The first one was a baby shower in blue, hunter green and chocolate brown with a Year of the Rabbit theme. They were requested to be baked on the sticks so the cookies could double as decorations:
The next was for a close friend of mine for her daughter's 2nd birthday. It was the cutest party. Each kid was outfitted with cow ears (headband), a tail and black spots. I wish I took pictures of the kids! Love the black/white/pink color scheme but had to warn the parents about the black dye - it's totally safe and non-toxic, but you end up with a kid that looks a little goth temporarily. Black lips and mouth look cute on kids though. Us adults should maybe not eat them at the party but wait until we go home:
The last one was where I had to really plan and think ahead. Cookie decorating is a lot like problem solving...lots of steps and conditions you need to consider when putting it all together. If I don't plan ahead I find I need to scrap my original ideas due to time constraints. And I hate that! So I always make a plan of action before diving into a cookie project.
For example:
This seemingly simple looking cookie is deceptively complicated! I didn't trust myself to draw that logo on that cookie...one mistake and I'd have to scrap it and make a new cookie! So instead I used the technique of royal icing transfers. It was my first time and i LOVE it! I made 12 white NYY logos and let them dry for 8 hours. I then peeled them off and placed them on the navy iced circle cookies and let that set together for another 8 hours. Out of the 12 white transfers I made, only 6 survived - they are so fragile! I'll have to post a how-to on that...I definitely learned a lot. The number one lesson is to MAKE EXTRAS!!! Not only do they break, I had a heck of a time getting them placed on the cookie where I wanted it...I have a few that landed askew...(note to self to take pictures of all the mistakes!). This actually worked out for a friend of mine who got to eat all the discards. :)
These were for the great great aunt of a customer celebrating her 100th birthday! Wow, what a milestone! She loves the NY Yankees (which momentarily caused a conflict of interest for me as I am a loyal Mets fan...haha) so I incorporated that into the birthday package:
And the final touches: bagged, tied and tagged! I love when it all comes together at the end. Makes all the effort worth it!
Oh! and for all you cupcake bakers out there, check out Bake It Pretty (They started out as an Etsy shop! And recently they opened a little bake and retail shop down South?) - they're having a sale, 50% off all cupcake liners through Wednesday at 5 pm. They're still relatively small compared to other online baking supply stores but they're well edited and stock really cute and pretty items. I'm all about the details and packaging! Also, they're the only place (that I know of) that carries the giant pastry tips to make those perfect swirls on top of cupcakes....man. I'm giving away all my secrets! :)
Things I'm thinking of buying:
"I love when it all comes together at the end. Makes all the effort worth it!" I totally hear ya. Your work is amazing, sista! :)
ReplyDeletelove love loved the cookies. my fave yet. hee. :)
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