lo and behold

Making eyeball cupcakes for Halloween. I love, love, love being the mom who brings the coolest treat to the class Halloween party.

The vibe in my kid’s class was to make it low-sugar, but I couldn’t stand the thought of bringingcheese and crackers. I still wanted it to be fun and be a chance to show off my creative kitchen prowess :). When I was looking around for ideas on Family Fun I didn’t see anything that quite fit the bill. Eventually, I came up with my own strategy for the eyeballs.

1. mini cupcakes baked from a mix
2. cream cheese frosting made from low-fat cream cheese and just enough sugar to make it sweet, thinned with a little milk until a good spreading consistency
3. irises cut from fruit roll-ups
4. pupils squeezed on from a tube of black frosting
5. veins drawn with tube of red decorating gel

I cut out the fruit roll-up circles, but then each kid did the rest of the decorating for the cakes that were going to her class - including the icing. Rachel was so proud of herself, and after a few successful eyeballs, declared: “Now I understand why you and Isabel like baking so much.” Just a little bit of being able to do it herself, and she got it!

A word about fruit roll ups: I hate them and I never buy them except that they are perfect and indespensible for cake decorating. They come in the brightest, wierdest colors that no real food can approximate. Last year, when we were making Rachel an “under the sea” birthday cake, I bought a few boxes and with Isabel’s artistry, look what we did:

Over at Dizzy Bead, Wild Wednesdays mean you can win free beads. I’ve won twice - the most beautiful beads! I’ve been wanting to figure out how to add more glass beads to my bead crochet bracelets and I’m calling this my first success, even though there are things I’d like to do differently.

1. That blue in the glass was very hard to match, and this combination definately hit the mark. The rope is made on white thread and I’d like to see if I could deepen the color of the blue seed beads with blue thread and still have it work.
2. To make it a little more secure in the wrap-around style, I’ll make the next one longer. Also, there is 18 guage wire strung through the tube and I want to try 16 guage for an even stiffer shape. I started out thinking I’d use 24 guage, but I couldn’t even thread it through. Between length and guage I’d like to get a bracelet that I’m sure won’t come off the wrist.

There is nothing better than fall in New England and the Paradise City Arts Festival. I love that place. The art is amazing. I love seeing artists I’ve seen before, as I slowly make my way toward purchase decisions, and I love seeing new folks. This year I was all ready to buy photo blocks for my bathroom that I’ve seen twice before - and alas, they weren’t there. I can’t remember the name. I think they were in Boston . . .

I only had a few hours to wander this time, with my mother-in-law and my 6 year old in tow. Plus I had a wicked cold. You can read more about the festival in my review at CraftGossip.com - an unfortunately named blog with some good resources for crafters.

Coming your way soon:  a chronicle of adventures in cooking, making jewlery, knitting, and doing it all with friends and family.