Jennifer's Wedding

It was a lovely day.

The day before I had finished making 140 wedding cookies for my niece, but you might have already known that.


On Saturday, as we were leaving for the ceremony, I received a call from the father of the bride. "Where are you?" Three little words at the beginning of a conversation that always makes your heart beat faster.

Seems the florist came and left before the bakery dropped off the cake so there was no one to put the flowers on the cake. Yes, I would be glad to do it. When I arrived I had a bucket of loose roses to work with but no greenery.

I don't know if this is what my niece had in mind but this is what I came up with.

I pulled any leaves I could find from the loose arrangement on the table, grabbed a couple mini banana clips off of a nearby orchid plant to secure the roses for the cake top and quickly began cascading the roses down the side of the cake as guests began to arrive.

The private home the wedding was held at had a terraced backyard.

Jennifer and her father began their precession at the top of a very high hill winding their way down a pathway to waiting guests...

... and of course to her happy groom.

Jennifer's grandma worked the room..

The Kids Table.

Some things never change.

Best wishes for a lifetime of happiness!

Dealing Up A Winning Weekend

The week ended up getting away from me where I didn't have time to post my cookie related give-away because I was busy making over a hundred of these...
flower cookie pops with a Vegas theme.


Next week I'll post a tutorial of how to make these so you can make your own versions and I'll have a wedding weekend recap and the give-away.

Tonight we're hosting dinner for the other side of the family and I've got
The Best Chocolate Cake and Icing Ever
to make but I wanted to check in and wish you a winning weekend!

p.s. It appears I've lost my followers pictures and sign up link. Anyone else having this problem?

"...And The Winner Is....."

True Random Number Generator Min: Max: Result: 56 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Congratulations to Simply Sara!

You are the winner of the Vera Bradley
"All Wrapped Up" jewelry case.

There were 81 entries.
I don't know why the number '100' lists when I cut and pasted the random.org info but that's for someone much more technical than I to figure out.

Thank you to all who participated and left a comment.
It was fun!

I'll be hosting another give-away at the end of the week for something cookie related and I also have another Vera Bradley give-away scheduled for June.
Think vacation gear. I'm so excited!

Have a terrific Tuesday!

xoxo

Vera Bradley "All Wrapped Up {GIVE-AWAY}" Wraps Up Today!

My Vera Bradley "All Wrapped Up Jewelery Case" Give-Away
ends tonight so join in the fun by clicking HERE.


I had a wonderful wedding weekend hosting a dinner for out-of-town family on Friday, attending the beautiful wedding on Saturday afternoon and hosting an impromptu breakfast for 29 on Sunday that we began planning during the reception!


Son2 flies out today and some family remain in town until tomorrow so I'm still a bit busy today.

I've had a complete weekend of being TV, newspaper and computer-free and I'm feeling totally refreshed and refocused!

I've also got another give-away planned this week if you like to decorate cookies!

Check tomorrow to see if you're the Vera Bradley winner.

Have a wonderful week ahead.

xoxo

Vera Bradley "All Wrapped Up Jewely Case" {GIVE-AWAY}

Surprise!
Happy Monday morning!

This week I'm hosting a give-away for the wonderful
Vera Bradley
"All Wrapped Up Jewelry Case".

Here she is!
Isn't she lovely?


She's shown in the boysenberry color and pattern.

This is truly one of my favorite Vera pieces.
She makes a perfect companion for a quick trip.


I also keep a favorite pair of earrings in it all ready to go.
Just in case.


I don't know why.
A girl can always dream, can't she?

(fabulous jewelry regretfully not included) ;)

Wondering about the nautical bracelet?
It's Brighton's Malibu Charm Bracelet.
I can't recommend it enough. I love mine!

To Enter ~

1. Leave a comment! :)
You must be a follower of my blog or let me know you are a new follower and leave a comment.
I'm grateful and appreciative of my followers and I feel they deserve the best chance to win! :)

For Extra Entry Chances To Win ~
Extra Entry #2 ~ Post about this Give-Away on your blog with a link back to this post.
.
Extra Entry #3 ~ Add a photo from this post on the sidebar of your blog with a link back to the Give-Away.

Extra Entry #4 ~ Tweet or Face Book about this Give-Away with a link back to this post.

