Beauty Tip: Baking Soda Mask

I am 30, I should not still be struggling with acne. I've had terrible acne my whole life.  Now that I'm older, its not like when I was 15 but its still annoying. I'm currently going through one of those really bad break out weeks. You know the kind where you have tons of painful pimples exploding all over your face?! Not to mention the nasty black head craters that stare at you in the mirror. Yeah. Obnoxious.

Last night I stumbled upon this random tip to help clear up acne prone skin: Baking Soda

 I've been struggling with oily skin, and really painful inflamed pimples for 2 weeks. I am desperate to try anything. I don't wear much in terms of foundation or cover up so my redness is there for all to see. So I tried this baking soda idea out and no kidding, it WORKS!

Photo Source: All You (click for more great baking soda uses!)

Now, let me be clear, this did not make my pimples disappear.  However it greatly reduced the redness and swelling, as well as the pain.  Also, my black heads were greatly reduced as well.  My nose doesn't look like its covered in them!

My skin felt soft, like baby soft. It felt awesome.  Way better than any other drug store face mask I've tried in the past.  

I applied my nighttime routine, went to bed, and the next morning, still not inflammation.  I'm sold.

Try it for yourself. I'm not a dermatologist so who knows how this work for everyone, but it worked for me, so hopefully it will help ya out on those less than flawless skin days.

Directions:

Mix 2 parts Baking Soda to 1 part water

Make a paste and smooth onto skin, thickly covering any problem areas

Allow to dry for about 10 minutes, then rinse

Feel your skin and be amazed.

*Note: I used 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon water plus a few extra drops because it was a little dry. This was more than enough for my face and neck.

Birds and Books Baby Shower

Birds and Books, how cute is that for a baby shower theme?! Guests were asked to bring their favorite children's book to help build the baby's library. I was fortunate enough to make cupcakes for this party.  They were styled after the invitation.

Personalized Key Holder

When David and I first moved in together, we had a small key hook by the door. It was a framed postcard from when I lived in Scotland.  Three small hooks for our keys. Since then our family has expanded and the clutter by the doorway had become unbearable! One of my projects was to get a key hook that could hold our keys and the dogs leashes. I shopped around but nothing really appealed to me. So I decided to take some spare wood from the garage, scrapbook paper, modge podge, some Dollar Store frames, photos of us, and a few hooks from the hardware store and make my own.

In a matter of hours I had a custom key hook to organize our stuff! Check it out!

Each of us has a photo above our hook so there is no confusion, no mixed up keys, and my favorite, no tangled leashes!

I even embellished it with some Teresa Collins keys!  I spray painted the small frames to go with the colors I chose.

It works out great keeping everything organized! We still need to work on shoes and coats though.....

Inspired Monday: Architectural Letters

I loooove the artwork made with photos of architectural letters.  I have grand ambitions of wandering around the city and spelling out my name in photographs. Or, I could take the easy way out! I found this on Pinterest and it has links to hundreds of letters, so you can easily make your own art with little effort!

Source: fullofgreatideas.blogspot.com via Jessy @ on Pinterest

I cant wait to get started!  What would you spell out with these?

Salted Caramel Buttercream

Last year, during the holiday season I took a holiday candy making class at Whole Foods.  One of the candies we learned to make was salted caramels. I was hooked. Anything salted caramel, I love. I saw that Sweetopolia posted a recipe for a chocolate fudge cake with a salted caramel buttercream and I almost died. I felt very Rachel Zoe exclaiming "I die!" when I saw it.

My boyfriend's Grandmother was in town, and we were celebrating her birthday, you know what that means! Perfect opportunity to make this cake.  However in my excitement (and rush to get out of the door) this is the only photo I took of the cake. Please forgive the terribly messy background.

You've got to try this recipe! Hop on over to Sweetopolita's site for the full cake and frosting recipes. I will leave you with the Salted Caramel Buttercream recipe that I ever so slightly modified.

Salted Caramel Buttercream

Slightly Modified From Sweetopolita

Ingredients:

1 Small Jar Caramel Sauce

1 1/2 Cups Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature

4 Large Egg Whites

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tsp Vanilla Extract

Sea Salt

Directions:

1. Put the butter in bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat until smooth. Transfer to a bowl. Set aside.

