A lazy Day of Good Things

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Hi there,

It’s been a while, and I apologize for that.  Some of you told me you check this blog every day.  That’s a lot of pressure!  But it’s also great positive motivation for me to keep on making things and sharing them with the world.  I’m glad you’re real, with a real face behind your computer screen!

Today I have some eye candy for you.  I went to a cupcake demo class where we all watched in admiration as pastry chef Megan Hennis whipped up delicious little miracles.  The one pictured above is a lemon filled cupcake with a light and fluffy meringue icing and a strip of candied lemon peel.  YUM!  I wanted to shove it into my face.. but that wouldn’t be very ladylike, now would it?

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This little gem are vanilla bean cupcakes with raspberry compote and rose buttercream.  Wow.  They’re mini, so you can eat 3 or 4 of them and the world won’t end.  The cake used for these was the same as for the lemon cupcakes.  Light, sweet, and velvety.  It just melted in your mouth.  I’d definitely make these again, but possibly with a different frosting. 

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And finally there’s this beautiful work of art.  Megan calls them “amazing chocolate cupcakes,” and I definitely agree.  They’re a lovely chocolate cupcake filled with a ganache and topped with a whipping ganache (like mousse).  She also made these cool caramelized sugar decorations for them.  So pretty.

Check out the view from my walk over the bridge.

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Yep, I’m pretty sure I live in paradise.

Shauna
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Glittery Bordered Cupcake

I thought I was quite proficient at reading the internet.  It’s a skill that I develop daily while attempting to read the entire thing in one sitting.  I read for hours, usually coming away not having retained much.  Reading the entire internet puts a bit of a strain on the brain, so it’s no wonder I can’t remember any of it.

Try as I might, there’s always new stuff to read the next day.  It’s like a never-ending cycle that breeds the need to read more, More, MORE!  PS: not my rhyming there?  I tried not to.

I didn’t, however, come up with this card through reading the internet, but I still can’t take credit for it.  I totally swiped it from Shannon West at the Stampin’ Up! regional in Vancouver.  She had the super clever idea to do that amazing border around the cupcake.  I’m pretty confident that I would have added all that glitter, had I been left to my own devices, though.

To do that super cool border, you need the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch.  Centre the punch on a piece of 3” x 3” cardstock, and repeat on each side.  Voilà!  Add brads, some patterned paper in the middle, a cute sparkly cupcake, a cute sparkly heart, sparkly brads, and you’re nearly done.  I layered some Blushing Bride DSP on the same colour of cardstock, then onto a Crumb Cake base.  Add some ribbon and the sentiment, and show it off to all your friends.  They’ll love it.

Shauna
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Gift Card Gift Bag

It’s a happy day here.  I’d been getting requests for gift cards, and I can now say I’ve got some for you!  I can sell you a gift card in any denomination, so if you’re looking for a gift for a stamping friend, but aren’t quite sure what to get them, this is a great idea.  It goes towards that dollar amount in Stampin’ Up! product, through me.

Here’s one example that I made.  It looks like a little gift bag.  I got this idea from another Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator, Colleen Olsen, then made my own version. 

I had some super pretty (sparkly!) retired Designer Series paper that I was itching to use.  I paired that with a stamp set from the current Sale-a-bration catalog (only one week left to get anything from there!), and these beautiful butterflies.  I stamped hearts on some tissue paper, and added that, along with the ribbon in between the card layer and the inside written panels.

For the inndards I used My Digital Studio and printed it out on some pink cardstock.

Get ‘em while they’re hot!

Shauna
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Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Baileys Ganache and Stout Buttercream

Make these.  You really need to, and then you can thank me.  But seriously, if you have some free time, give these a try because they are amazing.  The stout adds more intensity to the chocolate cupcake.  The Baileys adds an extra kick to the ganache, and the buttercream doesn’t taste like beer.  I promise.  It gives it a silky richness with a hint of caramel.  So dangerous.  I had some left over in the fridge, and unashamedly snuck a few spoonfuls.

Of course, since I love me some paper, I had to make these adorable little cupcake covers.  Cupcake cozies? Cupcake decorater thingamos?  Whatever you want to call them (I prefer that last one, really), they add such a lovely girly touch.  They’d be perfect at a bridal shower, or any party where there’s a colour theme.  I just ran some cardstock through my big shot, using the Perfect Setting die.  It does many layers at a time – bonus!

Check out that ganache.

Here’s some more

I’m making these again, and soon. Like this weekend soon. That’s probably a very bad idea, but with all these sports they’ve been making me play, I think I’ve earned a couple dozen cupcakes.

