New Beaded Things

Well, on our long drive to South Dakota and back, I had plenty of time to bead. It is hard for me to just sit in the car doing nothing, so I got a lot done. Here are some of what I was able to complete. It was such fun, not to mention relaxing and inspiring, sitting there with nothing to do...but create!

This one is similar to one I have done in the past with a nice combination of light blue flowers.

It was fun working with my new rose beads--they are just beautiful and have great detail.

I thought it was time to get ready for fall with some beaded pumpkins in a brooch.

The two below have sold already (thank you, Nicole--I hope you will enjoy them) but wanted to include them anyway. I had been wanting to do a teapot for quite awhile and finally found the right mix of beads to do so.

The Allure of the Cupcake Wrapper

I never thought it possible to improve upon a cupcake! A cupcake in and of itself can be such an exquisite little work of art--sometimes even a tiny one if a mini cupcake is made--with dreamy, creamy frosting swirled over the little cake, and everything from jeweled sparkles to a garden of flowers placed on that small rounded mound of perfection. I've seen some beautiful ones lately--in magazines mostly. I was also at the craft store this week and noticed some for sale. I think it is a rather extravagant splurge for the already glorious cupcake, but I can't help liking them! I decided to do a simple search and found some GREAT wrappers on Etsy that I thought I'd share with you. I'll certainly keep these shops in mind when I'm ready to have my own parties with all the stops and whistles, and I hope you will too.
These pretty wrappers are at Have2HaveItPersonalized. I think her design is very fancy--perfect for a wedding or the most feminine of parties.
These two by Geekinesis are amazing and hold many fabulous possibilities. Their intricacy is alluring.
Any--and, yes, EVERY--floral cupcake deserves this picket fence wrapper by Cupcakeflair.
This one by Joosy Card Co is fabulously French and elegant.
And this one by ALittleLollipopTree is just plain fun. Though the design is simple, I can't resist them! They make me think of popcorn (which along with cupcakes is one of the "fun" foods in the world), and I can just imagine decorating cupcakes with yellow and white marshmallow bits to make the cupcake top look like popcorn in a bag.
I hope you've enjoyed these great finds as much as I have.

Cupcakes and More Cupcakes!

There isn't much that is more fun than a cupcake! I had a ball this past weekend working on this new cupcake pin. I had these mint green beads that I've been itching to use....and what better than as mint green frosting? I've listed it in Lollishops and on Etsy (see shop links to the left).
Speaking of cupcakes, Gail at her blog, Shabby Cottage Shoppe, is having a cupcake ornament--these pictured above--giveaway TODAY--so hurry on over to enter. They are adorable, are they not? These you can keep up all year long. While there check out the rest of her beautiful blog and her shop. Talk about pretty stuff!

Springtime Cupcakes

I needed to provide the treats for a ladies' meeting at our church last night. I know it is only February, but since I'm just too eager for spring to come, I decided to make some springtime cupcakes. They needed to be yummy, pretty, perky, and flowery, I decided. First, I started with a "confetti' cake mix so each bite would reveal pretty color.
Then I used fluffy white frosting and put a thick layer on each cupcake.
Then to make the flowers I used gumdrops. I first put a nice pile of sugar on the waxed paper since they are so sticky especially the more you work with them!
I started rolling them with a rolling pin but soon realized that simply squishing them with my clean, sugared fingers worked better than than rolling pin which the gumdrops liked to stick to.I cut the flowers and leaves out with little fondant cutters, but you could use any small cookie/canape cutters that you have. I had to poke each flower and leaf out of the cutter with a knife despite the sugar, but it worked out just fine.
I ran out of time and resources for the centers of the flowers...but I thought they really should have a center of some sort. Little silver dots or candies (had neither on hand) or even piped frosting (no time) would have looked better, but I used a toothpick and some leftover frosting to add little centers. The possibilities are endless with gumdrops, frosting, different sized cutters, and a little time to make pretty cupcakes. Try them for yourself for a springtime tea, church ladies activity, shower, or other activity where the treat should look lovely.