fill it with family and friends

i'm back! what a few weeks it has been - the royal wedding has come and gone, spring has finally sprung her in vermont, and i made a few new vermont discoveries that i will be sharing with you all over the coming days as i jump back into blogging in a big way. so, to kick things off, i bring you: vermont farm table.

long story short, if i had a beautiful old home and all the money in the world, i would spend my money and fill it with piece after piece of beautiful furniture and i now know that this furniture would all be from vermont farm table - my newest and most favorite made in vermont discovery.

i mean, how can you not love everything created by a company whose mission statement goes a little something like this: make it yours. love it. beat it up. fill it with family and friends, and then plan on passing it down.

trust me: it's worth a trip to burlington to see their beautiful brand new show room (it smells good too) at 197 college street.

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zoe ink.

i can't even believe it, but tomorrow i get to meet with the amazingly talented (and super fun!) zoe ink. zoe creates the most magical paper products out of her one room letter press studio in the sodafountain building in burlington.

this means that tomorrow could quite possibly be the best day in the whole wedding planning process. i have a thing for paper, and really (according to my brilliant mother) the theme of the wedding starts with an invitation...so tomorrow, i get to cozy up with zoe and start the creative process. and the fact that i get to do it with someone as fun and talented as zoe makes it that much more fun! stay tuned, i will surely have lots to report tomorrow!

any ideas out there for me? any favorites that i need to see?! i need all the help i can get (-:

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the polar express

hands down, the very best book of all time is the polar express. no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

and this weekend, in vermont, this magical book comes to life - both here in burlington and down the road in hartford. a train ride complete with hot chocolate, homemade cookies, sing-a-longs, conductors, santa and of course, the first gift of christmas! can you imagine a more perfect way to spend a saturday? 'cause i sure can't....

so, what do you think? who's on board?

“though I’ve grown old, the bell still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe.”

-the polar express

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wine wednesday

i have to agree with seven days blogger haylee that "when the weather soars above 90 — and Vermonters curse their neighbors with air conditioning — standing waist deep in lake champlain holding a cold drink sounds like the thing to do." and, clearly, in my opinion, that drink should be wine. but which wine, you ask? now that is a question that dedalus wine shop co-owner jason zuliani, needed to answer. jason, besides being a very cool and well rounded guy, knows quite a bit about wine, especially the kind of wine to drink while wading in the nearest swimming hole during the steamy, but oh so fleeting, days of summer...

and what jason had to say in a recent interview might surprise you. he said the best new wines of summer are either an italian white (like a lugana or grillo) which are generally crisp, minerally, refreshing and vibrant or a rose (which have come along way since the box o' wine white zins of yesteryear!) which should be equally as crisp, juicy, and mouthwatering. lots of good advice, with a little bit of snark...his interview is definitely worth the read and his store is definitely worth a visit! dedalus is filled with tons of yummy bottles (including this and this!) no matter what your mood, taste or the season.

so, i think i just might celebrate the hump day with a cold and crisp glass of wine and a dip in the lake. i hope you all have some tricks up yoursleves tonight too. enjoy...it will be august before you know it!

ps - if there werent enough reasons already to celebrate....it's also national milk chocolate day! gotta love that.

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benjy & the skinny

if your inbox looks anything like mine, it is filled (and i mean filled) with enewsletters and email blasts about upcoming sales, events and happenings. while a very small percentage of information is pertinent to my every day life (ie. subject lines like - 10% off lanterns at pottery barn, 20% off target - in store only, travel to bermuda NOW with cheaptickets.com, free golf clubs from golf digest...you get the drift) even with this lack of pertinence, i have somehow convinced myself that at some point, this info will be incredibly important and that clicking "unsubscribe" link is some sort of sin.

but of all these daily and weekly notices, the one i truly look forward to (as it has some delightful relevence to my actual life) is the one from benjy pancake - the cyber personality behind the burlington and montpelier creperie - the skinny pancake. he is smart and witty and says things like "we refer to the period between the summer solstice and the 4th of july as the heart of the artichoke. indeed, it is a sweet period of time." i mean, what is not to love about that sentence?

plus, he fills me in on all the local events in burlington and beyond, while also highlighting new menu offerings and upcoming musical happenings. just to get your mouth watering and your feet tapping. check out whats on tap at the 'cake this week:

menu items:

• ragout muffin*** (montpelier): winding brook farm lamb stewed with vermont tomatoes, garlic scapes, with pickled ramps, small step farm spinach and maplebrook farm mozzarella. ***there is no muffin contained in this special.
• calzone crepe*** (burlington): house made ricotta, maplebrook farm mozzarella, arethusa farm baby spinach wrapped in a crepe-calzone shell, topped with roasted garlic & our house-made marinara sauce.

tunes:

• friday, 06.25.10 - johnson's crossroads (acoustic/Americana) "a bearded and burly four-man-band with a whiskey-drenched grasp on old american folk and grass."
• saturday, 06.26.10 - scott mangan & nicole erin carey, "the grass is greener is a musical collective led by singer/songwriter Scott Mangan. with musical stylings that touch upon various genres from groove rock to folk music with hip hop beats, the burlington band brings a creative and dynamic energy to every live performance."

check out the website for the full menu (including their sweet selections) and musical calendar and most importantly - to sign up for benjy's skinny newsletter! happy reading - and benjy and i hope to see you at the 'cake soon!

