Welcome to Our Technicolor Life Monthly Newsletter!
Welcome back to another exciting addition of Our Technicolor Life's monthly newsletter! We're thrilled to have you join us on our colorful journey through the many facets of our adventurous lives. As always, we're Jeff and Carrie Ketterman, a dynamic husband and wife duo who are passionate about embracing a vintage lifestyle in the most vibrant way possible.
A Glimpse into Our Lives
In case you're new here, let us introduce ourselves once again. Jeff spends his days immersed in the bustling world of rail transportation as the General Manager at Kasgro Rail Corporation Management Division. With a fleet of over 500 heavy-duty railcars, Jeff is at the forefront of providing innovative solutions for the ever-evolving rail industry.
Meanwhile, Carrie's days are filled with creativity and artistic expression. As a painter, illustrator, and author, she breathes life into murals and paintings that tell stories with every brushstroke. She is also owner and hostess with the mostest at her tea room, The Old Capitol Tea Room in historic downtown Corydon, IN. Being musically inclined, Carrie and Jeff also have two vintage bands, The Tin Pan Alley Cats and Rosie & the Rockabillies. Follow along each channel of Our Technicolor Life: Tea, Travel, Entertainment, Art, & Lifestyle.
TEA
The Old Capitol Tea Room was closed in the month of August for some travel and to gear up for our busiest season of the year, the Halloween through Holidays season!
Tickets for September, October, November, and December went on sale July 31st and we are about 95% sold out for the rest of the 2024 Season. As a friendly reminder, The Old Capitol Tea Room is closed January - March so if you'd like to join us for tea, check out one of the following events with tickets available. All other events are sold out.
☕️**Renaissance Tea Party with the Queen**
Tuesday, September 17th at 7 PM
Perfect for Renaissance faire enthusiasts.
🎟️Get Your Tickets Now!
(https://www.ourtechnicolorlife.com/event-details/renaissance-tea-party-tuesday-september-17th-at-7pm)
☕️**Barbie Par-TEA**
Tuesday, September 24th at 7 PM
Think pink and join us for trivia, a Barbie box photo shoot, and all things Barbie.
🎟️Get Your Tickets Now!
☕️**The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Radio Show**
Tuesday, October 15th at 7 PM
Experience the classic tale performed live by the Capitol Players.
🎟️Get Your Tickets Now!
☕️**Tuesday Afternoon Tea – Christmas Edition**
Tuesday, November 12th at 1 PM
Enjoy a pleasant afternoon tea in our beautifully decorated Christmas tea room.
🎟️Get Your Tickets Now!
Don’t wait – these tickets are going fast! Secure your spot today and make unforgettable memories this season at The Old Capitol Tea Room.
Private Tea Parties at The Old Capitol Tea Room
If you’re looking for an outing with your girlfriends or friends and family this Holiday season, consider hosting a private party at The Old Capitol Tea Room for a traditional afternoon tea experience. We host private parties for groups of 15 or more weekday and weeknights, with limited weekends based on schedule availability. Our private parties are a great way to have the full tearoom experience with your family and friends. We frequently host bridal showers, baby showers, birthdays, book clubs, church meetings, appreciation celebrations, or just an excuse to play tea party with your own group. To schedule a private party, please fill out our private party form and we will check the schedule for availability.
Private Party Booking:
Private Party Information:
TRAVEL
We set off on our big summer camping trip to Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada! I have seriously overpacked for this trip. Seriously. I know, I always overpack, but this time it is bordering on insanity. But in my defense, when I am visiting the homeland of “Anne of Green Gables”, you better believe I am going to make every attempt to get in all of my “Avonlea” outfits that I can!
We made our first stop of the trip in Jamestown, NY. For those that may not know, Jamestown is the home of one Lucille Ball. We have visited Jamestown many times over the years, but it was an easy stopover and one we can’t pass up if we are anywhere near it.
If you have never been, I highly recommend a visit here! The two museums are top notch: The Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum and The National Comedy Center. There are several stops around Jamestown and nearby Celeron that honor Lucy; from her childhood home, to her gravesite in Lake View Cemetery, to the “Lucy” statues in Celeron Park, to the many murals around town.
We didn’t have time to visit either of the museums on this trip though, but again, we have been several times, but plan a couple of days here if you are coming for the first time. Every year in early August, the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival takes place in Jamestown. We missed it by a week this year as our schedule just wouldn’t allow it, but we have been several times. It takes place generally the week prior or around Lucy’s birthday, August 6.
