If you’re skipping the road trip or airport hassle and opting for a staycation this summer, you won’t feel deprived. Cool events abound, whether you’re into arts and crafts, autos, authors, or animals. Or just relax on a town beach and enjoy summer weather that couldn’t be more perfect. Email your cool events to [email protected] by Wednesday noon.
Sunday, July 9
Annual Corvette Show
Corvette aficionados flock each year to the annual Club Corvette Show of Connecticut at Moroso Performance Products, 80 Carter Drive, Guilford. The club celebrates its 25th anniversary this year with the expectation of more than 300 Corvettes of varying vintages, representing all models of the car’s 64-year history.(See top photo)
Vendors will be on site selling Corvette and automotive memorabilia, food, and beverages.
The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $5 per person; children admitted free.
Wednesday, July 12
Summer Luncheon
A Summer Luncheon with Laura Dave, author of “Hello, Sunshine,” and Jane Green, author of “The Sunshine Sisters,” takes place at noon, Wednesday, July 12, at Pine Orchard Yacht and Country Club, 294 Pine Orchard Road.
Dave is the international bestselling author of “Eight Hundred Grapes,” “The First Husband,” “The Divorce Party,” and “London is the Best City in America.” Her novels have been published in 15 countries and optioned as major motion pictures. Dave’s writing has appeared in The New York Times, Glamour, Self, Redbook, and Cosmopolitan. She lives in New York City.
A former journalist in the U.K. and a graduate of the International Culinary Center in New York, Green has written many novels (including “Jemima J,” “The Beach House,” and, most recently, “Falling”), most of which have been New York Times bestsellers, and one cookbook, “Good Taste.” Her novels are published in more than 25 languages, and she has over 10 million books in print worldwide.
The event is sponsored by R.J. Julia Booksellers, Madison. The $55 ticket includes plated lunch and choice of “Hello, Sunshine” or “The Sunshine Sisters.” Details at www.rjjulia.com or call 203 – 245-3959.
Register by July 12
Basket Making with Donna Lowell
In Guilford, Dudley Farm’s basket maker Donna Lowell provides monthly basket making classes this summer, which include an oval bread basket, field basket, trestle table basket and cat nap basket.
The class at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 26, features an oval bread basket; classes last three to four hours. The class fee for this basket is $120 and includes all materials. Registration is required by July 12 with check to be received by, and made out to The Dudley Foundation by July 16 and mailed to 2351 Durham Road, Guilford; note “basket class” on the check. To register, call Donna Lowell at 203 – 457-0033.
Camp Rising Sun’s Annual Night Out
Camp Rising Sun, will host its 16th Annual Night Out on Wednesday, July 12, from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Owenego Inn and Beach Club, 40 Linden Ave.
The Annual Night Out is the camp’s largest fundraising event of the year, and raises funds for children with cancer who wish to experience summer camp. Sponsored by the Camp Rising Sun Charitable Foundation and organized by staff and the families of campers, the event will feature will feature a cook-out buffet, live music from Vivid Rock, many kids’ activities, and a silent auction and raffle.
Co-Chairs Jordan Mann and Melissa Pandolfi of Branford were both diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a type of bone cancer in 1998. They both attended Camp Rising Sun as campers, and have been volunteering for over 10 years as camp counselors. This year, camp will be held during the week of Aug. 20 to 25.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children (ages 3 to 15). Campers attend for free. For tickets, call 203 – 481-7277. Or visit www.camprisingsun.com.
Thursday, July 13
Branford Jazz Series
The Branford Jazz Series on the town green continues at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 13 with Peliroja, an ensemble of musicians inspired by the sounds of Ethiopia, the Dominican Republic, Cuba and the Congo. Consisting of heavies from the New York City Latin and jazz scenes, PELIROJA combines aspects of Cuban music with a 1970s horn-band Afro beat sound. The lyrics, mainly in Spanish, focus on day-to-day as well as political themes, all undergirded by a thick groove and an expansive improvisational ethic drawn from the jazz and Latin backgrounds of the individual members.
Restaurants along Main Street will be open during the concert and attendees are invited to bring chairs and blankets and picnic suppers.
The concerts are canceled in the event of rain – there is no alternate venue – and performers are invited back for next season. Details and schedule at Branfordjazz.com.
