Spicy Chocolate Cupcakes

This weekend, after watching some Cupcake Wars, my best friend and I decided to make some cool cupcakes of our own! We found a recipe for Spicy Chocolate Cupcakes filled with Nutella Chili Chocolate Ganache and Chili Cream Cheese Frosting, which was a super easy and delicious recipe!!! Here are photos of our cupcakes!!

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Here are the finished, baked cupcakes with small holes cut out of the center in order to fill it with the ganache.  

Here's the ganache filling in the cupcake centers.  

We then covered the ganache-filled cupcakes with the spicy, cinnamon, cream cheese frosting.  

Here's a sampler of all the cupcake options that my friend took home: regular filled cupcakes with frosting (top left, center), filled cupcakes with frosting and ganache drizzled on top (three top right), filled cupcakes with frosting and cinnamon on top (bottom left two), ganache-filled cupcakes with no frosting (bottom right two), and four plain mini cupcakes.   

ENJOY:)

My Vintage Bird - My Etsy Store

Well, I have finally put some things up on my Etsy store - My Vintage Bird! Just wanted to share a couple of things I have put up. Hopefully there will be lots more to come!!

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Embroidered Sweet Home Alabama Fabric Canvas with Red Heart

Handmade Art - Recycled Christmas Tin Bird and Flower on a Paper Covered Wood Block 

Handmade Colorful Recycled Tin Flowers on Painted Wood Block

Handmade Art - Three Little Birds - Recycled Tin Birds and Flowers on a Wood Block

Handmade Art - Recycled Christmas Tin Bird on A Paper Covered Wood Block

Handmade Art - Recycled Tin Flowers on a Tissue Paper Covered Wood Block - One of a kind

Handmade Art - Recycled Christmas Tin Bird with Scrolled Tail Feathers on a Paper Covered Wood Block - One of a kind

Handmade Dream Catcher with beads and pheasant feather - 5" diameter

Handmade Dream Catcher with beads and pheasant feather - 14" diameter

Felt Me Up!!

This is a cute, little felted purse I made, and of course I incorporated some Dia de Los Muertos skulls! I have to admit that I am not usually into felted purses - but I think if done well it can be a really fun accessory without edging on tacky. This particular one has a perfect funky, artsy hipster vibe! This is the first one so it's a little rough around the edges (pun intended), but I think it turned out really well anyway. This is a dark navy blue felt with cream and red accent pieces. I'll add any new ones I work on! 



Embroidered States of Life

I couldn't think of what to get my friend for Christmas so I ended up making her a present.  These are the three states she has lived in and the hearts are where she lived in each state- Erie, Roanoke, and Birmingham. I had three perfect little 3x3 frames for each state to go into. 

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After I made the states above, I made another three for a friend to give her husband for Christmas/their anniversary.  She wanted one for where they got engaged, one where they got married (and live) and one for where they went on their honeymoon.  I thought that was such a cute idea! I found these great mini-canvases at Michael's to do them on.  

 

 

I ended up with an extra Alabama so I made a cute little Sweet Home Alabama canvas.  

I've got tons of other options to do these one such as small frames, larger frames and other canvases, as well as paper options.  I'm selling these on my Etsy store - check them out! 

Happy Thanksgiving!!

This Thanksgiving I stayed at my house and did my first Thanksgiving meal without my family.  I only had a couple people over so I didn't do a huge meal.  I ended up buying a HoneyBaked Ham, which is absolutely delicious, and I made butternut squash soup, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, cranberry jelly, and crescent rolls, with an apple pie for dessert. I thought it all turned out really well!!

I saw this cinnamon roll crust on theBerry and thought it would be perfect for an apple pie.  I cut each cinnamon roll in half and pressed them down on the bottom of a pie pan then filled it with regular apple pie filling that I made.  I covered it with a regular (pre-made) pie crust and cut a little turkey to put on top :) .

Here is a cheese, sausage and apple plate to eat with crackers during the day.  There is nothing better than cheddar cheese and Granny Smith apples!

 I made a butternut squash soup with cinnamon and nutmeg. It turned out really well!!

Halloween and Día de los Muertos

Here is the pumpkin I did this Halloween!!

This year for Halloween I went out with my girlfriends and dressed up as a Day of the Dead woman.  I painted my face and bedazzled my eyes.  I got a great dress for free! Don't mind my face in the last picture...from far away I have holes for eyes and a nose!  

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I love Dia de los Muertos art.  Here is some past art that I have done.

Berry Cool Site!

Today's Funky Site is theBERRY - an awesome, visual website with loads of great pictures, ideas, food and culture.  I recently ran into it and I now end up checking it multiple times a day eagerly awaiting Morning Coffee, Take a BERRY Break, the quick celeb catch ups, and everything else.  Here are some of the awesome things I've found on theBERRY....

Inspiration for my Halloween costume

 

Check out theBerry.com everyday for more great pictures, ideas and fun!!!