Captain Underpants

Unlike his sister, Jordy prefers to celebrate his birthdays with small parties.  With five days to spare, these are what he asked for:

( 1 )

Faster than a speeding waistband ...

... More powerful than boxer shorts ...

... and able to leap tall buildings without getting a wedgie.

a Captain Underpants birthday cake - double chocolate with meringue buttercream.  I used a recipe from one of my many cookbooks, one I haven't tried before.  The cake came out really moist and chocolate-y, and the buttercream was a dream.

We figured since he only asked eight kids to his party, we could afford to exert a bit more effort and put together a (very!) simple dessert table.  We were not able to create backdrops and fancy props, but just the same, Jordy loved it all and cackled with glee over the lollies and sweets.

-  Super Power Juice -

- Dandelions of Doom (Oreo pops) -

- Underpanty Power (underpants sugar cookies) -

- Choco Potties (chocolate pots with white chocolate pearls) -

- Ms Ribble's Hair Balls (meringue that I wish we stuck onto a styrofoam head) -

- Booger Bombs (green choc beans from Sharnel Dollar) -

- Potty Pellets (coca-cola jelly beans from Sharnel Dollar) -

  

( 2 )

Water pistols.

The kids received small water pistols in their party bags.  Unfortunately, but much to Jordy's delight, half the guests decided to give him huge water guns that shoot multiple streams of water out in one go.  No one ventured out to the front yard to take photos.

( 3 )

Glow sticks and sparklers.

Happy birthday, Blubby!

(According to Jordy, his middle name is Blubby.  I have no idea where it came from.) 

 

November 12, 2011

Luau Birthday Cakes

One of the most amazing things about what I do is having the opportunity to be part of a family's celebrations.  A few years ago, I made red, black and gold-themed cupcakes for Maddie, Caro and Alex's 18th birthday.  Soon after that, Maddie called me and asked me to make their mum's 50th birthday cupcakes.  And now, the triplets are turning 21, and having a Hawaiian luau.

I'm glad they chose to have three cakes to be displayed on a row of cake pedestals instead of sharing a single stacked cake.  I'm glad they picked to have layers of dark and white chocolate orange mudcakes instead of just the one flavour for each cake.  Each girl picked the colours that she loves.  They may be triplets, but they are different too, each in her own special way.

Wedding anniversary cake

Black, white and red 40th wedding anniversary cake.

Love, amazing love. 

Damask pattern is Mich Turner's design, and is from her book, Cake Masterclass.

Dave and Amy's wedding cookies

Vanilla bean sugar cookie placecards for Dave and Amy's wedding.  The bird cookies were designed to match the wedding invitation. 

I got a big hug from the bride for these :-)

This was a note from the bride's aunt:

Good morning Jen,

Just back at work after Dave and Amy's wedding and wanted to say thank you for the wonderful job you did wiht the biscuits.  Everyone was so impressed with the presentation and thoroughly enjoyed eating their placecards.  Once again, thank you for adding enjoyment to a wonderful day.

Sue H



Christmas Cookies

I enjoy unusual requests (to a certain extent!), and these cookies, given that Christmas is still a couple of months away, fit the bill.  These vanilla bean sugar cookies are for a Christmas-themed dinner party that will be held in Sydney tomorrow night.  Each guest will receive a Christmas-ornament-cookie, and one personalized with their name.  Lucky, eh? 

 

Haley's 21st birthday cake

Sophisticated, pretty and pink.  A chocolate mud cutting cake and matching white chocolate raspberry cupcakes for Haley's 21st birthday dinner.

Esther and Bryan's Wedding

Marble mud cutting cake, orange poppyseed and lime cupcakes for Esther and Bryan's wedding at Tamborine Gardens.  The figurine was from the bride's father, and using it as the main feature of the cutting cake adds a beautiful sentiment.   

A quick snapshot of the cakes before we left Tamborine Gardens.  I must say, it is a stunning venue - glass all around, the whole ceiling draped with white material and a chandelier dripping down from the center.  Plus, for the first time, I had no one vacuuming around me while setting up the cakes!   

