First it was the lobster towels, and now it’s these vases. They both have me musing fondly on my summer trip to Maine. I grew up going there every summer, but it’s been many years since I’d been back. Spending a week in Bar Harbor and in Acadia National Park this July was a wonderful experience, rekindling my love for the state's rocky coast, fragrant pine trees and very cold waters.
 
While many people I know love to collect shells, I am a rock collector. Culling through stones is fun to do, especially on New England beaches, and I have many, many jars full to prove it.
 
I think that’s why I first fell for these rock vases when I discovered them at Cocoanut Jewelry in the Willow Lawn Shopping Center. Priced from $20 to $31 based on size, the vases are locally made and hand-drilled from natural rocks.

They’d look great filled with a single flower stem or even a leafless branch. They’re sculptural on their own and would also add a ton of interest and earthiness clustered low as a centerpiece on a fall harvest table. And what about on a desk in the office? A natural rock vase like one of these is an easy way to bring the outside in.

Cocoanut Jewelry is at 1601 Willow Lawn Drive and at 11800 W. Broad St. in Short Pump Town Center.