Let's get organised y'all!!

Hey guys!!  Hope you are enjoying this glorious day we are having!  I'm in such an organising mood today, thanks to a certain messy house that desperately needs tidying up!  LOL.  No, but I have been feeling rather drained lately, so I haven't spent much time organising the house.  I wouldn't go as far as to use the word 'neglect' because the house is not too bad...I still manage to do a quick tidy up here and there, but today I have made the decision to get my A into G - no matter how I am feeling!!

Remember how I shared with you this DIY storage box I made out of my boys' nappy boxes??  Well, since then I've made two and have already found use for them - it's awesome!!  Then I wanted to get my oldest son Javaughn to tackle his legos.  I did implement a system a few months ago, using buckets, and it was a great idea for a while, until I needed the buckets for something else...

I was at Kmart a couple of weeks ago and stumbled upon these cardboard storage boxes.  You get two for the price of 75c!!!  I actually thought it was a typo, so I went to the cashier to confirm it.  I grabbed 3 sets for Javaughn, to store all his lego.  

The boxes can be stacked two-high per shelf (see pic below), which is a great way to utilise all that space.  Having uniformed boxes really adds that special touch to his bedroom - it now looks awesome!!

He only ended up needing 4 because the boxes were pretty big, so I used the other 2 for my personal storage (to keep important documents together, etc).  And to make it even more efficient, we added labels on them (that I picked up from a variety store for $2) so we can see exactly what's inside without having to open up all the boxes!  (Please excuse this next blurry shot).

To ensure the boxes were being used to their full potential, I inserted dividers for those 'not so many' pieces to live in...

I love it when I see bargains that offers practical solutions!!  <3

Since we're discussing organisation today, here are some tips for how to get organised!  Laura, from I'm an Organizing Junkie, has put together a wonderful PROCESS to help anyone who is in need of some help on how to get started.  Her site offers sooo many different organising solutions, and I'm pretty sure she has answered (or can answer) any questions you may have.  Go on and check it out!  I promise it won't disappoint!!

So, if you've been ignoring the pile of clothes that desperately needs folding, or that kitchen sink that has a mountain of pots that need washing, why don't you join me today and tackle at least ONE area that needs attention?  Be sure to really invest a reasonable amount of time on completing that task, too.  I guarantee you will feel awesome afterwards!!  And one step closer to a tidier and more organised home!!

Happy organising everyone!!

xo

Psst...I'm currently working on two cakes...here's a progress shot of one of them...

...will tell you more about this next week, so stay tuned!!

Happy 1st birthday Bailey!!

Hi guys!!  Remember how I said I was working on two cakes on the weekend?  And how I shared this one with you early this week?  And then gave you a little sneak peak here?  Well, you'll be pleased to know that today I will finally reveal the cake to you!  So, let's not beat around the bush, shall we?

One of my hubby's colleagues, David, was adamant I be the one to make his daughter Bailey's birthday cake after devouring into one of my cupcakes.  He gave me one of Bailey's most loved toys, this sweet little seahorse, and wanted me to create a cake around that.  I must say, I love it when I get full design control!  It's awesome!!

So, here it is guys!  Hope you enjoy it as much as I had fun making it!!

Top...

 Back...

And, of course, like any piece of art, there has to be the artist's signature...

Thanks for stopping by guys!  Hope you enjoyed today's cake feature!!  Many more exciting ones to come your way, so stay tuned!!

Have an awesome Friday and a wonderful weekend!!  Blessings!!

xo

In loving memory of our Kreamie...

Hi guys!!

Sorry I have been absent.  It's been one full-on week for me, and non-cake related either...more 'life' related.  Yesterday was a very sad day for my family.  My parents' dearest furry cat friend, Kreamie, died from a tragic accident, and everyone, most especially the kids, are mourning her loss.  It was one tearful day for us all, and we bonded together at my place, then continued at my brother's place to console one another.  We will be holding a small funeral this weekend at my parents place so that the kids can say their goodbyes and have some closure, which will hopefully help them move forward.  We love you Kreamie, and will always treasure you in our memories.

On a much more lighter and sweeter note, I've decided to give you a little sneak preview of the cake I wanted to share with you yesterday.  As I am still waiting to receive a picture of the birthday girl with her cake, I thought it would be a good idea to show you something now...even if it is only the early stages of the cake...maybe you can try and work out the rest of the cake...hehe.  Enjoy!!

Have a wonderful Wednesday and see you back here tomorrow!!

xo

Once upon a time...

...there was a little girl named Jerilee who absolutely loved her fairy tales, most especially Snow White.  One day, her dear friend Pauline made a wish to a fairy cake mother to make her friend a special cake.  Then after a sparkly wave of the fairy cake mother's magic wand, there was this beautiful fairy tale book that had all the classic stories Jerilee loved and cherished as a child, and her birthday wish came true and was as magical as Tinkerbell's fairy dust!!