Uncover Branford
As part of an ongoing project, the Blackstone Library brings together friends and neighbors on Thursday, July 13, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., to share favorite Branford places and stories and plan a group outing to a special spot and discover the hidden gems of Branford.
Adventures are documented with photos and a short write up of personal favorites, which will be turned into a community exhibit at the Uncover Branford Open House and Reception Show and Open House at the end of the summer.
Registration required. To register, call 203 – 488-1441.
Friday, July 14 to Sunday, July 16
Guilford Craft Expo
In celebration of its 60th year, the Guilford Art Center’s annual Craft Expo will return to the Guilford Green, celebrating the arts with its extensive array of handmade crafts by 180 American artists. Craft Expo 2017 will be held for three days: Friday, July 14 (noon to 9 p.m.); Saturday, July 15 (10 a.m. to 7 p.m.); and Sunday, July 16 (noon to 5 p.m.).
Craft Expo is known for its one-of-a-kind work of the highest quality: Ceramics, wearable and non-wearable fiber, metal and non-metal jewelry, glass, leather, metal, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture and wood. Items range from decorative to functional and traditional to contemporary.
For more information, go to http://guilfordartcenter.org/expo/.
Saturday, July 15
An Insider’s Look
If you’re new to town or just curious about that magnificent granite building on Main Street, this is your chance to learn all about it. On Saturday, July 15, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., you can tour the Blackstone Library, learn historical tidbits, and get an insider’s peek into the day in the life of a Blackstone library employee. To register, call 203 – 488-1441.
Saturday, July 15, and Sunday, July 16
Christmas in July
Cynthia Purcell, Martha Link Walsh, and Owen Luckey (pictured above: L‑R) have joined together for Christmas in July, at their galleries, 188 North Main St., on Saturday, July 15, and Sunday, July 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days.
The Martha Link Walsh Gallery features Spread Your Wings to Soar, an exhibit of Martha Link Walsh’s newest paper cuttings. Luckey ReDo offers the latest creations by textile artist Owen Luckey including a new line of reimagined denim jeans. Well-known for her creative floral displays, Cynthia Purcell welcomes visitors to stop into Cynthia’s Flower Shop to enjoy some of her recent arrangements.
Items for sale include potted plants and seasonal flowers at Cynthia’s Flower Shop; wearables and accessories at Luckey ReDo; cards, prints and papercut luminaries at the Martha Link Walsh Gallery, plus a chance to see the new 2018 Papercut Calendar.
The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call 203 – 481-3505 or visit www.marthalinkwalsh.com.
Animal Camp continues
Dan Cosgrove Animal Shelter’s Animal Camp runs July 17 to July 21, July 24 to July 28, Aug. 14 to Aug. 18, and Aug. 21 to Aug. 25.
The camp is a fun, educational, hands-on camp that allows children to interact and learn about all kinds of animals. The focus is to promote respect for all living creatures, including each other. Included will be games such as animal tracking, nature art, and water games.
For more information or registration forms, go to branfordanimalshelter.org, call Laura at 203 – 315-4125, or Dawn at 203 – 393-8628.
Saturday, July 29
National Trolley Festival
The National Trolley Festival is an all-day event celebrating the 117th anniversary of the start of trolley service on the line (the Branford Electric Railway started operating July 31, 1900) and the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the museum (on Aug. 14, 1945), taking place at the Shoreline Trolley Museum, 17 River St., East Haven. The highlight will be two parades of cars, at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
There will be food trucks in the yard and a DJ. A special feature will be a 1 p.m. tour of the old Johnson’s Quarry site, led by well-known Branford Trust member Bill Horne.
For details, go to https://shorelinetrolley.org.
Through Aug. 6
Beauty and the Beetle at the Peabody Museum
Coleoptera in Art and Science is on display through Aug. 6 at the Peabody Museum of Natural History, Whitney Avenue and Sachem Street, New Haven, as represented by artist Gar Waterman and photographer William Guth, who present dazzling representations of these incredible insects.
Of the one million species of insects known to scientists today, nearly half – about 400,000 – are beetles. These tremendously diverse animals, known by the scientific term Coleoptera, are found in habitats across the globe, and take on a wide variety of shapes and sizes (the largest is over 400 times longer than the smallest).
Their work allows us a rare glimpse of details and topographies typically the reserve of scientists and their microscopes. Artists and scientists alike are diligent students of nature, each investigating its subject in remarkably similar ways: science to document and explain, and art to interpret and express.
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