Don't you know? Don't you know? Beautiful don't you know??

So I was inspired by all the glass painting I did for the order I owed (I will post pictures once those are all done), and from looking at my friend Jen's wedding pictures (and more so the song above by Chris Brown. One of those memories from the wedding...). These are glasses I am going to put up on Etsy in hopes that someone will be interested in them.

I call them (so fittingly) "The Bridesmaids":

How does one get back to where they once were?

My creative juices have hit a bit of a lull right now. I was so motivated to get cracking not even two weeks ago, and now it seems I have hit that same wall I did back in June. I really want to get cracking on the things I love, letting my creative juices flow and create things... But there is this nagging feeling right now inside me that is making it so hard.

All around me I see people taking the time to create, and do the things they love, and start businesses. And I have to say it makes me a tiny bit green with envy. I fear disappointing, I fear rejection, I fear making a fool of myself. So that little voice inside me constantly says "don't do it!!!"

Lately it's all I hear and all I listen to.

Weddings, weddings and still more weddings...

In a bit of an update to a previous post, I've hung up on my wall six of the frames from the weddings we attended last year. I have to make 4 more for this year; this is a project constantly in the works. I still have to place the pictures inside the frames for most of these, but I wanted to show you all what they now look like. I think it's a nice tribute to all my friends - who I love dearly.

Here is what the mounted pictures look like...

My dearest Nana...

Ever since I came back "online" I have been wondering what to do as one of my first projects. It's hard to decide what to do when there is so much I want to accomplish before the end of the year. To get myself in the right frame of mind, I decided this weekend to clean up my "workspace" in the basement. This in turn lead to me moving furniture around, sweeping, cleaning, filing tons of bills, and finally (after all that procrastinating) organizing my area. I have to say, seeing how nice and clean it is really makes me want to get cracking. I owe a lot of people glasses, so those are one of the first things on my list.

However...

During my cleaning I stumbled upon a ton of old pictures. I'm talking old, as in my grandmother and grandfather back in the day. Black and white and timeless... One from their wedding, others of my dad and aunts and uncles as children, my grandfather in his Black Watch uniform... I forgot I had these pictures. But going through these pictures, I had a small breakdown.

It's been a while... Time for something new...

Happy October everyone!

I apologize for the long delay I updating my blog. It's a long story, well somewhat long and mostly just me filled with resentment... But I digress. I'm back! And that's what matters. The past few months consisted of me having pent up anger for something I had no control over. I thought I had control over thing, I was paying for a service that had come highly recommended by said persons reviews, but alas, I was screwed over. So no new blog template.

I let those feelings of Ill will harbor inside me for months, trying to get my money back for a service paid for. In the end, I've decided to just let it go. I'm not going to get my money back, and the layout i fell I love with will never be mine. I was even going to post the layout creator's websites and emails here for everyone to "avenge my anger", but I won't do it. I just, don't want to.

Adventures in things to come...

I apologize everyone for the delay in a new blog post! These past few days have been busy - non-creatively - so I haven't had a chance to sit down and talk about some of my up-coming projects. But seeming as I have a few minutes, I am really excited to discuss them!

As of right now, there are 3 major events that I have projects for; two of my friends' weddings, and a Light the Night fundraiser.

First, for next Friday, I will be baking some cake pops for a Light the Night fundraiser - a bowl-o-thon! The idea came to me for the cake pops when I first mentioned to my friend Tracy that I would like to help out any way I could. Hopefully no one from the fundraiser checks out this page, because I want them to be surprised, but... I'm going to let you all in on my plans...

Banana Chocolate Chip recipe....

Today my very best friend and her husband signed some papers, and got their very first house. Yes, they had already purchased a condo, but this is a house. Its a big deal. So, my little family and I (and my "little" Jen) went over there to celebrate. On top of some celebratory drinks, I wanted to bring something over that we could eat. I didn't have much time, so i knew exactly what it was that I was going to make.

Banana bread!

Glasswear random idea #1

I enjoy taking a break from baking every once and a while - my stomach thanks me for that - so tonight I decided to quickly try an idea I had in my head. I had seen a sketch of this somewhere one time and I've been wanting to try it out.

It's a very simple project. I've used water glasses from Ikea and I used Pébéo Vitrail paint in white (frosted) and the Vitrae felt-tip pen in purple. I drew a basic leaf form, one facing up, one facing down, and continued this all around the glass.

Once that dried I did a second coat so that the white was more on the opaque side. Once that was dry, I took the pen and drew on top of the leaves, basically outlining them and then drawing in the veins. I am not that satisfied about these because I like to consider myself a perfectionist, but I do believe that ones imperfections should be shown as well as their talent.