Emily's garden birthday cake

This is for all the little girls who decide that they are too grown up for pink and purple.

"Thank you your photo. The party went really smoothly and all the girls had a great time.  The cake and cupcakes were a hit. I was secretly hoping there were going to be some left overs, but both were all enjoyed by the girls, I managed to get a couple of spoonful from my son's plate!!!  The chocolate cake was so yummy!!!  No cupcake was left!!!  Thanks Jen for helping me with the cakes and cupcakes. It was exactly how Emily wanted it."

-  Karen H, Brisbane

Marlie's Christening Cake

Pretty in pink, with a bow on top.

Aircraft and Mechanics

Chocolate and white chocolate mud cupcakes for Knight's airplane and mechanics-themed birthday.  The airplanes and cloud bits were easy, but the gears took some fiddling to make them look the way I wanted.  What fun, though, to be asked to make something I haven't done before.    

"The cupcakes were really good.  Though we did enjoy the chocolate mudcake slightly more ^^.  Thanks a lot for the photos!  Because nobody waited for the photos to be taken."

-  Knight K, Brisbane

Beautiful Girl

This is a lemon poppyseed cake I made for Julie.  I did not want to make her the usual princess-type dolly varden cake.  I wanted something a bit more sophisticated, a bit more elegant, but still keep the pretty and girly attributes.  A beautiful cake for an even more beautiful person.  Happy 50th birthday, Julie.   

"Thank you so much for the beautiful cake for Mum's 50th it was amazing... but then all your cakes are!  The lemon poppyseed flavour was delicious and everyone kept saying that the cake is just too pretty to eat!  We can't wait for the next big celebration so we can all indulge in another cake... thanks again."

-  Amanda L, Brisbane

Practically Perfect

Musicals, to me, hold a certain magic.  I have always loved the songs and the dances, the glitter and the energy, and the way it all takes you to another world.  If I could sing and dance and act, it would be a world I would love to be part of.  So it was with a great deal of glee that I took on making these kite, parasol and carousel horse cookies for the Mary Poppins party that Sharnel Dollar styled for her daughter's birthday.  My cookies, in a Mary Poppins party, inspired by one of the best musicals ever produced.  To me, it is practically perfect.
 

Event Styling  |  Sharnel Dollar Designs 

Photos  |  Leanne Stamatellos Photography

Marie's baby shower cake

When I started working on this cake, I envisioned the clothesline to be full of little shirts, and onesies, and perhaps some socks.  That did not happen though.  It all looked too cluttered and the bits of clothing, too small.  So this is the modified version - a bit simpler, but definitely nicer, with cleaner lines and details that shine through :-)

Cooper's and Amelia's Cakes

This was the cake and cupcakes I made for Cooper two years ago, for his first birthday.

And now, he is three...

and has a little sister named Amelia!

"Finally getting around to saying thank you for sending the lovely photos of Cooper's and Amelia's cakes. They were both fantastic and looked amazing. We had many comments of "awesome" and "wow". All the guests were very impressed with the detail and creativity and loved the little butterflies and flowers on Amelia's cake. We still have the dinosaur from Coopers cake as we can't bring ourselves to throw it out.  Thanks again :). Take care"

- Jess T, Brisbane

Teddies, ribbons and dots

These teddy bear cupcakes are, by far, the most popular design I've done.  I have made them for countless baby showers, christenings, naming days and first birthdays.  I suppose there will always be that part of us that associates teddy bears with childhood. 

"Thank you for the photos and for making such beautiful cupcakes for my sister's baby shower!  She loved them and I just had one for morning tea this morning and it not just looked great it tasted delicious too.  I will definitely be in touch for any future cakes I may need in Brissy."

-  Tracy H, Rockhampton

Emma's Garden Tea Party

Pink, yellow and purple flowers on vanilla bean cupcakes for Emma's 7th birthday.  Plus that bit of red because I love red and could not help myself.  Pretty and girly, perfect for every little girl. 

