beer cake :: diy

last week, hubby celebrated his 33rd birthday. now, if you know my husband, you know his pure love for natural light beer (in a can and sometimes even at room temperature). he's weird.

but, you know, i love that weirdness, so i made him a birthday (beer) cake! when posted the picture on facebook, i received such a reaction, i thought i should share how i did it on here:

1. you'll need a 30-pack of cans, cardboard cake circles, ribbon, clothespins and candles
2. you can buy your cake circles in different sizes or cut them down. i used an exacto knife to cut mine. make sure you have a small, medium and large size
3. begin layering the cans so that they fill out each circle. be sure to put some in the middle for support as you stack them
4. wrap ribbon around each layer for a little decoration
5. use clothespins to prop up each candle at the top.

and that's it. so easy. and to be honest, even my kids thought i was cool (which i'm not so sure is a good thing) but hey. at least they know i love their dad. xoxo

skylander giant cake :: cake decorating

i haven't shared a cake decorating post in a while.  for "the monster's" birthday dinner dessert, i made a simple double layer swirl cake then tried my best to decorate as the portal of power from the skylander giants video game (which is my son's current obsession).  it's actually a neat concept... players can collect action figures and then place them on the portal to enter them into the video game.  for a seven-year-old, this is the perfect combo because he actually plays with the action figures outside of the game as well... kind of like how i did with barbies.

i purchased a set of skylanders to place on top of the portal cake, however, due to the electronics at the bottom of each, i could not let icing get inside.  to prevent this, i traced each onto a thick paper and then cut out the shape.  it was easy to tape the paper to the bottom of the figures and then remove when he was ready to play!

for a little more decor, i placed the instant photos i had taken that morning around the cake table for guests to look at.  overall, this may have been the easiest birthday celebration i've planned yet.  (did i mention "the monster" wanted pizza hut for dinner so i didn't even have to cook?!)

decorate cake in under 10 :: baking

picture it:  any holiday, hosting at my home (guests arriving soon), and i'm running around like a crazy person picking up toys & clothes and yelling at my family to do the same.  i have a load of laundry going, dishes soaking, food cooking, vacuum moving, crafty decor glue drying and cake baking.  and, i'm still in my robe.

o, and my husband keeps telling me to 'calm down'.

i know you've been there.  here's a little tip for the next time you find yourself decorating a cake with soaking wet hair, no makeup and covered in your bath robe with guests arriving any minute.

how to decorate a cake so it looks like it's from a professional bakery in less than 10 minutes:

• cover with icing
• use a fork to create a vertical line pattern along the sides
• using an icing nozzle, like a flower tip or star tip, and dab icing along the edges.  don't forget the edge along the cake stand.
• decorate with sliced fruit.

voila!  happy hosting!

4th birthday cake :: cake decorating

did i show you "the monster's" cake i made him?  we did cupcakes for his party, but for the family dinner, i went all out and made him a fudge marble cake decorated with a crazy amount of candy!  he woke up from nap just as i was finishing it, so i couldn't keep it a surprise.  i think i heard "can we eat it now?" a thousand times.