DIY: Paper Rose Garland

Materials Needed:

• 40 Pre-made Paper Roses (follow link to the paper rose instructions/template below)
• Twine

Once you have about 40 paper roses, grab your twine and follow the below steps. If you’re not feeling up to making all 40, no worries; these garlands look great with even just a few place in the center of your garland. 

Directions:

1. Take a strand of twine and double it up.  The length of your twine will be dependent on where you plan on hanging the garland,  so make sure to measure your space first and then double that distance in twine.

2. Take each rose and loop the floral wire stem around the twine, wrapping tightly to secure.

3. Continue adding on roses until you’ve reached the opposite end of your twine. Then secure the garland to your desired display location and adjust the roses so that they’re all outward facing.  For long garlands, it may be easier to assemble the roses onto your twine after the twine has been set in place, to accommodate for any movement or twists in the twine.

This garland would look beautiful in so many different places and can be hung and molded in many different ways. It looks lovely just about anywhere!  And if you’re just wanting to take it easy, even these individual roses look beautiful in vases.

Baked: Donut Cake

My favorite thing about this whole cake making business is that each job is completely different from the last.  It is impossible to get bored creating unique cakes, thanks to all of the eclectic requests that come in.  This past weekend I was tasked with creating a larger-than-life donut cake, and I can definitely say this was my first time doing so.

You’ll notice that the job was not just one donut – it was actually two different donuts, which were shaped into the letters ‘O’ and ‘F’ (for Odd Future). The band’s album artwork was used for the inspiration behind the design of these very delicious donut cakes.  Overall, it was such a fun project – definitely one of my favorite cake jobs.

Monday Motivation: Julia Child

I love this quote from Julia Child, as well as the illustration from Unraveled Design.  Click on the print to be taken to Unraveled Design’s Etsy shop.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day to the most beautiful, creative, inspiring and supportive woman I know. I love you Mom! Wish I could spend today with you!

Spring Things

Spring was in full effect last weekend with perfect weather both Saturday and Sunday.  It seems that a good spring day in New York is very rare; so, two beautiful days in a row was absolutely amazing.  On Saturday, I headed out on a little adventure with a friend to a nearby arboretum that housed the most magnificent greenhouses and some beautiful dogwood and cherry blossom trees.  We strolled around for hours, enjoyed lunch outside, and took some photos as well.  Just look at the beautiful nature we were able to experience.

As for this weekend…well, it’s raining and the weather report says thunderstorms through the tonight.  Oh New York, you’re such a tease. California, sorry I took your perfect weather for granted for so many years. I miss you dearly around this time of year!

Mother’s Day Cupcake Wrappers with Printable

While I won’t be able to ship cupcakes across the country (sorry, Mom!), I designed some pretty cupcake wrappers for Mother’s Day.  If you want to take over more than just a card on Sunday, treat your mom to some lovely personalized cupcakes. I’ve  posted the printable template for you below – all 3 of the wrappers shown above are included in the printable. Enjoy!

Directions:

1. Download the PDF template by clicking below.
2. Print the template (setup w/ Landscape orientation) on high-quality 8.5″ x 11″ paper.  Note: I recommend glossy photo paper, as the colors are much brighter and the paper is a bit more durable.  
3. Cut around the outer edges of each template on the printed page and shape around your cupcake. If you find that your wrapper is too tall or too big around, cut the template to fit.
4. Secure the end of the template w/ double-sided tape or a piece of scotch tape. And now have yourself a festive Mother’s Day cupcake!

DIY: Perfect Blueberry Buttercream

If you like to bake and have experimented with fruit-based buttercream icings, you are probably familiar with the frustrating process that can easily occur.  The buttercream often gets runny and watery so darn easily when fruit is being added and it can be beyond infuriating.  But don’t fret, I understand your frustrations and have been there myself many times!  That was until I discovered the best little secret that results in the gosh darn best blueberry (or any fruit) buttercream icing, all by following one simple tip. 

So, here it is!  Instead of using fresh blueberries, use freeze-dried blueberries….that’s it!  Seriously!  See below for the steps and the necessary ingredients.

Ingredients Needed:

• Your Pre-Baked Cake
• 1.5 – 2 Cups (1 Bag) Freeze-Dried Blueberries
• 1 Cup (2 sticks) Butter
• 6 Cups Confectioner’s Sugar
• 1 Tbsp Heavy Whipping Cream
• 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
• Handful of Fresh Blueberries (optional)

Directions:

Step #1: Once you’ve baked your cake, let it cool completely before decorating it.  Once cool, place your cake on your decorating surface or cake stand.

Step #2:  Pour about 1.5 Cups of freeze dried blueberries into a processor and pulse until the blueberries are a fine powder.  Wait one minute before opening the processor, so the blueberry dust can settle.

Step #3: Make your vanilla buttercream icing. Using a mixer, cream your butter until smooth. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar (2 cups at a time), vanilla and enough cream to achieve desired consistency. Then, add in your blueberry powder and mix until combined.

Step #4: When decorating a cake that has a fruit icing, I like to add that particular fruit on top of my cake for an added taste.  This step, of course, is totally up to you!

And that is it!  Amazing, right?!  But even more good news, people!  This process can be used to achieve any specific fruit flavor, as long as your fruit comes in a freeze-dried form.  Endless possibilities for your summer cakes!