Bunny Cakes

Halloween School Treats 2009

OK, so I pretty much followed the same technique as last year to make *Halloween Treats* for the boys to share with their classmates: Stamp, Stuff & Sew.

 

At Micheal's I purchased Glassine-like favor bags (in the wedding section, 100 per pack) and stamped them with Halloween motifs (Martha makes great stamps -- not the clear kind, but the block kind).  Then stuffed them with Halloween goodies.  I enlisted the boys to help with the stuffing part and they quite enjoyed it.  Finally, I sewed the bags shut.  The sewing step is completely optional.  I was feeling lazy about the sewing part and was just going to fold over the tops of the bags and seal with a clear circle sticker, but I couldn't find them at the craft store (I didn't check any office supply stores though).

For their teachers the boys brought in mini-bundt cake brownies tied up to look like a giant piece of candy.  To make these use wax/parchment paper, colored tissue paper and cello to wrap up your baked goods, tie with bakery twine and add card.

 

-K

Glitter Spiders

If you follow Martha at all, then you probably know she loves to glitter anything and everything.  I have always wondered why she seemed so obsessed with glittering.  On a recent trip to Michael's craft store I picked up one of Martha's *Halloween Glittering* kits on sale.  I had no immediate project in mind and like many of my crafting supplies, it found its way into my shopping cart because it was on sale.  Then this past weekend while hubby was off watching the Giants lose, I decided to impress the boys with a glitter project.  I busted out the Martha Glittering kit and a bunch of spider rings and went to town.  The boys claimed the project as 'boring', but I had a hard time stopping.  After glittering a bunch of spider rings I wanted more.  As I quickly moved on to bigger and better Halloween objects I fully understood Martha's obsession.  The results were very easy to come by and very sparkly...who wouldn't love it!  And even though the boys thought the project was boring, they were oohing and ahhing at the results.

The glitter spiders are great to embellish Halloween treats or to add a little sparkle to your Halloween decorations.

-K

The Theo Quilt

It is hard to believe the summer is over.  It started out with great expectations and lots of promise.  I had many projects earnestly queued up on my to-do list, but sadly most of them stayed there.  One of the projects was a quilt for a dear friend who [many months ago] 'just' had a baby boy.  To be honest, the quilt should have been finished up before summer even started, but it wasn't.  Then something went bad.  A dark cloud came into my life--Lyme's Disease.  My hair started falling out, my hands and feet hurt, and I was worried about the disease all the time.  And then after many weeks of antibiotics things were suddenly normal again.  My craftiness returned and the quilt was finished.  So it is with much happiness that I share these pictures of a long overdue quilt and other goodies (monogrammed photo album & burp cloths)...

I really love how the blues and greens turned out together.  

-K

P.S. Use sunscreen AND bug spray. 

Table Treats - M&M Tubes

Alright, this is my last & final post on the boys' Uglydoll Party (here, here and here in case you missed the other posts).  Since the party was held off site at the Laser Tag place I had very little control over the decor of the space.  In general the party room was pretty bland even if you did happen notice the random "gear and splatter paint" mural on the walls.  I had planned to bring in my own plates, cups, etc. to carry the color palette and I am glad I did.  The last-minute $1 table cloths were key to giving the space some much needed cheer.  In addition to the coordinating dining gear, each place setting had an *Uglydoll M&M Tube*.  The kids loved these and there was much happy chatter about their new U&U's moniker.  I will definitely make these again for future parties as they were so easy and well received!  See down below for the how-to instructions...

Here is a look at the improved tablescape...

Every laser tag party should have at least one fun prize...

Custom M&M Tube How To:

Step 1 - Print out your design on regular white office paper and cut out.  You should be able to fit six designs per 8.5x11 sheet of paper.

Step 2 - Remove the original plastic label from each tube.  This is something the kids can help out with (you may need to help them get started).  Hint: You do not need to get every piece f the original wrapper off.

Step 3 - Using regular scotch tape, tape one end of your custom label to the tube.

Step 4 - Place a piece of double sided tape across the width of the other end of the label (on the inside).  Roll the label smoothly around the tube and press firmly on the end with the double sided tape to secure.

Step 5 - Enjoy!

So easy, right?  The hardest part is coming up with the design, but if you are like me you will probably enjoy that part the most.

-K

Uglydoll Cupcakes, Cookies and Cake

In addition to the Uglydoll softies they also have great action figures available.  As soon as I spied them I knew I had to incorporate them into the boys' party.  Initially I was going to make the boys each their own individual cake and top it with one of the action figures, but I smartly decided the cakes + the cupcakes would be too much (work).  So instead of adorning cakes I used the action figures to adorn the cupcake stand.  The tiered stand is from Anthropologie ($19.99 on sale--not bad).  

To elevate the action figures I made little platforms using lids from the frosting containers (I love homemade frosting, but most of the time I go with the pre-made varieties), a toilet paper roll and paper that I printed out on the computer so it would match the color scheme.  The platforms were easily assembled using hot glue and double-sided tape.

 

Now...on to the baked goods...the only sane way I could think of to create *Uglydoll Cupcakes* was to make iced sugar cookies that resembled Uglydolls and top cupcakes with the cookies.  I briefly toyed with the idea of making Uglydolls out of fondant, but since I have very little fondant experience I quickly dismissed the idea.  To keep things simple I limited the cookie cutters down to only three shapes and one main icing color (A was very relieved with my limited choices since she was forced into servitude for the day).  White & red royal icing were used to add additional details and then finally edible black marker was used to add the pupils and mouths (thanks to Bakerella for that tip).  Here is the result:

 

 

Lastly, on the boys actual birthday I did make a cake and used the Uglydoll action figures to decorate it.  It turned out pretty cute (& ugly)!

