Shelly the Turtle

Once again BAD Blackberry picture...but this little chic was adorable!! and so easy!! 12 cupcakes-chocolate of course....buttercream icing and dark chocolate icing, twizzlers, M&Ms for eyes, and a fruit candy for her mouth!! Graham Cracker Crumbs to make the "sand" completed this piece of art!!! Another idea if you need 24 cupcakes: flip the green and brown icing colors to make another turtle, same size but a photo negative of the first...

Fire up the Grill!

No....wait!!! That's not a cheeseburger!!! It's CUPCAKES!!!!!!! These were so much fun to make and the look on people's faces when they went to pick one up.....priceless!!! The "burger" is brownies cut out with a round cookie-cutter, and the "bun" is simply a white cupcake with water brushed on top and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Yes, sesame seeds! The "lettuce," "ketchup," and "mustard" are all just vanilla cream icing colored red, yellow, or green. Wilton's gel colors truly are the best!!! The french fries are just cookie dough hand-cut into shape and smothered with more "ketchup!" This picture doesn't do them justice...it was taken with a blackberry, but trust me..... they were the cutest!!! Happy grilling!!

What better gift? Cupcakes!

My cousin (who I have called "sister my whole life) had a birthday in June and I wanted to make a cake that was as beautiful as she is....and as fun too!! I looooove the idea of this polka-dotted gift!!! I had seen similar cakes before....but I wanted to make mine with cupcakes of course!!! And I wanted to make my ribbon with icing (as opposed to taffy or licorice candies) because it tastes so much better!! The polka dots are just plain old M&Ms.....and the cupcakes are dark chocolate with a vanilla cream icing! My sister is sooooo special to me and I hope I showed her that with this cupcake cake!!!!

Ally the alligator

we had a baby shower for one of my best friends a couple of weeks ago. it was great...great friends, great food, and the best part-cute cupcakes!!! i knew i wanted to make a sweet treat for the party but i just wasn't sure what kind....after surfing the internet and trying to get some inspiration, i decided on a cupcake cake!! since my friend was decorating her nursery in alligators..i figured this was the perfect idea!! i was so nervous to make it because it was the first super creative baking i have done....but i was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out, and was so proud to show it to all of my friends!!!

it was certainly time consuming, but not terribly difficult. after i placed the cupcakes, i used wilton tip 68 to give the texture to look like scales. I made her bow with craft ribbon and painted on her toenails with icing(my favorite touch)! i used large marshmallows for the eyes and used icing to stick the little blue m&ms to that. and possibly the best part.....marshmallows for teeth!! you just cut the large marshmallows into little triangles and they stick right to the icing! cutting the marshmallows can be a little tricky but i recently found a tip online: use regular craft scissors and dip them in cooking oil to cut the marshmallows...great idea!!! these cupcakes were dark chocolate with buttercream icing.

I love the way these turned out, but the bad news: NOW I'M ADDICTED!! cupcakes may have just taken over my life.....