Little Silver manicurist and nail artist Halle Butler needs a hand.
The Northeastern University junior, now doing a beauty-industry internship in Manhattan, is one of six national semifinalists in a nail art competition sponsored by polish maker Essie.
Closing out his quest on Flag Day, NJ.com video reporter and Red Bank resident Brian Donohue unveiled the winner of a contest he championed for a new New Jersey state flag Tuesday. And the winning design, chosen from nearly 400 submissions, was by Andrew Maris of Fair Haven.
In the above video, 19-year-old Maris describes the vexillolographical thinking that went into his red, white and blue design in response to Donohue’s bugle call for “a bolder, simpler, more recognizable state flag that New Jerseyans could be proud of.” Maris has also set up an online petition calling for a new state flag. (Click to enlarge)
Red Bank Middle School seventh grader Luis Santamaria shows off his photo of baby birds waiting to be fed in their nest before he was honored by the borough council Wednesday night.
The photo was one of four selected as winners in the latest round of seasonal photo contests sponsored by the borough’s Parks and Recreation Department, and earned Luis a certificate as well as a portfolio review by professional photographers Liz and Bob McKay of McKay Imaging Photography on Monmouth Street.
Luis told redbankgreen he takes lots of photos, and for this one, got as close as he could to the birds without disturbing them and snapped the shot with his cracked-screen cellphone. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
Check out this powerful video created by Red Bank Regional students on the dangers of distracted driving.
Photos by a Red Bank Middle School student, Jonathan Balanzar, above, and an adult, Lidia Carranza, right, were the winners in the first of a new series of seasonal photo contests sponsored by the borough’s Parks and Recreation Department, director Charlie Hoffmann announced at Wednesday night’s council meeting.
The photos will hang in the department’s offices at borough hall and be posted on the new version of the town website now under development, he said. The deadline for the spring edition of the contest, which is open to all Red Bank residents, is May 30.
Meantime, here’s a colorful photo op: the annual Easter Egg Hunt, which is scheduled for noon on Saturday, March 19 at Eastside Park on Harrison Avenue. (Click to enlarge)
The three judges at the Sea Bright Farmers’ Market’s first apple pie bake-off: Eric from Estonia, Susan Ericson and Susie Markson. Below, the winning apple caramel tart. (Photos by John T. Ward and Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
An invitation to judge the first annual apple pie bake-off at the Sea Bright Farmers’ market Thursday afternoon was too tasty an opportunity for this PieHole writer to turn down.
With a bakery background – I grew up in a Queens bakery – my opinions on apple pie are pretty specific. A good one needs a flaky crust, a non-mushy apple filling, and most important, fresh apple flavor.
Fall is apple season, of course, and you can find many varieties of apples at farm markets and pick-your-own orchards right now. The best for pie baking are the Granny Smiths and Honey Crisps. They hold up better through the baking process, with a tart and tangy flavor that plays well with the added sugar and spices.
A view along Broad Street from 2012. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
The votes are in, and Red Bank is the most popular downtown in central New Jersey, according to the state chapter of the American Planning Association.
In online voting, the borough outpolled Asbury Park by just 35 votes, out of nearly 6,900 cast, with Somerville close behind in the three-way contest.
The designation is another feather in the cap for the borough, which was named the third-best small town in America by Smithsonian Magazine in 2012. It’s also something Red Bank RiverCenter can leverage in its efforts to fill store vacancies and bring in shoppers, said executive director Jim Scavone.
A view along Broad Street from 2012. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
What’s your favorite New Jersey downtown?
The state chapter of the American Planning Association is asking the public for its input on the question, and Red Bank is among the candidates.
And the winner is… right here. (Photo by Sarah Klepner. Click to enlarge)
Betsy Bryan, above, of Rumson, registers her entry in the annual Sickles Market biggest tomato contest in Little Silver on Saturday. For the second year in a row, the biggest-tomato contest was won by Mike Mansfield, in center of photo at right, who took home a $100 Sickles gift certificate. He attributed his success to Bumper Crop, an organic soil amendment. Below: the winning entry, at at 2.36 pounds, was considerably smaller than last year’s monster. (Photos by Sarah Klepner. Click to enlarge)
Young fans of New Jersey’s state fruit tucked in with gusto at the annual blueberry festival at Sickles Market in Little Silver Saturday. For the 12th straight year, pie-eating competitions were on the agenda.
Among the contestants was James Culbert, of Fair Haven, at right, who said, after his 60-second bout, “I want to eat the rest with a fork.”
(Photos by Stacie Fanelli. Click to enlarge)
First place: 14 Catherine Street, home of Patrick Hussey & Family. (Click to enlarge)
Let the maple syrup flow!
The winners of Red Bank’s annual Holiday Home Decorating Contest have been selected, with winning households taking home half-gallon jugs of maple syrup made in Vermont by Jules Prown, father of event co-sponsor David Prown of Prowns Home Improvements.
And this year, the top two winners are brothers who own homes on the West Side.