Good morning guys!  Hope you had a lovely weekend!  I certainly had a busy one, but loved that every minute of it was spent with my family :-)

Today I am excited to share with you a vintage fairy tale book cake I made on Saturday for a lady named Jerilee, who turned the big thirty!  I made sure this cake wasn't too young or girly.  I really wanted to represent 'classic' and chose a more neutral colour palette as opposed to the bright pinks and full on sparkles!  I did, however, add a sprinkle of 'fairy dust' on the cake, just to give it that subtle fairy-tale-feel about it whilst keeping it old school (you can't see it on the photos but up close and depending on your lighting, you can see the pretty sparkles).

So, without further ado, here's the cake!  Enjoy!!

I hope you liked today's cake feature!  I can't wait to share with you another cake I worked on (whilst working on this one) for a little girl named Bailey who turned the big ONE!!  Stay tuned!!

xo

Excited!!

Wow, remember the iPod touch cake I shared with you all here?  Well, I uploaded it on Cake Central, which is the largest online cake community in the world, on Tuesday afternoon, and when I visited the site the following morning I was surprised to see my cake featured on the front page as one of the most favourite cakes for the day!  It was ranked at top 2 with 95 favourites!  How cool is that?

I couldn't take a screen shot on my computer (the button wasn't working, or I was doing something wrong)...anyway, I really really wanted to share this with you so I took a snap with my camera, lol.  So, excuse the pics (if some look a bit hazy).

This isn't the first time my cakes have made it to the 'favourites', but this one just got me more excited for some reason, lol.  It is an incredible feeling to know that people from all over the world appreciate the effort you put into your creations :-)  And being able to inspire others is truly a blessing!  Thank you to all the Cake Central followers that added my cake to their favourites.  You're all so awesome!!

I'm currently working on two cakes (so I haven't slept yet...).  Will definitely share them with you next week!!  Can't wait to get these done so I can finally see the insides of my eyes!!  hahaha.

Happy Friday everyone!!  See you all next week!!

xo

Bubble fun with my boys!!

 Carlyle trying to catch the bubbles!  Now this photo taking bubble making process was quite challenging.  I had the bubbles in one hand, and my camera in the other.  I would blow until the room was filled with plenty of bubbles, then quickly grab my camera and try and capture the 'moment' lol.  Not too bad, but there were a lot of blurry photos.  I just had to choose the best ones, haha.

 Javier gets tickled by the bubbles.  So he pretty much laughed the entire time.  He also tried to eat the bubbles, which I didn't get to capture on camera but was super fun to watch.

Carlyle now on the couch (getting ready for his siesta) but still managing to squeeze in some bubble fun.

Javier was sooo happy, he didn't realise he was wetting himself with his water bottle!  hehe

What are you guys doing in this beautiful hot summer's day?

xo

PASIFIKA 2012

On Saturday, not only did we attend two birthdays, but we also went to Pasifika!  We really wanted to just walk around as a family and immerse ourselves in the different island cultures, and of course, there's no denying it, the food!  It was Javier and Carlyle's first time, too, so it was pretty exciting for them.

Here are some pics of our family day at Western Springs Pasifika.  Enjoy!!

We stopped at Tonga Village, being an *honorary Tongan myself, I simply had to!  hehe

Then a very sleepy Carlyle was trying his best to stay awake!!

While Javier was loving every minute of it!!

Mmm...ice cream inside a pineapple!!  I just couldn't resist!!

My Samoan boys xo  Carlyle couldn't fight it anymore...zzz

Lotsa people!

Bought me a li'l cute pair of flower earrings to replace an old pair

Hubby with his island food!

Our monkey boy Javaughn had a blast!

For my Fijian family!

Toffee/candy apple on a stick

Hope you enjoyed this day as much as we did!  Next year, I'll be sure to stay longer so I can spend time watching the performances!

Have a great day!!

xo

*My friends back in high school used to refer to me as the honorary Tongan because I danced for the Tongan group for three years for the ASB Secondary Schools Polynesian Festival.  :-)

Happy 18th birthday Xanda!!

On the weekend I had the pleasure of making a cake for my hubby's niece Xanda.  Originally she wanted a camera cake, but changed her mind and decided to go for an iPod touch cake.  I was really excited at the challenge because, although I had done a similar (iPad) one here, this would be my first of this sort.  My main priority was to make it as clean and as close to an iPod touch as much as possible.  I contemplated on using fondant for the details of the icons because it really gives it that polished look, however I really love the challenge of hand-painting each and every one of them.  It took forever as I had to wait for coats to dry and the fact that there were so many different details that required that extra bit of attention, which of course meant 'time'.

