Homespooled

You all know how much I like making cake.  And soup.  But I'm not about to start a soup site (...or maybe I should?) so I started a cake site!!  It's called Sudbury Vegan Sweets.

I've been very busy over the last few weeks getting it all together.  And busy in the meantime making a few more cakes.  I made another suitcase cake for a retirement party. But this time, I hand painted stickers on the cake instead of flags, using edible ink markers.

Then my little middle guy turned 6! SIX!!!! Craziness... He insisted on a vanilla flavoured Angry Birds cake, so that's what he got.  Oh, and you know my friend Brandon?  He shall henceforth be known as sous-chef Brandon! That's right, I got me a sous-chef.  He's pretty talented.  He made those little green piggies right there.

Then my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, to be, hosted their Stag 'n Doe, casino style!  I asked them if I could make them a cake for it and they chose a design on-line for me to replicate, with a few adjustments.  The playing cards are made with fondant.  Once again, I whipped out my seldom-used drawing skills and used edible ink markers to free-hand the designs on them.  That's right, I eye-balled that shit. (Poker chips courtesy of sous-chef Brandon)

At the Stag 'n Doe, I was told that someone, sadly, dropped their piece of cake.  But, since it was SO good, they ate it off the floor! Ha! 

Of course, I've been busy making cupcakes and non-fondant cakes too...

So check out the new site, and don't forget to go like the Facebook page!  I will have a giveaway once I reach 100 likes.  And even if you are not from the Sudbury area, like the page anyway so that you can see more photos of work in progress and completed treats to use for inspiration or just to ogle.

Another cake already!!  This one was made for my now 3-year-old-obsessed-with-TMNT-and-that's-awesome.  His birthday falls between Xmas and New Year's, so I like to do something extra special for him (cause you know, a whole week of presents isn't enough, hahaha).

Using leftover materials from around the house, you can make a cute picture holder.  Give it as a gift, or keep it for yourself, this is especially a great way to use up those last bits of ribbon that you would otherwise throw away.

You know those plastic tabs that seal under the cap of juice and milk cartons?  Next time you see one, don't throw it away!  Give it a quick wash make a ring with it!  Or stash it with your craft items until you have a few of them to work with.  These are super fun to work with and I'm actually surprised they're not being sold individually yet...like every other quirky item used for crafts seems to be!  

One week left 'til school starts!  Wooo hooo!  I get the feeling that the kids aren't as happy about this as I am.  The girl one especially.  So to make her feel a little better, I made her some pencil toppers.

When your collection of buttons starts to get too big, it's time to find ways to use some of them up.  Especially the single ones, the tiny ones and the oddly shaped ones. 

You can make this project with a picture frame instead of a board or canvas, if that's what you have on hand.  For the background, either use a coloured page, or a page that you've painted.

This past weekend we brought the kids to Calypso theme waterpark.  It is the second summer that we go, and let me tell you...this year went MUCH more smoothly than last.  Last year's trip taught us a lot about the things we should and shouldn't do.  Well, we implemented those changes on Saturday and the kids couldn't have possibly had more fun!

When I was a kid, I though Friday the 13th was a holiday.  That's because my mother treated it that way.  I can remember my brother and I waking up to her hugging us and saying: "Happy Friday the 13th!"  Little did I know to the superstitious, this was a day of bad luck.

That day we would all wear black and/or red.  After school (unless it was the summer), for dinner, my mother would make us red food.  Things like spaghetti, pizza with bright red sauce and pepperoni or even (and more often) Kraft Dinner and add some red food colouring to it.  We had fruit punch or, as a rare treat, cream soda.  In the evening, we would watch scary movies on the floor in front of the tv with an assortment of red and black candies and even ketchup chips!  Friday the 13th was the greatest....especially since nearly every other day of the year, this particular food was strictly off limits.

To this day, my mother, brother and I tell each other "Happy Friday the 13th!" whether it be via text message, over facebook, or over the telephone.  It makes me feel silly to do it, but it feels more wrong not to. 

According to Wikipedia, Friday the 13th can occur up to 3 times in a single year.  Hey, I'll take any chance I can get to celebrate something.  And since the next Friday the 13th won't be until September of 2013, I decided that today, for MY kids, I am officially introducing the fun of Friday the 13th and that bad luck is for suckers.  Because we are travelling, their spread consists of only horribly delicious desserts and snacks.

Make your own paper pinwheels this summer with items you have around the house.  Have the kids decorate the paper before you start!

There are some things we made when we were kids that we forget about until we have kids of our own.   Often when I remember these projects, I think of how much fun they were and so, I have my kids make them.  Like at the end of the school year when we would make Canadian Flags...

We made two versions of these, one with paint for the little guy and a slightly more difficult version using tissue paper for the older ones.