A Wild Tonic Vintage

Now that Christmas (and other non-Christian-gift-giving-holidays) is over, Martha Stewart offers some creative and adorable ways to be extra green during the red and green season: Quick and Easy Ways to Recycle Wrapping Paper. Shredding it is my favorite idea. I think I'll shred some wrapping paper to store all my family's Christmas tree ornaments safely until next winter.

I've just recently stumbled upon Re-Nest, which is a sub-blog of Apartment Therapy (which also rules), and I saw this article last night and have fallen in love. A High-Tech & Green Traditional New England Home.

Though I've never been to Rhode Island, I do love me some New England, and I can picture myself in a house similar to this one in Maine or Connecticut. Things I'm particularly obsessed with: the dark wood floors (swoon), the clawfoot bathtub (double swoon), their use of green technology (triple swoon), and this entire room: Look at that view! Love those huge open windows and (again) the dark wood flooring. Beautiful, beautiful design.

Probably one of my favorite videos in the history of Youtube.

Has anyone ever tried this? Because I definitely will, this looks delicious. (Read the original article here!)
What to Do With Leftover Wine
Use those dribs and drabs left after a party: Try these recipes for boozy syrup you can serve over waffles, ice cream, and more.
Leftover Red Wine Syrup
Hands-on time: 5 minutes
Total time: 2 hours (includes cooling time)
Makes: 1 cup

1 orange
1 bottle red wine (or 3½ cups assorted red wines)
1 cup sugar
6 cloves
1 cinnamon stick

Using a vegetable peeler, remove strips of orange zest from the orange. In a large saucepan, combine the wine, sugar, cloves, cinnamon stick, and orange zest.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the wine mixture is thickened and reduced to 1 cup, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick and orange zest. Let cool for 15 minutes, then refrigerate until chilled (the syrup will thicken as it cools).

Serve with: ice cream, yogurt, ricotta, pound cake, waffles, pancakes, or fruit.


Leftover White Wine Syrup

Hands-on…

This is my Christmas card display for the season. I hope I get some more this week to fill it up! I just used some twine, scotch tape, and ideal clamps. The tape is a little too visible, so I might try another route. Maybe clear thumb tacks? Regardless, I dig it's simplicity.

I seriously loved this chick. No words for how bummed I am.

Note: I wrote this post a few MONTHS ago, and for some reason never posted it. Going to post it now and pretend I'm not a dummy.

Last Sunday, Frank and I ventured up to Warwick, NY for the 21st Annual Warwick Applefest. We walked around for a few hours in the beautiful sunshine, and I tried my hardest to NOT buy so many cool things. I got a delicious pulled pork sandwich for lunch. During the walk back to the car, we were accompanied by this excellent sky. After the Fest, we drove to Pacem in Terris which was so beautiful and relaxing after a long day of walking around.




All in all, it was a lovely Sunday.

So A Wild Tonic is back! Just as I was getting the ball rolling with projects and building up my Twitter and Etsy accounts, I got a full-time job at a photography lab. I know there are thousands of bloggers with full-time jobs, but let me tell you, the school photo season (early September through mid-December) is literally, unbelievably mind-blowingly busy. I'm as shocked as you are.

However, I decided that although I'm busy working and getting ready for the holidays, I can still find time to keep up with the blog. So HOORAY for the end of the Autumn Hiatus! :)