I {Heart} You!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Just a quick post tonight of some of my favourite Valentine's Day goodies this year...

In keeping with my new cookie obsession I made a lot of hearts this year. I also learned a **very important** lesson... if your royal icing doesn't seem to be stiffening up in your mixer {and yes, I let it mix for a LONG time!} do not, and I repeat do not, add more meringue powder after the fact!! I have made royal icing many times and have never had this problem. However, on the particular night I decided to ice my cookies I also decided to try a new recipe. Sometimes this works in my favour, other times, not so much. This time, not so much!

Once upon a time I read that if you need to add meringue powder to royal icing after the icing is already mixed, dissolve it in water first then add. I tried, no luck. As you will see below you get tiny little dots in your icing. Not the flawless finish I was hoping for. If {or when} this happens again I will just toss and start fresh, as much as it pains me to waste perfectly good-ish icing!

These cookies were donated to the my-dad-wants-cookies-to-take-to-work cause so all was not lost. And, don't worry, I had a few taste testers make sure they were edible first :)

I used Duff's Cake Graffiti spray in silver for the first time on these cookies and I was really impressed with the results. It took a few tries to get a feel for it but now I am addicted! I can't wait to "spray paint" my next set of cookies!!

pretty in pink...

... and some sparkly minis...

I hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day filled with love, chocolate {and maybe a glass of wine!}!

fondant stamping 101

I created these cupcakes for Aimee for an engagement party a couple months back. I can't believe that I am only getting these pictures up now! I suppose there is something to be said for being so busy that the blog gets neglected!! Haha!! Regardless, here they are now...better late than never!

I made the decorations by stamping the couples initials onto fondant hearts with food colouring. It was a bit tricky to find the right amount of food colouring to get the look I was after. But, after a few tries, some failed attempts and a bit of a learning curve I think they turned out really nice. The cupcakes themselves were lemon and strawberry with buttercream icing - delicious!

I hope you enjoyed them Aimee!

old skool tats ;)

Oh...how FUN!!! Last weekend was a *very important* birthday for my friend, Jaclyn's, sister, Marcy. And this birthday came with a special request for some old school tattoo cookies. Marcy is a tattoo artist at South of Heaven tattoo shop so it only made sense! I have to say that I am definitely not an expert in tattoo art but sugar cookie art I can do! Haha! I think they turned out awesome and, from what I hear, were a hit at the party :)

Thanks Jaclyn and HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCY!!! I'll come see you when I get up enough nerve for my first tattoo! lol

...on display...

congrats kendra and jared!

Last weekend I had the extreme pleasure of being a part of Kendra and Jared's big day. I have known Kendra for about a year now, just after my wedding when she contacted me about cupcakes for her own wedding. She had seen the cupcakes I had made for my wedding and wanted something similar :)

Kendra and Jared's wedding colours were black, white and apple green. She had the black and white stand made and I am IN LOVE!!! How gorgeous is it?!?! If you are worried about cupcakes having as much "presence" as a tiered cake at your wedding this is a perfect example of achieving a "big" look that your guests will notice!

The cupcakes were baked in black liners, with white almond whipped frosting and topped with apple green monogrammed "K" and "J" hearts. The majority of the cupcakes were chocolate for all the chocoholics in the crowd, the rest were vanilla. I love the way they turned out, the perfect combination of classy and fun!!

I have to thank my husband, Gerardo, for helping me with this setup. I am a bit of a(ok...a HUGE) perfectionist when it comes to my cupcakes and he was very meticulous and patient with me!! Thanks so much for all your help!!

Congrats Kendra and Jared!! Now the fun really begins :)

something old, something new...

Sooooo...this much I know is true...I am a HORRIBLE blogger :S Ugghhhhh!!!! Seems like the cupcake life gets away from me sometimes and before I know it I am 3 or 4 (or more) blog entries behind. I suppose that it a sign of booming business so I shouldn't complain! Haha! I am weeks away from the last year of my twenty-somethings so I figured I should make a birthday resolution this year...to keep up with the blogging!!! As for right now I will get caught up :)

First out of the gates are some absolutely adorable bridal shower cupcakes for my friend Jennifer Webber over at Wink Wedding and Event Planning. Jen ordered these cupcakes for her friend Vanessa's celebration. I LOVE monogrammed cupcakes for a personalized touch. The hearts were pretty cute too!

Hope you enjoyed the cupcakes! Congrats Vanessa!!

the past, present, future...

...and what a year 2010 was!! I think that last year was quite possibly the craziest year of my life! Gerardo and I bought and moved into a new house, I graduated from University, we got married, I started a new job and began my cupcake adventure! Needless to say our December honeymoon to Mexico was much needed and much deserved!

Definitely the most stressful event of the summer was our wedding. I had a definite vision for my wedding "cake". I , and everyone who knows me, knew that it had to be cupcakes... anything else would just not do! I wanted a cupcake tower with presence that would hold close to 100 cupcakes and a small cake on top (because Gerardo still felt that it was important to have a cake to cut). I designed and made my own cupcake tower after searching high and low for the perfect one and coming up with nothing. The cupcakes were a hit with all of our guests and I had people immediately questioning where they were from. So...the ball started rolling! Because of the wedding I decided to start thinking about a cupcake business more seriously. I was extremely happy with the way the wedding cupcakes turned out and grateful for the opportunities that have come from the most wonderful day of my life. The following photos are from our wedding and courtesy of Moore Photography.

...and yes...the cupcake tower is available for rent!

Happy 2011 everyone! May the new year bring you love, joy, success and patience. We are starting out the year with the addition of a 3 pound, white, furry bundle of joy to our family...wish us luck!