Frog prince

Angry Birds Cake {Icing Smiles}

2013-04-20T04:50:00.000-07:00

Let me show you what I did a couple of weeks ago...

First, rewind to last year when I signed up to be an Sugar Angel for a wonderful nonprofit, Icing Smiles. Icing Smiles provides custom, celebration cakes and other treats to families impacted by the critical illness of a child. I love what I do because of the joy receiving something custom-designed brings my clients. I saw this as my opportunity to pay it forward while bringing happiness to a child who probably doesn't see too many happy days...

I was SO excited when I finally got my "call to duty"... I was told about a boy in my community named Austin who loved Angry Birds so I went to work on his dream cake...

I was excited when I found out that Austin would be coming with his mom to pick up the cake. I was even happier when I saw this little angel's reaction to his cake~ priceless!!!

Austin has impeccable manners for a 6 year old and is very well spoken. His mom informed me that it's because he's spent most of his life around adults only, because of his illness. He shook my hand and formally introduced himself when he came in... and when leaving, he kissed my cheek and said, "I love you!" {melted my heart!!!}

My 10 minutes with Austin was humbling and signing up with Icing Smiles was one of the best and most rewarding decisions I've ever made!!!

Me & my new buddy

There are chapters of Icing Smiles all over the country, why not sign up to give a deserving child the Birthday cake of their dreams...

Super Girl Topper {Featured}

2013-03-29T06:22:00.000-07:00

Check out this SUPER cute party by Emily of Magnolia Creative! I love the fact that her daughter wanted a Super-Audrey party, complete with a mini town... Super-Cool theme and obviously, not just for boys!!! You can check out all of the amazing details over at Amy Atlas Sweet designs blog, where it is featured today!!

Check out the Super Audrey, fondant topper that I made to go on the cake... I love how the cake fits right in with the town...

Have a SUPER weekend, my friends!! xo

UPDATE~~~ Check out the rest of Audrey's party posted on Magnolia Creative's BLOG today...I can't wait 'til you see the making of the video invite...yes, I said VIDEO INVITATION~ SO cool!! xo

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Save the Date Cookies~

2013-03-27T08:37:00.000-07:00

I recently received a "save the date" card in the mail for a wedding this Fall. {It seems like the trendy and smart thing to do nowadays!} As I hung it up on my fridge, the wheels in the creative side of my brain started turning... when the smoke cleared, this was the result~

I wish I had thought of this 12 years ago when I was planning my own wedding! If you're interested in these I will ship them to you and you will mail them out to your guests. (or have your trusty bridesmaids do it...seriously, put them to work!!)
Please send inquiries to~ linda.p.schwartz@gmail.com

Monkey, Fondant Toppers {Featured}

2013-03-22T09:30:00.000-07:00

I'm CURIOUS to see what you think of this party... My friend, Valerie from Greyson design has her Curious George 2nd Birthday Party featured on Hostess with the Mostess Blog today! How pretty is this table!?!!

I met Valerie this time, last year at an event we both attended hosted by Martha Stewart. Her love for what she does shows through in her amazing attention to detail. Just look at the little monkey ears popping out of the sides of these hats~ too funny!!

and I have to point out the little mischievous monkey toppers I made...

Ooo-Ooo, Aaa-Aaa!!! {that's monkey for,"Come back again xo"}

2013-03-22T05:19:00.003-07:00

HELLO!!

...Just a little something to put a smile on your face, today!!

xo

Balloon Pops {Featured}

2013-03-21T16:03:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to share this adorable, Up Up and Away party styled by Tara from One Stylish Party. She designed the party for her son, Eli's first birthday! I just love all of the little details and her choice of color palette...

I can't get enough of these confetti-filled balloons! Tara made the balloons I had at my daughter, Kati's 10th Surprise Party... SO fun!!!

I made these shimmery, balloon pops to tie in with her theme and color scheme (how cute is the stand she made for them!!)