OK, go make them!

 

Yield: 12 iced and filled cupcakes

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes: (Adapted from Bown Eyed Baker)
1/2 cup stout beer, such as Guinness
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
3/8 cup cocoa powder (Dutch-process if you have it)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
1/3 cup sour cream

Baileys Ganache Filling:
4 ounces dark or bittersweet chocolate (I used bittersweet)
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter, at room temperature
1 tablespoon Baileys

Stout Buttercream Frosting: (adapted from the Family Kitchen’s Julie VR)
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3 cups icing sugar
1/4 – 1/3 cup stout beer, such as Guinness.

For the Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 F.  Line a cupcake tin with 12 liners.  Bring the beer and butter to a simmer in a heavy, medium pot over medium heat.  Add the cocoa powder, and whisk until smooth.  Remove from heat to cool slightly.

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl to combine.  Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream on medium speed until combined.  Add the beer and chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and beat until just combined.  Reduce to low speed and add the flour mixture.  Beat briefly.  Fold the batter until completely combined.  Divide the batter between the cupcake liners, making them as even as possible.  Bake until a thin knife comes out clean – about 17 minutes.  Cool on a rack.

For the Ganache Filling:
Finely chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl.  Heat the cream until just simmering and pour it over the chocolate.  Let it sit for one minute, then, using a rubber spatula, stir it from the center outwards, until smooth.  Add the butter and baileys and stir until combined.  Let the ganache cool until thick, but still soft enough to be piped. (You can pop it in the fridge for 10 minutes or so).

To Fill the Cupcakes:
Use the bottom of a large decorating tip (I used a 1M tip), cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes, going about 2/3 of the way down.  Eat up those pieces and revel in how good these are going to be.  Transfer the ganache to a piping bag, or into a ziplock bag with a corner snipped off.  Fill the holes of each cupcake to the top, or even a wee bit overflowing.

To make the Stout Frosting:
Beat the butter, icing sugar, and beer until it’s nice and fluffy.  Scoop it into your piping bag or a ziplock with your favorite tip (I used the 1M tip for mine).  Pipe out your swirls, and devour.

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Circle Background and a Cupcake

Pi Day.. (March 14th – 3.14)  Ok, I missed Pi Day.  I didn’t even bake a pie.  I’m thinking a nice brown sugary apple pie would have been delicious.  But I have a cupcake for you.   And circles.. Pi’s important for circles.  See, I made it all work!

I made my own embossed-looking background!  So did my students.  It’s like a circle background party here.  This was super simple; I just whipped out my 1 3/4” circle punch and punched away, chopped off some pieces of the circles, and adhered them to my card base.  Tah-dah!

Of course I had to add a cupcake.  I stamped this one’s top in Blushing Bride and the base in Pear Pizzaz.  The flower was the same, although there’s not a nice punch for that, so I had to cut it out by hand.  Hard work!  I topped it off with a sparkly gem and called it a day.

Check it out, I did it on orange too.

Yeah.. I’m not an orange girl.  I like me some pink.  But I’m pretty sure there are some orange lovers out there.

Go make this card!

And remember that this cupcake set and punch are only available for one more month.

Shauna
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Cupcake Liner Splurge

Willpower.. You have to actually want to not do something and then give in for it to be called a lack of willpower, right?  So if you really want something and want to give in.. then it’s like winning.  So I win!

I win at buying cute little cupcake liners.

I win at building a collection that is far more slowly being used up.

Win, win, win.

Aren’t they just the cutest?  Look at that cow, and that horse!  And those polka dots and them flowers.. oh yes, they’re a thing of beauty.

Thank you, Michaels, for having cute things in your cheap bins.  Now that’s a win!

Shauna
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Cupcake with a Cherry on Top

Isn’t this card cute?  I got the idea from another talented Stampin’ Up! demonstrator.  I love the colours and the layers, and that strip of ribbon.. but most of all, I adore the little sparkly cherry on top.

Don’t look at the drop of water I spilled.  Oops.  Normally it wouldn’t make a mess of the Designer Series Paper, but I didn’t have that shade of pink, so I used My Digital Studio to print my own, and of course my printer is not laser, so sadly the ink isn’t waterproof.

Today was my cupcakes themed card class, and it was a great success.  I’ll show you the various cards this week.  If you’re into this stamp set, or the punch, just email me to place an order.  It’s only available for another month!

