sweet bippy papers

Inspiration Photo of the Day

2009-12-15T23:16:00.008-05:00

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I took this photo a good long time ago—9 months ago to be exact. My boyfriend's parents have an old sewing table in their guest room. We've been dating for a good while so I've seen this sewing table many times. I finally decided to open the little drawers though. There are 2 or 3 small drawers on it so I finally peeked in. What I found was a delight—bright & colorful thread, old vintage labels (us graphic designers eat that stuff up) on the spools—it was just good stuff. Now that I'm a blogger and think in terms of "Heywhatamigonnablogaboutnow????" (yes, that's all one big phrase b/c that's how my brain functions--lots of thoughts & things coming together quickly & crazily) I carry my camera w/ me the majority of the time. This was one of those times so I pulled the little digital cam-cam out of my purse and snapped away.

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Now can I sew? Nope, not a chance. I understand sewing. I understand the logic behind making patterns, I understand why certain threads in certain fabrics with certain needles, I understand most of it. But my downfall? Threading that *&#$%@!*&$%* machine!! I cannot thread a sewing machine to save my soul. Bobbins hate me. Needles don't like me. Which is a shame b/c I'm convinced I'd make a killer fashion designer (clothing & fashion are what my dreams are made of). If someday I hit some major cash and find a magical machine that'll thread itself, I'll be all over it. But for now? It's stitch-witch for this girl. And just admiring these pretty little spools, colors, labels & all.

Coming soon to a gift near you...

2009-12-02T22:50:00.007-05:00

Buy it, use it, print it, tape it... (to the tune of Daft Punk "Technologic")

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Here at the Sweet Bippy Papers factory (otherwise known as my apartment), I'm busy working on some Christmas wrapping tags. My plan is to post them as a printable PDF. I might also post them as real, physical, pre-cut tags with adhesive. I'm not quite sure yet. But what I DO know, is that I hope to have these puppies up in my shop by Friday. That'd be ideal. There's also a blue and a green design, but that'll just have to be surprise for when they're posted to the Etsy shop! ;-)

pretty.

2009-11-25T15:48:00.001-05:00

Inspiration photo of the day. My fabric bin sits next to my couch, adjacent to my hallway. I just folded and stacked the fabrics I used for a recent cupcake photoshoot and they're sitting there, their pretty patterns and colors staring me in the face when I walk by. My favorite's the brown polka dot. I'm a sucker for polka dots. Maybe it's b/c they look like sprinkles.

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I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving holiday. I look forward to sharing some of my holiday ideas soon!

I Heart Macarons. Times 10... or more.

2009-11-13T00:34:00.001-05:00

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This is a picture I stole from Fred Flare. I'm not going to lie. I'm not going to pretend its mine. I wish it was, but its not. I saw this on Facebook. I'm FB friends w/ Fred Flare, and therefore this little ditty was in my Live News Feed. A book entitled I Heart Macarons. (PS: Hi Fred, or should I say People of Fred. I've been a fan for a long time!)

Let me tell you. I. LOVE. MACARONS. I can't handle how much I love them.

See that? There I am in Beverly Hills (visiting one of my bestest friends who lives in LA) in front of Paulette, a macaron bakery. A STRICLY MACARON bakery. They are such wonderful, beautiful creations. I only wish I could go back to obtain more of the gorgeous goodies so I could photograph them in all their delicate glory. This photo is about a year and a half old now (a long-term love affair I have w/ this cookie) and looking at it makes me want to go into a whole new story (the packaging, the brilliant logomark macaron cut-outs on the bench, etc) but I DIGRESS. I'M TALKING FOODS HERE, PEEPS. I'm talking MACARONS!!

This photo? It's from Paulette Macarons website. I certainly did not make, nor did I photograph these beauties. But I do recommend you go to Paulette and indulge in a serious way. You'll be so glad you did.

The macaron is, like I said above, VERY DELICATE. It's a curious little puffy shape, the entire constructed cookie sandwich looking hamburger-esque. Its sturdy but the second you touch it just a little too hard it will crumble to pieces. Its made of mainly egg whites, almond flour, sugar, and maybe some flavoring for the cookie part. The inside is usually a ganache, jelly, or jam concoction. My favorite flavors involve pistachio and/or anything floral--rose, lavendar, whatever. I'm a sucker for it everytime. Besides cupcakes & frosting, these are such a wonderful vehicle for experimenting with dessert flavors.