I will try this again. Maybe a different pattern, maybe the same and just do it how I really want it. It was just fun to put a new idea into play. I think each and everyone one of you should do that at least once a week. Do something that you've been thinking of. Just do it, and if it works out or not - doesn't matter. What matters is that you tried...

Until next time!

A solution for wedding memorabilia!

Today is the first day in a while that it's been nice here in town. We've been hit with a lot of rain lately and it has put a serious damper on the 'happy summer vibes' I've been desperately in need of. Today without a doubt is going to be gorgeous. Couldn't ask for a better Monday to start off a long week at work.

With the wonderful weather, weddings begin. In just a fwe weeks my first wedding of the year will be here - and I'm very excited. If the bachelorette party we just had this past weekend for the bride means anything, that wedding is going to be one heck of a party. And with weddings come memorabilia.

I know, you're probably thinking "what the heck does she mean?", but trust me, I like to keep things from the weddings I attend to have a bit of a keepsake from the day. At one point last year, after we went to our very last wedding, I opened this box where I kept all these things and didn't know what to do with everything.

And shortly thereafter, I was in the dollar store (seriously, what CAN'T you find there?) and I fell upon these frames and an idea hit me! I was going to make a type of 'shadow' box to hang on my walls which displayed a photo of the married couple, along with some of the mementos from their big day. My friends are very dear to me, all of them family, so showing off their happy day seemed like a no-brainer for me.

Most of them don't have the picture of the couple in them just yet, I stil have to go and buy hooks to place on the back of the frames so I can hang them from the walls. Because I wanted these to last a long time on my wall, I opted to use a glue gun rather than normal glue just so they would stay put. Overall I think these are a great way for me to look back and remember what a great time was had. Once I get all of these mounted on my wall I'll post a picture of that.

Here are the couples - displayed in order of when we attended them...

Bianca and Matt

Bianca and Matt had this gorgeous wedding that had a Mary Antoinette feel to it. Pearls, masks, ostrich feathers - it was a sight to see. And it was a great wedding to kick start my 2010 wedding season.

The bonbonieres were little Faberge eggs. How friggen cute is that? And the pewter flower was place card holder. Bianca did all the place cards and decorating herself. She's awesome.

Caroline and Matt

Some weddings didn't have as much stuff to sneak into my purse (or into my boyfriend's jacket pockets), and at my best friend's wedding (the photo frame above) I was too busy being a Maid of Honor to take anything. In this case I used these adorable stickers from the dollar store to compensate.

 

Junior and Vanessa

Another wedding where I was having too much fun running around. If you've ever wondered if someone wearing a dress to a wedding was capable of doing the worm on the dance floor, this would have been the wedding to answer that. Junior and Vanessa had the cutest place card holders ever:

Fortune cookies!!!! And their bonboniers were keyboard cleaners - so practical, keyboards are seriously full of dust all the time - that were either a little bride or a little groom.

Christine and Paul

Not only was this the wedding where two of my oldest friends took each others hands in marriage, but this was the wedding where I was able to create a headpiece for the bride. It was a really special day. And to top it all off there was a ton of stuff on the table to take!! I actually have and extra pumpkin and table number picture frame. I went a little wild, what can I say...

Tracy and Richard

Tracy and Richard are a very modern styled couple. Their wedding was at a venue which is basically set up as you see fit. Their space was filled with extra large balloons floating above the tables, test tubes holding orchids hung above the head table, and long rectangular tables took place of the traditional round ones. It was an awesome night - and again, I was busy not only being a bridesmaid, but chasing my very photobooth happy duaghter around (Tracy and Richard had a photobooth at their wedding and my daughter was the official button presser).

Now that I'm in the groove of things, I just need to go out and buy 4 more frames for this upcomming wedding season! Hurray for weddings!

Here's to the future...

May 25th, 2011 was the day I had my biggest "Aha-Moment" up to date. It was the day I decided to make a change in my life. I sat at home on my couch and watched as Oprah took to her stage for one last show. Her words moved me to tears - my eyes weren't dry once during the hour-long finale.

"[A calling] lights you up and lets you know you're exactly where you're supposed to be, doing exactly what you're supposed to be doing. Live from the heart of yourself. You have to know what sparks the light in you so you in your own way can illuminate the world."

I have spent countless hours of my life wondering if there was any reason to strive for greatness. I never really thought I could make a difference or that anything I could do would mean anything. Oprah touched a part of my soul in her last show that I have been trying to find for years. Her words resonated through my television and she made me believe in myself.

It almost seems ridiculous to think that someone I've never met - someone who does not know me or my personal battles - could move me in such a way that faith in myself has been reinstated. I not only believe, but I now KNOW that I am destined for so much more than I give myself credit for. Thinking about how her show made me feel still makes me misty-eyed...

“There’s a difference between thinking you deserve to be happy and knowing that you are worthy of being happy. Your being alive makes worthiness your birthright. You alone are enough.”

