Mickey and Minnie Cupcakes

Long time no blog, huh? Last week was really emotional for me (it would have been my 20th week of pregnancy) and I think just all the emotions and stress caught up with me because I got a really nasty cold and flu thing that is finally breaking after 4 days of being inside like a hermit.

Side note: You know you are appreciated when your husband keeps asking more and more if you are starting to feel better. That's man code for "Are you ready to take back all the crappy stuff you do around here so I don't have to do it anymore?" He has done such a great job with cooking, cleaning, and taking care of our daughter. I may fib a little on my recovery just to still be able to stay in bed until noon!

But, I am feeling much better and it's a good thing cause I have a birthday party to throw in 3 days!

I made the cupcakes for my daughter's vintage Mickey and Minnie birthday. I did all cupcakes for her birthday last year and it really worked out great. I prefer it to one large cake.

I found these really cute wrappers at Michaels and thought they would be perfect. I also made little flowers out of white posterboard and painted the centers yellow for the Minnie cupcakes.

I used a butter cake mix (I didn't want anything darker because I wanted the cupcake liners to stay as bright as possible after baking) and I swirled chocolate frosting on top with the largest star tip I could find. I love swirling frosting like this...but it takes a lot of frosting.

Finally, I found large packs of round thin mints at the dollar store and they worked perfectly for the "ears". I am also going to put two little white circle stickers on the fronts of the Mickey ones for the "buttons" and the rest of the Minnie ones will get their flowers as well.

I looked and looked (and looked some more) for ideas online and I loved the way black frosting looked...but the more I thought about it...they just didn't look appealing to eat. I know these are going to taste great and not artificial and at the end of the day...they have to taste great, right?

I also got my daughter's mini cake done today...but more on that later.

One thing I learned about myself today? I hate decorating food. I mean I really hate it. I can cook or bake anything and make it taste amazing...but having it look amazing is another story. These cupcakes are about as talented as I get. One big reason I hate decorating? It's messy...and I don't like to get messy. I think I washed icing off my hands about five times for every five cupcakes I decorated.

Oh...and once all the messy decorating is done...I have messy dishes and that's something I really don't like.

Halfway through making my daughter's cake each year I wonder, "why didn't I just buy one?"...but I get a lot more satisfaction out of making it. My mom always made our cakes growing up and I remember thinking she was so cool:) My daughter saw the cupcakes and she thinks I'm pretty cool now too...so it's worth it:) Plus it's a lot more economical since I got 20 cupcakes and one small cake made for just $6.

I can't wait to share the rest with you...but it's time for a Cold PM pill and bed:)

I'm linked to:

Tatertots and Jello

DIY Wall Flowers for 25 Cents!

My daughter's room is coming along...slowly but surely. I put the finishing touches on her kitchen that my dad (and husband and I) made...so there are pictures to come!

I saw these Umbra Wall Flowers about a year ago on another craft blog and have loved them ever since. I knew I always wanted them for our daughter's room...but I wanted the white ones and her walls at our old place were white so it didn't seem like a good combination at the time.

Now that we have moved and we have lovely tan walls through out, I got online to order some of these flowers...but when I saw that 25 of them were $20...I decided to rethink the situation.

Then, I saw this DIY version on Billie Monster and I knew I had my solution! She is sweet enough to share her printable template as well. Don't you love crafty givers??

So, one half sheet of white posterboard later...I had 20 of my own wall flowers:

I love them so much! I could seriously make about a hundred more and put them everywhere. Everywhere.

I went with just plain white since my daughter's room is a little more modern and streamlined, but the possibilities are endless with this project. I also liked the texture of the posterboard since I was doing all one color. I made the the flowers so that the matte side of the posterboard was showing.

On the larger flowers, I used a small glue stick to curl the edges and I used a pen on the smaller flowers.

Also, since I didn't want to add another 20 holes to the walls that we rent...I just stuck them on with scotch tape that I rolled into loops. They have been on for a week and haven't budged. Plus, it's been nice to move them around wherever I want.

