Purple

Oranges to Oranges

Caramel Machiatto Cupcakes

The baking bug has bit me! I knew it wouldn't take long for the little bugger (pun intended) to find me! Our local YMCA is having a bake sale and I volunteered 4 dozen cupcakes. And of course, being me and all, I had to try something different from the usual!





I started with a regular vanilla cake batter and then separated it in half. Then I added instant coffee (Starbucks VIA of course!) to one portion. I spooned the vanilla batter onto the bottom, then the coffee batter on top, right in the middle. After cooling I iced with vanilla icing and then sprinkled chopped caramels on top! So yummy and rich! And the kids had a blast helping me as well! I was also happy to see that the coffee batter made nice dip inside the cupcakes - just as if a shot of espresso had been poured on top!

My Middle C

My Littlest C

Birthday Day

My first fondant cake! It was easier to use than I thought it would be!

Chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese icing.

Peaches and Cream Cupcakes

I know - the actual birthday kids involved, are not pictured here! Seeing as this is my photo blog, I only post the photos that I think actually merit posting. The regular stuff I share with family and friends. Even so - Happy Birthday all my little C's!

Little Bits

Cool As A - You Know!

My son talked me into letting him have a spa moment and I was quickly drawn into the game as well!

The Farm

?

I have not posted in a really long time. Maybe it's time to turn this back into a photoblog as originally intended?

It's Been A Year

And it's been a busy one!

Almost a year ago I decided to try sewing from home for profit. I told myself that I would give it a year and see what happens. Here is what I have learned so far:

1. Unless you are a professional seamstress, sewing takes time. I *think* an average bag takes me 12 hours to make. But it is hard to tell when you add in all the daily family life, interruptions and repeated trips to the fabric store for forgotten items.

2. Know your margins. If you charge $10 for an item, spend $5 on materials, and take 4 hours to sew that single item, you are only making $1.25 per hour. Ask yourself if it is truly worth it.

3. Life doesn't always work around work.. When I started this venture Baby C was still immobile and content to play in a playpen while I sewed. It was also summer and the older C's would play outside all day. Now it is winter and we are confined to the house a lot of the time. Baby C is mobile to the point of climbing onto the sewing table and messing with my tensions while tangling herself in thread. Finding the time to work is more work than the work itself.

4. Fabric breeds. We are moving in 4 weeks and I packed up my sewing room this morning. I have no less than 5 large boxes of fabric. Some bought, some given to me and I swear - some of it just appears out of nowhere!
I have enough fabric to make my girls a whole new wardrobe for summer plus pj's for all.

A year later I am making the decision not to sew for profit anymore. I'm sure I'll miss it, but I'm looking forward to sewing for fun again. It's been a long time since I did that! Yesterday I picked up a sewing magazine filled with little ideas for kids clothing and other around the house items. And some day I'll have a camera again and be able to post pictures here of the fun little things I am creating. Until then, I have no idea if I'll even keep this blog or if I'm going to join it with my other blog. We'll just have to see where time takes me!

Merry Christmas!

For your viewing pleasure, I am sending my readers over to my friend Tanya's Blog. Cakewrecks would be proud!

www.listerfamily.ca

*I am more than positive that cake balls were harmed during this photo shoot! If you have a soft spot for the survival of baked goods, please proceed with caution!

Holiday Treats

Every year I tell myself that I will not be a slave to holiday baking. One or two weeks into December I am hit with an overwhelming urge to bake mountains of cookies and bars. I start looking at wonderful gingerbread houses, and can't fight the need to build a candy monstrosity.

Four weeks later I am fighting the urge to join Weight Watchers for the tenth time and vow never to eat that many goodies again.

Yesterday we were house bound and bored. The cold winds here have made playing outside difficult and the kids are restless. I suggested a cookie baking session. My kids love to watch me bake, and Conroy is never far away, wanting to taste every single ingredient before it goes in the batter. His favorite is the sugar, he doesn't care for the baking powder. I refuse to let him try the raw eggs.

The first year we were married, Nathan bought me a cookbook for Christmas. It is a large hardcover book by Good Housekeeping. Almost all of the recipe's have been excellent and I love the fact that it has sections that tell you how many teaspoons are in a cup, or explain the best time of year to try fresh fruit and veggies.

Yesterday I came across a recipe for Spritz Cookies. The ingredients are few and it is (or can be) dairy, egg and nut free. It does recommend a cookie press, but since I do not own one of those (one day!) I just rolled the dough into little balls and then pressed them with a fork. This is the kind of recipe that can be thrown together quickly. The results are a wonderfully soft, melt-in-your-mouth cookie that is so light, it is easy to over indulge! It also makes about 60 cookies, great for sharing or for that cookie exchange that snuck up on you! The recipe is at the bottom - enjoy!

