I must have Husker fever, because all of the hubs' "By the Numbers" articles on ESPN have inspired me to update on the status of my dining room table:
6 cake pans
10+ lbs of cake mix
10 lbs white fondant
2 lbs chocolate fondant
10 lbs powdered sugar
2 dozen eggs
4 cake circles
2 fondant mats
4 flavorings
2 dyes
2 paintbrushes
15 + fondant, frosting, and cutting tools
...and hopefully the next time I update, all of that will come together in ONE cake! (To celebrate TWO people becoming ONE.) Stay tuned. :)
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
look whooo's {one}
My cousin's little girl, Gwen, has her first birthday party last week. She was welcomed into year two of life with an owl themed birthday party. I found cupcakes similar to these on one of my favorite blogs, Annie's Eats. Annie's cupcakes used Oreos, M&M's, and Runts for the owl faces, but I made them with fondant.
I love their eyes and the little feather accents. Too fun.
Gwen had a smash cake all to herself too:
All boxed up and ready to go! Happy birthday, Gwen!
I love their eyes and the little feather accents. Too fun.
Gwen had a smash cake all to herself too:
All boxed up and ready to go! Happy birthday, Gwen!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
happy birthday {zeke}
I never had a nickname that really "stuck". My older brother was always "bud" to our dad and little sister somehow picked up "Alicia Smeesha Parley Boo", which is often shortened to "Smeesh", "Parley" or "Boo". But I just wasn't one of those people that got a nickname as a kiddo... and no, "Steph" just doesn't count. Recently, however, the hubsters has been calling me "Fern", which I quite enjoy.
The baby of my family's brood, however, has had more nicknames than I could probably remember. He turned 13 (yikes... the teenage years!) this month and I had to make him some tennis cupcakes that celebrate a few of our favorite names for him. So happy birthday Zach. We love you and I still remember the day you were born like yesterday. God has used you to heal our family every since you were a little babe in mom's womb.
Monday, July 05, 2010
to birthdays and fireworks
This weekend marked some significant birthdays... in addition to the good ol' red, white and blue, my family got to celebrate my uncle and great aunt's birthdays too.
Aunt Betty has blessed our family with her creativity for decades. She's incredibly talented and has made the most beautiful quilts I've ever seen.
Aunt Betty has blessed our family with her creativity for decades. She's incredibly talented and has made the most beautiful quilts I've ever seen.
Sooo that explains the "Fourth of July Happy Birthday" cake I whipped up, complete with a little fireworks topper!
So much fun. My favorite details are the quilted cake board at the bottom and the fun fondant buttons. This was my first experience with painting on fondant and I'm loving the result!
Friday, June 11, 2010
{fun} in the sun
Kudos to beautiful Abby for coming over last night and helping me with my latest cake project.
These are some fun summery cupcake-inis! They're for a woman who's turning 4 - 2 this weekend and they just turned out so fun!
I love all the bright colors, the variety in the little swimsuits and just how fresh and fun they are. They'd be really neat in a group of summer themed cupcakes with flip flops, sunshine, sunscreen bottles (Don't burn out there people! Your skin will hate you later!), beach balls, and other little poolside toppers.
I also enjoyed making someone else's creative vision reality and getting to do it alongside Abs! She had some great ideas to help me out... and has some mad bikini cutting skills.
These are some fun summery cupcake-inis! They're for a woman who's turning 4 - 2 this weekend and they just turned out so fun!
I love all the bright colors, the variety in the little swimsuits and just how fresh and fun they are. They'd be really neat in a group of summer themed cupcakes with flip flops, sunshine, sunscreen bottles (Don't burn out there people! Your skin will hate you later!), beach balls, and other little poolside toppers.
I also enjoyed making someone else's creative vision reality and getting to do it alongside Abs! She had some great ideas to help me out... and has some mad bikini cutting skills.
Monday, June 07, 2010
spring {bridal} showers
Last weekend included lots of grilling and enjoying the gorgeous weather for us. It was a pretty wonderful weekend for a party... which is good news, because I'd been busy working on some fun purple cupcakes and a fresh spring-y cake for a couple of bridal showers all week!
