Floral Baby Shower Cookies

Valentine Cookies

Gold and Coral Birthday

Royal Icing Henna Transfers

My partner in crime, Ryam, from The Inspired Mama, and I are throwing a Princess Jasmine inspired party for her soon-to-be five year old, Samirah.  We're both not too keen on the whole licensed character bit, so Jasmine will be making a minor appearance in the form of some sugar cookies on the dessert table.  So I guess it's really more Arabian Nights than Jasmine we're talking about.  In trying to come up with some fresh ideas, I started playing around with henna tattoos and how I could incorporate them into the dessert table.  That's when I started making these henna royal icing transfers to use as a major-wow cupcake topper.  Below is the surprisingly simple step by step tutorial.  Enjoy!

Start with a line drawing of your design.  I took an image I'd googled then finessed it to fit the shape and size I needed it.

Place a sheet of wax paper over your paper template and start tracing your design using semi-stiff royal icing in your piping bag fitted with a number 1 tip.  Make sure to have some thicker sections for stability.  I went over some lines twice to build them up.  Also be sure to connect all lines to another point of your design so it is more sturdy when peeling off your wax paper.

Keep building and adding on.

You can use a heat gun to speed drying time.

When completely dry (COMPLETELY - no cheating) begin removing your transfers by slowly peeling back a small section from the wax paper.  Don't go too far or the pressure of your fingers are likely to break your work and induce a steady stream of curses.

Using a large offset spatula, slowly start working your design off the wax paper by sliding it under the transfer at the starting point you created by peeling it away from the wax paper. Use a smooth steady motion and watch your spatula to see if it is catching on any of the design elements.  This is easier than you might guess.  I only had two tragedies and one was completely salvaged by putting the largest chunk back on the wax paper and re-piping the missing part.  I just let it dry and removed as described above.

And there you have it.  Beautiful lacy royal icing pieces to use as appliques on cakes, or in my case tall, standing cupcake toppers.  Obviously, you can pipe in any color you like or take it to the next level and give them the Midas touch:

I love this stuff BUT it's kinda pricy ($9.99 at my cake supply store) and does not go as far as I would like.  I chose the spray because I worried about painting with a brush on such a delicate canvas.

How pretty would these be in white used on a pale vintage-inspired lace cake?  Hmmm...  Think I'll have to add that to the "must try" list.

Sangria and Spanish Lace Wedding

What a beautiful wedding!  Vanessa and David, the gorgeous couple, held their reception at the incredible Rancho Las Lomas, in Silverado Canyon. Lush overgrown trees and greenery, tigers and zebras on the grounds and a beautiful villa with a Rapunzle-type turret off in the distance.  What a fabulous backdrop for our Sangria and Spanish Lace styled dessert table. We used deep bordeauxs, fuschias and a pop of orange contrasted with crisp white goodies on dark chocolate brown table, all set against a gorgeous blue tile background.  What a beautiful day.  Enjoy!

The bride had five cakes.  The large central one was three tiers of red velvet and cream cheese, and the four small ones scattered around the table were all different;  devil's food cake with chocolate and raspberry filling, classic white cake with strawberry and cream cheese filling, chocolate cake with dark chocolate filling, and lemon cake with lemon and raspberry filling.  All covered simple buttercream roses and topped with deep wine colored fresh dahlias.

(Photo by Duane Peck)

Rustic cake stand - the perfect touch.

Six inch mini cakes.

Gorgeous deep dahlia.

This was my gift to the bride and groom: an edible cake topper for them to take home and enjoy on their one year anniversary.  I was in cahoots with one of the bridesmaids for details and pictures of the bride's dress, flowers and hairstyle to resemble the happy couple.

Back view of cake topper.

Nutella filled yellow cupcakes.

The bride had a special request for a treat that incorporated Oreos (the groom and his friends have a special fondness for this classic cookie), so I made a batch of these Oreo truffles.  I'm loving the mini Oreo toppers with tiny roses piped in the bride's colors.

Congratulations Vanessa and David!

Vintage Pony Party

Wow wow wow.  Our Vintage Pony Party for the three year old daughter of my dear friend Ryam, from The Inspired Mama, was this weekend and it was truly a phenomenal affair!  The gorgeous results of this labor of love were due in large part to the Ryam's incredible vision and tons of DIY projects. (I must have asked her to quit her day job three times and run away to partner up with me!)  And the beauty is in all the pretty eclectic details - lace, doilies, ribbons, wildflowers, and found objects galore. 

Our party site was Irvine Railroad Park and their beautiful red and white pavilions with huge grassy areas and gorgeous shady nooks (not to mention the random wandering peacock who strolled through our site to take a gander) made the ideal backdrop for our  sweet soiree.  Please take your time through these photos to soak up all the tiny details.  Enjoy!

DIY ribbon garland on the split rail fences.

Chandeliers and Burlap. 

Hand cut felt and burlap birthday girl banner.

Shabby chic tablescapes inside the pavilion.

Sweet wildflower centerpieces.

Kids' place settings with lunch snack sacks.

Pony coloring pages with pretty crayon box.

For the babies - a miniature stuffed pony.

Sweets and Favors stations.

Nylah's sweet shoppe.

Ribbons ribbons ribbons.

Shabby wagon holds doily cones of caramel corn.

The birthday girl taking it all in.

And what's a birthday party without a little cake? Welcome to the cake bar. Cakes in jars, cakes on stands, and a miniature birthday cake.  Check out all the variations.

Cake bar.

Rose cake with miniature birthday banner.

Strawberry and cream cheese cake in a jar.

Individual DIY cupcake stands - $2 a piece.

Score of the century!  Ryam wanted to bring in some furniture to set the stage and lo and behold as I'm driving home, what's on the side of the road?  This dilapidated beauty!  Perfect for holding take home party favors.

The famous Ikea frame.

Delightfully crusty drawers hold party favors.

Girls favors: ponies with brushes.

Boys favors: wooden pony puzzles.

The lemonade stand.

The birthday girl enjoys an icy lemonade.

How genius are these Shirley Temples in a jar?

 

Slightly obsessed.

Potato chip bar.

Stick pony corral.

Old fashioned fun: Bobbing for apples.

Score!

Cream soda ring toss.

"Winner's Circle" photo booth.

A picture perfect party!