The New Year is not quite here yet, so if you’re anything like me, you still have your Christmas tree up. I like to enjoy the pretty lights as long as possible; after all, Christmas only comes once a year.

So, in the spirit of the holiday season, I’d like to share with you one of our reader’s cupcake-themed trees.  Molly started loving cupcakes at a young age.  When she was just three years old she made a ceramic cupcake, and ever since then she has been a collector.  Now she is pastry chef and has just collected enough cupcake ornaments to decorate a tree.

Molly lives in the Chicago area and has her own cupcake business on the side.  For more information you can contact her at [email protected].

With the Christmas season just coming to an end and the New Year right around the corner, there are probably lots of new engagements all around you.  And of course, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, too.  It’s a popular time of the year for popping the big question!

These cupcake toppers would be perfect to celebrate a newly engaged couple or Valentine’s Day (after all, it’s now less than two months away).  Our sponsor Diva Entertains just came out with two new lovely cupcake toppers (double heart topper and diamond ring topper).  They are made of food-safe acrylic and can be used over and over again.  For just $0.99 a piece, that is quite a steal!

These look like a deceptively easy cupcake recipe for the holidays, if you’re still searching for some tasty goodies to bake. Just mix up some cupcake batter, divide it into two parts, and dye one part red and leave the other part white.  Then all you have to do is drop alternating spoonfuls of red and white batter into cupcake liners.  Leave them plain, or add some green frosting to make them extra Christmasy.

I just love these Christmas tree cupcakes from Cupcake, located in Glasgow, Scotland!  There is no limit to how you can decorate your cupcake tree.

This would even work great with a cupcake bar.  Just give guests a Christmas tree cupcake and they can add the “lights” and “ornaments” and “glitter”.

As I was browsing Pier 1’s website, I came across some fun cupcake items that would be appropriate for a New Year’s Eve party. Both items are on clearance now; the wine charms are $3.98 for a set of 6, and the apron is $9.88.

My husband’s aunts made these cool camouflage cupcakes for a birthday party recently.  I love how these cupcakes allow you to make “ugly shades of cake batter”…what little boy wouldn’t love that? Plus, the shade can’t be messed up.

First, use brown and green food coloring to make the several ugly shades of cake batter and mix them together in cupcake liners.

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Once they’ve been baked, they’ll look like this:

Then make an ugly shade of buttercream frosting and top it off:

Why make a special trip for a peppermint mocha when you can have these treats at home?  These will last longer and will definitely cost less than a $5 coffee drink.  They make my mouth water just looking at them.

What makes these special?  Peppermint extract and espresso in the batter, and crushed Andes mints on top.  Yum!

Crate & Barrel has these lovely sleigh cupcake holders this season.  They would be great to use at each guest’s spot at the dinner table.  I love the simplicity of the design…perfect for showcasing some festive cupcakes!

These days I am constantly keeping my eyes peeled for all things cupcake-related.  The other day as I was strolling my son to his doctor’s appointment, I saw a bright green truck that looked just like this:

If it hadn’t been for the fact that we were running a bit behind schedule, I would have stopped and asked what “Cupcakes for Courage” was all about and I might have even tried out one of their tasty treats.  Instead, I committed their website to memory and looked it up on the wonderful world wide web when I got home.

Cupcakes for Courage was started by two sisters, Kathryn and Laura.  In May 2010 Kathryn was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins T-cell lymphoma, and this cupcake venture was born out of the two sisters’ passion for baking and raising money for this cause.

Check out their website, and if you live in the Chicago area, be sure to look at their schedule and see if and when they will be in your neighborhood so that you can support their cause and get your daily sugar fix!

This looks like a fun and challenging holiday baking activity.  These look pretty detailed, but you could always use less detail if your time is more limited.  And of course, yours don’t have to turn out just like this one…let your creativity run wild as you decide how to make each character.

If you’re looking for a fun and easy way to show off a plate of cupcakes, here is an idea that can be tweaked to your liking. These are festive, but require no more than cupcakes and a couple tubes of icing!

My family usually gets out the Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving, but for those of you who haven’t yet strung the lights and hung the ornaments, here is a creative idea.  I love themed Christmas trees, and this one is no exception!

This picture is from one of our readers in the Philippines (you may remember her strawberry shortcake cupcakes from a while back).  Thanks for spreading the cupcake cheer!

GreenPartyGoods, one of ATC’s advertisers, has some nice Alice in Wonderland figurines.  The set of 18 characters is based on the original artwork of Sir John Tenniel in the book “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”.