You can see the party featured today over on Sweet Designs by Amy Atlas. Go see what Amy, the sweets table guru, has to say about it!!

xo

Leprechaun Cookie Tutorial

2013-03-17T06:27:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day... I'm feeling lucky today!!! This week I had the pleasure of working with my sweet, artistic mother.

Most of the good things that happen to me in my life start with my mother. She has always encouraged me to use my creativity, and has been saying, "Linda, you are an artist" since I was in kindergarten! ;)) The truth is, SHE is the artist!! Still, at 82 years young, she is SO clever and funny and is always drawing on everything from newspapers to mailing envelopes. I'm pretty sure I've never gotten mail from her that didn't have some sort of funny drawing on it. Well, last week I found a sketch she had drawn of a leprechaun sitting on a rainbow and decided I needed to "cookie it". It was such a fun project for me, so I decided to make this tutorial for you guys.

The steps are pretty easy to follow and I've included lots of pictures, taken by my talented photographer friend, Nicole of Expressions by Nicole Marie.

What you'll need~

Your favorite sugar cookie recipe

fondant

food coloring.

fondant roller

corn syrup

pearl dust

gold disco dust

food use only- paint brushes

black food writer

scissors

sharp knife or blade

parchment or tracing paper

My Mom's sketch~

1.) Start out by tracing the original drawing onto parchment paper.

2.) Make an outline around your drawing to determine the size of your cookie. (I actually scaled my copy down a little because I didn't want a huge cookie. By doing this, I think the drawing started taking on the characteristics of my own drawing style).

3.) Roll out the sugar cookie dough. Using your drawing as a guide, cut out your cookie.

While your cookie is baking...

4.) Now you can cut your drawing apart to use as a template for forming your fondant pieces.

For each color, I used around a 2 inch ball of fondant. I added food coloring a little at a time until I had the color I wanted. I use Duff Goldman brand in white, vanilla, it has a nice flavor and is easy to work with. The fondant comes in a 2 lb container. I buy it at Michaels. You can use any brand of fondant or make your own.

To make the fondant stripes for the rainbow, roll out the colored fondant into long, thin strips. Make sure to apply even pressure while you're rolling them out so they are uniform in size.

Lay your colored strips down, pressing them lightly together, and roll them flat.

5.) Brush your cookie with corn syrup. This will act as your "glue" sticking the fondant pieces to the cookie.

*Make sure you add the fondant pieces to your cookie in the right order. (I'd recommend setting them up on parchment first. Then once you're happy with the layout, add them to the cookie). The corn syrup is sticky so it will be difficult to remove the fondant once you've laid it down.

6.) Finishing touches~ I add pearl, lustre dust to almost all of my cookies, because it really makes the fondant pop. I used my large brush to add it to the rainbow and the pot of gold. To add the gold disco dust to the pieces of gold, brush them with a tiny bit of water. Then take your large brush, dip it into the disco dust and shake it out over the wet areas. Shake the excess off, it will stick to only the wet areas.

Near misty stream in Ireland
in the hollow of a tree
Live mystical, magical leprechauns
who are clever as can be

With their pointed ears,
and turned up toes and little coats of green
The leprechauns busily make their shoes
and try hard not to be seen.

Only those who really believe
have seen these little elves
And if we are all believers
We can surely see for ourselves.
{Irish Blessing~ author unknown}
xo

Lots of Cookies~

2013-02-10T08:57:00.001-08:00

Hi there!! It's been a whirlwind of cookie making lately so I haven't had much time to post anything on here BUT...I'm changing all of that today, "YAAAYYYY!!!!" {said in my best Kermit the Frog voice ;) }

Presenting . . .

Shivering Snow People~

ONEderfully Shimmery Balloons~

Celebratory Crosses~

Cookies for Cheese Lovers {watch out, the first bite is a doozy!!}

Pretty in Pink and Personalized~

{You may have noticed a common theme throught these cookie collections~ STAMPING! Love it!!}

Royally Sweet Tea Cookies~

Pretty Princess~

The Princess's Entourage~

and lastly,

YOU RULE! No joke...You just do!!!

xo

Christmas Cake Balls~

2012-12-11T19:03:00.001-08:00

I'm always making cookies around the holidays. This year, along with baking cookies, I thought I'd whip up some cake balls using a few of my favorite flavors. I was SO excited when I found these teeny, tiny marshmallows at my local supermarket.

I think the peppermint is my favorite but I might need to taste-test them a few more times to make sure!! ; )

Local, Doylestown area orders~
linda{dot}p{dot}schwartz{at}gmail{dot}com

2012-12-06T12:25:00.001-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

It's My Birthday!!!

2012-11-29T00:00:00.000-08:00

I've been talking about it for 2 years and now it's finally here....My 40th Birthday!!!

Instead of looking at it as a large age milestone, I'm going to think about all of the blessings I've received over that somewhat large amount of time. I'm a big advocate for living life with the right perspective. At times it can be hard to see everything good that's surrounding you because you're focusing on the things that aren't so great but it's there, trust me. This could just be my pending mid-life-crisis talking but today, for me, look on the bright side, set a goal that seems ridiculous, don't listen to the voices in your head that say,"you can't", and do something nice for someone. Making other people happy always makes ME feel better too! If that doesn't work... there's always cake!!!

{You should listen to me, someone once told me that with age comes wisdom...that makes me pretty darn wise!!!}

Life is Good~ Cheers!! xo

My Pumpkin Turned 10~

2012-11-25T12:23:00.002-08:00

Welcome to my daughter, Kati's 10th Birthday Surprise Party!!!!!

She knew a party was in the works but I was very sneaky about the date and details. We decided this would be the perfect year for a surprise party because Kati just transferred to a new school. All of her best friends went to a different school so there was a slim chance of her finding out.

Thanks to Matt's clever friend, Ryan for carving this cute pumpkin for my little pumpkin!

I made this wreath using a wire hanger and just threaded it through folded burlap, so easy!{I like the rustic look so I didn't mind the random strands hanging around.}

...One chilly, Fall night, just a few days before Halloween a little girl walked into her dark, quiet house not suspecting anything was different... then, all of a sudden... loud screams...

"SURPRISE!!!!!!"

Kati jumped high into the air and landed feet-up!{thankfully the sofa cushioned her fall!}

To say she was surprised would be an understatement. Her expression over the next few moments, as she soaked in what was happening, made all of the sneaking, planning, threatening of family members not to blow it, worth it!! ; )

Feast your eyes {sorry, ever since I saw the movie BRAVE I just can't stop saying that!!!} on what the kids ate and drank~

The girls got a little breath of cool, October air when they went out to hit the pinata...

I didn't make this pinata the traditional way, using papier-mâché. I just used hot glue to attach craft paper to 3D cardboard numbers that I cut out. There is a cardboard support in the center of each number to keep them from collapsing. I left holes in the bottom and sides of the cardboard so the candy would come out when hit. Yes, I took the easy way out but hey, it worked! It took 9 hits before it broke.

They also played homemade charades and pictionary...

...and finished off frames with craft paper.

I sent a group picture we took at the party out with Kati's thank-you cards so the girls could tape it into their frames. Other favors included:

lip gloss ...

...shabby, hair clips {made by me}...

...and personalized sleep masks.

Kati had asked a month or so ago if she could have a sleepover party and I said no! The mean mom-of-the-year award was worth it to see the shock, then excitement when I said..."Oh Kati, by the way it's a sleepover!!!"

How cute are these masks!?!

To me, there's nothing better than receiving a personalized gift. The girls wore these around all night...

see...

THANK YOU for stopping by!!!

My Awesome Helpers... Visit their shops, you'll love them!!

Frog prince cake & cookie design cake, cookies, sweets and party styling

Expressions by Nicole Marie photographer

Cupcake Wishes & Birthday Dreams poms (used on the piniata)

Greyson Design favor and thank you tags

Nikki in Stitches custom sleep masks

The Paper Plume water bottle labels

Passion for Parties bunting signs

One Stylish Party huge, filled balloons and tissue tassels

Moodylicious Children's Spa lip gloss

Eco Party Time stripey straws and bamboo utensils

Simply Sweet Parties invitation

Rudolph's (cake ball) Nose ~

2012-11-16T16:54:00.001-08:00

OK, I know I said that I absolutely wasn't quite ready to start decorating for Christmas but I'm a planner... so it's NEVER too early to plan for the holidays, right?! I had this cute idea for a holiday hostess gift, I think teachers, bus drivers, hair dressers, babysitters and doctor's offices would like it as well...not sure about dentist offices but I'm guessing they'd love them too!

I had the idea... I googled the idea to make sure no other clever elves came up with the idea first and to the best of my knowledge {right hand on my heart, left hand in the air} ...I am the only person who has EVER made these. OK, I'm not a fool. I'm sure someone else did it first so here's MY rendition of Rudolph's Nose Cake Balls!

"Happy Holidays, Mom! Here are some delicious cake balls I made just for you!!"
"Aww, thank you Kati! I don't mind if I do!!!"

I absolutely ♥ them but NOT as much as I ♥ this....

Yep!! A Rudolph's nose cake pop, I couldn't resist!! Happy {almost} Holidays!! xo

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Happy Thanksgiving 2012~

2012-11-11T07:59:00.004-08:00

Last week I saw a post on facebook that said Santa Claus was already at one of the local malls. I was a little surprised to say the least! I mean, thanks to hurricane Sandy most of the area hadn't even celebrated Halloween yet. {I know some local friends just took their kids trick or treating yesterday!!} I still had my Halloween decorations up and always look forward to those few weeks between Halloween and Thanksgiving when the air is cool, the house smells of fall scented Yankee candles, and Christmas time is in the back of my mind, almost ready to make an appearance. . . almost!!!

So... Happy Thanksgiving time, a time to reflect on everything we have and often overlook!! I have so much to be thankful for this year including you guys, no matter how you stumbled apon my blog, or how many bad jokes I tell, you kept reading!!! xo

To make a $10 donation to the victims of Hurricane Sandy you can text the word REDCROSS to 90999 xo

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2012-10-31T19:37:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween, Everyone!!!

"EYE" hope you had a ghoulishly fun night!!

xo

Halloween Cookies~

2012-10-18T10:04:00.001-07:00

13 more days 'til Halloween...CREEPY!!!
Do you throw an annual Halloween party? I do but not to celebrate Halloween. My youngest happens to have been born on October 31st. She's turning 10 this year and still loves spooking up her birthday party with skeletons, pumpkins and ghosts...I LOVE it!!!

Here are some spooky and not so spooky cookies I made that might inspire your inner baker spirit to pay a visit!

These are Voodoo Doll cookies I made for my sweet, talented friend Dorangela from Two Prince Bakery Theater. She used them in a party she shot for Bird's Magazine. It was an adult Halloween bash with too many cool details to list. You can go see it on her blog, HERE!
I made the smaller cookies with little holes in their hearts and Dorangela laid them on top of a glass with a straw coming through the hole~ clever or what!?!

These Day of the Dead cookies were for her party too. They were easy to make. I just drew patterns on fondant with food color markers. You can find them at almost any craft store that has cake decorating supplies.

These owl and broom stick cookies were made for a Harry Potter Party. I used a guitar shaped cookie cutter to make the broom stick cookies.

Last but not least, these pumpkin cookies were made for a bake sale to raise funds for the Go Bo Foundation. This small-town bake sale raised over $6000!!! YAY!!!

I'll leave you with a quote from 13 year old Bo Johnson, who sadly passed away the week before his bake sale~

"Love each other, help each other, have your neighbor's back. If you see someone in need- even a stranger- reach out and help. This world can be a better place if we care and help each other."

{amen to that!! xo}

Prince & Princess Crown Cookies~

2012-10-15T17:50:00.004-07:00

Here's an {almost} tragic Halloween tale~

I take SO many pictures of my cakes, cookies, cupcakes, cupcake toppers, cake pops, etc. and once in a while, those pics. get lost in my computer, never to be seen again! I just found these cuties hiding in the shadows of my blog...in a post that was never published... from this past spring{ Yikes!!!}

I hope I got all of the cob webs off! ; )

check them out~ favors for a little guy's 1st birthday party.

I love happy endings!! xo

Hat Box Cake~

2012-10-11T18:49:00.002-07:00

It's been such a chilly couple of days here in Pennsylvania so I thought I'd share this bright and cheery cake.

I just love the verse she chose the gift tag: "God could not be everywhere and therefore he made mothers!!"

Fondant, Favor Cookies {A Tutorial!}

2012-09-21T13:40:00.000-07:00

Have you ever decorated sugar cookies?

Some cookiers {is that even a word?} prefer decorating their cookies with royal icing, ya know the stuff you use on gingerbread houses. It goes on wet and dries very hard. It's great for creating tiny details and intricate designs but in my opinion is not always user friendly. I like to use fondant to decorate my sugar cookies. I like the way it tastes (some brands are much better than others), and most of all I love the 3D effects you can achieve without a tremendous amount of effort.
A friend of mine who makes delicious, gluten free cookies asked me to do a fondant tutorial for her. So D, this is for you!! {check out her blog, it's very cool!!)

I made these cookies to be used as favors for a bridal shower and think they are something that anyone from a beginner to a professional can and will want to try.

Once you find a cookie recipe you like, bake your cookies and let them cool completely before you start decorating. Fondant is temperature sensitive and I can testify that it will melt if it isn't used AND kept at room temperature. (Sadly, the air conditioning in my car went out just in time for my sister, Carrie's 50th birthday party on a 90+ degree, August day. What she ended up with for a cake was...let's just say, messy but delicious!!)
Back to the cookies~

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
cookies to decorate
fondant
food coloring (2 different colors)
powdered sugar (for rolling out your fondant)
fondant rolling pin (if you don't have one a regular rolling pin should work too)
corn syrup
water
small and large paint brushes
patterned stamp (mine is from Michaels craft store)
letter stamps (also from Michaels~clay section)
royal icing (you can buy a mix or make your own)
edible glitter

I find it's easiest to use corn syrup in a squeeze bottle. You can squeeze out as much or as little as you'd like. The other option would be to paint it on with a small paint brush used only for this purpose.

I was asked to make cookies to match these pretty, bridal shower invitations. I started my search for the perfect stamp to use to mimic the filigree and was SO happy when I found the one below at a local craft store!

I added the food coloring little by little until I had a perfect match to the invitation. Using a little powdered sugar sprinkled on a piece of parchment, I rolled the fondant pretty thin. (around 1/16th of an inch) You want is as thin as possible because you're going to be using 2 layers of fondant for this design and fondant is very sweet!

Place your stamp down and roll over it with your rolling pin. (pressing firmly but not too hard or the fondant will stick to the stamp. Adding a little powdered sugar to the top of the fondant should keep it from sticking).

Cut out a circle with your large cutter and press it onto the corn syrup-covered cookie.

Follow the same steps for the smaller inside circle. I recommend stamping your monogram first, then cutting it out. Add a dab of water to the back of your small circle and press it down to stick it to the larger circle. Brush the entire cookie with edible glitter such as pearl dust, it makes the filagree POP!

*You could actually stop here, let your cookies sit out for a few hours until the fondant is firm then wrap them in cellophane bags and tie them with a coordinating ribbon.

OR...for the more experienced (or daring) decorators, use a pastry bag filled with royal icing and a #2 tip to pipe borders around both circles. If you do this, I'd recommend letting the cookies sit out overnight before placing them in bags.

I hope this was easy to follow. If not, I'd be happy to answer any questions....for a fee...just kidding!! .

Here are some cupcakes and a cake that I made that same weekend. I just love the fall colors, don't you?!!

Happy FALL and Happy decorating!!!

You can also find this tutorial on:

Amy Atlas~ Great Find!!!!

2012-09-17T16:00:00.001-07:00

Maybe you remember these cookies that I posted a few months back? Well, I am SO excited to tell you that they're featured over on sweet designs blog by Amy Atlas today!!!!!! Frog prince is mentioned as one of the Great Finds she stumbled upon during her country wide book tour this summer. I am so grateful to Amy for taking the time to get to know me... and my cookies!!! xo

Back To School~ Apple Cake Pop Tutorial

2012-09-03T11:52:00.005-07:00

Happy Labor Day 2012!

My kiddos start back to school this week and thankfully, they are really excited to go back. (I guess watching me decorate cookies all summer wasn't exactly their idea of fun)!??!

Here's something FUN to do with your own kids. Don't forget to send some in to their teachers!!

APPLE CAKE POPS~ (yummy and adorable)!!!

Here's what you'll need~
red candy melts
lollipop sticks
home made/store bought cake
container of icing
fondant
food color~ green, brown, yellow
edible eyeballs
parchment paper
baking tray
styrofoam (for drying your pops)
Crisco shortening (optional)

You'll only really need the red candy melts but if you want to add the worm, stem, and leaf buy a small pack of fondant.

First make the stems, leaves, and worms. Attach the eyes by brushing a very small amount of water or vodka onto the worms head. Press down gently on the eyes until they are set. Leave these aside to harden.

Mix (by hand or with an electric mixer) cake and a small amount of icing. Add just enough icing so that you can easily form balls out of your cake mixture. Be sure to add the icing just a little at a time, if you add too much you will have a mushy mess!!!

Form small, round cake balls. (I flatten one end to give it the apple shape). Put them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Place these in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to firm up.

In the meantime, melt your red candy melts in the microwave (30 seconds at a time, stirring). Or on the stove in a double broiler.

Once melted, stir in a tsp. or so of Crisco shortening to keep the chocolate from firming up too quickly.

Take the cake balls out of the refrigerator. Dip the end of a lollipop stick into the melted chocolate then stick it into a cake ball. (This will help the stick stay put).

Dunk the cake pop into the melted chocolate. When you pull it out, let the excess chocolate drip back into the container.

Stick your cake pop into styrofoam to dry.

Quickly take a fondant worm and push it into the side of your apple. Hold it there for 15-20 seconds to make sure it isn't going anywhere. Now place the stem and leaf on top, pressing them into place.

Once you finish your apple pops put them back in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve them.

Look how cute they turn out!!!

and they are delicious too, just ask Kati!! ; )

Here's the back to school table I put together for the Fall 2012 issue of Bird's Party Magazine. I had such a fun time planning this and the best part is that it was SO affordable. You might be tempted to do this for your own kids, or for a teacher appreciation luncheon. You could even take the basic layout and turn it into a sweet table for a birthday party. Here's what I did. . . .

I bought these small flower pots at Michaels craft store for a party I had last year. I re-purposed them by spraying them with chalk board paint. And they only needed one coat! I made the pinwheel cookies which you can order by emailing me here. Or make your own cookies on a stick and pop it into a small piece of styrofoam (why not use the leftover styrofoam from drying your apple pops)!

These adorable favor boxes open just like a real lunch box and were made by Do Driver, the creative force behind Piggy Bank Parties. She can make anything into a favor box and her prices...well, her name says it all...You pay just $9 for these and can print out as many as you need!!! I added the name tags that I found at Michaels in the dollar bins. And the ribbon (also from Michaels) I used a 40% off coupon that they send you every week if you subscribe to receive their emails.

OK, not everyone has the time, energy, or need to refinish a desk just for a party. We actually needed a desk for my younger daughter so it was a win, win for us when I found this gem at a rummage sale for $15! It was old, brown, and beaten up but all it needed was a little TLC. OK, it actually needed serious sanding, 2 coats of primer and around 6 coats of spray paint. I used chalk board paint on the top. ( I really got a lot of use out of just 1 can. The desk, pots, and the "black board").