"... Emma couldn't believe that you could eat the cupcakes because she thought they were perfect!  Everyone was amazed they were divine!  Big thank you..."

-  Nat H, Brisbane

Rainbow Cake

Allegra's first birthday cake.  It wasn't so long ago that I made her christening cake and cupcakes - it all goes so quickly...

Macarons, mmmm....

Last Tuesday was a very busy day.  I signed up for a macaron class with Jackie Thompson and spent a full day stirring and piping and eating beautiful little morsels of cream- and ganache-filled macarons.  They were fiddly to make, and temperamental, too.  But when you bite through the thin shell, and the macaron just melts in your mouth, and all you can do is sigh, you too, will agree, macarons are definitely one of life's biggest pleasures.

                                

Natalie's 21st birthday cake

A 5" chocolate mudcake for Natalie's 21st birthday, covered with Tiffany blue icing and decorated with a handmade open rose.  Simple, but sophisticated, and in my view, perfect for a young lady on the brink of all the adventures that life offers. 

A Carnival of Colours

These rainbow-coloured cutting cake, cupcakes and cake pops were made for the dessert table of a carnival party last weekend.  They are enough to brighten up a cold and overcast winter's day, don't you think?

   

    

Vanilla cake pops and Tim Tam cookie pops from With a Little TLC.

Custom-made paper pinwheels from Details Details.

Amanda and Mick's wedding cookie placecards

Vanilla bean sugar cookies used as placecards at Amanda and Mick's wedding last month.

Blue and black cake and cupcakes

A chocolate mud cutting cake and matching vanilla cupcakes for a 40th birthday party.  I love the blue and black together.  Very striking, specially with the silvery balls.

Sunny Days

This is the cake I made at Jackie Thompson's stencilling class and gave to MacGregror State School's Mayfest cake stall.   

This is the letter that was forwarded to me after Mayfest.

Hi Peter,

Thanks for calling yesterday. It was a real surprise to hear that we had won the cake auction and we are happy to honour the bid. Haydn will hand in a cheque for the cake today.

As discussed, I confirm that we'd like to donate the cake to all the wonderful staff at Macgregor who work tirelessly every year to make Mayfest a success. It requires tremendous effort, dedication, professionalism and teamwork to seamlessly stage such a huge event year after year for the benefit of students, families and the community at large. A lot of the work is clearly done behind the scenes by the staff of Macgregor. Judging by the responses from the children as they wander with a sense of freedom and safety, from stall to stall, ride to ride, stopping occasionally to check their loot, refuel or play with their friends, Mayfest is a great day out for families.

The cake is absolutely beautiful, clearly represents many hours of expert workmanship and was generously donated to the school for the benefit of many. We don't think its right that just one family should gain from it.

So, we hope you and your wonderful team are able to enjoy a slice of cake as a symbol of a big thank you from all the families in the Macgregor school community for the wonderful work that you do.

Many thanks,
Eleanor, John, Connor, Haydn and Chyna

LuLu-Chanel's birthday cookies

Vanilla bean sugar cookies made into sea shells, sea horses and starfish add a charming touch to LuLu-Chanel's sea-themed tea and pool birthday party.  Her mom sent me a photo of Kate Landers' mermaid party, so these were based on the cookies created by Bee's Knees Creative, as well as Peggy Porschen's sea creature cookies. 

Sailboat Cookies

Duck and Owl Cookies

Quack, quack...

Whooo, whoooo...

Vanilla bean sugar cookies for baby showers.

Zoe's 21st birthday cupcakes

Zoe had her 21st birhtday party at Laruche, an opulent bar in Fortitude Valley.  We decided to keep Zoe's chocolate mud cupcakes simple, decorating them only with a monogram disc in rich pink and gold. 

Instead of a more traditional cupcake tower, the cupcakes were presented in painted craft boxes with a ribbon tied around them (display inspired by a feature on Donna Hay Magazine).  These are photos that Zoe sent to me.  Pretty wonderful display, eh?