2. Wash mixer bowl, wipe with lemon juice to make sure no butter remains in the bowl.

3. Create a double boiler on your stove, and place egg whites and sugar in bowl.  Gently whisk until sugar dissolves and the temperature reaches 160 degrees on a candy thermometer.

4. Pour egg mixture into mixer bowl.  Using the whisk attachment, whip egg whites on medium speed for 5 minutes.  

5. After approximately 5 minutes, increase speed to medium high.  Whip until soft, glossy peaks form. Approximately another 5 minutes.

6. Reduce speed to low and slowly add the butter a little at a time.  Make sure to fully incorporate the butter before adding more.

7. Once all of the butter is added and incorporated, switch back to the paddle attachment.

8. Add vanilla

9. Add approximately 1/2 a cup of the caramel sauce. Taste. Add more if necessary.  

10. Add a dash of salt. Taste. Add more if necessary.

11. Try not to fall over when you taste the amazingness.

Kitchen Tip: How to Open a Stuck Jar

So there you are, cooking along in your kitchen, and you grab your next ingredient, which just so happens to be in a jar. You twist, you turn, you grab one of those rubber grip things, nothing is opening that jar. You try tapping it on the edge of the counter, or running hot water on it. Nothing. That jar is not going to open for you. Thoughts of smashing it on the ground come to mind, or even completing the recipe without the ingredient.

Well stress no more! I recently learned this great tip while making a roasted red pepper soup.  

 Take out your can opener, and using the bottle opener tip, stick it under the lid of the jar.  Gentle pull until you hear the vacuum release. Remove the bottle opener, and twist the cap right off.  Its so easy, its almost stupid. I cant believe how many times I've wretched my hands trying to get jars open.  Once or twice I've even waited until my boyfriend got home to see if he could open it! Not anymore!! No more stuck jars for me!

DIY Designer Inspiration: Pottery Barn Mercury Glass Lanterns

Last week I had the pleasure of sharing with you my blogiversary party which included some faux mercury glass lanterns. I had actually made these lanterns earlier in the summer, as I was inspired by these lanterns from Pottery Barn

The tall cylinder ones reminded me of some jars I had in the basement. The round ones reminded me of some candle holders I had picked up at the Dollar Tree. So I thought, why not try my hand at making them?!

I gathered my supplies:

Looking Glass Mirror Spray Paint (I got the Krylon kind at Michaels---use a coupon!): $4

Dollar Store Vases (Free, had them on hand, otherwise a $1 each!)

Clean empty jars (also free! Yay spaghetti and pickles!)

Spray bottle with water

Newspaper

Total Cost: $4 (Since I had most of the supplies on hand already!)

Start by wrapping the outside of the glass with newspaper.

Working, one glass at a time, spritz the inside of your jar with water.

Follow that by spraying inside with the Looking Glass spray paint

Allow to fully dry, and repeat as necessary.

I actually did 3 coats of water/paint to achieve the look I wanted.

I chose not to hang these lanterns but display them on my picnic table.  However, if you'd like to turn yours into hanging ones, you could follow my tutorial on Mason Jar Lanterns. Just make sure that you have a "lip" of some sort to hold the wire in place.

Go ahead, put those old pickle jars to use!

Inspired Monday: Winnie the Pooh

This made me happy today.

Source: thechive.files.wordpress.com via Jessy @ on Pinterest

Fairytale Frosting Blogiversary

This summer Fairytale Frosting turned 2. I cant believe I've been blogging for 2 years. The time has just flown by!  To celebrate my "blogiversary" I invited some friends over for a whimsical evening get together.  I decided to incorporate some of my favorite things, such as night time in summer. I love warm nights, sitting under the stars with the glow of tiny lights on the patio. I also love fondue, chocolate dipped fruit, and of course a glass of wine or two. I styled my little party after these things that I love. Check out how it came together!

Upon entering my backyard, I had giant origami lotus flowers light with battery operated candles, creating a sort of pathway to the fun.

One of the trees in my backyard has this branch that hangs low and is perfect for creating a cozy dining area.