I think my favorite part of this project is the price. You can't beat $.25! I mean...you probably have that down the seat of your couch...along with some raisins and puzzle pieces if you live in our house:)

Applique Kiss Shirt

Hershey Kisses are by far my daughter's favorite candy. She got her Mama's chocolate lovin' gene!

So, for Valentine's Day...I thought it was only fitting that she have a kiss shirt:)

I started with this shirt that I got at the thrift store for $.50. I knew when I bought it that I could cover the logo with my applique.

I cut a "kiss" shape out of fabric and Heat n Bond. I ironed the Heat n Bond to the back side of my fabric, pulled off the paper backing, and then ironed it to my shirt. I also took some 1/2" ribbon and tucked it behind the top of the "kiss" when I ironed it down.

Finally, I sewed around the kiss and then sewed the ribbon down at the top and the bottom. I twisted the ribbon twice before I sewed the bottom to make it a little more interesting. This would be even cuter if you wrote something on the ribbon like a real Hershey Kiss.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm linked to:

Tatertots and Jello

Wall Art for Under $5

I wanted some fun artwork above our dining room table, but since I have other plans for that space eventually...I didn't want to put too much money or effort into it:) Basically I was in the mood for an easy craft...ever feel like that after a lot of big projects?

So, I found these file dividers at Target in their $1 section:

I actually got 5 in the pack...but I saved the fifth one for something else. I cut the tab side and side with holes off with my paper cutter so that they were 9"x11".

I got out my box of acrylic paints and mixed colors together until I got a combination I liked and just painted random spots on each image. I liked leaving some black and white spaces so that they still fit in with our other decor.

Next, I got some 11x14 frames at the dollar store, painted them black with acrylic paint and then sealed them with Mod Podge. I tried to spray paint them...but they must have some oil on the frame or something because the spray wouldn't stick very well.

Finally I matted each picture using my posterboard trick and that was it! I like how much color they bring to the space and they match my red dining room chairs really well too.

They won't live in this space for too long...but they are a great place holder for now. I think they will look great going up the staircase someday too. I would like to get better frames for them someday as well...but until Target has theirs for 75% off...these dollar store ones are perfect:)

Price:

file folders: $1.00

3 picture frames: $3.00

posterboard: $.50

Total: $4.50

I'm linked to:

Tatertots and Jello

$10 Dresser Redo

I'm back in the 21st century! Not having the Internet for over a week was horrible for about the first two days...then it's crazy how I just got used to it and I'm actually on it a lot less now.

We are FINALLY moved in. I think this was the longest and most stressful move to date and after a lot of crying and tantrums (from my 2yr old...and from me)...the hubs and I have vowed to never move again! Unless the condo across the street opens up for sale someday...other than that, we are here for-evah!

I still don't have good pictures of the place since it was clean for maybe a day...so I hope to share our new place soon! For now, I will share my most recent project:)

My grandma's house is being cleaned out in order to sell it, so a while ago I asked for this old dresser for my daughter's room:

(Sorry I never took a full picture of it before I started painting)

My goal was to paint it white...but after using one whole can of spray paint just on two drawers and finding that it was going to take about 30 more cans of paint to get the job done...I grabbed some black paint that I had and it covered the dresser like a dream.

This is the space before I moved out our old desk (that the movers broke while moving it):

I could tell it was going to easily become magnet for junk and I HATE clutter!

Now, here is the nook with my new black dresser:

I'm in love with it! Its a little more "shabby chic" than the rest of our space (which is Ikea and Target), but I love that it was my grandma's (actually my mom's first) and that it has history. Plus this new condo has three closets...so I need all the storage I can get!

I have some plans for the top of this baby. I want a funky lamp for the top and some colorful artwork above it...but for now my teenage lamp and photo of my husband and I (that I took in college) can stay where they are.

In case you are wondering, I used Krylon's Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. It is by far my favorite black spray. Its got a hint of brown in it so it's not so stark black and it has the best satin finish. Best of all, it covers really well. I did this whole dresser with three cans!

OK...I'm off to work on some more projects and maybe just maybe sit for a little while:) It's good to be back!

Total Price (3 cans of spray paint at $3.24 each): $9.72

I'm linked to:

Sugar and Dots

Tatertots and Jello