Sticky Sweet Part 2

New to our Etsy Shop! Sticky Sweet...cotton candy invitations, cards, cupcake flags and gift tags. Perfect for those colorful summer inspired birthday parties, bridal or baby showers!

Invitations

Note cards


Personalized Note Cards










Cupcake Flags


Candy Jar Tags




Gift Tags

Sticky Sweet Part 1

With summer approaching, how about adding a whimsical twist to your dessert or sweet table with cotton candy! What screams fun more than sugar spun into an airy cloud of sweetness? Just the idea of this pastel colored, sticky confection brings out the playful side of most people.

We just love these photos of brides and grooms featuring fanciful cotton candy in their wedding photos!

Chelsea Elizabeth Photography via Flickr

stylemepretty.com

Jessamyn Harris Photogrpahy via globetrottingbride.com

Feature cotton candy right on your dessert or sweet table!

creaturecomforts.typepad.com
(Cotton candy and donuts is this a dream!?!)

weddingchics.com

marthastewart.com

shannonleith.com

Give cotton candy as a favor, in paper cones, at a shower or party!

azcentral.com

Lovely Spring Ruffles...Yes Please!

Image via Country Living

Ode to the Donut

Ok, if you know me you know that I love, ok I’m obsessed, with donuts. Who could resist deep fried dough rolled in sugary sweetness or lightly blanketed with a velvety glaze. Not to mention the chocolate covered donut filled with luscious pastry crème or the sugar dusted donut filled with sweet, fruity jelly! I could go on and on.

Well, with the popularity of sweet and dessert tables, we love the idea of adding donuts into the mix! Some couples are even opting for donuts in lieu of the traditional wedding cake! Would you ever think that donuts could look so dainty and elegant?

How tempting do these donuts look as part of a dessert table!
Image 1 via projectwedding.com, Image 2 via marthastewart.com

This beautifully presented, delicious tray of donuts was served to guests at a wedding!
Image via Divine Order Photography

How about serving a comforting after dinner coffee drink, with mini donuts!
Image via marthastewart.com

Could macarons be the new cupcake? (Part Two)

We feel that in order to properly make this post we must tell you the story of Ladurée. Many are familiar with this Parisian patisserie, but there really is an amazing story that explains the transformation of this bakery, founded by Louis-Ernest Ladurée, to the world-wide known patisserie extraordinaire that it is today. As we explained in our last post, the macaron came to France in the 16th century from Italy by way of Queen Catherine de' Medici as the unfilled version of the cookie. They were even said to be served at her wedding to Henry II. Believe it or not, the recipe has hardly varied to this day. It was Ladurée’s grandson who came up with the noble idea of a double decker macaron, stacking two macaron cookies together and filling them with rich chocolate ganache. And “Voila!”... the macaron we know today! So thank you Pierre Desfontaines; we pay homage to you! With each season Laudree pays tribute to its famous macaron and presents the public with a new flavour. The Ladurée macarons, all lined up in their spectacular color range, is truly a sight to behold! If you are familiar with Ladurée, you are familiar with the gorgeous celadon green which has become its trademark color. It has been part of the patisserie for over a century! Almost 10 years after the first bakery opened in 1862, it burnt to the ground during the Paris Commune uprising. A new pastry shop was constructed on the premises and Jules Chéret, credited with interior design of the new shop, used that very celadon color to paint the interior walls.

Ladurée on Champs Elysées (Laduree.com)

Ladurée at Harrods in London (Laduree.com)

Ladurée in Nagoya (Laduree.com)

suchprettythings.com

o´holysweet! from Flickr

If you can’t go to Paris to see all of Ladurée’s mouth watering pastries, Marie Antoinette, the movie directed by Sofia Coppola, can give you a glimpse into the perfect confectionary dream world of Ladurée! All of the delectable pastries you will see in the film were made by Ladurée. Yes, even those gorgeous macarons! Here are a few images to tempt you into seeing it, or to taking that long sought-after trip to Paris!







All photos from Marie Antoinette, the film (2nd down casasugar.com)

Well, if by now you are intrigued with the French Macron, stay tuned for Part 3! In the coming weeks, we will do a step by step tutorial on how to make these delicious little treasures!

Could macarons be the new cupcake? (Part One)

So we're sure by now you have heard all the buzz about the macaron (or gerbet), not to be confused with a macaroon! These predominantly French confections, although born in Italy, were made popular by the amazingly elegant Laduree in Paris on the prestigious Avenue of Champs-Elysées. These delicate and not easily made meringue like cookies are airy and creamy with a lightly crisp crust that houses amazing fillings like buttercream, jams or rich ganache. Although the ingredient list for making macarons is quite simple, it is the process of making them that needs to be perfected. If the batter is too runny, they will spread and not have a perfectly puffed up exterior, and if the batter is too thick the tops of the cookies will crack. Americans are starting to catch on to these airy delights. However, real French Macarons can really only be bought in specialty pastry shops and are still hard to find made perfectly. Each pastry chef has his or her own secrets to making the perfect macaron. Kellie and I have a slight obsession for macarons, but luckily I did go to a French Culinary school and know how to make them...so we can indulge whenever we please...wink, wink!

Photo credits: tastecrumb.com

Considering our love for them, we HAD to create invitations, cards, cupcake flags and gift tags featuring the French Macaron! These are all available on our Etsy site!

Part Two Coming Soon!!! Stay Tuned!!

Oh How Charming

Miette, in San Francisco, is one of the top 10 pastry shops in the world!
We are in love with their charming, delicate cakes! The sweet simplicity of all of their cakes are a perfect balance of whimsy and elegance! Of course we can't help but take notice of those gorgeous pedestal cake plates either! Where can we find those? Please check out Miette's sweet website and blog.

Tweet Charlotte

A really close friend of mine came to us her about invitations for her daughter’s first birthday party! She didn’t really have a theme in mind, but with spring approaching and her birthday being in April we came up a “tweet cupcake tree”! We illustrated a whimsical tree with flowers and cupcakes on it, and a sweet little birdie on top of the tree...of course wearing a stylish party hat! We also took the little blue bird and cupcakes and created cupcake flags and taggies out of them! We can’t wait for your party "tweet" Charlotte!

Invitations, cards, cupcake flags and taggies now available in our Etsy shop

Here is a bit of "tweet" inspiration for a birdie party!

photo credits: beau-coup.com, gaddieandtood.com, unknown, urastarhouse (etsy), weloveindie.com, eatdrinkchic.com, country living magazine, oliveandollie (etsy), giftsdefine.com, BlueButterflyDesign (etsy)

Happy 9th Birthday Sweet Annabella!

Pictures from Annabella's baking party last year!


May all of the happiness in the world surround you today and on all of your birthdays! Sweet Birthday wishes to the sweetest birthday girl!

XOXO