Crafty Baking {Chinese Takeout Cupcakes}

I adore baking...but I especially enjoy Crafty baking! One of my favorite cupcake books is "What's New Cupcake". The first book "Hello Cupcake" is also a winner! Their cupcakes are so clever yet so simple to make {although some are VERY time consuming!!}

I tried out the Chinese Takeout Cupcakes to send with my husband to work. His co-workers always get a kick out of my quirky creations.

I was at a local Chinese Takeout picking up food and asked them if I could buy some of their takeout boxes. I got a huge stack for like $2!! WAY cheaper then buying them at a craft store!!

The broccoli on the chow mein was by far the coolest looking. One of my husbands co-workers brought his cupcakes home to show his kids and one of his daughters was grossed out that I would but BROCCOLI on cupcakes!! Until of course she found out it was CANDY!

Breakdown on the chow mein cupcakes:
Broccoli: green tootsie rolls rolled a bit. Snip the top part into two pieces..dollop green frosting and dip in green sprinkles
Green onions: green licorice sniped at a diagonal
Pork Slivers: Warm pink starbursts a bit and roll out, then slice and shape
I tinted homemade frosting with a little green and yellow food coloring until I got the right color then put it in a quart freezer* ziplock, snipped the end and made the chow mein on the cupcake and added my toppings!

Breakdown on the Fried Rice cupcakes:
Green Peas: Green Jelly Bellys cut in half
Carrots: Orange starbursts cut into 1/4" cubes
Scrambled Eggs: Yellow starbursts cut into strips and stretched out
Rice: Rice crispies mixed with frosting

The fortune cookie mini cupcakes were my favorite! To make the fortune cookies melt a square caramel in the microwave for a few seconds. Roll it out with a rolling pin and use a round cookie cutter to cut a circle. Then fold it over, shape and pinch the middle, leaving the ends open. Then you can print little messages and put them in the "cookies".

For more details check out the book! What's your favorite crafty dessert!?

*When you are piping icing make sure you use freezer bags instead of regular ziplocks. They are much more durable and won't pop on you!

Knit Everyday Dress

My 3 year olds have a favorite dress from Gap Kids and I decided to try my hand at duplicating a version of with some of my knit from Patti Young. First make your pattern. I used the dress I was trying to duplicate but you could grab any tank top of your kids. Fold it in half and trace to make the bodice pattern. I wanted a more boat neckline so I did a higher neck.

Place your pattern on fold and cut out 2. If you want a lower neckline in the front and higher in the back just make a back pattern and front pattern with a lower neckline and cut out one of each.

With right sides together sew shoulder seams. Finish edges with serger {i honestly don't think you need to finish the edges if you don't have a serger. Knot doesn't fray}

To make lining for the neckline use your the neckline of your top to trace and make a lining piece. Cut two of these.

Match up the lining pieces to the neckline. Pin the pieces at ends so you know where to sew them together. You want the pieces to match up with the neckline once you sew them together.

Put your lining pieces right sides together and sew on the short side. If you have a serger, serge around the outside of the lining piece {not the side you will attach to the neckline}

Pin your lining to the neckline, right sides together and sew around the neckline.

Fold the lining toward the inside of the dress...iron and then top stitch.

On the backside cut a slit

Serge raw edges. Fold raw edges in 1/4 of an inch. I like to start from the center and work my way toward the outside. On one side sew an elastic loop. Then starting from the inside sew your way back to the other side. Hand sew a button to the other side.

Sorry I forgot to picture this but to make your sleeve pattern take your top and open it all the way up. Trace along the round side where the sleeve will go. This will give you a U looking shape. Cut two of these. I surged the raw edges and folded them in 1/4" and then top stitched

If you are making this for someone at home try your top on your cute and measure the distance from thee bottom to the length you want. I decided to make my skirt part 9 1/2" long. for the width and did 4 x's the width of my top so I would have plenty of room for pleating and the skirt would have some twirl.

First finish the hem of the skirt part. I surged and then folded up. I used a double needle to top stitch but you could use a regular strait stitch or even a zigzag stitch.

Then sew the short ends together, right sides together.

Pin the skirt to the top {right sides together} I like to start by matching up the side seam and pinning both sides so there is an equal amount of fabric in the front and the back.

