Thinking Green

CraftyNest

What to do with all those wine corks? Well I loved this bath mat idea posted on CraftyNest. Just click on name under the photo to be taken to the original post.

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

Spring Lilacs ~ photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Tuesday's Treasures

Kitschy Kitschy Cool on Etsy is a great shop with a wide assortment of vintage, modern and unique prints "with a modern kitschy twist". I love the color combinations! Check out the shop by clicking Here.

Bird in Hand

Starfish Print Monogram

Victorian Bicycle

Monday Musings

I ♥ NY!

Reflections

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.  Mother Teresa

Mike Checkum - Mixed Tapelf

Saturday Simplify

Learn by Listening.

Friday Food Feature

I came across this recipe online recently from Maine Food and Lifestyle and thought I would share it with you. Looks delicious!!

Pastry-Wrapped Brie with Sage and Blueberry Vinegar

Brooke Dojny, Dishing Up Maine

1 Brie cheese (15-16 ounces, about 6 inches in diameter), chilled

¼ cup fresh sage leaves, plus sprigs for garnish

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (half a 17.3-ounce package), thawed

1 large egg, beaten with 2 teaspoons water

⅓ cup blueberry vinegar

Using a large knife, cut the rind off the top of the cheese and discard. Arrange the sage leaves over the rindless top.

On a lightly floured board, roll the pastry out to a 12-inch square. Place the cheese in the center of pastry, rindless side up. Fold two opposite corners of the pastry diagonally over the cheese. Brush the remaining two sides of the pastry all over with the beaten egg mixture, reserving some for the next step, and fold over the cheese, pressing the seams to seal and forming a rough rosette with the excess pastry on top.

Brush the top with the remaining egg mixture, place on a baking sheet seam-side up, and freeze for at least 30 minutes. (This can be made up to 2 days ahead, wrapped, and frozen.)

Preheat oven to 400˚.

Bake until the pastry is deep golden brown, about 30 minutes. The seam on the top may split open somewhat, but that’s fine. Cool for at least 20 minutes.

Pour the vinegar into a small serving ramekin for dipping. Garnish with sage sprigs, cut into small wedges, and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Note: If blueberry vinegar is unavailable, use white vinegar and add a few small sage leaves and/or blueberries to the ramekin.

Makes about 35 slices (about 8 servings).

Thinking Green

I found this post on a Maine green website and thought it apropos to post this week! In an attempt to connect with all the excitement over the Boston Bruins winning the Stanley Cup – consider the fact that the NHL is the only league out of the big four in North America to reuse the same championship trophy year after year. Go Bruins!

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

Fairy Garden photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Tuesday's Treasures

Patrick Irla Jewelry is a wonderfully talented artist on Etsy that replicates one of my favorite florals, hydrangeas,  into elegant jewelry. Click on the links below the photos to be taken to the Etsy shop. Here are a few of my favorites!

These are so sweet:

My absolute favorite below:

Hydrangea Cluster Necklace

Blue Topaz Hydrangea Drop Earrings

Monday Musings

I love trying new crafts and journeying down new creative paths. Of course, my husband finds this very expensive so I try not to go overboard. It is actually one reason I have a supply shop - it supports my creative ventures. I am a paper addict and have always wanted to learn how to use a letterpress to create a line of cards. I haven't purchased a letterpress as of yet. I did however find this fabulous video by Naomie Ross that does such a wonderful job visually explaining the process.

Letterpress from Naomie Ross on Vimeo.

Happy Father's Day

To my Dad, my husband and all my blogger friends. I hope you have a very Happy (and relaxing) Father's Day!

Saturday Simplify

Claude Monet's Garden at Giverny

Walk around and fully experience a beautiful flower bed, a garden, your yard, or a park. 