My party was in the evening and I used the moon and stars as inspiration.  My color palette was a range of blue hues. I had just recently painted my picnic table so I chose to forgo table linens and let the color and pattern of my painted table do the work for me.

I created some evening mood lighting by hanging star lanterns with tea lights over the table, and using some faux mercury glass lanterns that I made (UPDATE: See the tutorial HERE)

It was a warm evening so each place setting had a small fan for my guests to keep cool.

I used royal blue sheer curtains over twinkle lights to create a starry night type back drop, and kept the table simple with only a black cloth.  Origami lotuses also flanked the table with candles in them as well. They glowed beautifully as the evening grew darker. I made the moon in the center after being inspired by a bon voyage photo booth over at Oh Happy Day.

The desserts were simple and summery. I served cheesecake filled strawberries, sugar cookies, and chocolate dipped fruit. I also made a lemonade bundt cake, and blackberry mojitos.

 The star of the show, however, was a dark chocolate cake with blackberry buttercream. I modified the dark chocolate cake with strawberry buttercream recipe from Sweetopolita. I had been dying to try it, but I had to put my own little spin on it. I wasn't sure how the blackberries would translate into a buttercream but it was spectacular! My mouth waters just thinking of it.

After the fondue and sugar rush, we moved to my patio to sit and chat until the wee hours of the night! Ok, maybe not the wee hours, but late enough anyway.

I did take a couple of photos as it grew darker out. The photos really dont do it justice.  The lights twinkled warmly and overhead just so happened to be a full moon! I hadnt even planned it that way! What great timing!

Thank you to everyone who has supported me over the last two years.  This blog has taught me to much about myself. I've been able to express my creativity which I had no idea how valuable that was until I began to write it all out here. Thank you for allowing me to share my creations and find love and support when doing so!

Hello Kitty and Friends

Recently a friend asked me to do a birthday cake for her daughter.  Last year she had me make her daughter's cake, for a Cinderella theme party. I was thrilled that she came to me again.  This time for a Hello Kitty and friends cake. I love Hello Kitty, and also have a soft spot for Keroppi, so I was really looking forward to this.  Aren't they adorable?!

Here are a few close ups:

 Chocoate

My Melody

And my personal favorite, Keroppi. 

Thanks Mandy, it was such an honor to do another birthday cake!

Are You A Trekkie?

I remember watching Star Trek as a kid, but I never really became a "trekkie".  However when I saw these cookies I could not help but laugh! Even if you've never really liked Star Trek, you have to admit, these are dang cute!

Source: bakingdom.com via Jessy @ on Pinterest

What were your favorite tv shows growing up?

DIY Paint Stick Plant Markers

In addition to writing my blog, I have also decided to contribute as an examiner for the Minneapolis Edition of Examiner.com  So, what made me decide to become and examiner? Let me be honest with you, as an examiner, I can get paid a little extra money based on things such as page views. Writing this blog has a cost.  What cost you ask? Things such as baking, cooking, and crafting supplies. That stuff adds up.  I love doing it, and happily pay for all of it.  But when I came across this opportunity, I thought hey, why not earn a little money while sharing things I love?

So, what does this mean for you?  This means, from time to time I will post on this blog with a link to my examiner article.  I would love for you to click over to my page and read it there. Don't worry, not all of my content will be there.  Just every once in awhile when something I was already going to blog about makes sense to publish there too.  I love my blog readers and I hope you'll support me in this endeavour too!

So, on to the plant markers! This is my first examiner article, so check it out.....

CLICK HERE

Adults Only

**WARNING! This Post Contains Adult Content! Read At Your Own Risk!**

It all began with a phone call from a co-worker of mine. His friend was in a jam. The person in charge of handling the cake for an upcoming bachelorette party flaked. It was short notice, and he wanted me to pull off a....wait for it......penis cake.  Once I stopped laughing, quit making inappropriate jokes, and finally realized he was really seriously asking me this, I decided hey, why not?  Could be pretty fun right?  All night, I updated my personal facebook page with inappropriate jokes about the process.  I laughed the entire time, and of course posted pics soon after.  Within days I had 2 more requests for the same kind of cake.

I've always wanted to do a "naughty cake" but who knew that it would be so much fun and so popular!