I've tried making these many a times. I wouldn't quite say I SUCCEEDED, but I certainly didn't fail (well, I failed once, but other than that...). I'm like...85-90% there. The basic idea is down. It's a tough nut to crack. Its a French creation, which means most recipes (even the ones in English) are in metric measurements. It's one of those moments where you feel like an American hick w/ the rest of the world all speaking metric and here I am, trying to translate 55 grams of egg whites into a measurement in cups. LAME. But its worth the struggle. I never went to any sort of baking school so I go into these experiments blindly. I just really want to try to do something so I don't actually realize how difficult or tricky something might be until the 4th time around b/c... I just don't know better.

In order to find recipes, I scoured the internet and generally fell into the same two or three recipes that were pretty widely used. I received Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook last year for Christmas which ALSO has a recipe for French macarons, which I have yet to try. (I KNOW. I KNOW!!! What have I been doing?!?!) BUT THIS??? This is like a godsend. Or maybe its not, I don't know. But it looks amazing. So between Martha & this? I have to think I'd be able to kick some Macaron ass, right? Maybe? Hopefully?

So this post is in honor of Macarons. It's in honor of this book, in honor of Fred Flare, and even Paulette Macarons. Thank you, wonderful people, for providing us with either the baked confections or just the resources with which we can create our own goods. I'd hold up a champagne toast but I've got no bubbly so we'll just have to pretend. Here's to making beautiful, colorful, luscious treats for one and all! *CHEERS!!!!!!!!*

And just for fun, here are some photos from Paulette's site. Really, if you're ever in LA (Beverly Hills, specifically), make it a point to stop in and take a few bites. The staff was incredibly kind, the space was chic, and the cookies were tops. And the logo & business card? Yup, even those are good too. ;-)

Effervescent Deliciousness.

2009-10-28T19:15:00.009-04:00

Effervescent. It's a good word, right? EF-FER-VE-SCENT. It just sounds...sparkly. Light. Airy. Positive. Uplifting. And DELICIOUS. Thirst-quenching. I've been craving effervescent beverages and because you can't drink champagne 24/7 (dammit!), I've been filling it in with other fruity substitutions when I need a serious fix. Izze does the job—I'm partial to the grapefruit and ginger flavors. How could you not be drawn in by the colors and simple, chic design? I've indulged in an Italian soda or two from Target's Archer Farms line or World Market. Blood orange soda? Peach Pear Soda? Yup! But you know what really strikes my fancy?

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ORANGINA. See the bottle in the bottom of the illustration? Isn't it perfect???? That's part of the fun, the Orangina adventure. That short, squatty little bottle that's bulges out like a bulbous orange is inside the bottle giving it its shape. But, as a graphic designer, you know what else I love about the stuff? The ads. They're pretty pleasures. And you can download them from their website (which is where these came from)! They have desktop images, as well as a gallery of their poster campaigns. These are a few of my faves that I pulled for you (and me) to enjoy.

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They make me yearn for warmer weather, sunny skies, and a bulbous little bottle of the good orange stuff right now. *LE SIGH* I guess these will just have to do for now!

Color Theory + Baking = Happy

2009-10-26T00:23:00.002-04:00

I didn't mean for this to happen. It was a total accident.

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The colors? Yeah. They progress in color. It was a total accident. I was making these cookies and got super excited when I was digging out various jam jars from the back of my fridge. I just wanted to use them all. Little did I know I was creating a pastry rainbow. Anyway. More about the cookies later, like "Hey, ML, what's that jam in the middle?" "Oh, well you see that dark reddish one there? That's..." all in due time, my friends.

Apple Pickin' Perfect.

2009-10-26T00:04:00.001-04:00

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I have a lot of blogging to do. I've been behind. Uber behind. I planned to do a big ol' cute post on a trip to Lynd's Fruit Farm out in Pataskala, only that was two weeks ago and I finally sorted through the photos. My boyfriend and I only started going to Lynd's last year but I'm pretty sure it's going to be a yearly tradition...mainly b/c I'll stomp around and whine if I don't get to go. PLUS, going to Lynd's means there's apples with which to make crisp and/or pie. So really, making sure I get to Lynd's is a favor to EVERYONE. (uh huh, yeah, sure) ;-)

See the sun? The pretty blue sky?? (Hang on, wait, let me find a picture...)

