then, I put the store on Facebook, (just enter SEAFARER GIFT SHOP) and now - Ta DA! The Seafarer Gift Shop has an official blog! Well, a few, actually... but more about that later.

This is where I will write about all that is going on in the store, all the great items, new vendors, and creations. New sealife and sea glass jewelry, beach house decor, ships, gifts, artisans, driftwood, seashells, starfish, corals... We have everything beachy for coastal decorating! All the blues, aquas, greens, sand tones, and whites... from vintage shabby styles to upscale styles. Love it!

It is a pleasure to meet you all, and I hope you enjoy and comment on my blog and follow my journey...