Julia Child, Eat your heart out!

I couldn't be more sarcastic. Baking is definitely not my forte. I really don't belong in the kitchen. Really. That phrase, "Too many cooks in the kitchen" came to mind several times while I attempted my latest disaster, especially when my mom was breathing down my neck. 

Better yet, do you know that scene in Sleeping Beauty when the fairies decide to make Aurora a birthday cake and one fairy (Fauna? Flora?) folds the eggs with the shell still intact into the cake batter? Well, I feel like that is exactly how I would have followed those directions. (I reference Disney movies too often, don't I?)

Anyways, all the hype around this Royal Wedding has led me to plan a Royal Wedding Viewing Party with my friend, Makayla. (Hi, Makayla!) And it was decided that we would serve traditional British desserts and hors d'œuvres...and tea, of course. Yes, and it's definitely one of those parties where fancy hats are required.
A Battenberg cake.  I thought, "Sounds British. And even if I screw it up, it will probably fall into the the "tastes British" catagory." (Don't judge me. They are notorious for having terrible food and you know it.) To find out it was created in honor for a wedding in 1884 when Queen Victoria's granddaughter wed Prince Louis of Battenberg. The four checkered squares represent the four princes of Battenberg.

Yes! Challenge accepted. Here's the link to the recipe.

So this is what it was supposed to look like:

She couldn't understand why I was in the kitchen. Abnormal behaviour alarms her.

 
 Too many lumps!
Mmm. Definitely does NOT look appetizing. Who is going to eat this?

Now this painting portion was tolerable. I could get used to this.

She was so concerned. I wasn't making coffee, so why was I still in the kitchen?!?

 Haha. So droopy. Ugh. The perfectionist in me was tempted to photoshop this to make the pink more brilliant. I should have added the entire bottle of food colouring. Ah, maybe next time...hahaha who am I kidding? This is not my territory.  Let's just hope it doesn't make anyone sick. ;)

2 hours to go until this wedding! The anticipation is killing me!

Postponed Projects

There are a few things that I've managed to avoid working on for 7 or 8 years simply because they didn't have deadlines.  Yeah, I know, that's terrible. But then one day I wake up and decide in the words of Rafiki, "It's time." (That was completely a line I stole from Dr. Faerber...it's still cracking me up.) I'm trying to be someone that ties loose ends. More on that later.

So I literally took someone's advice to "keep my chin up" by tackling this...

This has been sketched on my ceiling since 2004, I believe. Not exactly sure, but I know I drew this on my wall in 2004. So the design on the ceiling had to be sketched in pencil around the same time.

I know. I'm a total geek for having the door to Moria on a wall. (It glows in the dark too. ;)

If only it was made by the elves and as brilliant as this one. (sigh.)

Ice Box Greeting Cards

My dad's site is finally functional! Yay! We're all really excited about it. Check out his cards at iceboxgreetingcards.com or click here.

You can even get the variety pack now!

Aren't they adorable?  You might even say, "They're pretty cool!"

This one is my favourite. I'll be working on the next batch of cards tonight! Look forward to seeing more!

The Downton Abbey Soundtrack

If anyone has been near me in the past 3 months they have certainly heard me mention Downton Abbey. I'm a little obsessed with it. If you haven't seen the mini-series yet, you need to speak to me and I will lend you my copy. That way you will be ready for the 2nd installment which airs on PBS Spring 2012 (Fall 2011 for those in the U.K. - those lucky Brits).

Everything about this show is top notch. The plot lines, character depth, costumes, setting, & music--Everything.

Trust me, you'll love it. You won't believe me until you see it for yourself. It will make you want to own the soundtrack which is only for sale on iTunes in the U.K.  Quite the conundrum for someone like myself who lives in the states and happens to be obsessed with soundtracks. If you have any suggestions as to how I could download this soundtrack legally, I would be much obliged. 

Ooh, and maybe you just might know how I could get my hands on the Bleak House and Little Dorrit soundtracks, too! One can only hope!

A bit of an update: As of January 2012 the soundtrack is available on Amazon here and Barnes & Noble here.

Royal Wedding Week!

I've kind of been looking forward to this wedding for a while...and I'm definitely planning a party with a friend. So I hope there will be an entertaining post describing all the details soon.