Friday Food Feature

I purchased these "sweets", a few weeks ago from Trader Joes, one of my favorite food shops. They are dark chocolate covered "Powerberries".   The berries are a blend of acai, pomegranate, blueberry, cranberry, and elderberry. They are covered in a firm dark chocolate. They are gluten free, contain all the important antioxidants, so they are a great choice when craving something sweet with a bit of chocolate. One quarter of a cup has 180 calories, 7 grams of fat, 25 grams of sugar, and 20% of your the daily requirement for Vitamin C. They are amazing - bursting with fruit flavor and well, dark chocolate. Need I say more!

Thinking Green

I'm looking to purchase one of these outdoor clotheslines. The only place that it would really work is on my outdoor deck on the second floor. I wonder if an umbrella stand for those outdoor patio umbrellas would work. I love the fresh smell of sheets that have been air dried. The benefits of savings on our energy bill will certainly be helpful as well! Do you use an outdoor clothesline?

Tuesday's Treasures

Ageless and Evergreen is a fine artist on Etsy that uses a mix of photography, drawing and painting to create unique giclee prints for a reasonable price. Her use of mixed media and photo montage evoke a lovely life-like quality to her work. Click on the captions beneath the photos to be taken to her shop.

At Grannie's Door

Oh Gentle Dove

The Rose

Monday Musings

This is a great video of New York City - the city the never sleeps. Enjoy!

Mindrelic - Manhattan in motion from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

Reflections

Saturday Simplify

Look for what you can give , not what you can get.

photo via chopra.com

Friday Food Feature

Summer Sangria

1 cup of pomegranate juice, chilled

1 bottle of Rioja or Beaujolais red wine, chilled

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup of seedless organic red grapes, frozen

1 orange, thinly sliced

1 lime, thinly sliced

1 lemon, thinly sliced

1 cup of seltzer or club soda, chilled

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large pitcher. Let chill in refrigerator for one hour. Stir in seltzer, and pour sangria into ice-filled glasses. Enjoy!

Thinking Green

Nellies Laundry

Dryerballs are rubber balls which soften clothes in the dryer without adding scent.  I prefer them to dryer sheets as they are sustainable.  They can be found at most department shops or the one's in the photo above can be found online or at Nellies Laundry.

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

 photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Tuesday's Treasures

I love the quality of the illustrations of Canadian Etsy Artist, Shirae Sela.  They evoke feelings of warmth and comfort through their depiction of carefree summer days I remember growing up in the country by the sea.  I have featured a few here but you can click on any of the titles below the prints to be taken to her shop.

Complete

Happy Moment

Nurturing

Monday Musings

I visited Manhattan last week for a few days with my son Evan. We went to the Alexander McQueen exhibit: "Savage Beauty", with a dear high school friend, Patience, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  It was an amazing exhibit. McQueen was a true visionary artist and it is so sad he is no longer with us.  I thought I would share this video depicting the MET exhibit, as I wasn't able to take photographs because of the museums policy.

Reflections

Improved technology, population growth and globalization have made today’s world increasingly interdependent. Therefore, putting your own country’s interests first, at the expense of others, can have serious consequences. What we need to do is to think of humanity as a whole and develop a sense of concern on a global level. I refer to this as having a sense of “universal responsibility”. ~ Dalai Lama

via NASA

Saturday Simplify

Do you have a tendency to speculate and assume? Catch yourself each time you do so, and come back to the experience of the breath. 

Friday Food Feature

Grilled Lime-Salsa Chicken

Juice of 2 Limes

1/2 cup of olive oil

8 pieces of chicken breasts

1 cup fresh salsa

2 T fresh lime juice

2-4 tsp of chili powder

Combine lime juice and olive oil in a zip-lock bag. Add chicken, seal, and marinate for 1-2 hours.

Combine salsa, 1 T juice, and chili powder. Remove chicken from marinade and place on a hot grill. Cook until done, basting with salsa mixture when turning. Delicious! 

via Foodista

Thinking Green

A Simple Recipe for Unclogging Drains

• Remove all water from the sink or tub and pour about 1 cup baking soda down the drain.
• Then pour 1 cup vinegar down the drain, and plug it immediately (if you’re unclogging a double sink, plug both drains).
• When the bubbles have died down (about 30 minutes), rinse them down the drain with hot water.

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan