Weddings and Cookies

Lemon Bliss Cake

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 01:32:00 +0000

Don't let the mild-mannered photos fool you. This might be one of the most delicious/addictive things I've ever baked.

I know. I usually go for decadence over simplicity. The more peanut butter, marshmallows, caramel, and chocolate, the better, but seeing that "Lemon Bliss Cake" was one of the top-rated recipes on King Arthur Flour, I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean really, how good could it be? Then again, among the 2,613 recipes on the site, a boring "Lemon Cake" must be pretty good to beat out Chocolate Cream Pie.

I was in trouble.

This is to die for.

Moist, soft, and delightfully lemon-y. Then you add a lemon-sugar glaze on top that creates a perfect crust.

Mmmm crust.

I followed this recipe almost exactly.

Lemon Bliss Cake

1 cup unsalted butter

2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon salt

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1 cup milk

finely grated rind of 2 lemons OR 3/4 teaspoon lemon oil (I used rind of 2 lemons AND 1/2 teaspoon of Fiori di Sicila)

GLAZE

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

3/4 cup sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 10" tube pan, or a 9" to 10", 9- to 10-cup capacity bundt-style pan. (I didn't have a bundt pan - seriously - and just used a 9"x13" pyrex dish)

1) Beat together the butter, sugar, and salt, first till combined, then till fluffy.

2) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

3) Add the baking powder, then add the flour alternately with the milk, starting and ending with the flour. Mix until smooth. Stir in the grated lemon rind or lemon oil (or Fiori di Sicilia).

4) Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.

5) Bake the cake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. (It took 45 minutes in my over with the 9x13 pan)

6) While the cake is baking, make the glaze by stirring together the lemon juice and sugar. Set it aside.

7) Remove the cake from the oven, and set it on a rack. After 5 minutes, run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen, and turn the cake out onto a rack. Place another rack on top, and flip it over, so it's right-side-up. (I acutually skipped this step and just glazed it right in the pan)

8) Poke the hot cake all over with a cake tester or toothpick.

9) Stir the glaze to combine, and immediately brush it on the hot cake. Let it sink in, then brush on more glaze, continuing until all the glaze is used up.

10) Allow the cake to cool before slicing.

11) Try not to eat all of it in one sitting.

oops.

Super Brownies

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 01:28:00 +0000

I'm about to share with you my hands-down, super favorite, super fudgy, super dark, shhhh...super secret brownie recipe. There are actually a couple secrets to this...things that will make these the brownies of your dreams...things that will make all your chocolate recipes better...things that you'll "forget" to tell people when they ask for the recipe :).

Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating...a little.

These are very moist and dense.

These are no cakey brownies.

You've been warned.

So now that you're tempted...what's the secret recipe?

Ingredients
(adapted from King Arthur Cookie Companion)

3/4 cup butter (1.5 sticks)

2 cups sugar

1 cup cocoa powder (I used Hershey's dark chocolate)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon espresso powder (that's secret #1)

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 large eggs

1 cup flour

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate (secret #2)

1 cup chocolate chips (secret #3)

Directions

Buy a brownie edge pan (secret #4).
Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease said recently purchased brownie edge pan.
Over low heat, melt butter. Remove from heat and add sugar. Heat again, but just slightly (not bubbling). This will dissolve more of the sugar and will give the brownies a nice shiny ~~coat~~ ~~crust~~ top. (secret #5).
In a double-boiler over low heat, melt unsweetened chocolate and chocolate chips.
Add cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla to the melted butter.
Whisk in eggs and melted chocolate.
Add flour and stir until combined.
Spoon into prepared pan.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (or with minimal crumbs). If you do use the brownie edge pan, start checking the oven at 25 mins, as it will cook faster.
Remove from oven and allow to cool.

It's up to you which secrets you'd like to "forget" when people ask you for the recipe.

Another One Bites My Dust

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 16:32:00 +0000

Remember this little list? My 24 things to do before I turn 30?

My initial idea was to complete one item a month and I well, that hasn't really been going to plan. But I was able to cross off another item this morning.

#11 - Run a 5k

This is the before shot of me and my friend Liz. She's done a number of these so I was glad to have her along to make sure I didn't jump off the first bridge we came to. She was awesome at keeping me going. Thanks sweetie!

I finished it in 39:02. I have to say, I'm pretty pleased with that.

And here's us after.

Notice that Liz looks great - happy, refreshed, like her heart rate is normal...
And I look flushed, exhausted, and rather confused as to why I'm standing in a park at 9AM on a Sunday.

Now that I've recovered I have to say I feel great and I'm ready to do the next one. But before that, I'm going to celebrate and undo everything I just did by making some of my deep dark chocolate fudgy brownies. So check back for those in a little bit :)

Corina's Cute Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 20:50:00 +0000

Last week, Corina emailed me some adorable photos from her DIY wedding.

She handmade all her centerpieces from branches and paper flowers (just like yours truly)

I love how she used so many bright colors. Everything looks so fresh and festive!

I also love how she used them to decorate her dessert table!

Great job Corina and congrats!!

All photos by Jessie Pyne

(UPDATE: Jessie emailed me with a link - check her out!)

♥ 4.1.2011 ♥

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 23:52:00 +0000

Seeing that all of our friends are pregnant (with boys nonetheless).

and...
Seeing that we've only been married 7 months
and...

Seeing that today is the first day of April.

and...

Seeing that when you load a Facebook profile you only see a small blurry thumbnail photo...

The boy and I decided to have a little fun with our friends today. :)

Cookie Stands in Action

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 05:19:00 +0000

Thanks to a little D*Sponge linkage, my DIY cookie stands are probably the most popular of my posts. So how did they turn out?

Adorable...if I do say so myself.

We also screen printed bags so people could load up on the 1,200 cookies my mom, my mother-in-law, and I made.

My cousin, taking her share.

To make the bags, I bought these (p.s. Uline is my secret weapon, they have everything) and Gocco'd a monogram that I designed in Illustrator. A round computer-printed label would work just as well if you don't want to screen print them.

And here's the cookie stand tutorial, if you missed it.

Some cookies never made it into the bags.

But a few did. :)

The reception hall was amazing, we dropped everything of a couple days before and they had the whole table set up perfectly when we arrived.

Mmmm...oreo cookie cookies.

OK so I just went to grab a link and apparently, I haven't posted this recipe yet. I'll have to get on that.

There's no real recipe for these PB cup cookies, just a couple steps:

1. Scoop store-bought peanut butter cookie dough into a greased mini muffin tin.

2. Bake as directed

3. As soon as they come out of the oven, stick a mini reeses cup in the middle.

4. Curse the day that PB first met chocolate and put on your "buffet pants."

I don't even know what these are.

They might be PB-O-Cocos, but they look rounder.

Whatever, they were gone by 10:00 anyway.

The boy loves pinwheels.

These are from that Cookie Companion book over there on the right ---------->;

(scroll up a little bit)

Not enough decadence for my taste though.

But what can you do? I'm married to him now :)

All photos by The Observatory

Please be Seated

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 03:52:00 +0000

While I can't remember where I came across the idea, the moment I saw someone use years for table numbers, I knew I was done searching.

We scoured through boxes and photo albums and frames and so on for the best photos of us from each year. It was so much fun picking out who would sit at which year.

Our parents, of course, got the early years (when we were cutest) and our friends got "the awkward years." Although, thoughtfully, our photographers didn't take any "awkward years" photos. Which is probably a good thing since no one wants more of those photos floating around.

Well, maybe one embarrassing photo slipped in there...

And, of course, everything was handmade.

I spent a couple months collecting frames from Goodwill stores near my house and spray painted them white.

Each photo was scanned, resized, printed and cut to the appropriate size. I also printed and cut out each year.

I then mounted them to scrapbook paper and put them in the frame.

I would say it cost about $6 per table number.

Then we had to think about the seating chart. It seemed perfectly logical to me that since we were doing years, a timeline would be the perfect display option.

We ended up having three timeline boards set up on easels in the reception lobby where people could find their names and take their seats.

To make the boards, I purchased three 3/4-inch form board from the craft store and covered it with fabric using double-stick tape and flat tacks on the back.

I then took blue ribbon and ran it across the center, fastening on back with double-stick tape and flat tacks.

The years were again printed out on my computer, cut out, and taped to the ribbon with more double-stick tape.

I used permanent marker to draw lines up and down from each year, making sure everything was evenly spaced, and that there was enough room to display all the names.

Each name card/banner was printed on my home computer, cut out, and tacked to the board using blue and white round tacks.

I also added some extra paper flowers from the centerpieces to fill in a few gaps.

It's hard to say how much the seating chart cost because I had the fabric and ribbon, but I know I picked both up on clearance. So maybe $5 for the fabric, $1 for the ribbon, $3 for the tacks and tape...so maybe $10 for all three?

We also needed a way to let the waiters know who ordered what.

So we added Paper Source menu stamps to the back of each banner as well as a reminder of the table number.

I bet you can guess who the two people having steak at Table 2010 were. :)

All photos in this post by The Observatory

Our Wedding Tree

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 23:13:00 +0000

One of the things I had the hardest time trying to figure out was the guestbook. It wasn't that I didn't have any ideas... it's that I had too many. We eventually decided to go with a wedding tree.

(photo credit Jonas Peterson)

But I didn't think people would want to dirty-up their fingers, so I had another idea!

(photo credit The Observatory)

We made a poster, cut out a bunch of leaves, and asked people to "leaf" us a note!

(photo credit The Observatory)

It was a big hit!

(photo credit The Observatory)

And now it's framed in our living room.

So how'd we do it?

Pretty simple really.

I purchased some clip art from istockphoto.com

Created a 24"-36"-sized document in Adobe Illustrator and added some text.

(fonts used: BlairMdITC TT Medium and Burgess Script)

Took the file to Staples and had it printed on a poster.

(I think it was about $25)

Then I picked up a pack of cardstock in various shades of blue and cut out leaves. No pattern, just freehand. I added a small piece of double-stick tape to the back of each. I made sure to use those little scrapbook tape squares so that the tape wouldn't be exposed, but would have a little tab of paper that guests could pull off when they were ready to add their leaf to the poster.

The venue had an easel and put the poster up outside the reception hall and set up a table with the leaves and various blue markers.

And all our guests started writing sweet notes!

See the big "I love you"? That's from my husband's cousin (aka the little boy in the photo above). Too cute!

However, the best one is from Jay's Grandma/our friend "Kennedy."

I guess that, because his signature was so light, she didn't see it.

Bless your heart, Grandma. :)

Guess what came in the mail today!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 00:57:00 +0000

Not just a gorgeous portfolio!

Not just one DVD!

But 2 DVDs of photos!

You know what that means!

I may actually have content for the blog!

I'll actually have to put all my tutorials together...

Whoo!

Lemon-Raspberry Sugar Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 17:07:00 +0000

Just like the 10 million other people out there, January means the reintroduction of words like
"vegetables" and "treadmill" and
"if you don't hand over that bag of Cheetos, you're going to lose an arm."

So far it's been going well. I've been working out, keeping track of what I eat,
and so far I've only gained 2 pounds.

Unfortunately for someone who writes a blog called "weddings and cookies" January also means a lack of content, because it's never a good idea to have a bunch of

warm...

delicious...

soft...

sweet...

cookies....

Oh my. How'd those get there?

Ok, I caved. Deliciously caved.

