Month: August 2013


Friday Giveaway – Penny Lane Studio


August 30, 2013

Friday is here again – the last Friday of winter here in Australia! Yay!

Seeing as spring is just around the corner I have a gorgeous giveaway for you today which has a very distinctive spring feel about it!

Earlier in the week Nicole from Penny Lane Studio popped over with some of her beautiful wares for me to photograph – her products are so unique and beautifully made and will bring a very special touch to any party or wedding.

The Penny Lane range includes everything from paper garlands to pretty printed spoons, hand stamped tags and muslin bags.  Nicole also produces a range of classic and vintage designed printables all which can be seen on her website here.

Today Nicole has a few of her gorgeous products to giveaway to one lucky reader!
The prize pack includes the very pretty ribbon tassel cake bunting, a heart garland, the beautiful set of paper roses and the glam cake ruffle, all of which can be seen in the pictures below!

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment on the blog letting us know which is your favourite of these 4 products and what type of party you would use it for.  Please visit Nicoles website to view her entire range and also pop by and say hi on Facebook.

The winner will be drawn on Friday 6th September and announced here on the blog – the entry is only open to Australian residents!

Special thanks to Gillian from Crumbs of Comfort Cake Design for sending us some cakes to display Nicoles pretties on!

Best of luck – have a great weekend everyone and happy fathers day to all the days celebrating this weekend.


Mini Glassware Sale


August 29, 2013

Hello Everyone!  Just popping in quickly today to let you know that I have a few great offers on these mini glassware items in the store!  They are all reduced to $1.50 each until Sunday 1st September.

The mini pots are really popular for parties for serving jelly, mousse, pannacotta or even cheesecakes – the clip jar also works well for these desserts.  The test tubes are fantastic for favours and the mini bottles make any party look perfect!

Start thinking about all those spring and summer parties and stock up now!

Visit the Sweet Style store to order


The Perfect Gluten Free Cookies


August 28, 2013

It is always a good day on the blog when Gillian from Crumbs of Comfort Cake Design is dropping by to share one of her gluten free recipes.  With the rise and rise of the need for families to have great gluten free options these monthly recipes of Gillian’s have become a favourite.

Today Gillian has made for us perfect Gluten Free Confetti Cookies – they are also nut free and can be dairy free too!

Please share Gillian’s great recipes and tips around with your friends!

Gluten Free Confetti Cookies

Ingredients
125g butter, at room temperature
200g  soft brown sugar
2 eggs
300g gluten free plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
150g Blackwoods rainbow chips

Preheat oven to 180°C (160C fan forced)

Beat butter and brown sugar until well combined. Add the eggs and beat well after each addition.
Sift together plain flour and baking powder and mix into the butter mixture. Stir in rainbow chips.
Using a tablespoon to measure, roll spoonfuls of mixture into balls and place about 15cm apart on oven trays lined with non-stick baking paper. Flatten the balls to about 7cm in diameter and 5-8 mm thick.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from oven and cool on trays.

Tips & ideas

Blackwoods rainbow chips are a wonderful addition to any pantry.  Chocolate is one of the ingredients that poses the most problems for people with allergies and intolerances.   Rainbow chips are nut, egg, dairy & gluten free and readily available in the baking aisle at the larger supermarkets.
If you require dairy free, simply swap butter for dairy free spread.
Try scooping ice cream between two to make an ice cream sandwich…..trust me, they’re delicious.

Gillian Brown is the owner of Crumbs of Comfort Cake Design in Brisbane, Australia.  Gillian has spent many years working hard developing allergen aware baked goods after she was diagnosed with celiac disease and her daughter was diagnosed with anaphylaxis to peanuts.  Please visit Gillian’s facebook page to learn more about her wonderful business.


Monday Favourite – The Flour Girl


August 26, 2013

 Some truly gorgeous cakes to show you from a  recent find of mine – Sherie who is The Flour Girl in Brisbane!  Her cakes are simply beautiful and when I asked her about her love of cake decorating and her business this is what she told me.

How long ago did you find your passion for creating beautiful cakes?
About 8 years ago I worked fro a family owned business that produced Vanilla Extract and flavours etc, I was actually in an accounts/admin role but quite often I would alter recipes I liked to include the Queen branded flavourings and then i’d bake it and one of the son’s who worked there would photograph the cakes for the recipes section of their website.

It wasn’t long after that I made my first ever sculpted cake using fondant for my best friend’s baby shower, it was a pregnant belly cake, from there I got the bug and it just grew into an obsession, I got better & better and decided to launch my business the The Flour Girl, it wasn’t long before I had to make a decision to keep it small or leave my day job and see where it took me, so that’s exactly what I did, I quit my job and now I run the flour girl full time, it’s like a dream come true!

How long have you had your business?
I’ve now had The Flour Girl for around 2 years and everyday I wake up with a smile on my face because I know what the day has install for me.

What is the most popular flavour of cake from your customers?
My most popular flavour by far is Pineapple & Coconut with Coconut Buttercream layers, its scrumptious!

To see more of Sherie’s stunning cakes please visit her facebook page here or her website here.

Gorgeous photography by Sarzy O Photography

 

 


Sienna’s 9th Birthday


August 23, 2013

We celebrated another birthday in our house last weekend when my big girl Sienna turned 9!

No big fancy dessert table for this party as we took some of her lovely friends out to do some bowling on Sunday evening – nice and relaxed and easy.  We did however have a fun cake made by Cakes by Sharon and a very quick few photos (reluctantly may I say!) before we headed out!

Sharons cake was delicious – a vanilla mud cake with dark chocolate ganache – Yum!

Happy Birthday Sienna x