After a couple of sleepless nights (only because I could only work on them in the night) I ended up with something pretty amazing, if I may say so myself :-)  I really love this one, and so proud at the way it turned out.  I did want to add a silver lustre dust on the grey exterior of the cake, but ran out of time.  It still looked awesome without it, so it wasn't a big deal for me.

So, here it is!  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Hand-painted details

The following icons were done minutes before we left for the party.  I wanted to personalise the cake with a birthday message, but didn't want to just pipe on it.  So I came up with the following four icons: a smiley face (happy), birthday cake (birthday), Xanda (her name), 18 (her age).

And now for some sexy angles...

Click 'read more' to see the birthday girl and some other highlights from her 18th!

Nappy Cake!!

Good Monday everyone!!  How was your weekend?  Hope you had a wonderful time!  Today I am thrilled to share with you a cake that I haven't done in a while...a NAPPY CAKE!!  Or as some of you may refer to it as Diaper cake, depending on where you come from :-)

My Mum asked me to make her one for a colleague's baby shower.  I was so excited because lately I've only been making edible cakes, so it was a nice change to be working with different materials.  Before 'real' cakes became a more serious passion for me, I was always making nappy cakes for family and friends.  The great thing about making this type of cake is you are not limited to using only edible materials.

So, without further ado, here is a girly nappy cake!  Enjoy!!

Nappy cake

Ready to leave my place...

Lovely details...

Hope you liked today's post!  Come back tomorrow for my very first awesome iPod touch cake I made on the weekend for my hubby's niece's 18th birthday!

xo

DIY storage box

I know, I know, I haven't posted too many DIY stuff for y'all lately.  It doesn't mean I haven't been doing any.  I just haven't been diligent at sharing them here.  I still have 'stuff' I did last year that I haven't shared yet...now I can't find the photos!  lol.  So I thought it was about time I shared something with you that's purely DIY (and non-cake related for a change).

I actually made this baby yesterday, when I was trying to find a (cheap...meaning FREE) storage solution for my junk stuff.  It didn't involve much, just a nappy box, adhesive spray, some wrapping paper, and scissors.  It's super easy and so worth-it!!  I promise!!

Now, pictures can definitely say more than a thousand words, so here they are!!

 You can use whatever box you want!  I happened to have an empty nappy box lying around.  First you need to cut off the top flaps of the box.

You need to select two different designs of wrapping paper for both exterior and interior.  Cut them to size so you are all ready to stick!

Beginning with the exterior, take your box outside and lightly mist over (using your adhesive spray) the side you're working on.  Apply your chosen wrapping paper, then repeat this process until you complete covering all the sides (including the bottom).

Use the same application process for the interior.

Now, cut extra strips (using the interior wrapping paper) to create a 'binding'.  Adhere to the top of the box (so this piece should be adhered to the interior then folded over to the exterior of the box) to achieve a seamless look (see picture below).

Then you should end up with something like this!

And now here's a very deserving BEFORE & AFTER pic for you guys...

With this DIY project, feel free to switch the wrapping paper to fabric (which is what I originally intended to do but didn't want to spend a cent).

My advice for this project is to not be afraid to use what you already have.  Sometimes colours and designs that you wouldn't normally put together can actually complement each other.  I mean, I mixed paisley and polka dots!  And soft pastel colours with brown!  Take a risk!   You'd be amazingly surprised!

Have a wonderful Thursday!!

xo

Note: I made a second box, exactly the same, but this time I started with the interior.  I don't really have any preference to be honest, so start wherever you like!  I can't wait to try a fabric version!  Time to rummage through my Mum's wonderful fabric collection I think, hehe :-)

Cars birthday cake for Keanu!!

On the weekend I had the pleasure of creating a cake for a boy named Keanu.  His Mum contacted me a little while back asking if I could make him a Disney Pixar Cars themed cake for his 4th birthday.  I was really excited to come up with something awesome for him.  After some brainstorming I decided to go for a track cake, similar to the one I made for my nephew Malachi here, but Cars inspired.  I really love the Radiator Springs setting, so I made sure I incorporated that on the cake.

Lightning McQueen is made of fondant and all the details are hand-painted.  The white kept turning pink because of the red fondant, and it was really driving me insane!!  But, I still think he turned out pretty cool!  All the other details are made of fondant, too.  Here it is, hope you like it!!

 Just realised that this first picture didn't have the 'Keanu 4' road sign attached yet...oops :-P

Hope you liked today's cake feature!  Have a wonderful day and enjoy this gorgeous sun we're blessed with!!!

xo