It all started with this:

I picked up this raspberry-flavored sugar at the grocery store months ago, knowing that it would be perfect as the sugar coating on lemon sugar cookies.

And it did!

I realize that I've basically made these before. Well, I've definitely made the Perfect Lemon Sugar Cookie recipe before. And I've made lemon cookies with jam. But a) never together, and b) never with raspberry sugar.

It's a good combination. Totally worth all the treadmill time I've just subjected myself to.

They're crunchy on the outside, while saying perfectly chewy and soft inside. They have a delightfully-light lemon flavor, and the raspberry sugar and jam pairs perfectly with the lemon.

So how do you make these?

Make a batch of Perfect Lemon Sugar Cookies,

but with a couple modifications (in italics below).

The Recipe

(copied from the Crepes of Wrath blog)

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract

zest of 1 lemon

1/2 cup raspberry-flavored sugar

1 cup raspberry jam

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or tin foil and spray lightly with Pam.

2. In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. Rub together the zest and granulated sugar until the sugar is a pale yellow color. This helps to infuse all of the oils in the zest into the sugar and gives your cookies an even more lemony flavor. Using a mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and very fluffy (about 3-5 minutes).

4. Beat in egg, vanilla extract, and lemon extract.

5. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened.

6. Roll rounded tablespoons of dough into balls, and roll in raspberry sugar. Place on lined cookie sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart.

7. Bake about 8 minutes in the preheated oven. They should be almost done but still gooey in the middle. Using a spoon, make a small impression in the middle and add a spoonful of jam. Return cookies to over for about 3 minutes, until they're set.

8. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks. As soon as the cookies have cooled, store them in an airtight container to keep them nice and soft. Makes around 20 cookies.

And enjoy!

Things I've Seen that I Like

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 04:05:00 +0000

I've never been into making inspiration boards (except for one).

I can either never find what I'm looking for. Or I lose interest around page 6 of my search results. Or there are so many good ones out there - just search Google images for "wedding inspiration board [insert color here]" - why should I make another?

I mean seriously, look at all this gorgeous inspiration...I can get lots of inspiration just handed to me :)

However, I do see things I like, like all the time. And I want to share them with people, like all the time. So instead of inspiration boards, how about I just post things I like? I make no promises of them matching or falling into a similar theme, or even making sense or that matter :) And all you have to do is sit back and enjoy.

Deal?

Great!

First, the only thing I love more than DIY is DIY using recycled materials.

Like these gorgeous and delicate flowers made from vintage sewing patterns by MontclairMade on Etsy:

And I know I made no promises about things coordinating, but wouldn't they go perfectly with this Vera Wang dress?

And maybe pair it with this adorable and simple necklace from ANORIGINALJEWELRY on Etsy.

You can flip the necklace from "Ms." to "Mrs." after the ceremony!

I (because I'm a giant dinosaur nerd) also love these (hey husband, hint, hint) tiny dinosaur earrings.

Speaking of dinosaur nerds...

I definitely debating having our wedding at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum.

But A) not everyone is as much of a nerd as I am; and B) the dinosaur hall wasn't large enough for all our guests.

If we did have it at the Natural History Museum, you know I would ask Kevin Dart to make my invitations.

Was that random enough for you?

Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:23:00 +0000

It's not too late to say that, right?

It's been quite a while since my last post and, well, I still don't have anything interesting to say :)

...professional wedding photos are supposed to come in this month, but for now, nothing new.
...the annual "I'm going to get into shape" resolution is keeping the cookie baking to a null.
...I'm making little headway on my 30 before 30 list

(does "starting a morning workout routine" count if I'm working out at night?)
(and I did sign up for an adult volleyball league, but no one has contacted me)
(and I have plans to pick off another two states on my "visit all 50 states" goal)

But it's still pretty early and my coffee is starting to kick in, so goals, and resolutions, and all kinds of exciting crap are filling my head.

In the meantime, have you seen this dress by Christos Bridal? It's polka dot! I'm in love.

And seriously, an entire store of paper flowers by David Stark? Why didn't I think of that?

I promise more DIY wedding ideas coming soon!

Seriously.

I mean it this time.

Custom Portraits

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 17:01:00 +0000

Ever think about commissioning an artist for a custom wedding portrait?

Yeah, I hadn't either, until I saw some of the awesome portraits on Etsy.

Now, I haven't ordered one yet (trying to save a bit), but I still might.

How cute is this by NanLawson?

Many other examples on my guest post on Wedding Window.

29 Before 30!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 02:54:00 +0000

One down, lots to go!

Start a morning workout routine.
Finish fixing up our house (paint bathrooms, redo kitchen)
Take a cooking class
~~Own a three-legged cat~~

Meet Ilean (get it, I Lean) we also like to call her "Leany cat" and "Leaner beans"

She's still learning the lay of the land, but hopefully everyone will get along.

Happy Feet

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 14:48:00 +0000

I'm still waiting for the official wedding photos to give you the details, but in the meantime, check out my guest post on WeddingWindow.com on some of the adorable shoes out there that are perfect for a wedding.

Or you can just get some cute sandals. :)

30 Before 30

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 02:15:00 +0000

If you know me at all, you know that I love lists.

As in, love them.

As in, can't function without them.

As in, three days before the wedding, I drove an hour back to my office at 8:00 at night when I realized that I left my to-do list on my desk.

So with my 28th birthday approaching (Wednesday!) it dawned on me that I'm coming up on 30. I'm in no way thinking that 30 is old or that I'm wasting my life in any way, but I like lists and I like working toward something, and, basically, I wanted to see if I could do accomplish a set of goals if I put my mind to it.

So I came up with my "30 Before 30" list.

I was really hoping that I would have 30 months to complete it, but alas, there are only 24 short months until I turn 30

...go figure.

I'm 6 months behind before I even start.

oops...

So here is my "24 Under 30" list!

Start a morning workout routine.
Finish fixing up our house (paint bathrooms, redo kitchen)
Take a cooking class
Own a three-legged cat
Fit into a size 8 (it's been a while)
Plant a (successful) vegetable garden
Pay off credit card
Launch my new website
See the northern lights
Ride a horse
Run a 5K
Have a kiddo (don't get too excited - this is much closer to the "30" end of the list)
Own a ridiculously priced, absolutely gorgeous, designer dress (this will have to be after both #1 and #5 have successfully been completed)
Get another couple tattoos (maybe UglyKitty logo and family crest)
Get an awesome short haircut with highlights
Join a local adult volleyball league
Write an UglyKitty children's book
Develop wholesale accounts for UglyKittyRedeux
Visit Ireland again, this time with the Hubs
Take a cross country road trip with the Hubs
See more wildlife (bear, mountain lion, rattlesnake) (from a distance)
Sing Karaoke in public (Rock Band doesn’t count)
Compile all my recipes into personal cookbook
Visit all 50 states (only NM, ND, SD, VT, IA, MO, KS left, and I'm going to NM in December)

Did any one else make a 30 under 30 list?

How'd you do?

Did I forget anything?

I'll let you know how I do.

Quick Catch-up

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 22:00:00 +0000

So I've completely fallen off the blogging wagon. I still love you all, but taking 2.5 weeks off from work meant that as soon as I got back, traveling started up again (that would be 9 trips in the last 12 weeks).

Everyone keeps asking me how married life is and I keep saying, "I have no idea, I haven't been home to enjoy it." :) But I've got a little break (no trips until December!) and hope to get caught up on everything once again.

Plus holiday baking (and my birthday) is right around the corner!!

Until then, enjoy some of my recent favorites:

Brittany and Paul's giant paper flowers (from 100layercake.com)

Lost & Fawned is one of my favorite blogs - Lindsey has such a great eye!