Just enough cool air to nip your nose but just enough sun and warmth that as long as you bundle up, you don't need a coat. Early October apple picking is PERRRRFECT. So perfectly fall. I always read blogs by people in fancier cities (LA, NYC, San Francisco, Belgium, blah blah) and they always have such gorgeous posts of their local markets and produce and ingredients. Well, I'm here in the middle of Ohio. We have that stuff, don't get me wrong. But it's not quite in abundance as oh, say, walking around France and picking up some fresh baguettes, cheese, and berries to get you through the day (sad face). Or maybe it is and I just don't have my trusty camera poised and in position ready to snap away (dang it!). But now it's my turn! My turn to post images full of vibrant natural colors, delicious foods, and plain, good old-fashioned seasonal freakin' fun. I could yammer on and on...but why? Heeeerrreeeee we go!

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Close-up of a suncrisp apple, my favorite. The red ones are melrose.

Inside the tent at the farm. If you don't find what you're looking for while you pick, you can find it here.

Silly me, when we walked past these really quickly (my boyfriend thought I was nuts for stopping for photos every two seconds) I didn't really notice what these were. Due to their color my brain just thought "blueberries." But uh, yeah. Isn't blueberry season quite over? Turns out while I was making my way around the tent a second time, I actually read the sign that said they were concord grapes. They're pretty, aren't they?? And I just LOOOOVE the little green baskets. I know, I know. It's the simple, little things, right? You don't get cute little green baskets when you buy your stuff from the big box grocers. Kroger, where is my cute produce packaging, dammit!

Back outside! Time to check out the pumpkin patch.
Um, yeah, the patch is actually...kinda gross. Mudtown. Super mudtown. Lots of bruised and rotting pumpkins. BUT hey, today is nature day, right? WE LOVE NATURE. BRING IT ON, PUMPKINS.

And that's it. I'll be posting these to my flickr account if you're wildly interested so once those are up, I'll let you know. Now don't all these pictures make you want to go bake a pie???? (okay, that might just be me.) :-)

Adventures at Cupcake Camp Columbus

2009-10-10T19:19:00.000-04:00

Stories to come. PROMISE. For now, just dream about these little delicious things.

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Tiny Canary, this one's for you!

2009-09-27T20:44:00.056-04:00

This post is dedicated to Tiny Canary 2009! Hello & welcome to Sweet Bippy Papers! Sit back and scroll through the pics.

I launched my brand in February of this year & have had an Etsy shop since then. However, I feel like my work will be represented more clearly here on my blog. My products are chic paper goods with a purpose. To set myself apart, I pride myself on designing practical items that can fit into your every day. I love all things culinary so I focus on items like recipe cards & kitchen magnets. Other items include all-purpose labels & tags, bookmarks, & of course, thank you cards & blank notes. I am currently working on a 2010 Cocktail-of-the-Month Calendar that will be finished shortly & ready for Tiny Canary. I hope you enjoy what I have to offer, because I would love to be a part of this great event! If you would like to see more, check out my Etsy shop at www.sweetbippypapers.com.

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Recipe Cards
5 current designs, new designs in development for the holidays.
Sold in sets of 10 cards for $10/set.

-Airmail Chic 6x4 Cards-

-Darling Deer 6x4 Cards-

-"Eat It, Love It, Crave It" Recipe Cards-
Set of 12. 3 different designs, 4 of each
$12/set

-Culinary Charm 4x6 Cards, Green-

-Culinary Charm 4x6 Cards, Pink-

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Kitchen Conversion Magnet
Simple, straight-forward, clever & oh, so useful!
$2.50/magnet

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Patterned All-Purpose Tags
Set of 10 tags. Five different designs, 2 of each.
$2.50/set

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Notecards

Various designs in A2 format (4.25" x 5.5").
Blank notes = 3 cards & 3 envelopes per set. Thank you notes = 5 cards & 5 envelopes per set. Prices are $8-10/set. Birthday cards are sold as singles at $3.50/card.

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Dashing Little Bookmarks
Set of 5 covetable bookmarks that will make anyone want to read. Five designs in the set.
$2.50/set

**All products are printed on 110 lb cardstock**

Thank you for your time and I hope to see you in November!

Yours truly, Mary Lynn

Working on...

2009-09-12T12:17:00.002-04:00

I have a genius idea. Well, okay, at least I think it's a genius idea. And it's currently in the works...

