Make sure to enter this week’s  Miss Kitty Creations cupcake charm giveaway.  Contest ends this Sunday August 29th.   Click here  for full details!

I found this great little website last night called Dungaree Dolly’s Bags and Purses that sells everything from purses, wallets, weekend bags to eye glass cases. You get to pick your own fabric that you’d  like for your bag and 2 of the choices they have are cupcake fabrics! How lucky are we cupcake lovers?!

Here are the 2 swatches that include cupcakes–

I took a look at just about every bag and they all are amazing and its so hard to choose just one. What is your favorite bag?

While combing the internets for cuteness, I found Japan LA and their adorable store. Among the Hello Kitty and the sushi scarves, there I discovered some prize cupcake accessories.

Rilakkuma Cupcake Pouch - oh no, it's brand spankie new and it's already sold out!

Yummy You! Knitted Cupcake Scarf - $65

Yummy You! Knitted Cupcake Purse - $70

Christina Applegate on the red carpet for Cats and Dogs last month. Image from Growing Your Baby.

I was reading today in Celebrity Baby Scoop that Christina Applegate has admitted to having a different kind of died during her pregnancy.  Apparently her healthy diet has fled in the wake of some serious food cravings, and what did she indulge on?

What else but a Sprinkles Cupcake and fried cheese!

So I thought I would assist Christina in her challenge to more closely combine these two taste sensations, and thanks so much to Clever Cupcakes found this – the cheese cupcake!

Applecupcake gets the credit for introducing the design collective 64 Colors to ATC earlier this summer with her post about the group’s custom-painted Cupcake Dunny.  So this is part follow-up, part realization that I own something designed by them.

The Blue Q Sweet Cupcake Shopper is equal parts adorable and useful.  It’s got plenty of space and good strap length, and is a step above most reusable shopping bags in stylish cuteness and sturdiness (woven polypropylene is tough stuff!).  Two more important Sweet Cupcake Shopper attributes: you can own one without having to tackle anyone for it, and it’s only $12.

Melissa and Doug obviously love cupcakes since we have shared with you before their bake and decorate cupcake set.  With beach season not quite over yet there is still time to get use out of their Seaside Sidekicks Sand Cupcake Kit.  The 12 piece set which costs $14.99 includes a cupcake sand mold, a baking tray with liners, cupcake toppers and an icing tool.  The twelfth piece, which is the part I liked the most, is the mesh bag included for storing the set.  There is nothing worse than losing toys at the beach!

What to choose as the cupcake design when you are getting engaged?

One thing is for sure, you will need a lot of them, so it is probably best to go for a simple design, but if you still want something amazing and stunning then these cupcakes by Isabella’s Sweet Tooth are sure to be perfect.

Depending on the amount of time you have you can create just 3-5 of the amazing little fondant birds (in white cuts down on time mixing a color), or just go with that funky heart!

When creating a tall stand up cupcake topper like the heart, use a toothpick in the fondant.  This also makes it easy for those eating it to remove it!

Cover your other cupcakes with the same color icing to create a uniform look, even thought the actual decoration on top may be different and less work.  Isabella’s Sweet Tooth cupcakes are vanilla with strawberry buttercream.

Tonight’s episode of Fox’s Masterchef  featured a cupcake challenge!  But the contestants didn’t know that, at least not at first.  These home cooks are not necessarily bakers, but tonight, when they stepped up to their table, each of them found a mystery box full of mystery ingredients.

And when they lifted the boxes, guess what they found!  Cupcake ingredients!  They were given 45 minutes to bake a cupcake from scratch, without recipes or a chance to research.  There certainly wasn’t time for a little trial and error, which happens to be my speciality.  One of the finalists claimed he had never even made a cupcake before!  Yet they all gave it the old college try.  I couldn’t believe they did it in such little time.  I know from experience how difficult it is to decorate a piping hot cupcake!

My favorite did indeed become a finalist:  A gorgeous coconut cupcake with lemon glaze.  I could almost smell it through the television.  It was so delicious looking.  Chef Gordon Ramsay called it a “smart cupcake.”

But the winner was … Continue reading »

Next time you want to do some online shopping, you might want to check out Quilted Cupcake.  I’ve just spent well over an hour (when I was supposed to be working) browsing through her websites, and she has some really cool items, many of them cupcake related or inspired.  Visit her blog here.  You can download her podcasts here.  And you can shop from her Etsy store here.  Her stuff is so cool, but what really amazes me is her prices!  Tres reasonable!

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Belle Announcements: Fine Stationery was created three years ago by a stay-at-home mom with a passion for graphics.  This passion comes across in her high quality line of products.  Since the stationery is printed on 110lb cardstock with real liquid ink, there is a not only high quality but this also adds to the desirable appearance of the final products.  But not only is the quality of the product important when purchasing stationery but it also needs to catch your eye which Belle Announcements stationery does through it’s beautiful graphics.  Of course I was particularly drawn to the cupcake images on the samples I received, one of which is shown below but there are tons of other graphics for all occasions to choose from.