I took a cupcake baking class last night.  So much cupcakey fun in one weekend is overwhelming in a giddy schoolgirl kind of way.  Pure delight!  Oooh, and I also made the most delicious cupcakes to share with the ladies in my class today.  I’ll post the recipe on here soon.  I will definitely make these ones again.

I’d also make this card again.  To me, it’s sweet girliness defined.  Soft, detailed, and sophisticated.

On the cupcake theme, here’s a variation of the cupcake card I posted a few days ago, just with rich razzleberry cardstock instead of the basic gray.  I love both versions!  (remember the grey one?)

I have so many more cupcake things to share.  It really does make the world seem sugary and beautiful.  Rose-coloured glasses, anyone?

Shauna
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Worldy Eggs

My head’s all upset at me for staying up later than should be considered human last night.  But hey, my husband must be some kind of a zombie, because he’s always got 2+ hours on my bedtime. 

To counteract my Saturday morning grumpies, I decided I’d share this adorable little number.  About 300 of us Stampin’ Up! demonstrators whipped this card up as a make-and-take project at the regional a few weeks ago.  Pretty eggs, right?  Pretty brown border, too.  I love that use of the punch being chopped in half.  And seem binding as vintage ribbon?  Yes please!  This cards gets me all excited for an upcoming vintage class that I’m doing.

I think it’s pretty darn clever how the envelope was crimped to match the card.  Future me: remember this little idea!

Fun fact: I get to make cupcakes at a baking class tonight, and I get to teach making cupcakey cards at a stamping class tomorrow.  Ideal weekend; Bye bye grumps.

Shauna
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Birthday Cupcakes

I’m avoiding going to the gym.  Can you tell?  Sometimes I yearn for extra hours curled up in bed, but then there’s the whole problem I have with regretting having “wasted” my day.  Maybe another hour of bed snuggles would have been a good compromise.

So to avoid going to the gym, my sleepy brain decided to share this cheerful cupcake card with you.  If you’re making cupcake cards with me on Sunday, here’s a sneak peak of one ;-) 

I love how well the cupcake stamp set and punch work together.  They make it so easy to have a polished look.

Stamps:
Create a Cupcake set
Valentine Defined
Paper:
Whisper White, basic grey, melon mambo, wild wasabi
Ink:
Wild wasabi, old olive, melon mambo, Versamark
Accessories:
Pink button (Sale-a-bration), linen thread, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, Build a cupcake punch, Scallop Trim Border punch, Word Window punch, and Modern Label punch.

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Grapefruit Marmalade

I made marmalade!  I’ve been seeing recipes for it here and there, so I decided to give it a go.  I don’t even like the stuff, but it looked so pretty and appetizing on peoples’ blogs.  I couldn’t resist! 

Since I like to mix things up a bit, I chose to make it with grapefruits instead of oranges.  I had a few problems, but hey, it worked in the end! This is pretty impressive, considering it’s the first thing I’ve tried to can.. My jars – they’re sealed!

Some things I learned…

There’s not always enough natural pectin in a grapefruit, especially when there are hardly any seeds.

I probably should have added more apple (wrapped in cheesecloth) sooner (for pectin).. or broke out a box of certo

Runny grapefruit marmalade is still delicious, even though I thought I disliked all marmalade.  I call this success!  (Plus, my marmalade-loving friend gave me two thumbs up on this batch)

I’m so excited to try other jams and jellies and fun things.. It’s just too bad that I don’t eat them very often.  I should probably get back on the whole bread baking thing, but with that comes less healthy eating.. ho hum.. what a dilemma.  – I’ll eat the bread, of course!

Plain Old Marmalade

Makes 4-6 cups depending how long you boil it down for.

Ingredients:

4 grapefruit or other citrus
5 cups water
pinch salt
4 cups sugar

Directions:

Cut the grapefruit in half and poke out the seeds; put them into a tea ball if you have one, or wrap them in cheesecloth. Slice the grapefruit thinly and then chop them crosswise as big or small as you like. Put them (and the tea ball) into a pot with the water and salt and bring to a boil; simmer for half an hour. Turn off the heat and let it sit for a few hours or overnight.

Stir in the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil. Cook for another hour, or until the mixture gels; you can test it by dropping a small spoonful onto a saucer that you get nice and cold in the freezer while the marmalade simmers. When the marmalade is the consistency you like remove it from the heat, pull out the tea ball of orange seeds and divide into clean, warm jars and seal or cool completely and store in the fridge or freeze.

To aid with sealing, set full, loosely lidded jars into a boiling pot of water for about 10 minutes, then remove and allow to cool.