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A calendar! But not just any calendar. A cocktail-of-the-month calendar for 2010. Aren't you pumped??? I am! I'm still working on the form--what size? How will it hang? Should it REALLY be this horizontal? Right now, I'm trying to work in a 6x4 recipe card so when you're done with the month, all you have to do is chop part of it off and the cocktail recipe can be kept for a rainy (or sunny!) day. Genius, right? Okay, maybe not genius, but pretty good. So I can't promise it'll look exactly like this in the end, but it'll be close. Wish me luck!

coming soon to a kitchen near you...

2009-09-11T23:43:00.005-04:00

Et voila! Or something.

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I'm working on new recipe cards for both print & pdf format. Here's a work in progress. Click on it for a closer look (I think it should work across platforms & browsers). Fun, right? Hang on. It gets better....

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THERE'S THREE OF THEM! All in one set! Because who doesn't want a little variety in their life?? And sometimes, saying "eat it" is just funny. But I think I'll be switching the colors of "crave it" and "eat it" b/c the confectionery light purple/pink feels more alluring for "crave it," while the green just feels better for "eat it." Do you care? Probably not? Moving on.

I'm personally OBSESSED with helvetica neue & bodoni so I had to throw myself a bone and design something around my two favorite typefaces. Let me tell you something. When you have a close relationship with certain fonts, the design process goes WAY FASTER than when you're forcing yourself to use something different. It's like having a conversation with a close friend vs trying to converse w/ a new acquaintance you don't quite have much in common with. Am I crazy, or does that make sense? Anyway, those are your words of wisdom for the day, brought to you by MLP.

Cookie Craving. Peanut Butter Ginger Bacons.

2009-09-10T12:14:00.001-04:00

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Oh yeah. I went there. And they're even dipped in chocolate.

I can't really take FULL credit. The idea came from Joy the Baker when she made her Peanut Butter Bacon cookies a few days ago. It was super easy. Have you ever made 5-ingredient peanut butter cookies? Peanut butter, sugar, egg, baking soda, vanilla. That's it. No flour, so I guess they can even be called "gluten-free." So it's basically that, plus cooked bacon.

Well. Here's my problem. When it comes to baking and recipes, I can't just leave well enough alone. (That's the saying, right?) I have to doctor it up or do something to give it my own twist. Even before I make the original recipe. People yell at me for this. I say "Screw it. I wanna do it this way." It's so much more exciting! So what I did w/ the cookies...

I candied the bacon first. DELICIOUS. If you haven't heard of candied bacon, it's super easy. You basically coat the bacon in brown sugar and bake or broil it. Some people make a glaze. Some people add a spice. Emeril Lagasse does it with brown sugar & cayenne powder. I made a glaze of 2 tbsp honey, 1/2 c brown sugar, & 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger. Then you schmear it on the bacon—I made 10 pieces. My glaze was too thick and I had a ton left, so next time, I'm going to keep the amount of honey & ginger but only do 1/4 c brown sugar. Then you bake it (or broil it). And then you eat it. And it's AMAZING.

So after the bacon cooled down, I chopped it up into bits and pieces, put it in the cookie mixture, folded it in, et voila. Peanut butter bacon cookies. But that wasn't all. I also added 1 tsp of the bacon grease to add a smokey flavor and 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger to the cookie mixture. I'm obsessed w/ fresh ginger. I can't get enough. Its like I was missing it my whole life and only within recent started integrating it into sweets. There were some doubts, but you know what I say? Y'ALL. TRUST ME. Just trust me on these things. The peanut butter + ginger? It's good. It was a good idea. It's your prerogative not to like it, but just give it a whirl before you go hate on it. Thank you. :)

Alright. After all that, roll it up, dip them in sugar, press some fork criss-cross patterns into them if you like, and pop it in the oven at 350 until they're lovely golden brown & delicious. Probably 8-10 minutes. My oven's a bit psychotic so I can't accurately gauge timing (that story will be another day).

After they've baked and cooled, melt some chocolate w/ some paraffin wax. Dip an edge of the cookies in the chocolate, set them aside and let them cool yet again. I put them in the fridge so the chocolate would set better.

In the end, I think candying the bacon actually toned down the bacon flavor, which made them more versitle. Not everyone loves the idea of bacon in their baked goods but the bacon flavor in these was subtle, even while biting into actual bacon pieces.