One of the best things about Belle Announcements is that templates are not used so everything is customizable.  Since the entire piece can be customized this means that you can change the colors, text, and graphics to meet your needs.  You even have the option to change the type of cardstock to Linen, Pearl, or Glossy.  I personally liked the pearl cardstock which appeared to sparkle.  The colors are lighter when printed on this type of cardstock so individuals looking for bright, bold colors would prefer the linen cardstock. Continue reading »

To me it feels like every year when the flyers come out for back to school shopping and they talk about the fall’s style trends, plaid is always listed as being in style.  So why not make your cupcakes fit the season’s style trend and bake these pink plaid cupcakes by Reynold’s.  The Reynold’s website helps you find the pink plaid party liners at a store near you and includes detailed instructions on how to decorate your cupcakes with a plaid topping.

If you happen to be in Washington tomorrow then you are in for a Sweet Treat!  D.C.’s Hello Cupcake is celebrating their 2nd birthday, and will be giving away free cupcakes at 10am until they all run out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HELLO CUPCAKE!

Hello all my fellow cupcake lovers out there! This past weekend I made mini-cupcakes for my Best Friends bridal shower.

I made just about 100 mini cupcakes half chocolate and half yellow. I used 2 batches of butter cream frosting, divided into 3rds and made Strawberry and Raspberry frosting with 2 of them and left the other one plain butter cream.

I also used a cupcake stand from Green Party Goods – Square Cupcake Stand !

Here is a picture of my lovely creation(s)!

Everyone loved them! Congrats Megan!

Little Betsy Baker is a really fun site for cupcake lovers.  The website features a great shop for purchasing supplies needed to bake, decorate, and serve; Party supplies are even available.  Little Betsy Baker ocassionaly has competitions, more information about which can be found on their facebook page.

Hello Naomi contributed to the recipes and tips page of the website by making Little Betsy Baker themed cupcakes.  Additionally, Naomi  offered a recipe for vanilla cupcakes and a tutorial on how to cover cupcakes with fondant hearts! If you’re new to using fondant, this is a great and easy first project which look great as a finished product as seen below!

It’s giveaway time again cupcake fans!  This week our giveaway is sponsored by Etsy crafter, Miss Kitty Creations.  She specializes in scented (yes, scented!) cupcake charms.   She also has a full line of cupcake charms on her full website.   I own one of her Blended Fruit Explosion Cupcakes and I adore it.   These charms can be used as a pendant, cell phone charm or zipper pull.   I have some experience working with polymer clay and can say that Miss Kitty truly is an artist.  Here are some of my favorites:

This week, Miss Kitty Creations is giving away a cupcake charm to one lucky fan.   First, visit Miss Kitty’s Etsy shop or her main website.  Then come back to ATC and click on the comment area below.  Leave a comment telling  us what cupcake you would like to win and what flavor cupcake you think Miss Kitty should make next.  One winner will be chosen on Monday, August 30.  Thanks Miss Kitty for sponsoring this purrrfect giveaway!

One of my favorite things is seeing the different tattoos that you our readers submit to us!  I could never have believed that we would see such diversity in cupcake tattoos! Today is no different, we have total opposites for you!

Our first is from Emma who got herself a Zombie Tattoo, yup thats right a Zombie! She admits to being crazy about cupcakes, with her own cupcake business ‘The Cupcake Emporium’ and also about Halloween so she combined the two to come up with this little green Zombie Cupcake. Personally I am strongly hoping that she doesn’t combine these two passions while she is baking those cupcakes!  hehe, I’ll have a batch of cupcakes, but you can hold the worms!

Emma plans to create a five cupcake series with a werewolf, a Dracula, a skeleton and a witch or Frankenstein on her lower back.  All in cupcake form of course!  If you think Emma should go in a particular direction let us know!!  Perhaps she will be share the image with us again when she has it done!! :)

Our second cupcake tattoo is from Kambry who wanted something to signify her daughter, but instead of going the been there and done that name or foot print she went for a cute cupcake! Soon she will have her daughter’s date of birth printed underneath!

Happy Saturday cupcake fans!  I am so excited to share this adorable reusable bag I just got this week from fabulous Etsy seller, Bagitconscious.  They specialize in handmade reusable sandwich and snack bags, lunch bags, totes, and market bags.  Everything you need to replace, or at least reduce the use of plastic.

 

 

 

 

  

This bag is well-made and the cupcake fabric is one of the cutest I have seen.  This would be a perfect bag for your kids to carry a sandwich or snack for school.  Although if you are like me, you may love it so much you have to keep it for yourself!

This week, Bagitconscious is giving All Things Cupcake fans 10% off all orders!  Just type “ATC Fan” in the notes to seller area upon checkout. 