 

-K

P.S.  Here are the other party details: Invitations, Goodie Bags and Party Treats.

Ugly Bags - The Good Stuff

I by no means expect goodie bags or favors from any party that I (or the boys) attend, but having said that I wouldn't think of sending our guests home without one.  This is not because of any rules of decorum or some super competitive mommy streak, but because its so much fun.  Yes, I know many of you would not agree with that statement (A definitely falls into this bucket--my own sister--gasp!).  But every year I look forward to hunting/making little trinkets to send home with our guests.  

For the boys' *Uglydoll Themed Party* we went with a lime green and red color palette and bought gift bags in coordinating colors.  Then we stuffed the bags with Uglydoll Keychains (a budget buster, but I couldn't resist), a C&J selected mix of candy with custom packaging, Hubba Bubba Bubble Tape and Ugly Sticks (aka pretzel sticks coated in green chocolate and mini M&M's--see link for Martha's how-to).  The goodies bags were tied off with a label that noted: You're Beautiful on the Inside, Man! Thanks for Making Our Party a Blast!

-K

P.S.  Here are the other party details: Invitations, Cake, Cupcakes & Cookies and Party Treats.

Gift for Am M

Although I hate to admit it, life has changed over the past few years.  Celebrating close friends’ birthdays now means a nice dinner and perhaps a small thinking-of-you token gift (notable exceptions being spouse, parents, and nephews of course). Long gone are the days of trolling the local mall for “the” gift for your BFF.  These days I generally like to make most of my gifts (time and laziness permitting with heavy emphasis on the laziness).

Every now and then, life throws you a bone and you happen to stumble across the perfect gift. Such was the case for my very good friend Am M.  I was in an antique mall when I came across a set of vintage hankies (I am fortunate enough to not have allergies and am rarely sick, but I still have a deep seated obsession with vintage hankies.  It’s odd---I know). Well, sandwiched in this packet of hanky goodness were two really great hankies that were a perfect gift for Am.  I have to take a second and elaborate on great—one hankie was very much in the mid-century modern flavor (which is Am’s thing) and was monogrammed with her last name initial (if I was a cat, I would have used up one of my nine lives on this gift). The fact that there were 5 other hankies that I could add to my growing collection was also (admittedly) a bonus.

So, having found these great hankies, I was super excited, however, I had to do a little more.  It seemed a little odd to give just the hankies no matter how great they were.  I recognize that not everyone shares my deep seated affection for vintage hankies.  I decided to make a small little coin purse that Am could keep one the hankies and perhaps a lipstick in for the times when she was traveling light.

I sat down and started thinking about how this little purse should be.  After several failed prototypes, the final plans were decided (with almost no formal training, my sewing style is decidedly fly by the seat of your pants with a touch of just make it happen).  Finally, the fabric was picked, cut, and ready to go.  The happy flow of the project at this point took a turn for the worse as evidenced by the multitude of coin purses that now have permanent residence in the corners of my craft room.

True to my nature, I eventually managed to pull things together…just in time for Am’s birthday.

~A

Personalized Alphabet Book

When the boys were much younger I had envisioned creating a personalized ABC book for the them.  The 'Letter A' page would have a picture of their Aunt Allie balancing an Apple on her head.  I had about a third of the letters mapped out in my head, but sadly I never executed on my vision.  Soooooo, today's post is here to encourage you to do so.  I haven't found any exact examples of my vision, but I have found some super great examples of personalized books for tots that will be sure to inspire you to create your own book(s).

The first example is from Erin Jang, a talented designer/illustrator from Seattle.  She made this sweet and clever board book for her nephew to celebrate his 100th day.  Her concept was to come up with words that rhymed with her nephew's nickname, Baloo.  Check out the final product below (more here)

The second example is from graphic designer Sara Hicks Malone of Party Perfect.  Her concept was a first word book with words and pictures that were familiar to her son.  Check out the fabulous results (more here)...

They grow up so fast...so get on it!  Happy Booking!

K

Birthday Wrap & Cards

I have recently changed my ways.  No longer do I store hundreds of wrapping paper rolls in an unsightly mess in the corner of my craft room.  I am proud to say that I have slowly whittled my way down to only a few select rolls.  The most universal is a big roll of *Plain Brown Craft Paper*.  This has become my staple for wrapping any gift from the boys.  With the myriad of birthday parties on the boys' social calender I now don't have to worry about keeping cute or gender-appropriate paper on hand, instead I simply reach for the big roll of craft paper and wrap away.  This, however, does not mean I have given up on making the gift look good.  The plainly wrapped gifts are given some appeal with a hand-stamped card tied on with coordinating ribbon.  

This past weekend the boys had a party on both Saturday and Sunday.  I found some free time before the parties and managed to stamp out some birthday turtle cards.  Two of the cards made their way onto the gifts, the rest are in my card stash ready for the next bash.

-K

P.S.  I also think you could totally get rid of your wrapping paper stash and just go with newspaper (but don't forget the ribbon & card).

Soccer Treats - Dynamite Sticks

This season the boys soccer team is known as *The Destroyers*.  To accompany their end of season treats, the boys and I worked collectively to come up with a fitting team logo.  Mostly the boys just told me what they liked (and didn't like) and we kept refining the designs until we landed on the final one.  For me it was a ton of fun.  I like when the boys get involved in my creative process and I love to nourish their own creativity.  Usually I try to influence them (Mommies have their ways), but this time I let them have full control.  The final logos were printed and then tied to pretzel treat bags filled with Pirouette cookies and chocolate soccer balls.  Not only did the logo suit their team name, but the completed packages looked like little dynamite sticks or bazookas (depending on who you asked).

-K

P.S.  Here is a look at some of the other versions for the logo...