I dont want to offend any of my readers so instead of posting pics on the blog, here are links to see the three cakes. One was actually for a Western/Cowboy theme bachelorette party, so I was asked to incorporate that theme if possible. You've just gotta see it.

The Cake That Started It All

A Pair of Penises

Giddy Up Cowgirl

I hope you got a kick out of these cakes, I know I sure did!!

Inspired Monday: Fall Leaves Pie Crust

One of my goals for fall is to work on my pie making skills. I've never really been that good at pies. This year, thats going to change!  I was inspired by this beautiful pie crust! I must recreate this!

Source: thestoryofkat.blogspot.com via Jessy @ on Pinterest

What is your favorite kind of pie?

How to Clean Graffiti From PVC/Plastic Fence

I live on a corner lot. When we moved in there was no fence in the backyard. I'm not the kind of girl who likes to have an audience when I'm hanging out in my backyard.  The following spring, we installed a beautiful privacy fence.  We sprung for the PVC kind so we didnt have to do any maintenance on it.

Little more than a week ago, I came home to find this....

My beautiful fence, defaced by some punk kids with no respect for others and their property. I cannot begin to describe the rage.

The icing on my graffiti cake came a few days later when the City sent me a letter. The letter stated that my home had been reported and photographed as having graffiti and I had 7 days to remove it or they would fine me $300 along with sending a city crew to remove it.  The city crew would bill me at $245/hour.

Its not that we didnt try to remove it, we did. I did my googling and learned that Goof Off should take off any graffiti on most surfaces.  I made the trek to Menards and was handed a spray bottle of Goof Off and told it should do the trick.  I sprayed it on my fence and wiped it away.  It took the black off, but left a gray shadow.

According to the letter from the city, any residue shadow also had to be removed.

Now I'll be damned if Im going to paint my "maintenance free" fence, so we tried everything! Mineral spirits, laquer thinner, bleach, vinegar, even toothpaste. Nothing worked.

Then I stopped in at Ace Hardware. I dont usually go there because the "big box" stores have what I need in one trip. Well its a good thing I stopped. The gentlemen there told me he had the perfect solution. He came back with a bottle of Goof Off Spray....

Turns out Goof Off makes several products. If you have graffiti on your fence, dont listen to the 16 year old kid at Menards. Talk to the seasoned professional at your local non-big box hardware store!

Goof Off Graffiti Remover Spray is what you need, along with a kitchen sponge.  Follow these simple steps to a clean fence!

Step 1: Resist the urge to choke every tween or teenager that walks by you.

Step 2: Repeat step 1. (No seriously, violence is not the answer). Repeat again, as necessary.

Step 3: Resist the urge to go down to City Hall and deface their property with spray paint when they threaten to fine you. They will not think this is funny. Nor will they respond well to your letters asking them to remove the paint from their property.

Step 4: No seriously. Repeat steps 1-3 until you reach a place of zen and can focus on the task at hand.

Step 5: Go to Ace Hardware. Do not waste your time at Menards or Home Depot.

Step 6: Ask for Goof Off Graffiti Remover Spray (see photo). If a 16 year old who just got his first job at the hardware store hands you the bottle marked with an X in the photo, hand it back and ask to speak to his father. Hell, even his mother. One of them has to know the difference.

Step 7: Return home with the correct version of Goof Off.

Step 8: Take a kitchen sponge, the kind with the blue scrubby side, hose, and Goof Off to the fence.

Step 9: Spray a light coating of Goof Off over painted area. Work in small sections. Using the scrubby side of your sponge, work in small circular motions until the paint comes off.

*Note: it is ALWAYS a good idea to test a hidden spot to make sure it does not cause discoloration or other ugly things*

Step 10: Promptly spray off with hose, and move on to next section.

**This step is important. Goof Off will begin to corrode your fence if left on too long. Too long is more than 2 minutes. Seriously.**

***Note for the ladies: Wear gloves if you have acrylic nails and/or a fresh manicure. This will remove your polish.***

Repeat Steps 9 and 10 until all graffiti is removed.

Step 11: Stand back and admire your work. The punk ass kids and pompous ass City did not get the best of you my friend. You're welcome.