I made this little design on a bitty jewelry box this weekend in excitement for the big day.

I'd like to make a few door prizes or little gifts for the guests similar to this. I've been thinking of various English words or phrases, but still waiting to figure out how to carry out that concept. I'll definitely keep you posted! 

Happy Easter!

I created these name cards for our family and guests while watching the least Easter-esque movie ever...Die Hard. And really...wouldn't it be more of a Christmas film, if anything? It was the first time I ever watched it, so there is the possibility that the cards were inspired by the classic Bruce Willis film, but they are truly the antithesis of its entire theme, so I'm wondering how they remained whimsical at all.

I guess the over abundance of dots could represent gun shots...possibily...hmm.

My mom learned how to fold the napkins in this way when she was recently in Switzerland.
And the object at the top of this plate is shofar. It's from Israel just in case anyone was wondering.

My mom also created this tomb as a centerpiece for the kid's table.

 He is risen! He is risen, indeed!

I hope you had a Happy Easter!

It's ALIVE!

It was quite fitting to watch The Young Frankenstein while I was working on one of my latest projects.

Maybe I should back up and explain why.

When I was a little girl, my friend Maggie made me a small, pre-TY beanie baby as a going away gift. Inspired by a tree frog bean bag souvenir that she acquired when her family visited Newfoundland, this gift was hand sewn and made with care out of a delicate cherry pattern and filled with lentils. My family had decided to leave our home in Michigan to move to Wisconsin, so this beanie baby became my most cherished toy and represented my friendship with Maggie who still lived in Michigan. Before I moved, Maggie and I held a wedding ceremony for her tree frog and my Cherry. We invited our friends to bring their beanie babies over to serve as the wedding party. It was a gorgeous summer day and the bride walked down a toliet paper aisle that ran beneath a cherry tree. It was the quintiessential childhood moment. 

Here's our school...Maggie and I circled. Oh, and this was definitely not in '92...somebody's camera date was sorely off.

I loved this toy enough to make a photocopy of her!

After I moved, I took the Cherry beanie baby everywhere with me. I'm not kidding. There are even photographs of this toy dining at Red Lobster for my grandmother's birthday. I designed my entire dollhouse around this toy and handpainted cherry dishes for the kitchen and a hope chest for her chamber. My birthday present that year was a tiny brass bed and a kitchen table and chairs. Maggie and I would send each other our toys for a few weeks at a time, package in a box painted to look like an airplane. We would document the outtings and send each other a report.

On May 2nd, 1998 I thought that Cherry and her husband should join me on a paddle boat ride. I was with my new Wisconsin friends at their cabin. The younger sister was joking around and wanted to see me get flustered. So she dipped Maggie's tree frog in the lake. Of course I freaked out. She laughed and handed him back to me. Then moments later she tried to do the same stunt with Cherry, but a horrible accident occurred, she dropped her. All three of us watched as the bean bag sunk to the bottom of the lake. I tried to remember the coordinates, but I had no idea how to reference where we were on the lake.

I cried for days. My dad swam the lake to search for Cherry, but it was useless. She was gone. My friend felt terrible for the accident.  It was difficult because I always thought that that toy would someday reside on my bookshelf, but I had to give that dream up. Until...

I found this pillow at a garage sale last week. I never thought I would ever find the exact fabric.

Ta-Da!

And here she is on my bookshelf, right beside my Ruby Slippers. Happily Ever After!

The New Yorker Wall

I found this years ago and fell in love with the idea.

Life worked in my favour when I forgot my Jeeves and Wooster Disc One in the DVD player. Because  I had to make an unexpected trip to library, I found that they were discarding all of their New Yorker magazines since the early 50's. I came home with 75 or so...Now I only need a blank wall.

I wish they had this one. The search for it continues.

Let's talk about how much I love Arthur Getz. Yes, he was the most prolific of New Yorker cover artists, but his designs just grab me by the throat. They are masterpieces.

I want this one framed by the rest of my peacock feathers. Then again, the original may be difficult to come by.

Getz again. Ah! Look at that perspective. Brilliant!

Getz had a great sense of light.

I love how all the people are highlighted with that brilliant french blue. It creates such contrast against the gold.