To pleat just pull a piece over about 1/2" and pin.

Sew the skirt piece to your top and you are DONE!!

Perfect for Twirling

Or Strutting down the street {in tap shoes}

And a super simple headband complete the outfit!

{I hope that this tutorial made sense. Please let me know if you have questions!!}

Click HERE to see where I will be linking up

Dr. Seuss Birthday Party

B's 5th Birthday...Dr. Seuss Style



The invitation

The Cat in the Hat greeted the guests as they arrived

The birthday girl with her WHO hairdo

Seuss Style Banner

We turned one of the rooms into "Whooville" with pictures of the Grinch, Christmas lights and a Christmas tree.

The Menu:
{Snacks with Brown and Black} PB&J and Apples
{Red Fish * Blue Fish} Red and Blue Jello Jigglers
{Green Eggs & Ham} Rolled ham and Green Deviled Eggs
{Schlottz Knots}
{Poodles with Noodles} Pasta Salad

{Pink Ink Drink} Strawberry Milk

My Amazing Who Helpers


Dessert Table

{Horton Cupcakes} Vanilla Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
{Fish Cookies} Sugar Cookies with Fondant Icing and a little goldfish
{Yertle the Turtle Cookies} Chocolate Dipped Pecan Cookies
{Thing One Thing Two Cupcakes} Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream and Cotton Candy Toppers

Candy Bar

Goody Bags. Bought these from the $$ Store and added my own labels to them


Party Favors

I found cute flower pots at Tai Pan Trading after Valentines day {clearance!!}. I put a bag of dirt with some seeds inside and attached a poem from the Lorax. So each little girl took home a "Truffula Tree"



I bought some red fish, blue fish soaps from THIS etsy shop and added my own labels






Me & the Birthday Girl

The games were the easiest to plan...but I think the kid's favorite part!

We played pin the heart on the grinch
Thing 1 Thing 2 relay race
Cat in the Hat May I?
Horton, Horton, WHO! {instead of duck duck goose}
Truffula Fruit Bean Bag Toss
Make Horton Fly {then we let the kids play under the sheet}

Such a fun party for a fun little girl!!

Party Supplies {on a budget}

My twins are turning 4 in two weeks!! My babies are surly not babies any more :(. I asked them what kind of party they wanted. Well I ACTUALLY asked them if they wanted a dolly and me party. Nope...PRINCESS! I asked them if they wanted a jungle party, a monkey party, a ladybug party, a butterfly party. Nope... PRINCESS! {I don't know...I'm just SO over princess. But I really wanted them to be involved in the party}. Luckily my last ditch effort to stear them away from princess I asked them if they wanted a Pinkalicious Party. YES!!!!

Pinkalicious of course is based on this adorable book. I honestly think they just liked it because it was going to be a PINK party...their favorite color.

I have a pretty tight budget for this party so I'll be making everything and trying to use things that I already have.

One thing that can totally add up are party supplies...plates, cups, napkins etc. I priced them out at Target and Zurchers {local party store} and for my small party {12 kids} it would have cost about $16 just for the cute plates, napkins and cups.

At my dollar store however I could get the same amount of plates, napkins and cups for $6. So I did. But they are so plain...so boring...so vanilla!

Enter streamer ruffles!!! I saw this tutorial at My Paper Crane and decided to spruce up my $$ tableware with ruffles!

Since I'm going to be making a TON of ruffles for this party I bought the honkin rolls at the party store for $1.68 each.

For the plates I stacked the two pinks on top of each other and cut them in half.

To ruffle just sew a line down the center of the streamer and squish it under as you go.

Grab some hot glue and glue the ruffle around your plate and voila...ruffle plates. My little 4 year olds gasped with glee when they saw me making them. "So pretty mama!"...love my little ones.

Same thing for the cups except I didn't cut the streamer in half

While I was at it I had a silver cup that was holding scissors in my sewing room. A little hot glue...a little ruffles and I like it a lot better!

Stay tuned for more party supplies {on a budget}

Linking up to:
The Thrifty Home * Sew Much Ado * Blue Cricket Design * Seven Thirty Three
Someday Crafts