Here are some details from the gorgeous Oregon beach wedding

(For which I made the invitations. She made every thing else)

I really want to make these candy corn cookies in the next 3 days.

...and, while I'm not ready to announce anything yet (no, I'm not pregnant).

I'm working on something awesome in world of wedding invitations.

Couple More Photos

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:30:00 +0000

I know you come here for DIY tutorials and cookie recipes, but that's too bad today.

All I've got for you is photos :).

Our incredible photographers (Rachael Spiegel and Andrea Jacobson of The Observatory) posted some more of our photos on their blog. There are more detail shots of the DIY stuff coming, but for now enjoy some of their (and our) favorites!

Peanut Butter Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 19:04:00 +0000

...or as I like to call them...Mmmmm!

Our annual first Penn State football game/fantasy football draft party is always a call for celebration. If you've been reading this for a while, then you may remember last year's failed attempt at party snacks. Well, I'm pleased to report that this year's dessert went over much better!

A wonderful friend of ours got us Martha Stewart's Cupcakes cookbook as a wedding present. And while I've been reading it at night before bed (hey, you have your fairy tales and I have mine), I had yet to make anything from the book. Determined to make up for last year, I decided that I would make the Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cupcakes.

I had all intentions of following the recipe exactly, that is, until this happened:

Wait, what does that say?

OMPB!

For reals? Peanut butter oreos?

Yes, my friends. The legend is true.

How'd that bite get there?

Once I discovered that they make peanut butter Oreos, I knew I had a new mission... Peanut Butter Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cupcakes.

So aside from the peanut butter, cream cheese, and oreos, what is it makes these cupcakes so amazing?

What's that in the bottom?

Is it?

OMPB, it is!

A full Oreo at the bottom of the cupcake!

Sweet, soft cheesecake on top and a delicious cream-filled cookie at bottom.

So how do you make these?

The Recipe

42 cream-filled sandwich cookies, such as Oreos, 30 left whole, and 12 coarsely chopped
1.5 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1 cup sour cream
Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.

2. With an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

3. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.

4. Divide batter evenly among cookie-lined cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or up to overnight). Remove from tins just before serving.

Then eat!

and enjoy some more!

Winners!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:59:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who commented to enter my giveaway for a free recipe book!

Using a random number generator...our winners are commenters:

#2 - Megan

(Megan, I couldn't find an email address/website for you, so please send an email to renee[at]myuglykitty.com with your contact info!)

#4 - Petals (which is perfect since her original comment gave me the idea)

#6 - Lu

#9 - peachyplum

and #10 - Laura!

I will be contacting you shortly!

Congrats, enjoy, and thanks to everyone who commented!

Recipe Book Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:47:00 +0000

After posting a quick tutorial on how to make these recipe books a week-ish ago, clever commenter Petals gave me a great idea!

I have a bunch of extras...even after my relatives all took extras home...even after I put three into my personnel collection... and even after I gave a bunch out to coworkers.

So I'm having my first giveaway!

I have five extra extra recipe books that I'm going to give out to you!

Each book comes with 25 of our favorite recipes. Some you've seen here and some you haven't.

Just leave me a comment telling me your favorite cookie or one you've been dying to try (doesn't have to be one you saw here).

If there are more than 5 comments :), I'll randomly choose 5 winners.

If not, you all win!

Good luck!

Contest ends Friday (9/3) at midnight.
Winners announced Sunday!

Welcome to DC!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 00:54:00 +0000

Welcome bags have become a staple at weddings in the past couple years. And while I usually try to do exactly opposite of whatever's "in" at the time, I really wanted to have welcome bags for all the guests staying at the hotel.

I started looking for cute gift bags, but anything that wasn't white or tan seemed to be $3 each...and that wasn't going to work. I wish I remembered where I found the link, but when I clicked on it, there was a beacon of gift-bag light.

Canvas tote bags for $1!