So yeah. That's it. I shouldn't say "that's it" b/c it's more involved than I expected, but still easy! What's not to love about a peanut butter cookie dipped in chocolate? AND THEN BACON???? The intrigue level is HIGH. "Say what?? Bacon? For real?" Yes, for real. Plus, you can pass them off as "high-protein cookies" if anyone needs extra convincing. :-)

Adventures in Cake Balls

2009-09-02T22:40:00.002-04:00

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What's this, you ask? It's a cake ball! It's cake, frosting, & chocolate all wrapped up into a cute little bon-bon type treat. AND... they're called "cake balls." Let's face it. Saying the word "balls" is funny. (Yeah, you know what I'm talking about!) I'm normally not one to love fifth-grade humor, but even I get a secret chuckle out of saying "cake balls" to people. When they ask "What are these?" and you cheerfully reply "Cake balls!" with a toothy grin, they smile back, giggle like a 10 year old and say "CAKE BALLS?!?" b/c 1) they look super cute--how could you not love them? and 2)...they're laughing b/c you just said "balls." It's fun. Try it. But anyway, I digress. On to the point.

The inside is chocolate cake mixed w/ salted caramel frosting, actual salted caramel, cream cheese, & cinnamon. Then it's dipped in milk chocolate and topped w/ salt & roasted pecans. This was the first cake ball making adventure. I had a batch of chocolate cupcakes that didn't turn out quite right a few evenings ago. They tasted absolutely fine! But I must've been rushing through the motions and not put the right amount of baking powder or something in the mix b/c they just would not hold together. I'd unwrap them, and they'd crumble. Again, they tasted fine! So I really didn't want to toss the 36 bunk cupcakes that I now had sitting around b/c that's some expensive ingredients to just toss, you know? So now what??? How about some cake balls!

Have you heard of cake balls? If not, check out Bakerella. She's got a bunch of ideas. The link will lead you to her "cake ball" section, but she also has some tasty looking cake pops (basically the same thing but in a slightly different form). If you Google a recipe, the basic ones will tell you that it's a sheet cake (baked) crumbled up and mixed w/ a can of frosting, rolled into balls, chilled, and then dipped in chocolate. Since I make all my own goods here at the Sugarlush kitchen, I use my gourmet frostings & other ingredients to enhance the deliciousness of each tasty morsel. It's totally worth it.

Before I leave you, might I recommend a glass of milk to go along with the tasty bites! They're delicious, but SUPER RICH. So maybe even an ideal diet dessert, right?!?! It's by no means low-fat, but you eat just one and you're satisfied! It's a good theory, anyway. ;-)

Sugarlush goes to a wedding.

2009-08-10T00:10:00.005-04:00

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I had my first wedding! As a baker, that is. I not only make paper goods, I also bake...quite obsessively. A lot. Have I mentioned this before? Probably. So I run a small business out of my home selling cupcakes by the order. In this case, I go by Sugarlush Cupcakes. Do you want cupcakes? Let me know. DO YOU WANT FROSTING??? YOU KNOOOOOW YOU WANT MY FROSTING. Let me know that too. Anyway, here's the story.

My excellent friend (and former roommate) Stefanie got married yesterday. Being the wonderful person she is (as well as budget-conscious!), she hired me to do the cupcakes for her wedding. The guest list was small—approx 50 people in attendance—which was absolutely fine by me! I baked 6 dozen cupcakes, which means 72 little cute cakes for you non-dozen-converters out there. The wedding turned out beautifully, and everyone dug into the cake and definitely didn't hold back when it came to grabbing a second. :-)

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The flavors she chose were Spice Cake with Vanilla Malt Frosting and Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting, w/ 3 dozen of each. The Spice Cake was appropriately garnished with a cinnamon stick (TRES CUTE!)…

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…while the Chocolate Cake w/ caramel frosting was garnished with the usual piece of fleur de sel caramel candy. The results were positive! They were much loved by all. The chocolate ones were demolished. There was one left towards the end of the evening, which Stef set aside to freeze for the 1-year-anniversary-tradition. There were a few spice cake cupcakes left since most got their fill on the chocolate option. Seriously, the chocolate-cupcake + salted-caramel combo is a crowd pleaser! For some reason, I'm always surprised at how quickly that one cleans up.

