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Friday, September 30, 2011

{Party Recap} Diamonds & Denim

 
All Photos above - courtesy of Greg Jones

What a fabulous time Diamonds & Denim turned out to be! I'm exhausted and pooped, but it was a good time to be had by all!

The event took place at Lost Society in DC - a really hip bar & lounge in the U Street corridor. Naleli Askew of Quintessential Consulting and Blueprint for Style's, Monica Barnett truly put together a great event.  The Blue Jeans Bar was on hand to do custom fitting for jeans.  A local jeweler located in Old Town Alexandria, VA - Mystique Jewelers, was there as well, with the most beautiful & unique and pieces of jewelry I've seen in a while.  Another great bonus of the event were the gorgeous Stephanie Johnson swag bags that guests walked out the door with!  I'm bummed I didn't get a picture of them - but trust, they were lovely.  Then, I was there to give everyone a sugar rush with a candy buffet and dessert table!  Ha ha!

For the set up, I created the desserts table with decadent Chocolate Cake Pops and Vanilla Cupcakes topped with a dollup of White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting - HEAVEN!

 The candy buffet was set up with Rock Candy Martinis, jelly beans, candy coated chocolate dots, salt water taffy, chocolate bars and old fashioned candy striped bags (an import graciously sent to me from a good friend in the UK).

I created and styled everything in deep blues, silver and anything that would sparkle and shine! For the candy buffet table, I attached a swag that I made out of stripes of denim & jute twine (loves me some jute twine). We sprinkled 'diamond' accents over the blue satin table overlay, and I decorated the glass candy dishes and candle holders with decorated paper that I used from My Grafico designer Shery K.



Another great feature (in my head) were these beautiful silver chargers that I made.

I created them using silver trays, blue glass beads that I had sitting in a zip loc bag for years and my trusty glue gun. I came up with the idea at 2:00 in the morning and I went crazy! I made about nine of them and only used 3!!!  That's the way it goes!  LOL

Hey - I also met some fantastic women at the event and did this online radio interview with Kamaria Richmond on Cinch Chat!



To read more about my styling design for this event, please check out my post today over at MG Party Impressions



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Thursday, September 29, 2011

{Sneak Peek} Diamonds & Denim

Here's a little 'taste' of the sweets table for Diamonds & Denim.

Check back tomorrow for more party details!

Friday, September 23, 2011

{Etsy Shop} FUN-ky Halloween Party Printable Set

I finally added this year's Halloween collection to my Etsy shop!


It's for a FUN-ky Halloween party and features sweet treats and fun Halloween images. I loved the idea of using bright colors like lime, hot pink and purple for this set. The DIY kit includes over 25 printable items to make for a spook-tacular time....and it's only $10!!!!  That's a SWEET deal!

Check it out here!

 

Thursday, September 22, 2011

{Inspiration Thursdays} Diamonds & Denim

I recently hopped on board to style the Diamonds & Denim event taking place next week in Washington, DC in association with The Blues Jean Bar, Blueprint for Style, Mystique Fine Jewelry Design and Quintessential Consulting.

I am so excited about participating in this event because I generally style kid's parties and small gatherings. So, this is going to be a blast for me to do something a bit more formal. The event is going to be really cool too. Folks can come by and get fitted for jeans, get great styling tips, find out how to get the best and most fabulous baubles and bling - PLUS they'll have a chance to taste my fabulous upcakes and sweets!

 Here is the inspiration board that I created for the event:
I'm sure this event will be a success and a good time to be had by all! If you live in the DC, Maryland or Virginia area and would like to attend make sure you RSVP for your space!



 

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

{Tip Tuesday} How to Make Marshmallow Cream Cheese Frosting

I had a few people ask me how to make the Marshmallow Cream Cheese Frosting I used for the Pumpkin Marshmallow Cupcakes.


I start out with the basic ingredients for a cream cheese frosting and then just added Marshmallow Creme Fluff and flavoring.  Just know, that I kind of do a look, feel, taste process when I make frosting - so it isn't always exact (shame on me) - but I will try my best to give you what I think is a close approximation of the measurements I used for the extra ingredients and I'm thinking it will be OH-KIZZAY!

