{free download: owl cupcake toppers}

Recently I shared about designing a suite of invitations and decorations for a friends baby shower, with the theme being owls. I thought I'd share how everything turned out with you. I'm not by any means a graphic designer, but I've been having a ton of fun lately designing invitations for friends. In fact this is my 4th! 

The invitation is sized to fit the Costco postcard when printed (4x6). The postcards are a great heavy card stock and are glossed. They really look beautiful and are a great option for inexpensive invite printing. Plus, you can put additional information on the back side (think clothing sizes, or registry information) and you always have the option to put them in envelopes if you don't want to send them out on their own as postcards (which I think is a darling idea). 

Here is the invite:

The details have been changed so don't think about crashing the party. :)

The water bottle labels. I printed these out on full sheet sticky paper and cut them out. They stick right on a standard sized water bottle. 

The cupcake toppers!

As promised, you can join in on the owl goodness and download the Owl Cupcake Toppers for free by clicking HERE. If anyone is interested in purchasing the invites, water bottle labels, and cupcake toppers customized with your child's info please feel free to send me an email and we may be able to work something out. Otherwise enjoy your download, and get to baking some cupcakes!

{red velvet!}

Doesn't this look yummy? Well, it was. :) Nothing beats a red velvet gourmet cupcake with cream cheese frosting. It was d.i.v.i.n.e. and EXPENSIVE(!) but oh so worth it. Just thought I'd share this sweet treat to get you through the rest of your week, and remind everyone that Monday is Valentines day!!

{thanksgiving give-a-way! Once Upon A Cupcake...}

Just thought i'd share this giveaway hosted by Once Upon a Cupcake...head on over for your chance to win a dozen Thanksgiving themed cupcake toppers! Click here...

{diy fabric cake stand}

Hello! I'm really excited about this next project. The only bad thing is that I didn't take pictures along the way to give you all a tutorial. Boo. I'll have to do another one and let you all see the process. 

Cake stands are expensive! But it turns out they don't have to be. In fact this one cost me less than three dollars (considering I already had the fabric and Mod Podge). 

I picked up two small plates at the thrift store for .99 cents and .79 cents, and the crystal piece in the middle, thats a candle stick and it cost me .99 cents as well. The bottom plate is slightly larger than the top plate, as I wanted the tiered effect. 

Basically the method was: I cut my fabric to size and used hard coat Mod Podge to adhere it to the plate. Then I used really really really strong glue to attach the crystal candle stick to both plates (turned upside down, this means the bottom of the candlestick is glued to the bottom of the top plate). 

I let the glue cure overnight, and there you have yourself the cutest cupcake/whatever you'd like it to be stand. (I'm not 100% sure if Mod Podge is non toxic, so use caution when placing food directly in contact with the plate's surfaces). I'll be using this one as part of my table display to hold hair clips at an upcoming boutique. It would also be darling as a catch all for jewelry. The possibilities for fabric combos and themes are really endless with this project. And they are so cheap to make that they'd be great additions to parties. Say...Alice in Wonderland?

{alice in wonderland}

First off, if you haven't entered the giveaway, click here to do so!

I know it's a ways off, {ok, like waaaaayyyy off} but I can't help starting to think about Little Lady's 1st birthday. You're probably rolling your eyes, thinking "this woman is crazy, she has a 14 week old and is already thinking about her 1st birthday!" but I can't help it. I'm not so much planning, as...we'll call it "researching" possible themes and decor.

Up first is an Alice In Wonderland theme, I know all the hype about the movie and all a while back really pushed this theme into overkill, but a year from now no one will remember how trendy it is to have a Wonderland themed party, and i'll still be basking in my love for the book {the movie was a complete disappointment to me}.

Part of me is thinking this would be better suited for a young child's party and not a baby's 1st birthday. I'm thinking that babies sipping luke warm tea from fancy tea cups isn't gonna happen. Anyways...I can dream, so here are a few photos that really get my inspiration going:

The most AMAZING tweedle dee and tweedle dum cupcakes.

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Party invitations. I love a good font or two, and this one uses just the right ones.

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Girly tea cups and drink me tags. Details are everything, aren't they?

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What theme did you do for your little one's first birthday???

{Baby Bird, Baby Shower}

Here are some photos from the lovely baby shower my sister in law hosted for Travis and I. The theme was "baby bird" and it was such a good time with family.

Aren't the nest cupcakes adorable? And the mini bird eggs? So cute!

Love the flower choice...ranunculus right? So pretty!

The yummy sandwich bar, my favorite was the quinoa curry salad. Soooo good!

Me @ 31.5 weeks...my belly is getting HUGE!

{Craving Chocolate}

Mmmmm....chocolate! It's football season and that means that most days of the week my t.v. has been taken over by my husband and his obsession with football. This season I'm trying to be a good sport and make the most of it, which to me means I have another excuse to bake goodies and cook up treats to eat while watching the game.

I suggested we invite some friends over for food and merriment during the first real weekend of the football season. Any reason to have a small party right? Not surprisingly my husband was all for it.

These chocolate cupcakes are nothing special really, just a basic recipe, but I did try out my new mini cupcake pan, and the mini espresso brown paper liners I bought a while back at this fabulous online bake shop. They are just adorable! And not to mention the perfect bite size. Maybe even too perfect. You could eat a dozen of them no problem.

I also made their larger counter part in oversized white paper baking cups. I actually prefer the oversized ones to regular sized baking cups, I like the excess at the top, it's pretty and is perfect for catching the frosting if it should go dripping down the sides.

I haven't been posting as regular due to school starting and my new job. I've been a busy girl! But I have a lot of projects to share with you all, most of which are related to the baby shower I am planning for my best friend. I don't want to spoil the surprise for the mom to be, so i'll be waiting until after the shower in a few weeks to post all those projects and goodies.