A Good Sport

I was graciously adopted into Red Sox Nation when I met my husband, but I've kept my football allegiance my own. I've been cheering for the Baltimore Ravens since I moved to Maryland. This past football season was a rather tense one in our house since the Patriots were facing the Ravens in the conference championship.

While we had a non-monetary bet with one another (the loser having to do that week's grocery shopping), I had a "sweeter" bet with a coworker. Also a native of New England, he's an avid Patriots fan. Our bet was that I would make a cake decorated in the winning team's colors. The loser would have to wear the winning team's jersey and pose for a photo to place on their profile on Facebook.

The reason I was willing to put in all this effort to bake and decorate a cake was because it was part of the Wilton gum paste and fondant class I took in January.

Sadly, the Ravens lost so I had to make red roses instead of the purple ones I really wanted to make. Here's the finished cake:





Pay no mind to the less-than-smooth sides. I HATE covering cakes in fondant because mine NEVER turn out smooth on the sides. I had hoped that this being my second fondant class I would finally be able to do it, but alas - that's why that blue border is there, helping hide the issues.

The roses are gum paste, the letters are fondant and the Patriots logo is color flow.

You may wonder why I'd put so much effort into the other team's cake. Well - it's still my reputation on the line for making pretty cakes. I'm not going to waste time on a bad finished product.

I did wear my husband's jersey to work.

I posed for the photo.

It did end up as my Facebook profile picture.

It was even submitted to the Boston Globe.

I was a good sport, don't you think?

Though I do hope the Ravens win next year so I can make those roses in purple.

A Weekend of Lovely Things

This weekend included such lovely things, including a few that I can cross off my list.

On Friday, Sean and I attended a concert by one of Sean's most favorite artists, Orla Fallon from Celtic Woman fame. The seats we had were amazing and the meet and greet afterwards was wonderful. She's one of the nicest celebrities I've ever met in person.

An added bonus to the evening was discovering a new band, Tin Cup Gypsy. They were the opening act as well as the backup musicians for Orla. I had never found an opening act to be very good - HAD being the important word here. They started their first song and I was immediately smitten. Beautiful harmonization, thoughtful lyrics, amazing vocals, and gorgeous melodies. I've been listening to their CD non-stop, I love it so. (Yes, I am the crazy girl rocking out in her car while stuck in traffic on the beltway.) They were also super nice when we met them at the end of the performance. Cassandra in the band makes her own jewelry so there's a crafty side to the band, too. Seriously - go check out some music samples.

On Saturday, a visit with my chosen sister and little nephew brightened the day. We invited over some other friends to join us for dinner so there were five adults, two toddlers, a baby and one very excited dog in the house. It was deliriously fun chaos from which Seamus is still recuperating. There was also CAKE!



Perches' birthday would not go uncelebrated during her visit so a new recipe was tried. This is Stout Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Whipped Cream frosting from Bon Appetit's Dessert cookbook. The name of the recipe comes from the fun ingredient - BEER! Instead of Guinness, I opted for Rogue Brewery's Chocolate Stout as a way to include more chocolate in the recipe. I modified the frosting a little to make it fluffier and a tad bit sweeter. It still needs work as I didn't love the consistency or the flavor. Maybe using milk chocolate instead of bittersweet chocolate next time? And I highly suggest making this cake in square pans. It was too difficult to cut a small piece from the round cake. Smaller square slices would be much better considering how ridiculously rich the cake was.

And when will this be made again? In just a few short weeks for Sheep and Shenanigans 2011!!!!

But back to this past weekend...

On Sunday, there was bacon, eggs and french toast for breakfast. There was also a quick crochet lesson about crocheting in the round. In the afternoon, there was nap time, more chocolate cake, and a lesson on crocheting a puff stitch. Such a wonderful way to spend a Sunday.

It turns out it was a wonderful weekend for two good friends. One welcomed a baby boy into the world and another got engaged!

How wonderful was your weekend?

Completed Project: Ocean Waves Blanket for Lucia

Completed this one on Monday - which was well in advance of today's baby shower. It measures about 24" x 25 1/2" using Lion Brand Baby Soft yarn (less than a skein of each color) and a G crochet hook. More links and details on Ravelry.





The photos don't do it justice as I had to photograph it last night and the lighting was poor. I love the way it looks except I think I should have beefed up the border a bit. Unlike the first ocean waves blanket where I used a different border, for this one I used the one that came with the pattern.

I also made a cake for the shower - the colors are somewhat similar to the blanket. A coincidence? Not at all. And making the cake means I cross off another item from my Year of Lovely Things list.







