Pretty organized craftroom

Source 1,2,4 and 3

I have spent the past week organizing all my trims and looking for cute ways to display them. So when I saw the great over-the-door storage on BHG I knew I had to have one, as it would be a perfect place to put all my pretty patterned tins full of my craft bits and bobs. Now I wait patiently for it to arrive, in the meantime I continue to wrap ribbons around my spools and fold my fabric into neat piles ready to display in acrylic drawers!

Have a sweet day!

Pretty Vintage Ribbon

This week on Flickr Faves Sunday, I bring you Such Pretty Things' gorgeous collection of vintage ribbons on wooden spools.

Some beautiful shots from my Flickr favourites:

• The floral jacquard and striped ribbon in Vintage Ribbon Spool Stacks
• The pretty jacquard ribbon in French Ribbons
• The gorgeous teal velvet ribbon in Vintage Ribbon Spools
• The delightful pink velvet ribbon in Vintage Ribbon Stacks

Have a sweet day!

Icing my bird cage shaped cake

Several weeks ago I shared with you my Christmas cake, shaped like a bird cage and then how to marzipan bird cage shaped cake. After putting off icing and decorating for as long as I could, I finally iced and decorated it just in time for Christmas Eve! Decorating my bird cage shaped cake coming next Saturday!

How to ice bird cage shaped cake
Ingredients

• Gluten free birdcage shaped Christmas cake covered in a layer of marzipan
• White, ready to roll icing ('rolled fondant' in the US)
• Icing sugar (confectioner's icing)
• Wiltons teal icing colour

Method

• Lightly sieve icing sugar on to your work top
• Knead 500g of white icing until soft and pliable
• Using a tooth pick, add a drop of food colouring
• Knead icing until the colour is completely even

• Roll icing into a round shape
• Using a rolling pin, roll out icing, turning the icing so it stays in a rough circle and does not stick to your work top
• Roll until about 5mm thick - I used rolling pin measures to get a super even layer of icing
• Using a cake smoother, buff the icing until you have a nice, shiny, smooth circle big enough to cover your cake

• Position cake onto cake stand or plate
• Lightly brush cake with cooled, boiled water
• Carefully lift up icing and place on cake
• Very lightly run your hands over icing so it adheres to the marzipan
• Using a sharp knife, cut off excess icing from bottom of cake

Have a sweet day!

Ribbon storage finds

From left to right: The vintage looking divided wooden cotton reel box, a selection of brightly coloured yarns on vintage spools by House Doctor DK, old fashioned wooden ribbon spools, vintage looking wire storage box by House Doctor, with a traditional sweet shop design the Heritage Hill storage jar, large glass storage jar, large scale optic glass storage jar and a retro blue bobbin & binding made from sustainably sourced mango wood.

After Monday's post, Ribbon storage, I ordered some wooden spools from Jane Means and have been wrapping my disorganized ribbons around them ready to find a new storage place for them. If you too loved the pretty ribbon storage ideas from Monday you can find all the key elements above!

Have a sweet day!

Vintage Wedding Fair

Mrs Scoops & Johanna Hehir

Vicky Trainor

Vicky Trainor

Poppy

Last year my little sister got engaged and has asked me to be her wedding planner. What an honour! I, of course, accepted gleefully. Over the next year she has agreed to let me show you our inspiration; a few of the crafts and recipes we will be preparing for her special day. I shall of course show you all the details of the day afterwards!

First up, I wanted to share with you the much anticipated Vintage Wedding Fair, with 1940s singers and vintage updos, which is happening next month in Milton Keynes. Set in a quirky 14th century barn and organized by the fabulously adorable Mrs Scoops and Little Miss G, the event is sure to be stylish, fun and useful.

What can you expect? Well, to start with there will be Betty, the fifties styled ice cream van, from Mrs Scoops, who brings retro style and delicious ice cream to your event from pretty bunting-adorned Betty! The talented Nevie Pie Cakes, whose unique cakes are just too adorable for words. For all your Wedding stationery needs there's Vicky Trainor, whose vintage range is full of the most beautiful embroidered, appliqued invitations, table numbers and seating arrangement plans. For vintage crockery hire there's Magpie, who has a large selection of the prettiest crockery in a range of colours to suit all themes along with cut glass candle holders, glass bottles and linens.

On the fashion front there's beautifully stylish wedding dresses from London's leading bridal designer, Johanna Hehir. Oh, and on our must see list there's Poppy, whose illustrated bridesmaids dresses come with their own story book!

We can't wait to go!




All details on the event can be found here on Facebook, so save the date!

Have a sweet day!

Miss Etoile Spring 2012

Today on label love I wanted to show you the gorgeous new treasures from another of my favourite interior brands, Miss Etoile. I am in love with the gorgeous candy coloured paper blooms in the Spring/Summer 2012 catalogue. I also have my eye on the labelled jars that I could use for organized storage and lots of cute bird decor!

Have a sweet day!

Mini gluten free gingerbread houses

At the end of last year I made a large gingerbread bird house to sit on my Winter Wonderland dessert table and a bunch of small ones to give as gifts. I now am in love with mini gingerbread bird houses as they look so cute and those that received them as gifts seemed very pleased! I might have to start making mini gingerbread bird houses for all the holidays: I think they would be a cute Easter gift filled with mini chocolate eggs!

Gluten free chocolate gingerbread mini bird houses x 4

Ingredients
250g unsalted butter
200g dark muscovado sugar
600g gluten free plain flour
3 tsp xanthan Gum
7 tbsp golden syrup
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp cocoa powder

Cooking instructions

1. Heat oven to 180 deg C
2. Place the butter, sugar and golden syrup in a medium saucepan and, on a low heat, stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar has dissolved, then remove from heat
3. Place the flour, xanthan gum, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, cocoa powder and bicarbonate of soda in a food mixer
4. Slowly add the melted butter mix to the flour mix and beat until well combined
5. Roll dough out to about 8mm thick on to baking paper
6. Cut out four fronts, then cut small circle out of fronts
7. Cut out four backs
8. Cut out eight roofs
9. Cut out eight sides
10. Cut out four birds
11. Slide cut pieces still on the baking paper on to baking trays
12. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes or until firm to the touch, turning the tray half way through cooking
13. Leave to cool for a few minutes, then re-cut around edges to neaten
14. Leave to completely cool

Decorating the Bird House

Ingredients
Roll on icing
Icing sugar (powdered sugar)
Royal icing
Pink candy melts
Blue candy melts
Pink pareills
Blue sugar crystals
Teal food colouring
Teal edible glitter
White edible glitter
White candy sticks cut to 2cm long


Equipment
Rolling pin
Sieve
Icing bag fitted with small star nozzle
Paint brush
Bird cutter

To decorate

• Dust icing sugar onto a hard clean surface and roll out coloured icing to 2mm thick
• Cut out bird in icing using bird cutter
• Dampen back of cut out bird and stick to top of bird cookie
• Brush front of iced bird with water and sprinkle with glitter, leave to dry

• Dust icing sugar onto a hard clean surface and roll out icing to 3mm thick
• Cut out base of house components in icing

• Brush water onto back of cut-out icing component and place on top of corresponding gingerbread piece. Repeat until all gingerbread house side pieces are iced
• Lightly dampen the front of the iced houses and sprinkle in white glitter, leave to dry

• Melt pink candy melts as instructions
• Paint candy melt onto front of roof
• Liberally sprinkle with pink pareills, leave to dry
• Using a sharp knife, angle the inside edge of the roof so it is 45 degrees

• Paint melted candy on to inside of front
• Push side of house into candy, hold in place for a minute until candy sets
• Brush candy melts around inside of hole in front of house, and along outside edge
• Push blue candy melt over hole

• Brush melted candy on to the inside of the back piece
• Push sides of house into candy, hold in place for a minute until candy sets
• Brush melted candy on to the top edges
• Push roof of house into candy, hold in place for a minute until candy sets

• Brush melted blue candy on to the entire gingerbread house base piece

• Set house on base
• Immediately sprinkle with aqua sugar crystals before candy sets
• Using a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle, pipe small stars along the top of the roof
• Pipe a small star on one end of a candy stick and attach to front of house, just below hole

• Pipe a star on to back of iced bird cookie and attach to front of house
• Pipe iced stars along sides of bird house and along front and back edge of the roof

• Sieve icing sugar onto roof, to give the house a snowy look

On my Winter Wonderland dessert table

Have a sweet day!