*All entries must be left on separate comments.

Give-away ends Monday, May 23 at midnight Pacific time.

Good luck!

The Give-Away is now closed.
Thank you for entering!

The Pippa Bag With A Side Of Pappagallo Espadrilles Updates

My 'Pippa' bag arrived.

The bag was formerly called the Bristol Bag by Modalu of London but as soon as Pippa Middleton was seen the day after the wedding carrying it out of the Goring hotel it was quickly renamed.

They are sold out on the Modalu website but they are taking pre-orders for a new batch.

Must have been a rough passage.

It can be seen in Spain this weekend. "Hola, mi amiga"!


It certainly is making the rounds.
I wish mine could be seen with a hunky... uh, never mind.

And speaking of Spain, or things made in Spain...

... an espadrille update, and this is rather embarrassing, but I found a link to them on my own blog! The link I provided in my last post took you to a post I had written in 2009. Being new to blogging then I was adding hyperlinks to photos and not in the body of posts where it is easier to find. I clicked on the photo and 'ta-da' there was the link to
Andre Assous' espadrilles. If you read the post (no pop quiz) you would have seen he used to design espadrilles for Pappagallo and then later teamed with Jacque Cohen.

I wasn't ready to embrace my late 70's and early 80's material girl 2 years ago but I did today.
In navy and white.

Besides, have you seen the come back of the 70's wedges?
It's all that's out there.
Let us former Pappagallo espadrille lovers rejoice!!

I close with one more reference to Spain where the rain stays mainly on the plain...

... and in the OC today where it is currently pouring.
I washed my windows yesterday.
This is clearly my fault. I do apologize.

Have a wonderful week ahead! :)

For The Love Of Espadrilles And Cocktails!

I'm still working on the wedding cookies and haven't even begun the cookies for the trade show (I can't wait to share some presentation ideas with you) but I thought you'd deserve a new post!

Apparently blue curacao is the 'color of the week' and I'm drinking it in.
I love the color almost as much as I love the intense-hued sweet, orange-flavored libation.

Here's the link to all the goodies featured in the photo.





My eye was instantly drawn to the wedges.

Here's the deal, I am putting out an all-points-espadrilles-bulletin with a link to my long lost espadrille love post. If you see any Pappagallo or Jacques Cohen's, even wannabes walking the street, please tell them to call home.

I've been looking for them since the 80's and they need to get back into my closet where they are revered and appreciated.




And of course I could not let this opportunity go by without providing a post link for my recipe for a perfect fizzy blue curacoa cocktail. Pop rock garnish is optional. :)


Enjoy your weekend.
I'll be back next week where I hope to have more time to visit and comment.
I've missed you!

xoxo

Decorated Margarita Cookies!

They're not just for Cinco de Mayo anymore.


Do you like traditional margaritas or strawberry?

Let's start with the cookie garnishes for margaritas.
I wanted to have a little sparkle. What better place than on the garnish?

Strawberries!

I used a small strawberry cutter then iced the cookies in red.
While the icing was still wet I covered them with Dicso Dust in Strawberry.

You must cover them completely to get this effect.
The random sprinkle will look like a random sprinkle. No bueno.

I topped off the strawberries with piped leaves.

Lime Wedges!

I baked small round cookies then cut them in half when I took them out of the oven.
Cutting them warm will give you a perfect straight edge.

You can cut them in half before you bake but unless you trim them, they won't have that perfect edge. For me, cutting them warm saves me a step.

Outline in green for the rind.
#3 tip.

Next comes white for the sections.
By this time I had been up for over 30 hours and I wasn't the steadiest icing piper but it worked out okay when you see the whole cookie effect.

What I'm trying to say is that it's only a cookie, it's hand made, it will be eaten.
Don't stress over a less than perfect pipe. :)

I filled in with thinned Electric Green (the perfect margarita color) by Americolor.
I applied it with a toothpick.

I then sprinkled the wedges with Disco Dust in Light Green.

The Margarita Glass Cookie!

I found a cutter, smaller than I usually make cookies but I liked it.

I wanted the outline to have more pop in a contrasting color (white) so I applied the light green color first and let it set up.