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magnolia love.

we had another vermont weekend for the books. it included farmer's markets, barbeques, jazz, sunshine, soccer and a lazy afternoon nap in the grass...perfection all around.

but the highlight of the weekend may have been our discovery of burlington's magnolia bistro. a fabulous hidden gem of a breakfast and lunch cafe just the perfect distance off the beaten path (aka church street)

i would go into much more detail about our tasty meal, but i am already hungry for lunch, so it would be too painful to give you too much info about the fresh baked banana bread (with cranberry cream cheese) or the pulled pork and cheddar omelet that mr. frederickson enjoyed, or the ripeness of the avocados in my california omelet, or the fact that i would die for a curried tuna sandwich with a side of german potato salad right about now.....

...ok. that's it. i'll stop. but if you are hungry for more (and my guess is you are) just click here for the full menu and be prepared for some majorly awkward mouth watering. don't say i didn't warn you.

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VTuesday Shoesday

i completely forgot what day it was when i woke up this morning (hazards of a working weekend, i suppose) but when i turned my computer on, i was thrilled to realize that it was already the best day of the week...and you know what that is! happy tuesday shoesday to you all!

last night on a late night stroll with mr. frederickson, i saw these lovely sandals in a store window and immediately fell in love. then, after a little morning research my love and need (yes, need)for these shoes grew for several reasons...

1. they are called get outta town - what better name for these happy little summer sandals? they are just dying for a summer weekend away.
2. they come in a million colors (yellow, blue, black, pewter, oh my!)
3. that at tootsies (the fantastic shoe store/nail salon in burlington where these shoes were discovered) from now until july 4th when you buy two pairs of shoes totaling $100 or more you receive a coupon for 50% off the pedicure of your choice! shiny painted toes and a new pair of bright blue sandals? quite the heavenly combo if you ask me...

(via seychelles)

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wine wednesdays & restaurant week.

you all know by now how excited i am for the upcoming vermont restaurant week. although, i have to admit i am so overwhelmed by all the delicious options and new spots i want to try that i have yet to make a single reservation...whoops!

however, the special wine dinner being hosted on may 20th by 156 bistro & vermont wine merchants, just might be the event that kicks me into gear and motivates me to sign up for not only that evening, but others as well.

the special event features a 4-course dinner, paired with a selection of wines from "the other guys" plus, there will be a guest speaker to teach us all a bit about the vino (and you know i need all the help i can get!)

here's what the evening's menu looks like:

• chef's cheese plate, featuring st. andre and chevre & the white knight viognier
• roasted littleneck clams with chorizo-herb broth & moobuzz chardonnay
• boyden farm petite filet with crispy shallots, potato-celeriac purée and roasted tomato ragout & plungerhead old vine zinfandel
• chocolate and black cherry bread pudding & leese - fitch cabernet sauvignon

can you say yum!? c'mon...who's with me? we should hurry and sign up as this tasty event is sure to fill up soon. not sold yet? go here to learn more.

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a very pretty town, indeed.

thanks to my wonderful boston friend for alerting me to this morning's breaking news -burlington, vt just got ranked by forbes magazine as one of the prettiest towns in america. the third prettiest town to be exact.

oh, vermont, once again, you make me proud.

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wine wednesdays

alright friends, please mark your calendars for saturday june 26th for the first annual burlington wine & food festival. that's right - a wine festival right here in vermont! what could be better!? this just might be the best thing to happen to wine wednesdays, since, well, since the invention of wine wednesdays!

this wine extravaganza is replacing the much loved green mountain chew festival that expired last year after 24 seasons as the waterfront festival of choice for the month of june (may has the vermont marathon, july has brewfest)

so, how does it work, you ask? well, it's simple - for $40 a head, you will get a wine glass and 15 swigs from any of the 350 showcase winess, a voucher for one food item from a featured restaurant (so far l'amante, miguel’s on main, the belted cow bistro, trattoria delia and souza's have signed on) and unlimited artisan bread and vermont cheese, all while strolling the beautiful waterfront park.

i'm sold!! who's with me?