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So how 'bout that tiered mappy lookin' display there, eh? That was made by Stef, the bride herself. We found something online awhile ago about about a 3-tier cupcake display. If I remember correctly, some blogger girl (? I think??) was both selling kits, as well as giving instructions on how to do it yourself. I can't remember if Stef bought the kit or not... I'll have to ask her. But anyway, she put it together herself. She and her man, Steve, both majored in Geography-type studies in college. They share a LOOOOVE of maps. So we saw this online and obviously it was the winner. She made it, I just put the cupcakes on it. Cute, right? And quite a great idea. If you could get circular discs, this concept could be used for any number of occasions--all you have to change is the paper! BRILLIANT! The tiers were held with 2 pieces of corrugated cardboard, intersecting in the middle to create the cross-shaped sturdy support.

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So I guess all that's left to say is… Congratulations guys! I'm so happy for you! :-)

Lilly Loves Chanel

2009-07-27T23:19:00.013-04:00

Disclaimer: I have nothing to do with taking any of these images. All Lilly photos are from Cyana Trend Land.

Recently I fell upon the new images for the Chanel handbag campaign featuring Lilly Allen. I have a love for Lilly Allen. Despite being a little crazy or whackadoodle once in awhile, I love her spirit and attitude. Her songs delight me. They're beautifully sung but there's always something ironic, humorous, or a little "hey, f- you!" jab in there. It just feels... GOOD.

Now, I also have a love for Chanel. What fashion-lover DOESN'T love Chanel, or at least appreciate and respect it? Karl Lagerfeld, for lack of a better phrase, cracks me up. I don't know how else to put it. He's another one--totally crazy and totally whackadoodle. But instead of being annoyed with it, why not just laugh and be amused? He's doing wonderful things for the world of fashion and his photographs (Yes, Karl took these himself. At least so says the internet) of Lilly are AMAZING. I've always thought she was a super cute girl, but I'm in love with these photos. They're stunning. The high contrast, the details in the apparel, and her cheeky expressions??? I would totally print these as a poster series for my apt.... actually, that's not a bad idea...

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Popsicle Explosion

2009-07-22T13:06:00.004-04:00

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I'm obsessed w/ cupcakes on a regular basis, but for summer time, I'm also obsessed w/ popsicles. Not just regular popsicles though. I could care less about those. I'm talking FANCY popsicles. GOURMET popsicles. Unique combinations and glorious flavor explosions in a colorful shell. It's fun, but sophisticated. It's a chance to experiment, but without serious commitment. It's easy enough to do, but an intricate and intriguing recipe process. The possibilities are ENDLESS!

These are the popsicles sitting in my freezer right now. Of course, they're sitting on a lovely tray and I tried my best to create a lovely photoshoot. But the assortment is quite varied. Here's the color chart:

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I might even be so wild as to post some recipes soon. What do you think? Would you be all for it?

Peaches galore!

2009-07-19T22:01:00.004-04:00

One of the things I've been up to lately is baking. I know, if you know me, that's not a surprise. Recently, George (the bf) purchased a case of fresh peaches from what we like to call The Fruit Truck (H&S Citrus, technically). Well, it's wonderful because then we have tons of pure, delicious, fresh peaches. The bummer is that we have somewhere between 40-50 of these peaches and since they're so real and untouched, once they're good, you have to use them... FAST. So this is one of those peach adventures. A rustic peach tart.

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Actually it's a rustic peach-ginger-lime tart, with tender, flaky dough, freshly grated ginger, and key lime juice. Looks delicious, no? I glazed the dough w/ an egg wash and sprinkled turbinado sugar on top as well. Results? I took it to work and it was gone in less than 10 minutes. :-) I'd say the results were positive.

Still here!

2009-07-19T19:45:00.003-04:00

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted!!! OY! But I've been hard at work---at my day job, my cupcake-making job, and of course, my lovely paper-designing job. Recently I've been reshooting some photos of product. There's a craft fair coming up in Columbus that I'm entering and hoping I get accepted to show my stuff. Here's one of the many reshoots.

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love this. like a lot.

2009-03-25T07:50:00.008-04:00

i love this. it's from kate spade's homepage to promote the spring shoe collection. what's not to love about bright sunny yellow w/ a hint of city street and bright patterns. i don't own any kate spade personally, but i think its a very smart brand. everything is done so smartly and cleverly--same goes for brother company, jack spade. and w/ the new creative director, Deborah Lloyd (former Banana Republic executive vice president of product design and development), I think it's been edged-up a bit. It was always so clean, classic, and fun, but now I think there's a subtle level of cheeky youthfulness that wasn't necessarily as noticeable before.

one more thing i love about kate spade? the behind the curtain section of the website--it's a different feel from the shopping site, but it's filled with brilliant goodies: inspiration, designer info, projects, events, etc.

yes. yes, kate & co. this is one of my favorites too. le sigh...

i wish i was in new york...

