Category — Craft Projects

I don’t post that many craft projects on this blog, although I do a fair amount of crafting. This one was easy and turned out pretty well so I thought I would share it. I had a vision of white picture frame ledges on a white wall with frames in varying shades of gold and cream. After a relatively cheap and easy project, I was really happy with the end result:

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Last week I did a roundup of my previous adventures in non-traditional gingerbreading, and I’m excited to show you what we made this year: The Snowy Japanese Gingerbread Pagoda.

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Today I will be making my fourth non-traditional gingerbread house – I will keep it a surprise for the moment – so I found myself looking back on the last three years of crazy gingerbreading for ideas and inspiration. Since I (and the small group of friends on Team Gingerbread) only do it once a year, I find I sometimes forget crucial technical matters, like: never use Pirouette cookies as structural support (they break down and sag within 24 hours!) and an elaborate gingerbread backdrop is more trouble than it’s worth (too heavy, so there is far too much support needed.) On this eve of another explosive gingerbread creation, I wanted to share a little roundup of the past 3 years’ efforts.

Important note: I am a stickler for everything being edible in these – even structural supports. The only thing you can’t eat is the base, which is usually cardboard covered in foil or wrapping paper.

2009: The Gingerbread Casbah

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I saw a recipe for rainbow fudge on Pinterest recently, and knew I had to make it. (For a full-fledged adult in her mid-30s, it turns out I’m pretty into rainbows.) But, I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t have a couple of major issues with the original recipe… so I had to do it my own way.

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Every year a small group of dedicated friends gets together to make an epic gingerbread project that takes a cue from whatever this year’s Christmas party theme happens to be. Two years ago, for a Casbah Christmas, the tradition was born with a Middle Eastern-style courtyard house of gingerbread. Last year, we celebrated Christmas in Summer and put Santa in the pool, surrounded by a beachy scene. This year’s party theme was Christmas in the Future, so we took a few hints from The Jetsons and put Santa on the moon.

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By far the most popular article on this blog is the Super Tall Amazing Rainbow Birthday Cake, a tippy, teetery, monstrosity of a cake. Attempting that sky high cake is not for the faint of heart, so I wanted to figure out an easier way to create rainbow cakes. I bring you the latest in rainbow cakery, baked in a jar to show off all the pretty colors.

Cakes in jars are great for a picnic or to bring to someone’s house, since they’re completely sturdy, sealable, and portable. Rainbow cakes in a jar are also the perfect treat for all your unicorn friends.

“What’s that, magical horsie? Oh, you’re very welcome, it was my pleasure. I hope you enjoy your cake.”

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Note: this was the most-searched recipe on my previous blog, so I’m re-posting it here. It’s one of my earliest blog entries–from about 3 years ago–so the pictures are a little less polished than usual! They actually look like they were taken with Hipstamatic, which wasn’t invented yet, which is kind of weird. The cake is still a hit, though. -KM

When my older sister was about 9, my mom made her this legendary multi-tiered cake that was all white on the outside but with each layer of the cake being a different color of the rainbow, arranged, natch, in rainbow order. I re-created a similar cake about 4 years ago when my niece Leila turned 5, with a chocolate outside and a strong structural resemblance to the leaning tower of Pisa. Yesterday my other niece Mitra turned 5, and got her very own rainbow cake, thanks to the combined efforts of my sister and I. [Read more →]

Christmas is almost here! Yay. That means it’s gingerbread time. Every year we have a theme party, which last year resulted in the Gingerbread Casbah. This year the theme is “Christmas in Summer” so we took Santa to the Southern Hemisphere with a Gingerbread Christmas cabana!

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As you know Easter was last weekend, so this post will actually not be useful to anyone for approximately 381 days- but I don’t really care because I don’t blog for money or anything, and I took nice pictures and if I don’t write down what I did I will surely forget. I’ll try to remember to re-post this in a more timely manner next year. Until then… allow me to “resurrect” the Easter spirit (ba-dam-cha.) I’m here all week, folks.

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I like Easter because it was my grandmother’s favorite holiday, so it always makes me think of her and brings up many fond memories. Also, because there’s nothing more fun than dying eggs and hiding/finding them with nieces and nephews! And finally, because I get to eat lots of ham and cheezy potatoes. So in that spirit, here is a roundup of some of my favorite and most Easterrific ideas… enjoy!

Last year I cut up some old neckties from a thrift store and made these gorgeous silk-dyed eggs… a stunning result from a surprisingly simple project!

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