     

 

 

For the new movie The Romantics, J. Crew held a photo shoot featuring the movie’s cast in J. Crew’s latest looks.  Celebrities staring in the movie include Adam Brody, Katie Holmes, and Josh Duhamel. In the shoot the cast goofs around and in the photo shown above the stars are seen enjoying cupcakes!

On Sunday, October 17th, Tallahassee will host its very first Cupcake Camp Tallahassee.  Cupcake lovers are invited to bring cupcakes, or to just show up and eat some! 

This celebration of all things cupcake is free to anyone and everyone.  They will hold a silent auction to benefit Jessica June Children’s Cancer Foundation.  Many, many cool cupcake items have already been donated!

You can learn more about this event at their blog or on their Facebook page!

American Cupcake's Red Velvet Fried Chicken (photo by Anthony Mylott)

San Fransisco restaurant American Cupcake decided that the world could use more red velvet.  AC’s owner Devon Alpert reckoned that if  everyone loved the flavor in cake and cupcakes, they would like it in fried chicken too.   And it looks like she was absolutely right. In the delicious words of urbandaddy:

At first glance, it’ll look like a heaping plate of leg, thigh and breast. But upon further inspection, you’ll see that the chicken has taken on a slight reddish hue. That’s because your precious fried bird has been pre-soaked in AC’s signature red velvet cake batter, then dredged in toasted, crumbled bits of red velvet cupcake before being dipped in a frying pan.

Because they don’t want their delicious fried chicken to be lonely, American Cupcake includes a side of cream cheese and garlic mashed potatoes, inspired by the frosting on the cake.

Marisela totally rocked it with this awesome cupcake design that she created for her niece’s ‘Off to College’ Party.  Marisela got the idea watching DC Cupcakes where she saw them make two cupcake pictures using a company’s logo and planning it out on a grid in order to map out the picture.

Without time to do a trial run or practice at all, Marisela pulled this off brilliantly creating the monogram for the college.  She used no less than sixty mini cupcakes, all red velvet and topped with cream cheese frosting.  The occasion was a small BBQ, so she used a styrofoam base underneath covered in foil to hold each cupcake in place with a toothpick.  Now I think that is a great idea!

Well what did her niece think of all this effort?  She was totally stoked!!

Looking for a new ice cream topping? Smucker’s now offers their Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping in Cupcake flavor! Just in case you don’t know, the magic shell topping pours out of the bottle as a liquid then freezes in seconds to form a hard shell over your ice cream!

The Smucker’s website offers two options for purchasing this product, enter your zip code in the flavor finder to find the flavor at your local grocery store or purchase directly from their website.  When I go shopping this weekend I think I might have to pick this up just to try it!

Nomskulls - Silicon Skull Cupcake Molds by Fred & Friends

If I did “Nerdcake Product of the Week”, Nomskulls would be top of the list in the category.  These cutie-skull molds come four in a box for $12 from Fred & Friends (though you’ll have to go to Amazon or Pop Deluxe to actually buy them).  F&F also includes a recipe for the squiggly brain frosting shown on the above nomskullcake:

FRED’S BRAINY FROSTING

• 1 recipe for vanilla frosting (or a store-bought tub)
• confectioners’ sugar (for stiffer frosting )
• red or black food coloring (or both)
• pastry bag and a large round tip (#12 works well)

Add confectioners’ sugar to the frosting until it‘s stiff enough to hold its form, yet still soft enough to pipe. To the frosting add food coloring(s) to reach desired color. If your cupcakes aren’t dome shaped, pile on a small mound of frosting first. Then pipe two lines down the center of the cupcake. Finally, pipe a squiggly pile of frosting onto each “hemisphere”. Mmmm…brains.

Today’s newsletter from the Vegetarian Times features a vegan Glazed Chocolate-Avocado Cupcake recipe! 
Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 avocado, pitted and peeled
1 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup plain soymilk
1/3 cup canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract Continue reading »

Laptop Lunches are practical food containers that aim to promote better nutrition and waste reduction.  I was pleasantly surprised when the sample laptop lunchbox arrived.  Inside the shipping was a purple lunch box, a user’s guide and two dividers.  Inside the lunch box are the bento 2.0 Bento Buddies which nicely divide the lunch box.  I particularly like the smallest Bento Buddy which is perfect for holding a serving of salad dressing.  I also liked that when you flipped the Bento Buddies over there was space for you to write your name.  This would be really helpful for parents who send their kids off to school and want to make sure they get all their containers back.

The Laptop Lunch User’s Guide states that it provides fresh ideas for making wholesome, earth-friendly lunches your kids will love. The user’s guide seems more like a mother’s go-to-guide for lunch ideas.  Not only does the guide provide creative lunch menus and recipes  its also filled with tips on how to feed picky eaters and reduce waste.  Topics such as childhood obesity, kids nutrition and using leftovers are also covered.

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