The first was for a bride I knew from college. Her summer wedding will feature a fresh green color, so naturally her cake did as well! Anna, who requested the cake, said to just have fun with it, so this is what I came up with (daisies are probably a surprise to no one...). The cake is a two layer 9" basic white cake with white butter cream and fondant. Something I've really enjoyed the last few weeks is some new cardboard cake boxes and display plates. Makes me feel official. :)
Here it is:
Next up were 4 dozen cupcakes for a cupcake tower at a bridal shower my friend from work hosted. The wedding's main color is a soft pink/purple, so we went with purple cupcakes in a variety of shades. Cupcakes are fun, fresh, and just delightful to look at. This was my first time using my new cupcake tip for the piles of frosting on top of these beautiful cakes, and I think I'm in love with it! Decide for yourself...
I especially enjoy the hued frostings on these cupcakes and the variety of different toppers. This is a technique I will definitely use again. The pearled sprinkles are so simple and turn out very elegant. Fun.
The first was for a bride I knew from college. Her summer wedding will feature a fresh green color, so naturally her cake did as well! Anna, who requested the cake, said to just have fun with it, so this is what I came up with (daisies are probably a surprise to no one...). The cake is a two layer 9" basic white cake with white butter cream and fondant. Something I've really enjoyed the last few weeks is some new cardboard cake boxes and display plates. Makes me feel official. :)
Here it is:
Next up were 4 dozen cupcakes for a cupcake tower at a bridal shower my friend from work hosted. The wedding's main color is a soft pink/purple, so we went with purple cupcakes in a variety of shades. Cupcakes are fun, fresh, and just delightful to look at. This was my first time using my new cupcake tip for the piles of frosting on top of these beautiful cakes, and I think I'm in love with it! Decide for yourself...
I especially enjoy the hued frostings on these cupcakes and the variety of different toppers. This is a technique I will definitely use again. The pearled sprinkles are so simple and turn out very elegant. Fun.
see {you} later
We had a goodbye party for a family from church last night, which was probably more of a "See You Later". Their girls require a gluten-free diet, so that was a new challenge for me. It was also a good excuse to get some practice with my new sheet cake pan, and I think it turned out pretty well!
I bought a few gluten-free mixes and made a marbled cake. The mixes required butter, apple sauce, and water, so they stayed really moist, which was awesome since that's typically a challenge with gluten-free cakes. I was NOT a fan of the gluten-free frosting (from a mix as well, it's the white frosting on the cake... it was too runny and I had to add a lot of extra powdered sugar), so after about an hour of frustration (mad props to the hubsters for being nice to me during my mini meltdown), I caved and made my traditional icing, which I thought was probably still okay. The good news is that it passed the test! So while I WILL be using the gluten-free starter mix for special dietary needs in the future, I'm relieved that I can stick with my tried and true Wilton butter cream to decorate. :)
As an aside, I really enjoyed watching people celebrate a family that had given their lives away to their church family, friends, and community over the years. I want to live that way. We've been so blessed to meet some beautiful people during our time here that have added to our understanding of what it means to live with purpose.
I bought a few gluten-free mixes and made a marbled cake. The mixes required butter, apple sauce, and water, so they stayed really moist, which was awesome since that's typically a challenge with gluten-free cakes. I was NOT a fan of the gluten-free frosting (from a mix as well, it's the white frosting on the cake... it was too runny and I had to add a lot of extra powdered sugar), so after about an hour of frustration (mad props to the hubsters for being nice to me during my mini meltdown), I caved and made my traditional icing, which I thought was probably still okay. The good news is that it passed the test! So while I WILL be using the gluten-free starter mix for special dietary needs in the future, I'm relieved that I can stick with my tried and true Wilton butter cream to decorate. :)
As an aside, I really enjoyed watching people celebrate a family that had given their lives away to their church family, friends, and community over the years. I want to live that way. We've been so blessed to meet some beautiful people during our time here that have added to our understanding of what it means to live with purpose.
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