2009-03-02T12:17:00.004-05:00

...so i could go here when it opens.

This is the rendering that was on NY Mag. Oh, to sit, drink tea, indulge in french macarons... that is the life I should someday like to enjoy...even if for just a day!

Working on it...

2009-03-01T16:25:00.007-05:00

Hey guys! I'm working on some new product as we speak. Things just got a little busier at work (Which is good! KEEP FINGERS CROSSED!) so the new products are taking a little longer than expected. I'm so sorry! But hey, maybe the longer I wait, the sooner the economy will get better and you all can buy my goods, right? :-) Eh, wishful thinking. I know. But anyway, here's what's coming.

• recipe cards, both personalized and non-personalized
• wine tags
• book plates

The recipe cards will be up first... like... w/in a day or two. The wine tags and bookplates will be a little while, but I'll keep you posted!

Now, tell me something. I'm toying around w/ the idea of selling PDFs on Etsy. It makes both our lives easy. It's cheaper for you, and you don't have to wait for a package to be shipped. I don't have to hand-cut and package and ship anything, so it's easy for me. Would you be interested in this? Send me an email or post a comment!

I think I'll post a few items as both a ready-made paper good and a downloadable PDF and see how things go. If you have any thoughts or wishes, please let me know! I'd love to hear them, since you're the ones keeping me going!

Currently loving... Jaqk Cellars

2009-02-11T22:43:00.018-05:00

I'm in love with Jaqk Cellars, a collection of wines from California wine country. I love it a lot. Which is kind of weird b/c I've never actually drank the wine. I've never ever seen it in the store. I've only stalked it online, drooling over all the pretty pretty on the website. I stumbled across it while on The Dieline awhile ago and immediately went to the winery's site. I signed up for receiving newsletters--why? I dunno. B/c it might enlighten me somehow? B/c on top of the other 1757 newsletters/email blasts/stuff I get in my email I need to add one from a random winery in San Francisco whose wine I might never experience? B/c the bottles are just really pretty? I like to be on top of things, which causes me to sign up for way too many newsletters that I think I might read. That, and b/c I like deals and sales and the best way to know about these things is through email blasts. Once in awhile, they come through! So anyway, I'm getting off topic.

JAQK CELLARS. It's hot. The graphics are gorgeous. Some are intricate, some are simple. Some feel old school, or like cut paper! Some feel sparkly and sprightly (the sauvignon blanc)! But I can't get enough! Just look!

You can probably see this larger if you click on it. So apparently two of the three founders for this wine place also started their own branding firm--Hatch Design. I'm going to call it a "branding firm" b/c I really don't know what else to call it. Their About Us page has a simple statement that ends with "Hatch Design helps new products and businesses get off the ground, and helps existing brands soar." Huh? Great. Cool. Love it....so what is it you do, exactly? Do they really design the stuff or are they a consultancy?? Do they sit around and talk about their feelings? Probably yes to all of the above. Nice work if you can get it, right??? Designer by day, sommelier/winery owner by night--SOUNDS LIKE THE LIFE TO ME! But whatever it is they do, whether they design stuff themselves or hire people like me to design things or just know when to pick a pretty picture, they did a fab job. And thanks to my penchant for signing up for newsletters, I received the glorious graphic at the very beginning of this post which inspired me to tell all you beautiful people about this delicious find! (pun not intended...or maybe it IS intended...I can't decide)

So for all you people who like a little more substance and not just looks, this brand is very smart. They actually have instructions online for playing certain card/party games (Texas Hold Em, Charades, Botticelli--whatever that is). Cool, huh? Way to enrich your brand and bring meaning to the brand name and graphics.

Alright, I just wanted to inform and inspire. That's what I aim to do! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do, and if you get the chance, DRINK A BOTTLE AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK, kay?! Thanks, babes.

a moment of mourning...