Also…plan to add enough time into your visit to journey through the beautiful town and lakefront resort community of Chautauqua on Lake Chautauqua. It reminds me a bit of Michigan’s Mackinac Island.
The Chautauqua Institution has been a vital part of the community for over 150 years, being a catalyst for arts, entertainment, learning and well-being in the area. Our next post will highlight our brief stopover there as we continue our journey towards PEI!
So, the second part of our first planned stop on our way to PEI was Chautauqua, NY and The Chautauqua Institution. It has become a favorite of mine. Much like Mackinac Island in Michigan, it is like stepping back in time.
The town of Chautauqua is located on the upper western side of New York’s Lake Chautauqua - northwest of Jamestown, NY, which sits near the bottom of the lake.
Personally, this whole area is so worth a visit if you have never been. I could spend days on end in this region. Chautauqua is a truly lovely community of beautiful beach homes and very restricted traffic. We enjoy just walking the streets and seeing people on their front porches enjoying time with family and friends, like it no doubt used to be decades ago. The marina area is picturesque and dinner or lunch in the Athenaeum Hotel overlooking the lake is always lovely.
During the summer months there are always activities, art fairs, concerts, lectures, comedy shows, musicals, ballet performances and more, daily, and most certainly on weekends. The 140-year-old amphitheater may sound antiquated, but it offers state of the art sound and there is not a bad seat among its 4400 seats. We have seen a few events there over the years and enjoyed each one immensely!
I tend to live in the past at times, it’s true. I am an old soul, and I embrace that. Chautauqua is definitely salve for the soul…especially an old soul.
Our next stop on our PEI Adventure? Binghamton, NY! It was more of a stopover for the night, but we set camp in plenty of time to head back in to town to explore. Jeff always does the work of finding things that might be of interest to us for whatever route we are taking. He discovered that Binghamton is noted as “The City of Carousels”!! What?!!!
Well, it is a bit of a stretch, I guess, as there is only one true antique carousel in operation in the city at this time, but it is beautiful!! The Recreation Park carousel was donated to the park in 1925, when at that time a beautiful wooden structure was also built to house and protect the ride. The carousel features 60 jumping horses, four abreast, along with a few chariots AND the original two-roll frame Wurlitzer Military Band Organ with bells! It is gorgeous! AND…you can ride FOR FREE!!
So, that being said, you know that Jeff had to finally just pull me off after about five rides.
It was THE BEST carousel day of my life! (If you know me, you know I have a thing for carousels.)
After some time in the park, we ventured out to explore Binghamton a bit more and headed to the Two Rivers Greenway, a park where the confluence of the Chenango and Susquehanna Rivers occurs.
Now, on to Vermont!
Stop #3 on our way to Prince Edward Island, CAN - Bennington, VT!!!
Can I just talk a minute about how much we love this little state? If I could take the cold a bit better, and I AM working on my endurance, I think it would be hard to keep us out of Vermont! It is such a lovely little state, and we have explored it now pretty much from top to bottom! This time through, we had to keep a strictly southern route, which is fine with me - I LOVE Bennington and Brattleboro!
Jeff discovered some place new for us to explore — Hildene! This was the beautiful summer home of the Robert Todd Lincoln and his wife Mary Harlan Lincoln. Robert was the eldest of four sons born to Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln. He is the only son to survive into adulthood. The home is north of Bennington in Manchester, VT.
I absolutely loved this home!! It is not on the same scale as the opulent homes in Newport, RI - not even close, but it feels like a home built from love and not for show.
Hildene was built in 1907, and today it is furnished almost entirely with Lincoln family furniture and contains artifacts belonging to Robert Todd Lincoln and his parents. The gardens are amazing, and the view from the backyard of the home is breathtaking!
The home was last in the care of Robert’s granddaughter, Mary Lincoln Beckwith, who died in the home in 1978 at the age of 76. You can bet I am going to find everything I can read about this lady - she was SO interesting! There is nothing this lady wouldn’t or didn’t try her hand at. She kind of reminded me of ME!! She also loved preserving her family’s heritage and kept nearly all of the furniture that was originally in the home for the time her grandparents lived there, which is why the home today is nearly entirely furnished with the original vintage pieces from the time that Robert and Mary Harlan Lincoln owned it!
After leaving Hildene, we had a chance to just drive around and see some of our favorite Bennington landmarks and then explore our campground for the night - Greenwood Lodge & Campsites. I’m gonna give this one 5/5 stars!
Up next, on to Exeter, NH!