I have hesitated for so long to put myself out there because I've felt like I don't merit being able to do the things I love. There are so many talented people out there that I've felt like I would not compare, like I would never make it. I could not have been more wrong.

My heart is filled with hope and faith in myself - something I have not had for a long time - and I foresee a great future ahead of me.

Here’s to a future filled with excitement, wonder, hope and faith. Thank you Oprah for opening my eyes and making me realize that I am worth it.

If at first you don't succeed...

Try try again!!!

I am speechless. I did it. I made macarons that were not horrible. That were cooked through and didn't stick to my parchment paper (note to self: must invest in a few Silpats...). I will admit, I made an attempt last night, and although they looked perfect, they were far from it. 

Chunky and the feet are too uneven for my liking.

The golden color is not added, it's due to me slightly overcooking the macarons. Hey, it was my sixth attempt - or wait, was it my fifth? - well let's just say I've tried this a time or two already and failed each time almost more miserably than the last. But something we running through me today that gave me the will to make them again.


And I did and I could not be happier with the results. I did try my own spin on it... I made the basic recipe (I follow Tartelette's recipe - hers is the only one I've attempted that's worked for me. Just go to her site and search for "macaron". She is a complete genius when it comes to flavour combinations.) with a twist. I took out part of the almonds and added in walnuts instead. It gives it a bit of a different flavour to it. Inside I made a Banana Buttercream Frosting.

Look at the feet! Just the way they should look!

I did take the advice of the my above mentioned macaron inspiration, and this time around I ground up the almonds, walnuts and icing sugar together in my food processor at the same time. This is the first time I didn't have to re-process a huge amount of leftovers. I let the processor have its way with the ingredients for a minutes, scraped the edges, and then did it for another minute. You can 100% see a difference in yesterday's macarons texture compared to today's. Yesterday I ground up the almonds on their own, and they were fairly chunky. Today, much smoother.

Fresh from the oven...

I couldn't be more excited with the end product. My boyfriend wasn't complaining either - and he's pretty honest when it comes to my baking - he had three of them. After a fairly uneventful day at work, these darling creations saved me.

I can't wait to figure out what kind to do next...

Take a bite...

My first time trying these and it will not be the last...

A wonderful friend of mine, Bianca (link website) turned me on to this amazing website which I have fallen head over heals for. Bakerella is her name and sweet baking is her game. I have been looking over her site for weeks and decided to give one of her recipes a try.

 

You can't make a Red Velvet cake without A LOT of red food coloring...

My daughter is a huge lover of all things sweet, so when I asked her if she would rather me make a pop cake, or a cupcake bite, she went with the cupcakes. I decided on the red velvet recipe of hers for the base, and rather than using a cream cheese icing I have decided to go with a simple vanilla buttercream. Here is the recipe of hers, but you can see her full entry on this cake (here):

Red Velvet Cake

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 Tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 oz. red food coloring
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour two 8 inch cake pans.
Lightly stir eggs in a medium bowl with a wire whisk. Add remaining liquid ingredients and stir together with whisk until blended. Set aside.

 

I seriously thought that I had put way too much red coloring, the liquid mixtures turned out bright fuchsia.

Place all the dry ingredients in your mixing bowl and stir together really good with another wire whisk.
Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix on medium-high for about a minute or until completely combined.
Pour into cake pans and then drop the pans on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
After about ten minutes, remove from pans and cool completely on a wire rack. I also cover in plastic wrap while the cakes cool.
Then make the frosting.Fm there I made a simple buttercream and once that was done the fun began. I broke the cake up into a crumble, and then I added the buttercream and mixed. At first I was being all dainty and was using a spoon, but I decided to be at one with the cupcake bites and I started using my hands.

 This was probably my favorite part... Getting my hands dirty.

Flashbacks of being a child playing with play dough came to my head :). Once it was mixed as well as I assumed it would need to be, I started to make tiny quarter sized balls of the cake-icing mixture and set them aside on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

 

Getting these just the right size was tough, I kept making them too big and had to eat some of the bad ones. Oh darn...

I let them settle in the freezer for a few minutes and followed the rest of the recipe. Make the chocolate cups by ,doting some chocolate into little chocolate cups molds, put a cake ball in cup, freeze a bit more, pop out and decorate. Im breaking it down incredibly fast, but if you head on over to the Bakerella website, you can find recipe after recipe of different ways to make these. And a much more in-depth way of making these.

 

Decorating the cupcake bites was my favorite part. I melted down some purple wafers, dipped my cupcake bites in and sprinkled them with little cupcake toppings. SO. MUCH. FUN.

And I have to say, they taste pretty darn good. Bakerella knows how to make one mean red velvet cake.
Take a look at how they turned out...

I heart baking.

Never judge a book by it's cover...