2009-01-31T08:56:00.004-05:00

I learned a few days ago that domino magazine is officially ending. Metaphorical tears were falling. My heart sank. After referencing this magazine at work for years, I had finally asked for a gift subscription for Christmas! I'm a renter, so subscribing was a kind of tricky decision--do I just add to the pile of magazines I already try to keep up with even though most of Domino's content is inapplicable and unaffordable for my personal situation? Or do I delight in the lovely spreads, inspiring information, and just save the tips for a rainy day that I might spend in my future home?? I went for the latter. Gimme that mag!

Conde Nast must be laughing at us new subscribers (well, they would be if they weren't crying themselves.) Sorry, Charlie! Your wishes are DENIED. So I will enjoy the January, February, and March issues and then the magazine folds forever, INCLUDING the online ventures I do believe. Ultra sadness.

After sharing this news with several friends, there was an immediate response of "WHAT?!?!?!? BUT I JUST RENEWED MY SUBSCRIPTION!" and "I JUST GOT A SUBSCRIPTION FOR MY BIRTHDAY!" Sigh...no more Blueprint, now no more Domino. Now what will be the hip home magazine to read?

artists have to make art

2009-01-22T20:52:00.009-05:00

One of my favorite shows to watch is Ace of Cakes on the Food Network. Duff (the owner of Charm City Cakes, the company that the show is about) is kind of a hero to me. He found something he really loved to do, started his own business (despite being scared of out his mind), and worked his tail off to get where he is today. And it's not like he's prancing around in a fancy chef's coat all day bossing people around. He's a totally normal guy but still has an incredibly successful business just doing his thing. I saw his "Chefography" and he was talking about the people he hires. He doesn't hire cake decorators or pastry chefs. They're all artists. Fine artists. Painters, sculptures, etc. Duff, himself, is a welder. What he said was super simple but holds so much truth. "Artists need to make art." If they don't do something creative and don't make art, they'll go crazy. It's funny because it's true--it really is a NEED. And being an artist/designer/baker myself, I can relate! It's one of those things that you almost crave doing, especially if you haven't released any creative energy in awhile. Whether it's something crafty or painting something or building something or decorating a cute cake, it's something inside you that you just have to do.

So Duff, you're my inspiration.

I've had some extra time on my hands recently so I'm going to tackle one of my dreams, start doing what I love, and try to turn it into something during that time. I design. I'm a graphic designer for a living at my job and I totally love it, but this is going to be different. I want to design paper goods. Stationery, notecards, recipe cards, bookplates, magnets, OH the possibilities are ENDLESS! There's something magical about paper goods. They bring smiles to so many faces. They're so small and precious. They don't necessarily even have to be anything deep & meaningful--they can just be an expression of you! BUT REGARDLESS IT'S EXPRESSED IN A PRACTICAL FORM!!!!!! That's the beauty in these magical little delights--they're not only beautiful, well-crafted little treasures, oh no--they're also functional! Okay, NOW I'm giddy. I could crack some joke about "putting the fun in functional" but I don't want to make you barf, let alone myself.

For the past two months I've been cranking out designs. Some are inspired. Some are totally random. Some are accidental, or as we in the design world like to say, "happy accidents."

I've been racking my brain on a brand name and then it finally hit me--SWEET BIPPY. Sweet Bippy Papers. The phrase "you bet your sweet bippy" popped into my head and I thought "That's it! Sweet bippy!" My boyfriend had no idea this phrase even existed so I googled it to make sure I wasn't crazy. I wasn't. It was apparently very popular on "Laugh-In." (Sorry guys, I'm too young to know this off hand.) The meaning? Supposedly "You bet your sweet ass." HAH! That makes me love it EVEN MORE. It's so cute, so spunky, but secretly a little irreverent. Perfect. ;-)

This blog is going to be all about inspiration (design related, food related, totally random, whatever), cool trends I spot, entrepreneurial adventures, and whatever else I deem worthy of this here blog which could very well be a recap of the last episode of Gossip Girl or why Uncle Jesse is an icon for a generation. (John Stamos forever!)

Also, I would like to give a shout-out to one of my dearests, Asako Sprague. There were many a days we shared inspiration, interesting new finds, and had dreams of making cute paper things. She has her own business, Paper and Inkling, and has been doing it for awhile now. Without her encouragement and helpful hints, I probably wouldn't have started this endeavor so enthusiastically. So thank you, Asako!

I think this deserves a toast, no? A toast to me, a toast to you who will hopefully keep reading my blog, a toast to Duff Goldman and Asako, and a toast to Liz Lemon/Tina Fey who is on 30 Rock right this second. Charles Shaw, I'm coming for you!