How perfect! I could screen print them, fill them with goodies, and guests could actually keep and reuse them! Less waste!

I wanted something that was pretty gender neutral (no cherry blossoms) and I didn't want anything with our names, initials, or dates on it. Who wants to use a "Jay and Renee 24/7!" tote at the grocery store?

I found this adorable clip art at iStockPhoto and it worked perfectly!

I Gocco'd the image onto each tote using navy blue ink. TIP: I had a little trouble with the ink bleeding through, so I put a magazine inside each tote before I printed the image. I let them dry for 24 hours then, to make sure that it doesn't wash out, I heat set each print with an iron.

As I've probably mentioned a few times, most of our guests were from out of town and planned to explore DC a little while they were in the area. So not only did we fill the bags with the usual water, gum, advil, and granola bars, we added business cards from a local cab company, DC Metro guides, and vintage Washington DC postcards.

So definitely think about using canvas bags instead of paper. Who knew they were so cheap! Plus the guests were really wowed!

L O V E!

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 01:29:00 +0000

As in, I LOVE this photo!

As in, I seriously had to stop and catch my breath when I saw this photo.

Our incredible photograhers posted a couple "sneak peak" photos on Facebook and I, of course, had to share. Plus, it's a great example of our balloons in action.

Make sure you check out every website they have - and make sure you hire them for your wedding!

Photos by Rachael Spiegel and Andrea Jacobson of The Observatory

So True, So True

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 01:21:00 +0000

According to my blog reader, I have 5161 unread blog posts. Since I'm more addicted to blogs than magazines (and I'm totally addicted to magazines), I plan on reading each one.

I'm anal retentive and usually read them in alphabetical order by blog name and then from oldest to newest. But on a quick skim, a post on my WedLoft blog reader caught my eye.

"Attention DIY-ers!!"

OK, you've got my attention.

I clicked on the link I was pleasantly pleased with this hilarious (and yet so true) flow chart. Originally posted on 100LayerCake, and created by Heather of Heart of Light.

If you're thinking about making ~~everything~~ anything for your wedding (which I fully encourage), this is something you'll want to print out and post above your vanity - or somewhere else where you can see it everyday.

I loved every second of making my wedding, but be warned...this chart is very accurate...

"Estimate how much time this project will take. Double it..."

How Sweet it Is

noreply@blogger.com (MyUglyKitty) — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 02:55:00 +0000

We ended up making about 3,000 cookies for the big day.

...Chocolate chip...

...red velvet...

...sugar...

...oatmeal...

...lemon...

...shortbread...

Well, you know, you've been reading the blog.

About a month before the wedding, I realized that if I went to a wedding with that many awesome cookies, I'd want the recipes.

With a couple clicks of the mouse, several reams of paper, and some baker's twine, I put together these adorable recipe books for guests to take home.

Each book had 25 (I think) recipes in it, covering all our favorites.

mmm...snickerdoodle blondies

I used Paper Source's text weight eco-white paper in 8.5x11. and printed each within a 3 7/8" by 9 1/4" area (to fit the #10 backing, also from Paper Source)

Let's try explaining that again. I used Microsoft Word and set my document to two columns each measuring 3 7/8" by 9 1/4". That way I could print two per sheet and save a little paper. I typed up all my recipes and started printing.

I designed the cover in Adobe Illustrator using clip art, but as always, you don't need any graphic design skills - draw something or collage and get it photocopied, use rubber stamps, download a free template (try i-do-it-yourself.com), or purchase one if you really feel like it's out of your league.

Once everything was printed and cut down to size. I punched two holes at the top (the #10 backing comes with holes ready).

A little bakers twine threaded through the holes to tie it all together...and ta-da!

The guests LOVED them. People kept coming up to me and saying what a great idea it was and how they were excited to try *insert name of awesome cookie here*.

So give it a try, make it a favor, it's the gift that keeps on giving...provided your guests enjoy baking.