I then piped the white outline and added a rim outline for the pearl sugar (faux salt).
More on the sugar in a moment.

Later, when the top half was complete, I piped the stem and filled it in with thinned icing.

You can see the difference between filling in first then outlining (top of cookie) and outlining first then filling in (stem).


Also, proportionally, I thought the strawberries were too big to place on the cookie so I added them along with the margarita cookie to the final packaging.
I'm calling them a "cookie charm." :)

I liked the look so much I made some regular margarita cookies with the lime wedge as the cookie charm but most have the wedge on the side of the glass.

Now back to the sugar.
While the rim was still wet I sprinkled pearl sugar over it.
You can flip your cookie over immediately after you've done this.

I bought the pearl sugar especially for these cookies. I remember seeing it along time ago in the King Arthur catalog thinking it looked like margarita salt. Cocktails always on the brain, I guess.

I found it on the website.
The package says the sugar is used for decorations on bread dough since it will not melt in the oven during baking.

It worked perfect for the sweet substitution of margarita salt, don't you think?

My new wallpaper on my laptop!


Ready for any party!

Cheers!

Happy Mother's Day!

Wishing moms everywhere a very Happy Mother's Day with breakfast in bed.

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

I'll be arriving fashionably tarde por la fiesta today but I wanted to wish all my margarita mavens out there a happy Cinco de Mayo before noon!


I've got to take a short siesta since I've been up since yesterday morning so I'll be back later with a tutorial to show you how to make decorated margarita cookies!

Until later mi amigas, adios! :)

My Royal Wedding Souvenir

Last week I ventured into the Tod's store to look at a bag I saw Kate Middleton pictured with.
What was particularly interesting about it was that it's called the D-style bag named after Diana but the updated version.

Here's a quick article on the connection of both bags.


I particularly liked the soft grey and the leather was like buttah but at $1665, uh, I rather have a new camera.

Then, who was seen, but the latest Middleton sibling sensation, Pippa, the morning after the wedding strolling out of the Goring Hotel with this ~

From Mondalu of London. It's called the Bristol bag, medium, in shark.
$149, British Pounds which converts to $245 , plus shipping to my corner of the country ($24).
A much more affordable choice and equally covetable.

I just think of it as either a Mother's Day gift to myself or my little piece of memorabilia of the royal wedding.
So much better than a mug or tea towel don't you think? :)

Back to baking...

Cookie Calendar

Today begins my cookie countdown for my niece's wedding.


For the next few days I'll be baking 140 wedding cake cookies and then change it up by baking a couple hundred flower cookies on sticks for a landscape trade show but I'm determined to make decorated margarita cookies tomorrow because of 2 great colors of disco dust I found this weekend. Think traditional margarita and strawberry. These sparkly colors, along with pearl sugar I ordered last week, are inspiring me to take this crazy cocktail cookie side trip.

Having this kind of creative obsession is a double edged sword.
I clearly don't have the time right now to devote to a completely new design, one I have never made before, but I can't rest until I see 'the vision' realized.

Does anyone else roll like this?
I am so sorry to hear that. I feel your creative OCD pain. ;)

If you're wondering what cookies the bride chose, you can revisit the cookie sample post here.
She likes #1, #2 but with the impressions of #3, #6 and #11.
So 4 designs will be gracing her tables soon.
She thought having multiple designs at her tables would be fun conversation starters for her guests and I think it's a brilliant idea!

Have a terrific Monday!

We'll have a margarita together soon! I promise. :)

Sunday

It's such a beautiful morning here it's almost possible to put aside the images of what I've seen in the news this week from the south and mid-west. But I can't. I think of the thousands of people personally affected that are literally without a roof over their heads. I can't imagine the terror they felt in prayer asking for protection for themselves and for those they loved to emerge just minutes later, elated with their lives, followed by instant sorrow and disbelief. I send thoughts of love, strength, and hope their way and pray it gently lifts their hearts.

The best statement of hope comes from someone I heard being interviewed. To paraphrase, they said that everyone displaced would have a place to call home because 'it's the south and everyone has some family here that will take them in'. I believe this is true whether one is genetically related or not. For me, this was a reminder that when hearts are open love rushes in.

This is what I'm thinking about this beautiful Sunday morning.