I am now frantically trying to finish the third ocean waves blanket before March 4th. But I've got company coming on Saturday and list of other stuff that needs to get done sooner rather than later. If it really looks as though I'm not going to make it, I'll make a mini version of the blanket and put it in a little bag as a preview of what they'll eventually get.

Doppler Effect

I was just preparing for Thanksgiving....now, it's December 8th. I had a feeling back in September when I started crafting and shopping for the holidays that the season was going to fly by at warp speed. Sometimes I hate it when I'm right.

Sometimes.

Usually I like it very much. :)

In the last week, I've been all sorts of crafty but not much to show for it on the crocheted or knitted front. The afghan of the sandman has been worked on but it still has so far to go. I know the finished product will be so lovely - but I just can't seem to sit down and plow through the final rows until the border. The project has been ongoing for too long. I've lost patience with it and just want it to be done. I also lost a crochet hook while working on it. No idea where it went even though I lost it in the living room. The couch cushions have been searched, the couch lifted to check the floor and even the chaise was shook to see if I could hear the little hook inside the frame. I have another hook of the same size but I do hope to find the other one. It was a beautiful shade of lavender.

I've also been working on the sock-a-long with "C". Not much progress there either since my time is focused on the afghan and I've been dozing on the train instead of knitting. Good thing we don't have a deadline for completion (a stress-free knit-a-long). I also have a fear that I'm going to run out of yarn before the pair is finished. I'm making a men's medium sock and the weight of the yarn, the size of the needles and even the gauge match the pattern. It's just that the first sock looks really wide.

I also decorated my first ever gingerbread house. I don't really love it - mainly because I was lazy and used the frosting that came with the kit instead of making my own royal icing (which would have been a better consistency to hold the piping detail). It looks festive but I would have liked to do a lot more detail work on it.



This was a pre-baked kit that came with the frosting, tray, candy, gingerbread house, tree and scary looking gingerbread men. That's why my gingerbread man looks like an island medicine man with the crazy gummy headdress and multicolored beads all over. Just looking at him makes me laugh.



I used some fondant to make the snow man. He's definitely not for eating (it's a solid ball of fondant) except for the candy attached to him.

I'm hoping to make one of these from scratch next year - bake the gingerbread myself so I can have open windows. There's a way to melt down Jolly Rancher candies and make them into stained glass windows. Then you can put a light inside the house so the windows have a nice glow.

And maybe - just maybe - I'll contemplate the idea to someday enter the National Gingerbread House contest held at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Of course, this wouldn't happen for a number of years and I should first just visit it in person. Did somebody say road trip for next fall?

And lastly - here's a photo of the ladybug cupcakes I made for my boss' farewell party last week. She's the woman who inspired the ladybug coaster pattern.



Look at all those updates in one post! Whoooosh! Right past you before you knew it, just like the past few months. Let's hope the rest of December slows down a bit so the holidays can be enjoyed and savored rather than rushed and frantic.

Hoppy Easter!

Here are photos of cupcakes I made for today:





Hope everyone has a fun and festive Easter!

A Tisket, A Tasket

Flowers in a cake basket!

Here's my finale cake from Wilton Course II. Finished this cake two weekends ago and it was a huge hit at Sean's work.









I've got at least 3 cakes to make this month. One for Easter dinner this weekend, one for a retirement party at work and then the cake for MS&W weekend. I may have a cake to make for a birthday party but that's still up in the air. The looks I've gotten at the supermarket when I buy 10 boxes of confectionery sugar have been priceless. I've also managed to run out of room in the kitchen to store all my cake supplies. Just like knitting and crocheting, there are just too many fun things to buy.

Sweet!

First - a quick update since my last quick update... My car died after cake class the weekend before last. Yep - right in the parking lot of Joann's, she took her last breaths and was eventually carried off into the sunset on a tow truck sent by AAA.

But life is good and we got a new car that has plenty of room for cake class supplies and any yarn I happen to pick up after class. :)

Now - on to the cake!

I'm three weeks into the second course of Wilton cake decorating class at Joann's. Here's what I've created with color flow and royal icing so far.



Look, Ma! No cabbages!



I really like royal icing more than butter cream for flowers. I've got to find some time this week to make another batch of frosting and make a bunch of flowers that will dry before the finale cake on Saturday.

This class helps cross off one item from my crafty resolution list for 2009. But I'm feeling like an over-achiever. And because I'll be making cakes for both my boss' retirement party and my future sister-in-law's bridal shower, I'll be taking the third course of Wilton cake decorating in April. Bring on the fondant!

Sweet Flowers

I'm off to my second cake class of Wilton II. I'll be making some royal icing flowers. I hope I'll have some photos worth posting later.

CAKE!!!

I was going to blog a real post. I really was. And then I had to do some online shopping - yes, some of it including a yarn purchase. So in lieu of an actual post, I give you photos of the cake I made last week. It was a big hit at the party.







And if you can't wait for an actual post, you can also check out photos from the Maryland Renaissance Festival.

Covered in Frosting

A quick hello - the aforementioned weekend was a fabulous one. No time to blog extensively as I have spent the evening preparing a cake for a former co-worker. It's the largest one I've made yet and I underestimated the time it would take to bake and frost it. Good thing I did the bulk of it tonight so I can properly decorate it tomorrow. The theme of the cake will be "Jumping the Shark" a la Fonzie from "Happy Days". It was a running gag at my last office - someone would always point out when a meeting had officially jumped the shark. Since she's leaving the office, the cake symbolizing her time with the group as having jumped the shark. Really, it's a lot funnier than what I just typed but I'm coming down from the sugar-enduced euphoria that only homemade frosting can cause.

Speaking of cake (and since I don't have time to post all the photos from the Ren Faire), I'll share some photos of the monkey cake I made for Sean's birthday. It had a strawberry filling and vanilla cake. Quite yummy! I also think I like the monkey better as a cake than as a brownie.

Going Bananas

All's quiet on the crocheting front, but the baking department was busy last night.



Behold! Using Wilton's new monkey pan, I give you - monkey brownie!

Before frosting:


After frosting:




Isn't he cute?

I bought the pan so I can make Sean's birthday cake in August but I wanted to try it out first. Using the included brownie monkey decorating instructions, I made this little guy for work.

One thing about making brownies in this pan is that the entire thing does not cook evenly. I thought it had cooked enough when I turned the brownie upside down on the foil but when people cut into him today, there was a gooey center of uncooked brownie batter. Lucky for me they thought it was fudge.

Traveling Again

The next few weeks involve quite a bit of travel for work. I'm off to Salt Lake City at the a$$ crack of dawn tomorrow, then it's Florida next week and New England the following week. I'm hoping to find some local yarn stores within walking distance of my hotels since I won't have a car.

A quick search of Salt Lake City over that the Yarn Store Directory resulted in 6 stores. Sadly, only one is within walking distance.

Black Sheep Wool Company
430 East South Temple
Salt Lake City, Utah

I should have a full report of my visit there upon my return this weekend. In the meantime, I leave you with photos of the cake I made on Sunday for a coworker who just got her Masters degree from George Mason University (hence, the green and yellow frosting).

Happy Sheep

Howdy there, neighborinos!

(Thanks to Ned Flanders for that cheerful hello.)

I'm here - I'm just trying to get through this damned work week. If there is one thing I've learned, it's that the week of work following the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival is a long and sad one.

The festival grounds are empty, the vendors have packed up and gone, my girls are back home, and as the Queen pointed out, it is the longest time before the next MS&W.

So. sad. indeed.

I don't have time during the week to properly blog so the MS&W update will have to wait until the weekend.

But I will leave you with some photos of the cake I made for the girls. It's titled "Happy Sheep". I could have also titled it "Tasty Sheep" because it was one delicious cake!

How Sweet It Is

I guess I should start an explanation of the hiatus...

Life has been a bit crazy. The cake class was awesome, though time consuming. Whipping up batches of frosting and baking cakes during the week threw my schedule out of whack. But, as you will see in just a moment, it was well worth the effort.

Second - the recipient of the Purple Dream blanket got engaged! She's now (officially) my future sister-in-law and I was honored to be asked to be in her bridal party. So plenty of time and phone calls have been devoted to strategizing and advising this young couple in all things wedding-related. I guess that is what you get when you throw a kick-ass wedding of your own - everyone wants to know how you did it. :)

Thirdly - I was very busy plotting and scheming to guilt convince the infamous KMP into making the trek up to Maryland for Sheep & Wool. SUCCESS! Though she hasn't bought her plane tickets yet, she did say she was coming. The other girls have been told about her attendance, a van has been rented, the schedule has been tentatively planned, and Sean is prepared for the general chaos and silliness that will descend upon our humble abode.

As for crocheting, all projects have been stalled for the above mentioned reasons. So this post is for showing off the last two cakes I made for my Wilton class at Joann's.

The first one I titled "Field of Flowers"




It was going to be little patches of flowers but in order to make it look a bit better (i.e. less 'patchy'), I just stuck flowers all over the damn thing and added leaves to fill in where I needed. I took this one to work and it was a big hit. Then again - any free food full of sugar tends to get rave reviews. (Case in point: Sean's office LOVED the St. Patty's Day cake, too.)

This final one I titled the "Petit Chou-Chou" cake. In French, "mon petit chou-chou" translates into an endearing term of "my little cabbage flower". Since my Wilton roses looked more like little cabbages, I thought the title was appropriate.




Hopefully, with some practice, these will become beautiful roses some day.


Because we're going to the Baseball Hall of Fame this weekend, I couldn't sign up to take Course 2. I'll have to scope out the schedule starting in June to pick up the next class.

Til next posting...whenever that will be...

Happy St. Patty's Day!

My second cake turned out pretty good, eh? And it's off to Sean's office today to be consumed.

And just wait until it gets sliced into - SURPRISE! It's made with real leprechauns! :)

So Much To Say

I've got multiple updates to post here. First, my trip to Arizona brought an early defrost to the yarn freeze. Secondly, I'm well on the way to finishing the Eight Pocket Two-Tone Carryall Tote. Thirdly, I had a blast at my first cake decorating class last Saturday. But all of these deserve their own posts - so I'll just do a quick update on item #3.

Cake Decorating class #1: It was informative but we didn't actually do anything. We just watched the instructor make frosting and explain the equipment and give us tips and information on cake decorating. Our homework was to practice making frosting and using our supplies (of which I bought quite an impressive tool caddy with supplies in it - no worries as I got it at 50% off).

I got home and though I wanted to make a batch right away, Sean and I had tickets to see Celtic Woman in concert. It was a great concert and the performers did a magnificent job given the crappy venue of the First Mariner Area (having hosted a rodeo the prior weekend).

On Sunday, I had set aside time to get my cake decorating mojo going. I took out all my tools and prepared the area and measured, measured, measured.

Alas, my first batch of frosting was not very good.

I tried to do a double batch and my wonderful KitchenAid just wasn't big enough for all that sugar and Crisco. Thus, my frosting was too thick and not properly mixed. wasn't able to practice with the different frosting tips since the frosting was the wrong consistency. But the cake still tasted good even if it didn't look very good (hence, no photos here).

I have to make another 2 batches of frosting (one to frost the whole thing and the other for decorating) and bake a cake for Saturday's class. I learned my lesson - only one batch at a time. Let's hope I get it right next time and that I have some good photos to share.

Eating It, Too

Another attempt at cake decorating. This one was made for a co-worker's Italian themed going-away party. When I said I was going to bake a cake, another person in the office asked if it was going to be an Italian cake to match the theme. I said yes - and created this:





A pizza cake with pepperoni, green peppers and black olives - and a handmade crust. Not as great as Sean's birthday cake, but still impressive. Must've been quite tasty, too, because only a sliver was left at the end of the party.

I AM CORNHOLIO!!!!

At least, that was what Sean and I felt like after having a slice of his wonderful birthday cake.





The green grass of the field is a generous layer of green sugar crystals and the gobs of icing to create the dirt, bases and umpire mask are as thick as they look. Not to mention that this is a layered cake with more frosting in the center. Not a cake for diabetics.

Sean loved the cake and I had a fun time making it, as I do all of his cakes. And aside from the sugar rush from whence I am now coming down, it was oh so tasty!

A few funny mishaps that happened during the cake making & eating:

1) My first attempt to make brown icing went very, very wrong. I thought red and green would make a nice dark brown. Instead, I wound up with dark Army green boarding on green baby poo. NOT pretty.

2) As you tell in the photo, I ran out of room to write "Sean". The umpire mask was also a little off as the black gel icing tip was not fine enough. Looks like a weird goblin mask or something. Oh well - call it artistic license.

3) Sean blew out the candles in one big breath - which sent the green sugar crystals flying off the cake, onto the table, the chairs and the floor. Priceless!

I noticed that the Joann's store near me has cake decorating classes. I'm going to sign up to take them one of these days. It would be nice to know how to decorate a cake with an appropriate amount of frosting and decorations.

Birthday Boy

Today is Sean's birthday!

Happy birthday to my wonderful husband!


A caring, funny, intelligent man who puts up with me and my yarn obsession. :)

Love you!!!


Last year, Sean's cake was store bought because we were so busy with all the wedding preparations.



But in 2005, he got two homemade cakes. One was just for fun (inspired by baseball season) and the other was for his actual birthday (inspired by our trip to New Mexico).






But this year - A special birthday cake will be made on Thursday. Here's a hint - the decorating will involve baseball. :)