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wine wednesday (a few days late)

one of my new favorites spots (and one i am very happy to return home to) is the burlington wine shop.

a delightful little shop right downtown with a wonderful range of wines (with cute labels) at every price plus their staff knows when to steer you away from the cute labels and towards a wine that is perfect for any occasion!

and the best part is they celebrate wine wednesdays as well! in their world, wine wednesday means partnering with drink (the fantastic bar next store) and selecting four wines and pairing them with four cheeses and bread from august first bakery. so, for $10 you can treat yourself to a little mid-week wine & cheese party! gotta love that.

this week, they are likely to feature their wine of the week - anne amie, muller thurgau 2007 - which is a "cold weather white grape variety created by crossing riesling and silvaner. oregon's cooler climate creates this beautiful wine that teases of sweetness but remains dry and light bodied with lots of white fleshy fruit flavors."

and if you can't make it on wednesday - there is a free wine tasting on saturday, april 24th!

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the green life.

please don't judge me, but i have to admit that there was awhile where i hated the green movement - it felt too forced and trendy and it drove me crazy seeing people driving gas guzzling SUVs but carrying their groceries in cute little eco-tote bags and wearing tshirts that said "i live green" and "earth day rocks".

however, that was then (2007) and this is now. and now, i have fully embraced the green movement (you should have seen our recycling bin this morning!) but it's easy up here in the woods, because, as the bumber sticker says, "vermont - we were green before it was cool."

so, my new favorite addition to this green lifestyle is a burlington, vt store aptly called the green life. it is full of wonderfully environmentally friendly items for you and your home - linens, furniture, bath products and cozy cozy blankets. definitely worth a visit. odds are, it will make you go a little bit greener.

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and now a little color...

and while yes, i love when life looks like a classic black and white photo, i need a little color in my life today...and these fabulous springtime finds might just do the trick.

all products can be found at monelle and the shoe shop - church st, burlington, vt

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nesting, nesting 1, 2, 3

i am in a nesting phase. all of a sudden i have a need to hang photos, buy bedspreds, and organize my spice cabinet.* i could psychoanalyze this phase, but instead i am going to ignore the underlying issues that it brings up and just embrace it.

and today, embracing it means looking for cool vermont photos to frame and hang in my living room (if my boss is reading this, i'm sorry!) check out these photographs of the street stencils that mark the burlington city bus depot. 1, 2, 3...done and done. i'm thinking big white mats and black frames...thoughts?

and clearly i need these pillows from pottery barn to complete the number theme.

*more details on the spice project to come.

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spontaneity.

i like plans. i like calendars and lists and schedules. it's in my DNA.

so, the word spontaneity is not even in my vocabulary. especially when it comes to things like holidays...when i think plans are part of the fun. however, this last weekend, i was proven wrong. very wrong.

the type A planner in me got hives thinking about going out on valentine's day with no schedule, plans or reservations. but, i gave in. i let go and let mr. spontaneity take the wheel.

we wandered out the front door and meandered down church street not having any idea where the night might lead (again, hives) but it was perfect. a quick stop at 3 of our most favorite places...all with delightful waitresses, warm candlelight, tasty snacks, yummy red wine and sparking conversation. so, yes, it may have had something to do with the company (and the wine helped the hives) but, it was perfect.

so, whether you want to plan for it or not, our valentine's day bar crawl comes highly recommended.

156 bistro - yes, it might be known for its fabulous big screen tvs (mr. spontaneity loved this) but the vibe is not your typical sports bar - its a tricky combination of sleek and cozy, trendy and familiar. plus, menu is great (the bistro burger might change your life) the wine list is wonderful, and the wait staff couldn't be friendlier. next time, however, i am going to beeline to the back and get the coveted seat on the leather couch by the fire place...ahh...


american flatbread - heaven. if i had to dream up the perfect restaurant, this would be pretty close. local beer, woodfired pizza made with local, organic ingredients, perfect ambiance...rustic vermont meets classic italian (whats not to love about a restaurant with checkered table cloths?) plus, our fantastic waitress gave us some excellent advice and helped us save a little bit of money. how often does that happen? my only complaint is that they were out of the brownie sundae (apparently valentines day is a big dessert holiday!) but to satisfy our lingering sweet tooth, we asked our server for pot of local honey to dip your pizza crusts in. it wasn't a brownie sundae, but it got the job done (-:



daily planet - a local favorite of ours. a cozy, celarium turned restaurant/bar. admittedly, i have never actually eaten there...just enjoyed a glass of wine or two. the menu, drink list, artwork, and clientelle is constantly changing, so there is never a dull moment. but, i think, besides the super cool decor, my favorite part of the planet is the drink special called the cougar which is "any of the specialty martinis, plus a bud bottle for your cub" hahaha.

"the essence of pleasure is spontaneity..."

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