Stop #4 on the road to PEI - Hampton/Portsmouth, NH!
Another of the little New England states that we do so love, New Hampshire! Unlike Vermont, we haven’t had a chance to fully explore this state, we still need to venture to the northern section at some point. However, we how found so much to love about the middle and southern part of this mighty little state.
We did make a quick stop at Hogsback Mountain Country Store in Marlboro just before leaving Vermont to grab some maple candies and liqueur.
This trip through New Hampshire, we had just a one night stopover just east of Exeter. We arrived at our campground (Sea Coast Camping) early enough to drive out to the coast and explore parts of Hampton, Little Boars Head, and Portsmouth. Portsmouth is always a great visit. We highly recommend Strawberry Banke if you are a fan of early American history. We didn’t go this year, but have been twice before and thoroughly enjoyed this outdoor museum/settlement. We did, however, visit Prescott Park again, which is great waterfront park that was developed by two sisters in the 1930s. We next went down to Little Boars Head for a stroll along the scenic coastal walk. The views are just beautiful and the homes along the walk are grand and inspiring. I keep telling Jeff that one day I am either going to rob a bank or hit the lottery and have a coast home like one of these. He said he might consider driving the getaway car - if I win the lottery.
Maine is ahead for the next three nights!
Stop #5 - Nubble Lighthouse on Cape Neddick in York, Maine! This is our fourth visit to this beautiful lighthouse, and we are awestruck each and every time by the beauty of this light! It is located just off of Highway 1A - the coastal highway that splits from Highway 1 just north of Kittery, ME - not far from the border with New Hampshire.
Nubble, along with Portland Head Light on Cape Elizabeth near Portland, ME are probably the two most photographed lighthouses in the US.
We have been to both, and honestly, all lighthouses are so uniquely beautiful and worth a photograph.
Did you know that there are several lighthouses for sale in the US and Canada?! I keep hinting to Jeff that we should buy one, but he doesn’t seem real keen on the idea just yet. I did say “just”, because I am still working on him! I mean, what would be more perfect than a lighthouse tea room?!!
OK…I am SO far behind on posts now. We are just having too much fun! Seriously, we squeeze just about every minute out of every day. Sometimes I feel like we are the only people that are even up and outside at a campground after 11. We’re quiet, of course, but we stay up until midnight at least - Jeff answering work email while I write about the days events in my travel journal (I am on my 9th one). I have always been someone that prefers something tangible over something on a computer or Kindle, so writing in a journal and reading books, ones I can hold and turn pages, suits me much better. Speaking of books, I have now bought over a dozen books on this trip. I brought about a dozen as well. I LOVE books. And, I read them, I don’t just collect them. When we travel I love buying books about the areas we visit.
Our 6th stop on this trip was Old Orchard Beach, ME. I love old amusement parks (if you know me, you know I have written a book on the old and nearly forgotten amusement parks of Louisville and southern Indiana). Old Orchard Beach is home to a long-standing amusement park - Palace Playland, which dates back to 1902! The day we dropped by, however, the park wasn’t opening for a couple of more hours, and we didn’t have the time built in our schedule to stay around for the opening. We had to head up to Rockland!
Rockland is home to the Maine Lighthouse Museum! If you love lighthouses, this is a great stop to learn more about these beautiful beacons of light. Rockland also boasts that it is the lobster capital of the world! Not sure how accurate that is, but I’m good with it! Rockland also has a couple of cool lighthouses nearby - the Rockland Light and Owls Head Light. Both very different, but well worth a visit!
Next stop - Ellsworth, ME and Acadia!
Stop #8 on our quest for Prince Edward Island.
We had great weather for our time in Acadia National Park, ME! This was our fourth visit to the park. We have pretty much explored it in our previous visits, but can’t help but revisit some of our favorite spots in the park. One such favorite area is actually off of the main peninsula, (Mount Desert Island) in what is called the Schoodic Peninsula. This area is just as beautiful (if not more so) than the main area of the park, and far less crowded. Speaking of crowds, on this trip up the Maine coast we experienced some of the heaviest traffic we have ever seen. Maine always has heavy with traffic in the fall, but August didn’t seem much better. In fact, overall on this trip we have encountered more traffic and more road construction (with several delays) than we have ever seen in the past. Still, the trip up the coast is always worth it, no matter what delays or congestion you have to endure. The bigger thing that upsets me, rather than construction or traffic, is that we have still yet to see a moose!!
Up next, we cross over into Canada!
Stop #9 on the quest to PEI (Prince Edward Island, Canada) - Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada!
