Finding inspiration in their childhood memories of growing up on the Maine coast, Hayley and Blair Griffin, the sisters behind Eklund Griffin, use the beauty around them as inspiration for their one-of-a-kind handbags and totes. “Maine is everything to us: it’s our color palette, our work ethic, our backdrop, our context, our support system,” says Blair, noting the sisters spent summers lobstering and camping with their father, who was a lobsterman.

Eklund Griffin—a combination of the sisters’ last name and that of their great-grandparents—has been in the works since 2012, although it didn’t officially launch until 2016. The Griffin sisters realized after completing college and working for other companies that they “wanted to make something together,” Blair says.

Blair says Haley was more sure than she was of the need to lead a creative life. Haley started a small Etsy shop after graduating from Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland, always knowing she wanted to go bigger. But she needed a business partner, so she waited for Blair to graduate with a business degree from Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts.

Photo by Emily Delamater

What started out as a plan to only launch one design (The Infinity Tote) has turned into a collection. “It was a slow progression, bootstrapping the research and development phase for four products,” says Blair, but “through conversations with mentors, we went back to the drawing board to offer a stronger collection.”

The duo initially wanted to design bags with no black color option. But after listening to customers repeatedly ask for a black version, they had a lightbulb moment and were reminded black is classic and will never go out of style.

Photo by Emily Delamater

The sisters create in their studio, which overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. “We’re fortunate to have a family home big enough to accommodate all of us. We live together in the house my father grew up in and have converted the master bedroom into our home studio,” says Blair. “It’s a beautiful space with tons of sun and a view of the Atlantic. We’re looking forward, and simultaneously not looking forward, to the day we have to find a workspace outside of the house.”

Hayley and Blair Griffin- handbag designers, Eklund Griffin
Cape Elizabeth, Maine
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Top image, Rope Wristlet. Photo by Hayley Griffin.

The post Sister Act appeared first on Take Magazine.

Not many professional musicians can say they got their start playing subway stations, but Dan Blakeslee has never been typical. His artistic journey started at his family’s farmhouse in South Berwick, Maine, where he unknowingly turned down his art instructor’s invitation to meet Andrew Wyeth and instead opting to ride his bike—a typical 7-year old there, at least. From a BFA at Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, to stints around Boston (where a friend urged him to play the subway in 1995), Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Newburyport, back to Somerville, and finally relocating to Providence this spring, Blakeslee has rambled across New England and beyond. Road life suits him: he averages 150-200 shows a year, including a performance at Newport Folk Festival in 2015.

About a decade prior, while drawing a tour poster art at a cafe in Burlington, Vermont, Blakeslee noticed someone peeking over his shoulder. That person was John Kimmich, owner of The Alchemist in Waterbury, who then asked Dan if he could do some artwork for the brewery. He was working on a new beer he thought might be something special.

Craft IPA lovers already know where this is headed: Blakeslee’s drawing of a man‘s head exploding with hops is on every label of Heady Topper, the legendary double/imperial IPA that scored 100 on www.beeradvocate.com, as well as its sister beer Focal Banger. But despite his iconic artwork in the beer world, Blakeslee has never had a drink in his life.

Instead, he gets his kicks from doing scratch board, silk screening, full color pencil drawing, and recently mural painting, as well as from natural wonders like the Grand Canyon, which he finally saw up close on a 70-day cross-country solo tour in 2016. “I was electrified, illuminated and floating,” he says. “Letting it sink into my soul was so important. There were thousands of people lining the banks, but no one was speaking. They were either speechless or whispering.”

Dan Blakeslee and the Calabash Club

Blakeslee has another outlet to blow off steam; in 7th grade, his older brother showed him punk rock music, which “took my soul,” he says, although his own songwriting is more folk-Americana. But each year around Halloween, Dan performs as Doctor Gasp, the fez-wearing, maniacal alter ego who sings spooky songs, jumps and kicks onstage, and throws candy corn at the audience. “It gets all that pent-up art kid energy out,” he laughs.

Blakeslee’s new album, The Alley Walker, debuts August 18th; it’s his seventh but the second with his band, the Calabash Club, recorded at 1130 ft studios in New Hampshire. In his lyrical, easygoing tenor, he sings true life stories: “the good, the bad, the weird, and everything in-between,” mixing in some rock elements and folk finger picking, fiddle, and pedal steel.

A friends-turned-family of musicians welcomed Blakeslee to Providence, and he loves being a New Englander: “We have it so good [here]. There’s interesting architecture, beautiful spots to visit, towns, nature, food, nightlife… It’s really amazing and diverse.” Although he could easily book an entire year of shows within a three-hour radius, Blakeslee makes sure to visit the far reaches and points, taking back roads whenever possible. “Even if it takes an extra hour or more,” he says, “just to get that beautiful country road in—it frees my soul.”

Want to know what’s on Blakeslee’s playlist? Check out our Take a Listen Spotify channel to see. While you’re there check out the other musicians we’ve featured, too.

Dan Blakeslee–musician/illustrator
Providence, Rhode Island
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Top image by Amanda M. Grosvenor

The post Rhode Island Ramblin’ Man Dan Blakeslee appeared first on Take Magazine.