My First Ever Cake

Yesterday, I had my first cake decorating class at Kake Kreations. I had to bring my 8-inch round yellow cake and a batch of buttercream frosting that I did at home (thanks to my KitchenAid Artisan which made my life so much easier!! It's truly heaven sent!). For my first class, they had me do a butterfly cake. In order to achieve its shape, I sliced my round cake in half and put them side by side to make a butterfly figure. Then, I crumb coated it with my frosting. After a few minutes in the refrigerator, I coated it one more time (this time with lots and lots) of icing in order to cover crumbs and enhance its shape. And then I drew lines with the piping gel and food coloring mixture. In order to achieve the "curves" I used a wooden toothpick to "draw lines" across the colored lines without touching the cake, just the frosting. And then with the use of my #17 tip I decorated the sides of the cake just like writing the small letter "e" with the buttercream frosting. And then I used the rest of my piping gel and coloring mixture to put dots on my "e" design. And then after making its head with the buttercream frosting, i topped it off with some edible glitters!!!

I really had so much fun yesterday! It was such an achievement for me. Even if it's really tiring and a bit costly (with all those materials and ingredients), the feeling is just priceless. It's just so soothing and relaxing.

1 down, 7 more to go...

p.s.

I don't why my photo appears this way when the original is positioned correctly...it won't even let me rotate it. Help!

TOTE buy or not to buy?

I am such a big fan of big handbags. Really biiiiig handbags that Marielle, my year and a half old baby, can even fit into 'em. But Ironically I don't really invest in those. I find myself spending more moolah on "medium" sized ones. My biggest bag investment would be Chanel's 2.55 (both literally and figuratively) -- which I find too fancy to wear everyday! My current bag of choice is my BIIIG-Blue-Old Navy-Marc Jacob knock-off-purse I got on sale for close to $8!! I am not lying when I say that more than 10 (random) ladies complimented my bag!! They almost want to faint upon knowing that I got it from Gap's lower end sister store! Right now, I am letting that precious find take a rest while I "test drive" my sister's Neverfull in GM "school bag."

Hmm....so far so good....What's making me wake up in the middle of the night now (oh-kay OA) is whether I should get a Neverfull or a Goyard St. Louis?!? Aside from the fact that I am not a mum to any Goyard baby (just yet) I like it 'coz I can have it personalized!! I haven't even bought one yet but I'm already thinking of what to write on it!!

But the BIG BUT is...it's not even leather!! Imagine spending over a grand for a non-leather tote?? But the Bigger BUT is....the hubby and I are going to NY in 2 weeks and I will surely NEED a tote!!....a fashionable one at that!!

....I wonder what I end up buying...or if I even end up buying at all.......what do you think?

Happy Friday guys!! Enjoy your weekend!!

p.s.

I hope Marielle continues to feel better!! :)

Today is Earth Day

Having gone to Maryknoll/Miriam since pre-school through high school has given me much exposure in caring for our environment. Our campus which is a house to different species of plants and trees boasts itself to be one of the cleanest (if not the cleanest) campuses in Metro Manila (or even the Philippines?) I remember some of us students take turns in "patrolling" the garbage areas. The junior patrols, as how those designated students are called, stand near the trash bins and make sure that the students throw their trash into the correct bin. In short, students are expected to strictly practice proper garbage segregation. If we fail to do this we could be reprimanded. But now that my high school years have long been gone, there are no student patrols to watch me anymore. It feels liberating, yes but more than that I personally feel that a bigger responsibility is expected of me. So in celebration of the Earth Day I would like to share the simple ways I practice to show my care to Mother Nature.





1. I buy and use those reusable bags from the supermarkets. They cost less than a dollar and sometimes they even give you a discount for shopping with that bag! (great deal!)



2. We don't use the sprinkler at home. We water the plants/grass with the water hose. We think we can control that more.



3. I try not to use wipes with my daughter. If there's a sink nearby I wash her there or use a washcloth to wipe her mess. (this one's a win-win situation since my baby has a pretty sensitive skin that wipes tend to aggravate)



4. We just don't throw away empty plastic bottles or soda cans. We collect them and take them to the recycling stations. The bonus part is we get some $$$ back. Isnt's that awesome?!



5. I'm big on recycling paper at work. We get so many "telemarketing facsimile" papers at work. I use the blank part of it as Fax Transmission papers in return. I feel good.



6. If it's not a trash can, it's definitely not a place for your trash. Keep it in your pocket or in your purse (your trash I mean) and dispose of it at the nearest trash bin you'll find.



...this list will go on. But what I just want to reiterate is the fact that no matter how simple it is, we can do our part in taking care of our environment. And that is something we should have been done yesteday.

Shoo that A-choo!!!

In my previous entry, I mentioned about my 1st day at my cake decorating class...Unfortunately I had to have it rescheduled because my daughter, Marielle, is sick :(

She caught a cold over the weekend and is now a bit feverish.

I'm lightheaded myself as well... To say that the weather is crazy is totally an understatement! We're now experiencing 3-digit temps!! But it will drop down again towards the end of the week!! Imagine turning your heater on in the morning on your way to work and setting your car a/c on high on your way home! Isn't that crazy?!

I hope that Marielle gets well soon. And I hope that people will stop polluting the Earth. Mother Nature is badly hurt already...and we all can feel it now. :(

Finally!!!

I created this account in '07 but I realized I never actually got myself into writing any entry yet! I got so distracted with Facebook I guess...but now that FB is starting to bore me I think this is the best time to actually "activate" my blogspot. I'm pretty new to this so I hope the "veteran bloggers" out there will help me in exploring this beautiful "cyber world." I'm so excited to share my experiences and insights!! As a take off, I'd like to write about my latest purchase!! Last night I bought myself a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer in Pink!! FINALLY!! After years of longing to get one, I can finally say adios to my overused, no-name, but truly reliable hand mixer!

I found it on sale at Macy's for $299.00 with a mail in bonus of either a slicer/shredder or a grinder. I'm choosing the former! Actually, I had a mental debate whether to get the 4.5 qt KitchenAid Classic Mixer for $199.00 or this one. What do you think? For $100 more, did I make the right choice?

p.s.

I'm so excited to use this already!! On Tuesday, I'll have my first day in the Cake Decorating class I enrolled myself in!! I'm so excited to share what my experience will be!