Very Cool Dragon Cake

Written by Candace 
23
Jun

Check out this very cool dragon cake I saw on Cake Central.

Protector of the Flame

Protector of the Flame – 2010 Fairies and Dragons Cake Contest by Bry-ice on CakeCentral.com. Please leave a comment on the page linked above if you like this cake.


Cake Decorating Class 4

Written by Candace 
31
Mar

Today was my last class. We only really learned how to complete the Wilton rose. We were all struggling with getting them decent looking. Mine don’t look much like the Wilton rose but at least they look like flowers!  This is what the cake is suppose to look like…

One thing I found out was never frost a frozen cake, the moisture make the frosting not stick which is why my frosting has lots of crumbs in it. I had a hard time with the roses and then when I got the hang of it my frosting was soft so they kept tipping over. I wasn’t very good with the shell border either, it was the first time doing it on a cake. Doing it on a practice board was easier than on a cake. The bow is okay but my frosting was too soft and I forgot to draw the stems together. I am happy with how Happy Easter turned out even though I didn’t have much room. Check out my cake below…

Not sure if I am going to take any more classes. They are expensive when you include on the cost of supplies, frosting and cakes.


Cake Decorating Class 3

Written by Candace 
24
Mar

Today we had to bring in cupcakes to decorate. We started by learning the next step in the Wilton rose. We learned to make the shell border, which I thought was rather easy.

We also learned how to make those awful (in my opinion) looking clowns, luckily my teacher was giving out clown heads because I wasn’t going to buy one!

We also learned to make the spiral drop flowers seen here, but by the time we got to those my frosting was so soft that they just became a mess. Then it was time to decorate our cupcake. Of course our frosting was so soft that all of our cupcakes looked rather messy. I did mostly the spiral flowers, since they were the easiest and I still had the tip on. I did make some aliens (my frosting was green) too. Sorry I didn’t take any photos of my horrible cupcakes ;)


Cake Decorating Class 2

Written by Candace 
17
Mar

Today we got to learn how to make the first step of the Wilton Rose. We also learned how to make stars, various borders and dots, as well as how to write in icing. We also learned to make a transfer using piping gel. That was very easy. The instructor said I have delicate hands, she thought I did very well with the writing but when I had to really squeeze the frosting out I wasn’t as consistent.

Since it is St. Patrick’s Day I did a Shamrock transfer. Take a look at the cake I decorated…

The cake was made using a Duncan Hines Yellow cake mix. I then filled it with my own Chocolate Filling recipe. And then frosted it with the Wilton Buttercream frosting recipe, which is not very good but it doesn’t go bad which is perfect for class. Usually I would use this Buttercream recipe instead.


Need a Friend?

Written by Candace 
14
Mar

I just found this great website that is just starting out called truebluematch.com. It’s a friend match up site for parents. You can meet other parents who have kids your age or look at parenting the same way you do. Right now membership is free while they build up their membership, they plan on charging a fee later, but if you join while it’s free it will always be free to you. I have joined and found several matches that sound great to meet. Now I am just waiting for replies back from some of the people I have contacted.

truebluematch.com


Wilton’s Cake Decorating – Course I

Written by Candace 
10
Mar

I have decided that I wish to take up cake decorating. So I had signed up for the Wilton Cake Decorating Course at Micheal’s. My first class was today. I was very excited and brought way too much stuff with me for the first day (all I needed was a pen and notepad and I brought all my decorating supplies). My class was okay. I didn’t really learn anything new. It was more like going to a Wilton party, it was all about Wilton products with some instruction on making frosting and frosting a cake. A little disappointed. Maybe my next class will be better. I have a bake a cake and frost it before class.

I did end up spending way too much as more decorating supplies. The instructor is really good at selling the product. I ended up buying a Cake Icer Tip #789, a Featherweight 16 Inch Decorating Bag, Decorating Leaf Tip #67, a 13″ spatula and a cake leveler. Luckily you get 10% off for taking the course.

NOTE: If you take the course at Micheal’s you do not have to buy the course book, it’s included in the cost of the class. I already owned all four books.




List Price: $25.49 USD
New From: $18.98 In Stock
Used from: $15.99 In Stock
Release date April 15, 2008.

Birthday Cakes

Written by Candace 
22
Feb

My daughter Casey is turning 1 in 3 months and I am starting to think about what I want her first birthday cake to look like. I think maybe I have been watching too much Cake Boss! I have decided to go all out and challenge myself again. On Liam’s 4th birthday, 6 months ago, I had made him this cake…

My son just loved it! I got the tutorial on how to make this cake here.

So I really enjoyed making this cake that I want to try something harder. So I have been looking around the web and I found a few cakes that inspired me…

And I have come up with this design… (pardon the very bad sketch)

So what do you think?


Graco Stroller Safety Announcement

Written by Candace 
1
Feb

Some Graco strollers have a safety issue which needs a fix to protect your kids. If you go to the Graco website you can see how to get that “fix” if you need one. But I wouldn’t bother. I have one of the affected strollers as shown below:

So I ordered the hinge covers, as is required to make the hinges more safe. I received them in the mail very quickly and I installed them today as per the instructions that was included. They didn’t seem to fit correctly so I watched the install video here. I have the covers installed correctly but now I can’t open my canopy and when I fold the stroller the velcro comes undone so each time I unfold the stroller I will need to re-attach the cover!!! This is not a good fix at all. I don’t plan to use it since it will be of a hassle than it is worth. I have used that stroller for over 4 years and never has a finger gotten anywhere near the hinge so now I will just keep a good eye on my children’s fingers.

This safety issue is not going to stop me from using Graco products in the future or recommend them. They have about 75% less recalls than Evenflow has, which is a brand I will NEVER buy!




List Price: $159.99 USD
New From: $119.99 In Stock
Release date October 7, 2008.

Opinion Outpost

Written by Candace 
6
Jan

As you may already know, from previous posts, I bought my son a Leapster 2 for Christmas. I also bought him one game, but as an extra bonus I got him another game for 100% free!

How? Well it started with Amazon having a sale where the game was just $9.95. That was a great deal but I had no money. I then remembered that Opinion Outpost offers Amazon Giftcards as rewards (you can chose an amazon giftcard over cash, which is mailed in the form of a check). So I go to Opinion Outpost and find that I have enough cash available. I request a $10 Amazon giftcard and a few minutes later I get an email with the giftcard info! So I go to Amazon and use the giftcard! Fantastic!!!

Here is the best part, I was only a member of Opinion Outpost for one month and made $10 although I haven’t qualified for half the surveys they have sent me. Even with only getting paid for half the surveys I had made money quickly. Some may qualify for lots more! All thier surveys are short and easy, plus if you don’t qualify you have the option to try to win $50 instantly, win a weekly sweeps or donate money to charity.

If you want to join, just go to http://OpinionOutpost.com/join/7665901


Great Freebies – 01/01/10

Written by Candace 
1
Jan

There are so many great freebies today. Check them out…