Shauna
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Upcoming Classes

I’m excited to have some upcoming classes in the next month or so.  They’re full of card making fun. 

The first is a cupcake themed card class.  Is it just me who’s in love with cupcakes?  I adore their beauty and layers.  In card form, cupcakes are a canvas for everything cute.  Glitter, anyone?

The second class is full of masculine cards.  People tell me they struggle with the whole masculine theme, so I’ve come up with a class to inspire you.  You’ll come away with cards for the men in your life.

March April 2011 Workshops

Shauna
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A Stack of Butterflies

Work, exercise, bed.. more exercise, and some cooking here and there.  That seems to be my life right now, but I somehow managed to squeeze in some stamping time.  I taught a class on the weekend for “all occasions cards” where we made this little set of fun, bright, and beautiful butterfly cards.  There was lots of laughter and a great vibe in the room. 

Ummm.. if you’re sick of butterflies (is that even possible?!), maybe check back in a month or two.. although I’m pretty sure I’ll still be plastering them all over the place.

After the class I also made a set of these cards to give to a friend who is far away, working for the UN.  How cool is that?!  Us girls thought it’d be a nice idea to send her a little care package, so here’s my contribution.

I’m rather fond of that butterfly die.  Isn’t it so super cute?  Don’t you just need one for yourself?  I think so!

The paper and the ribbon are sadly discontinued.

Shauna
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CAS Sweet Wishes Butterfly

Oy.. I really need to learn to use a camera.. and perhaps get a better one than my point-and-click version.  The sun was shining, but my poor camera couldn’t handle the bright white background.  Suggestions, anyone?  I just can’t capture the colour and depth here.

Anyways, my cousin-in-law has been staying with family here for a few months, and she’s moving back home tomorrow, so I thought it’d be nice to send her on her way with a card.  We’ll miss her!

This card’s also for a challenge – challenge 130 over at Clean and Simple Stamping.  I followed the sketch pretty closely, just bunched up my ribbon, and used a vintage paper butterfly.  Oh, and the wee trim border at the bottom.  That’s from the ribbon eyelet punch by Stampin’ Up!

Seriously.. camera/photography tips, anyone?

Shauna
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A Box Full of Fun

Check out the goodies I got today!  Some Sale-a-bration items (that fun paper with stickers, and those stamps on the left).. Some goooorgeous fabric, a few punches, ribbon, ink, and glue.. ooh, and shimmery glittery paper.  Yay!  I’ve already made a card using one of these items today.

Shauna
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Chef Heidi Fink is a Genius

Seriously.  Someone give chef Heidi Fink another award, pronto.  My taste buds must have done a little dance when I made her recipe for Smoky Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette. Wow.  It involved tea.  One that smells just like you jumped into a campfire (cold, of course), and rolled around for a good hour or so.. without any of that grimy ickiness.  Sweet, spicy, tangy, with lots of depth of flavour.

I didn’t do much today, but I did haul my butt down to the gym for half an hour.  I placed a stamp order (wooooot! So excited for this!!!), and I baked some no-knead bread and made this vinaigrette.  I was so excited to make it that I walked downtown in the cold – ok, it’s a 12 minute walk – to buy a container of the tea.  I got a bit carried away and came home with 5 teas in total.  This is totally nuts seeing as how I’m more of a coffee drinker.  Maybe habits will change.  Like, I’m sure I’ll get into the habit of making this dressing!

Sprinkle over a green leafy salad.. or dip in some fresh (or day-old) crusty bread.. Oh yes, please let me bathe in this stuff.  I halved the oil, cuz that’s how I do (shown below).  Oh man.. I can just picture this brushed over a chicken breast, or salmon.. yum, yum, yum!

I even made a label for the bottle.

Smoky Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

Adapted from Chef Heidi Fink.  Yields 1 cup

1/4c balsamic vinegar
3T maple syrup (get the real stuff here)
2t Laspang Souchong loose tea (smells like campfire)
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed (I like to press it to get my emotions out)
1/2 t Dijon mustard
1/2 t salt
1/2 t freshly ground pepper
3/8c extra-virgin olive oil

In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar and syrup.  Bring to a boil, stir in the tea leaves and remove from heat.  Let sit for about 6 minutes to “brew.” Strain, but don’t press on the leaves to extract more flavour.  Discard the tea leaves.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flavoured vinegar-syrup mixture, the garlic, the Dijon, and the salt and pepper.  Add the olive oil in a thin, steady stream, whisking all the while to emulsify the dressing.

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