The reason I have it in quotes is that this is not a real blackboard, well at least it wasn't when I started. Here's what I did~

I bought poster board sized, foam board at Dollar General (my favorite dollar store). I sprayed it with the chalkboard paint and voila'! Yes, I know that spray paint melts foam board but I only paid a dollar for it so it was worth trying out. Just make sure you keep away from the edges or at least spray them very lightly. Your finish will not be perfect because, like I said spray paint and foam board are not friends. I just took a chalk dust-filled eraser and went to town erasing. This covered up any evidence of my crime!! ;))

The bunting sign below took all of 20 minutes to make. I buy rolls of craft paper at the dollar store and use it for everything: drop cloths, coloring/painting with the kids, wrapping the books I have the cake pops displayed on, wrapping gifts, making cute bunting signs!! I bought the stamp set at Michael and hung it on twine. My favorite place to buy twine is The Twinery.

These cookie, drawer pulls are one of my favorite parts of the display. I baked apple-shaped sugar cookies upside down, with a lollipop stick (cut in half) sticking straight out of the back of it. I slid this into the hole left when I removed the original drawer pull.(crazy or pure genius)!?!?!

I hand painted all of the apple cookies with food coloring thinned with a tiny bit of vodka {hiccup!!!}

Well, good luck with the new school year....or with making the apple pops, or with creating your own magazine-shoot worthy party on a budget!! You can always email me with any questions. xo

As always, gorgeous photography by~ Expressions by Nicole Marie

This post is linked up on Piggy Bank Party's Silly Sunday link party!! : )
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Happy Birthday Ryan & Madi~

2012-08-26T06:32:00.002-07:00

This past month we celebrated the third birthdays of two of our most favorite-ist neighbors EVER...

Ryan and Madi

Ryan has made a few appearances on my blog before. I was lucky enough to be his babysitter last school year. This year he's moving on to bigger and better things~ preschool!! I will miss my little buddy {sniffle} but am so glad I got to party with him before the send off!!

A few cute details from the truck themed party his mom, Stacey put together~

The kids had so much fun painting these plastic hard hats

I made Ry's birthday cake. The "rocks" around the bottom of the cake are actually chocolate. I picked them up at our local Larder but I'm sure you can order them online. The rocks come in an assortment of colors and sizes so I picked through them to get the black ones I wanted. (and ate most of the rest of them~haha!)

...AND Madi's butterfly party~

I made the sweets above and her mom, Jaime put together a cute, pink and purple candy bar. (Madi's favorite colors). The only thing sweeter than this party is adorable, little Madi herself!!

Me and my crew!!

Getting our baby fix with Ryan's baby sister, Alyssa! (cuddle bug!) xo

Pirate and Pixie Cookies~

2012-08-18T11:58:00.001-07:00

I have a little extra time on my hands today because my girls are at Camp Grammy {as in, THEIR Grammy...not some kind of singing camp that produces award winning singers!!} ; )
I was looking through my millions of saved pics. and came across these cookies I made earlier this summer. They were made to coordinate with Kerry of Simply Sweet Parties' Pixie & Pirate printables! {Whew!! That's a mouthful!!}

I love making cookies for Kerry. I think we share a similar style so replicating her art work in fondant is a pleasure!! Go check out her Etsy page. She has so many cute ideas for both boys and girls parties and everything you'll need from printable invitations to decorations and favor tags.

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Little Red Riding Hood Cookies~

2012-08-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

What BIG teeth you have...

Better to eat you with, my dear... {CRUNCH!!}

; )

Bird's Party Magazine, Fall 2012~

2012-08-14T05:49:00.003-07:00

Yep, it's out and I'm so excited for you to see it!!! Head over to view or buy your copy of the Fall issue of Bird's Party Magazine.
You'll find gorgeous tablescapes and tutorials, decorating ideas, and a complete list of vendors. Everything you'll need to plan your Fall get togethers. While you're there don't forget to check out pgs. 86-87 to see my "School is Sweet" apple cakepop tutorial! : )

I am so grateful to Bird of Bird's Party, for including me in another fantastic issue!!

This shoot was made possible by:

Beautiful photography by Expressions by Nicole Marie

Lunch box, favor boxes by Piggy Bank Parties

Kati's adorable custom headband by Nikki, In Stitches