Spritz Cookies
by Good Housekeepng

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat over to 350 F. In large bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and almond extracts. Reduce speed to low and beat in flour and salt until well combined.
2. Spoon one third of batter into a cookie press and press 1 inch apart on two ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake until golden brown around edges 10-12 minutes. (If you are rolling and pressing like I did, use the 12 minutes as the cookies are thicker than if you used a press.)
4. Repeat with remaining dough. Makes about 60 cookies.

Each cookie: About 48 calories, 5g Carbohydrates, 3g total fat, 8mg cholesterol, 36mg sodium.

All Things Twilgiht - Kind Of

OK - I admit it. No one sent me a single Twilight-related craft, and it left me feeling a little disappointed. Obviously most of my readers do not share the love I have for the undead. Although technically, it's a chromosomal thing, not an undead thing. And I'm Team Jacob anyway. He's not undead.

Regardless - I did manage to take a couple evenings and throw together a little dress for Camryn. It's a little big right now, but by next year it will be prime party-wear! I used a silver polyester, and made a simple little dress, then added the ruffle up the front. I'm in love with ruffles right now. My mother would laugh at me, since I was a die-hard tomboy growing up, but I love seeing my girls in ruffles!

The Brass Hussy GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

The Brass Hussy GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

September's Giveaway

Two weeks later, I'm finally getting around to posting the bag that was ordered by September's Giveaway winner! After a few emails and swatches sent back and forth, Tanya decided to go with a funky print from Ikea's fabric selection. I then paired it with a rusty-orange fabric and got to work!

I apologize for the less than stellar photography. I had to borrow a snap-n-shoot from someone and couldn't really get the lighting quite right!

Part of the reason for the delay was that I had intended to drive to Tanya's to take pictures of her and the new baby. Naturally, nature had other plans and I came down with a rather annoying case of Strep Throat. In the end I had to ship the bag instead.

On the good side of life, I was fiddling around with my old camera and surprise! It has risen from the dead! The good part of this is that I can go back to post more photos and getting the shots that I want. The down side of course, is that this means I will not be getting a new camera for Christmas. I just could not justify spending the money on something we already had - even if it would have been a nice upgrade. I'm just going to have to do a better job of "loving" my old camera to death!

Wishlist

Last night I pre-purchased my ticket to see New Moon, and I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to see the newest installment in the Twilight Saga.
I've been perusing Etsy for all things Twilight lately - here are a few of my favorites!
ESME - Coiled Black Rose Satin Headband
by bethanylorelle

I'm on a headband kick. I've never been much for dressing up my hair, but the romantic in me is coming out this season and this satin rose is the perfect accessory to nearly any outfit I own.

BELLA'S BAG
by stitchandswash

This bag was actually used in the Twilight movie! You can read all about it by clicking on the artist's name at the top. How amazingly awesome would it be to have something you made in a movie? Bags like this make me wish I had a sewing machine that worked with leather!

Rosalie's Red Flower Ring
by TwilighterVA

I don't own a lot of jewelry. I don't even wear my own wedding ring (blame the baby weight!). But how could I possible resist this charming blossom? I'm a sucker for red gems and this one fits my style to a T.





I would love to see your own creations that are Twilight inspired or themed! Just send your images to me at closebj@shaw.ca and tell me all about it! I'll feature a few here just before the release of New Moon - so that we can all enjoy a little more of Meyer's fantasy world!

Jennie's Bag

This design is becoming very popular! This bag was made for Jennie - the first person I ever made a bag for! She saw the black and white fabric and loved it. Here it is - all finished! Photographs are courtesy of Chelsey Roberts Photography - you can click on her link to the right!

Time For A Change

As of October 1st, I am no longer a working mom. I have some mixed feelings about this - I really did like getting a paycheck every two weeks.

However, I am also going to be spending more time on BBP. I've been so busy with work this past month that I've fallen behind on my projects. I'm looking forward to getting caught up and putting more time into cultivating my dream of working from home!

We Have A Winner!

30 days and 54 entries later - we have ourselves a winner! Last night, the hubby and I did the draw. 54 slips of paper from a plastic juice jug - it was all very official. Grey's Anatomy played in the background - I may have even teared up a little!

Let's see how the entries broke down. A few of you put in some big work and garnered several extra entries with your referrals - thank you for that! Our largest number of entries went to The Royal Family. It occured to me yesterday that I ought to do a bonus prize for the person with the most referrals. I just haven't come up with anything yet! I'll do a little consultation with my good friend Chelsey today and see what we can dream up for a bonus prize - Royal Family, I will be in touch later on today!

And now, the moment you have all been waiting for....our Grand Prize Winner is...

TANYA from Lethbridge, Alberta! This probably comes just in time as she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl just a week or so ago! Congrats Tanya! Her bag design and pictures will be posted here when they are complete! I just may have to hand deliver this one, as I really want to see the new addition to the family!