Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

RIPE: Fresh Cocktail Mixers with Real, Pronounceable Ingredients

In a rush before a gaggle of guests were due to arrive at my house, I was staring at a shelf full of pre-made margarita mixers at my local liquor store. With no time to run to the grocery store, making my own was out, so I grabbed the first bottle I saw and dashed down the aisle, reading the ingredients as I walked. “Contains no juice. High fructose corn syrup… citric acid… polysorbate 60… umm, glycerol ester of wood rosin? Oh, hell no.” The bottle went back on the shelf. Tequila shots, anyone?

There’s no denying the convenience factor of pre-made mixers, especially for those of us who are a little too lazy or sloppy with a measuring spoon to play bartender. But should we have to settle for high fructose corn syrup and other less-than-healthy ingredients? The makers of RIPE Mixers don’t think so, and let me tell you, their products will blow that nasty stuff right out of your cocktail glasses.

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Eco Chick Giveaway: Win a Set of RubyBlaise Essentials Aromatherapy Mists

UPDATE: Thanks for participating, everyone! The winner is – Nicole Galland!

Scent can be so powerful, changing our moods and awakening memories – but sometimes it can be dangerous too, namely when it’s coming from a toxic blend of chemicals vaguely labeled as “fragrance”. Essential oils make it easy to avoid the bad stuff and get even more benefits than simply pleasing scents – promoting skin healing and even killing germs. It’s a no-brainer to ditch the synthetic perfumes and room sprays and switch to healthy products like RubyBlaise Essentials aromatherapy mists.

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Herbs of Spring: Make Your Own Violet Syrup

Those tiny purple blossoms that are covering lawns, meadows and roadsides right now are much more than just ‘weeds’. You’ve probably never given much thought to the common blue violet, aside from admiring its delicate little flowers – but gather enough, and you can make a delicious syrup that soothes sore throats, turns pancakes pink and makes one seriously delicious (and highly unusual) cocktail. The best part – it’s incredibly quick and easy.

Pick a pesticide-free location to gather your violet blossoms – I spent a lazy, sunny afternoon tightly packing a large mason jar from the large violet patch in my backyard. The common blue violet has five rounded petals and broad, heart-shaped leaves; choose the least blemished and darkest ones you find; the white ones don’t have much flavor.

I tried both of the following recipes: one with honey (which is better for use as cough syrup) and one with sugar. I recommend adding the juice of half a lemon to both recipes for better flavor, though your syrup will end up more magenta than violet. Don’t be put off by the very green and earthy smell of the steeping violets! The final mixture is heavenly. I added a few tablespoons to some sparkling water and vodka; it would also be delicious with champagne, lemonade or iced tea.

A few tips from experience: watch the simmering mixture carefully, because it can burn – and handle it carefully when you’re pouring it into bottles, because boiling sugar is not kind to the skin. I used a ladle with a spout, along with a funnel.

Susun Weed’s Violet Syrup (With Honey)

1/2 pound/225g fresh violets
2 cups/500ml water
2 cups/500ml honey

Enlist all the help you can to pick violet blossoms. Boil water; pour over blossoms; cover. Let steep overnight in nonmetallic container. Strain out flowers. Reserve purple liquid. Combine violet infusion and honey. Simmer gently, stirring, for ten or fifteen minutes, until it seems like syrup. Fill clean jars. Cool. Keep well chilled to preserve.

Violet Syrup (With Sugar) by Linda Ziedrich

3 ounces (about 4 cups) stemmed violets
2 cups water
About 2 cups sugar

Combine the flowers and water in a saucepan. Simmer the contents, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Strain the mixture through a dampened jelly bag. You can squeeze the bag, when it’s cool enough to handle, to extract more liquid. Then measure the volume of the liquid, and combine it in a preserving pan with an equal volume of sugar. Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Raise the heat to high, and bring the syrup to a full boil.

Remove the pan from the heat. Funnel the syrup into a bottle. Store the bottle, tightly capped, in the refrigerator.

Eco Chick’s Heroines for the Planet: Aysia Wright

The lovely and fabulous Aysia Wright

She founded one of America’s first dedicated eco-fashion online shops (and an Eco Chick fave!), The Greenloop, and led the search for the new green “it” girl. Now, we’re turning the spotlight on trailblazer Aysia Wright herself to learn more about what’s next for The Greenloop and Project Green Search, and her must-have wardrobe staples.

Stephanie Rogers: What are your top 3 must-have fashion staples, and why?

Aysia Wright: I’m a super casual person, so for me, whatever those staples are have to be comfortable, practical and nearly seasonless. You won’t see me glammed up very often, so this is truly going to be about staples. As most who know me know, I live in my ‘pre-loved’ Frye boots, so for 1, I’d say a great pair of boots that work with a variety of outfits…or at least you can pretend they do.

Number 2 – a great pair of jeans that fit you well in all the right places, lend length to your legs, make your butt look great and can go from casual to dressed up, meaning a good dark wash, not weathered.

Number 3 – a racer back tank. Wear it alone to show off sexy shoulders, or double duty over a long sleeve fitted tee for definition, color, contrast. See. So very basic, no frills for me.
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Eco Chick Giveaway: Win $125 in Naturaleve Beauty Products!

–UPDATE– Thanks for participating, everyone! The lucky randomly chosen winner is – Kelsey Toney!

Who doesn’t love a goodie bag full of free stuff – especially when it’s natural, organic beauty products from a super-high-quality brand? We are teaming up with one of our favorite online sources of natural beauty products, Beautorium.com, to offer a seriously craveworthy package of products from Naturaleve.

Learn more & enter the giveaway! More »