These would make excellent cupcake toppers (all are 2.5 inches tall or less).  And, when the cupcakes have all been eaten up, they make a lovely display in your home.

With cupcakes being so popular, this Little Tikes cupcake kitchen set from Toys R Us would make an excellent Christmas gift for your child, and it’s a great deal for only $29.99.  Just think of the hours that he or she will spend “baking” cupcakes and serving them up to friends…with no clean-up involved!  I especially love that the stove burners make sound effects!

This cupcake cake comes from a bakery in Massachusetts.  I thought it was so creative and I wanted to pass along the idea.  I love the idea of making gingerbread houses, and a cupcake gingerbread house sure would taste yummy!

After hours of shopping and trying to find all those great deals, you are probably exhausted and ready to put your feet up and relax.  Why not kick back with a cupcake?

I searched for Black Friday cupcakes and found these yummy-looking creations.  It’s not too late to whip up a batch of these!  This one is a dark chocolate cupcake filled with vanilla bean cream, topped with ganache and drizzled with chocolate sauce.

Ever thought of turning a boring old meatloaf into a cupcake?  The Meatloaf Bakery in Chicago specializes in meatloaf cupcakes.  They have taken the average meatloaf recipe and turned it into something unique.

Check out this meaty Thanksgiving cupcake, made of lean ground turkey, fresh garlic, herbs, and Parmesan cheese and topped with stuffing.  Go here to check out some of their other original creations, including “El Loafo del Fuego” and “No Buns About it Burger Loaf”.  I just might have to give this place a try since they’re not too far away from me!

So, what are your thoughts? Would you try a meaty cupcake?

I posted some fuzzy cupcake slippers yesterday, and today I am posting some cute cupcake hats for little girls.  What a great stocking stuffer idea (especially when they’re only $4.95 a piece)!  With such an adorable hat, they will be sure to keep it on in the cold weather.

Looking for a stylish way to keep you or your little ones’ toes warm as the temperatures drop this winter?  Here are several pairs of cupcake slippers that are both fun and functional.  Click on each picture for more information.  The last two pairs of slippers are linked to patterns in case you are feeling like a knitting or crochet project.  And if you don’t like any of these, be sure and search for more, because there are tons of cupcake slippers out there!

Slippers to match your American Girl doll:

Slippers for your toddler:

Crocheted toddler slippers:

More crocheted toddler slippers:

By the title, you might think I am talking about cupcakes and ice cream and a carbonated beverage, but I am actually referring to the floats that we will be seeing on Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and other holiday parades.  Since I will be attending a parade this weekend, I got to thinking about what kinds of cupcake floats have been done.  I thought I would share what my search came up with.  I wonder…will there be any cupcake floats in Macy’s Parade this year?

In just a little over a week we will all be sitting down to Thanksgiving turkey and dressing and pie and all the other delicious Thanksgiving foods.  Why not add cupcakes to your Thanksgiving tradition?  Here is another turkey cupcake recipe that I found.  I like this one because it doesn’t require lots of extra ingredients for the decoration–just candy corn and sprinkles.

As I was doing a little shopping at Old Navy yesterday I noticed an adorable little cupcake tee for toddler girls.  If I had a little girl, I think I’d definitely have to splurge on this!  It would even make a cute shirt for their first birthday when they get their first bite of cupcake!

I love fall centerpieces made of pumpkins and gourds and Indian corn.  I would probably love them even more if they were edible, like this lovely display of Indian corn cupcakes.  The kernels are made from autumn shades of Jelly Belly jelly beans, and the husks are made from sheets of Phyllo dough which are toasted in the oven.  Thank you, Jelly Belly, for the unique idea!

Not long ago we celebrated National Chocolate Cupcake Day.  Well, TOMORROW is National Vanilla Cupcake Day.  I thought it was only fair to give you a little extra warning so that you could make plans to celebrate tomorrow.  With the current cupcake craze, there is a seemingly endless variety of cupcakes to choose from, but sometimes it’s nice to just have a plain, old vanilla cupcake.  Go celebrate tomorrow by eating a vanilla cupcake from your favorite bakery or by making your own!  It’s a perfect excuse!

One of our readers has sent us some pictures of her own cupcake creations.  After falling in love with cupcakes several years ago, she was inspired to start her own cupcake shop in the Philippines.  Six months in, and she has created these lovely Strawberry Shortcake cupcakes.  She says that cupcakes are not as popular in the Philippines as they are in the US, but I wouldn’t be surprised if these treats give the cupcake craze a little extra attention over there!