They let us cross the border! Although, I will have to say, that border crossing guard could do with just a little personality. Maybe he just needs some time off.
We made it to Saint John, NB. This city reminds us very much of Pittsburgh. It’s very industrial, but still has some charm. Its claim to fame is their “Reversing Rapids”- a phenomenon caused by extreme rising bay tides colliding with the Saint John River. The city sits on the Bay of Fundy, and experiences some of the most extreme tide changes in the world. The difference in water level in the bay between high and low tides can be as much as 50 feet!! FIFTY FEET!
We explored a bit of the city and surrounding area. Irving Nature Park was the highlight of our visit. This beautiful, massive park is well worth the visit if you are ever in Saint John. The cedar maze was particularly fun! Oh, and I may have picked up a few more rocks from the bay coast for my collection.
We also enjoyed our stopover in Hardings Point Campground! Great staff and a fun group of weekend campers who were very welcoming to us and invited us to come karaoke with them! We may have pulled out a few songs from our repertoire to keep the party moving.
Up next…PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND!
We made it to Avonlea!!! Well, we made it to Prince Edward Island, anyway.
Since I was very young and first watched Anne of Green Gables (1985 mini series with Megan Follows), I have been enchanted by the magical land of Prince Edward Island, Canada. Of course, in my mind it was likely much more magical and lovely to a young girl….or so I thought! Upon first seeing the red cliffs of PEI that overlook the ocean, I have to say that it was just as lovely and magical as I first imagined! So much so, that on our first night, I couldn’t help but wear my vintage Edwardian dress - not new made to look old, but true vintage from the 1920s. I have been planning my wardrobe for this “Anne Fantasy” trip for quite some time.
These photos are from our first day.
After arriving at our campsite (Cymbria Campground near Rustico), we headed over to the Cavendish cemetery to visit the resting place of author/poet, Lucy Maud Montgomery McDonald, who wrote the Green Gables and Avonlea books. She is revered on PEI, as she should be. Her story is a fascinating one, and I will write more about that later. It is truly a story of “never give up”.
After paying our respects to this brilliant lady, we journeyed over to check out Avonlea Village. It is now just basically a grouping of shops and restaurants. At one time it was an operating village where the staff wore authentic clothing and you could step back in time to “Avonlea”. I wish I could have seen it during those days. It was still nice to see the replica buildings AND sit inside the church where LM Montgomery once attended. The Long River Church which was built in 1872, was brought to the village for restoration and preservation. For this first outing I wore my “blue dress with the puffiest of sleeves”! Anne and Matthew would have loved it.
We had planned to do a picnic on the red sand cliffs that evening, but the day got away from us, but I went ahead and put on my vintage white Edwardian dress and just decided to go watch the sunset and do a little photo shoot!
Needless to say, I was walking on air by the end of this first partial day in PEI!! I just kept saying, “I can’t believe we’re really here!”
Next up…all things Anne!!
Our second day (first FULL day) on Prince Edward Island was truly a dream day for me!! It was a full day of nothing but “Anne”. I have been anticipating this day for months now! And, although it started off rainy and very overcast, by afternoon the weather was beautiful once again. This first part of our day was spent at the the Green Gables Heritage Place in Cavendish, PEI.
This site is wildly popular with fans of the book series and its author, L.M. Montgomery. It features a re-creation of the home where Montgomery’s most famous character, Anne Shirley, grew up. The property of the Heritage Place are the grounds where Montgomery walked and received inspiration for many of her works and poems. It was truly a thrill to walk in the areas that she describes in her books! Jeff can attest that I spent most of the day walking on air, or so it seemed.
It truly was inspirational to roam the grounds and tour the buildings of the Heritage Place.
I couldn’t help but go in the proper attire and become Anne for a day!! I was mistaken for an employee of the property many times, and posed for SO many photos with people who first thought I was a hired character. I had to explain that I was just a huge fan. Many thanked me for my passion and desire to come “looking the part”.
The photos in this post are all from our time at the Green Gables Heritage Place. We spent about four hours there, which is adequate time to see everything and walk the trails that lead to various markers, statues, and points of interest. It truly took me back almost thirty years to being a little redheaded girl pretending to be Anne Shirley and wanting to have a “bosom friend”. I have wanted to see Avonlea since I first learned of this magical place through L.M. Montgomery’s writings! On this day, I truly felt as if I had lived, if only for a day, in Avonlea!
(Oh, and Jeff was my Gilbert for the day!)
Next up: MORE ANNE!