Marshmallow Cream Cheese Frosting

2 Sticks Unsalted Butter at Room Temp.
1 8oz Package of Philadelphia Cream Cheese (that is my preference)
2 Cups Marshmallow Creme (Fluff is the brand name)
2-3 Drops Marshmallow Flavoring (optional)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
4-5 Cups Confectioner's Sugar

On  medium speed, blend together the butter, cream cheese and marshmallow creme until well combined and then add flavoring and the extract.  On low speed, gradually add the confectioner's sugar*.  Spread on cupcakes and enjoy!

*I like to create a cream cheese frosting that is firm enough to pipe but not too stiff.  I also try not to make it too sweet and depending on the type of powdered sugar you use, it can get sweet.  So, when adding in the sugar, do it gradually and go by taste and preference.



Monday, September 19, 2011

{Cupcake Monday} Pumpkin Marshmallow Cupcakes

I kinda sorta got this delicious recipe from my cupcake bible - Martha Stewart Cupcakes and tweaked it to my liking by adding marshmallows to the cupcakes and Fluff to the cream cheese frosting! YUM!

But check this out - there's a cute little story (sorta) for the inspiration for using marshmallows!


Ya see, I got a jonesin' for Scentsy fragrances & products. I first got on the Scentsy bandwagon after an Etsy customer o' mine that I'd made nice with, started posting about it on her FB page. Up to that point I'd heard about it but never even bothered to find out more details. Well, just so happens that my customer, Miss Ramie Babcock, is an Independent Consultant (check her stuff out here) and hooked me in with the perfect scent - and fragrance warmer. The scent was Happy Birthday and the warmer was a cupcake. How could I resist, eh????

Anyhoo, fast forward to the present, now they have a new scent that is available for the fall - it's called Pumpkin Marshmallow - and THAT is what inspired me to make the cupcakes.......:)

 That being said, here's what ya need and how ya make 'em!



Pumpkin Cupcakes
Via Martha Stewart


  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
  3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.




    By-the-by - I'm not being paid or compensated for the love of Scentsy or Martha - I truly heart both brands and I'm just sharing the love!

    (UPDATE 9/20/11-- here's a post how to make the frosting for these cupcakes: http://cupcakewishesandbirthdaydreams.blogspot.com/2011/09/tip-tuesday-how-to-make-marshmallow.html)

Thursday, September 15, 2011

{Thursday Inspiration} Candy Corn-u-copia

I tell ya, candy corn is my FAVORITE Halloween candy. There's just something about the salty-sweet deliciousness of the little candy kernels that get me all excited; so much so, I was inspired to create an inspiration board in honor of this tiny honey of a confection.

 Without further ado, I give you CANDY CORN!!!

It's not just about candy corn here folks, I'm slowly building up to something...and I am excited to share some details with you, but you will have to keep coming back to find out what my crazy brain is cooking up.

In the meantime, I hope this board inspires you for Halloween!

Photo Credits:
Candy Corn Cupcake Cones
candy corn favor candy corn jars
candy corn outdoor decorations candy corn 
fluffy poms 
candy corn wreath with ghost candy corn party hats
candy corn pouch
candy corn cupcake stand
candy corn tree candy corn jar
Candy corn girl with bow
candy corn dress


Wednesday, September 14, 2011

{MG Party Impressions} Fun Cars Themed Party


I am over at MG Party Impressions today! We threw a fun Cars Themed Party for my little grand-baby - well, not sooo little. He turned 3!!! He loves Mater and the Disney movie, Cars. So, I had fun designing a race car inspired collection for the party. Check out my post for more details!

Monday, September 12, 2011

{Cupcake Monday} Halloween 2011 Sneak Peek

Happy Monday! This year, for Halloween, I was inspired by two things, a random funky Halloween banner I saw on a TV show and my love for cupcakes! With this idea in mind, I started designing my Halloween party collection for this year.

Here is a preview of what is to come:


What do you think?



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