After an impromptu family get-together last night at our place, I decided to give it a go at making macarons. I had been hearing more and more about them through a Facebook friend and I wanted to see if they were as temperamental as I had read up on.

I had all the ingredients necessary, and everything seemed to be going so well. My almonds grinded without a hitch, my egg whites formed the perfect peaks, my batter looked and felt like the right consistency. I was even able to make every macaron almost identical in size - well, as good as a first timer could make them of course.

I continuously went back to the oven to make sure that my macarons were forming their perfect feet - they were! - and that the tops were smooth and glossy - a success! - and even after I took them out of the over I could barely believe my eyes.

I was a natural! All the blogs I had read about them lied to me! These were not hard to make, either that or I must have a natural ability for them. My mind starts reeling about all the different recipes I searched and how I can start baking these all the time - they were so simple! - and how people will come running by the truck loads to buy them from me.

And half an hour later, after I've let them cool down, my dreams came crashing to a halt.

I went to take one off the baking sheet and all I held in my hand was the little perfectly smooth and glossy dome. The bottom half remain on my baking sheet, stuck to the bottom and under cooked.

Little did I know that these pesky little buggers would become the bane of my baking existance. I have tried three times since and have yet to perfect them. I will, however, not give up so quickly. So for now I leave my adventures in macarons on the back burner, I think I'll stick to banana muffins for now...

made for me... the beginning

This blog has been a work in progress for months now. One of my oldest friends, Tracy, and I have been wanting to start up blogs, but for one reason or another we never got around to it. We gave ourselves due dates and deadlines, and without fail we ignored them time and time again.

Today is the day we decided to stop talking and start doing.

So here I am, taking the first step - of many - in blogging all things me, my family, but mostly things that I'm passionate about. I work in the AR department of a reputable sporting goods company, so creativity in my line of work is minimal. I go in each day, do what's required of me, and I go home at night feeling like there's something missing...

I've always been a creative soul. I used to write, I was in Fine Arts, I feel in love with Art History... But I never went anywhere with any of those, and i slowly let my artistic side fall into the background. However, lately I've been feeling this part of me edge forward and cry out for attention. I suddenly felt the need to be artistic again and I have been slowly getting back into that state of mind.

I'm far from where I used to be. I find writing tedious and more of a chore than in the past. I don't feel the urge to pick up a pencil and sketch out what I see in front of me, and all my art history books are just collecting dust. But i still have that inner feeling wanting to come out, so I have been finding other ways to feed it; baking, painting wine glasses, making wedding accessories for my friends...

And this will be the place that I "show off" what I've been up to. I have always wanted a way to express myself for people to see, but have never really known how to go about it. So a blog is a great way for you all to stay connected with me, and keep up with the workings of my creativeness...

...amanda leigh

Baking I've done...

As long as I can remember my mother was always baking. Anyone who knows me will vouch that at Christmas time, it was like a baking version of grand central station in my house. My mother has a natural knack at making not only delicious baked goods, but her presentation skills are impeccable.

I have learned a lot form my mother, and have grown to have this certain expectations of myself along with my baking. I am at times hard on myself for not being able to achieve that level of perfection I constantly crave, but I will more often then not try anything once.

At the moment, I am in love with cupcakes - no matter how saturated this baked good has become in society - and I am constantly searching for the perfect (and forever favorite of many) chocolate chip cookie.

Here are a few of the different things I've made...

 Chocolate mint cupcakes with a mint buttercream

 Pumpkin Sugar Cookies with Cream Cheese frosting

 Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Some fondant (homemade) flowers for cupcakes and cookies

 My first attempt at Challa bread.

 Sugar Cookies with homemade coconut flavored fondant

Cinnamon Buns

Glasses I've painted...

My interest in painting glassware started many years ago, when the extent of my capabilities was making flowers out of dots and a green squiggle as the stem. I, along side a friend, painted a bunch of these glasses as Christmas presents for our friends and families.

Since then I have grown to enjoy painting all types of glassware - wine glasses, champagne flutes, mugs and more - for all type of occasions from weddings, to anniversaries, to simple designs for your everyday use...

I don't have many examples of my work just yet, but here are a few to get you started...

 

headpieces

2010 was the year of the weddings for me and my little family. We attended six weddings between August and November, along with many engagement parties, bachelorettes and bachelor parties and bridal showers galore.

Needless to say weddings began to become a constant fixture in my life, and still are - we already have 4 weddings so far this year to attend.

I have always found myself seeing things and saying 'I could do that', so I will more often then not, give it a try and either it works out in my favor, or it doesn't. So with all the excitement surrounding all the weddings, I began to try my hand at making headpieces and I am proud to say that I was able to make a birdcage veil and a fascinator for two different weddings.

Christine's fascinator:

Nadia's birdcage veil:

Details of the veil clip: