Jikana Damaru: 12/14/10

Wordless Wednesday

More Wordless Wednesday fun here

x S.K.K x

It was very hard to choose just one photo of Roxy to enter into iheartfaces Pet Faces Contest. But I went with one that has been my favorite for awhile. She was resting after running laps in the backyard. I love her happy face.

This picture was taken today. My mom gave her an early Christmas present, a coat so she doesn't get cold. She was actually shivering in this picture though :)

I told you she is spoiled.

wordless wednesday

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My Birthday Wish

Here I am on the 15th of December 2010 and I am 25 years old. Words can not even begin to explain how happy and lucky I feel on this special day. The last few weeks have been SO BUSY with work but I have also spent a lot of time thinking, remembering and cherishing all of my special moments over the past few years. I believe I have grown, matured and blossomed so much in the past year that it's even hard to remember a time when I was unhappy. I don't know exactly what, I don't know exactly when but a day came when I stopped, snapped, grew up and started really cherishing this beautiful life I live, the amazing souls that love me and the divine home, community and world that surrounds me.

As I blow out my candle this year on my birthday cake I will have one wish and one wish only. That everyone I love, everyone who is in my life supporting me, loving me and protecting me, can feel, witness, live and experience this amazing, positive and beautiful place I am in right now. I wish that everyone around me can truly see how lucky they are to be in such a beautiful world with so many opportunities.

Try to look beyond the imperfections in life and see the true beauty in everything and everyone around you. Imperfections are sometimes perfectly beautiful! Don't take things to heart. Wear your heart on your sleeve. Look in the mirror and see inside your soul and see your beauty! If you fight with a loved one remember there is probably an outside reason for their anger and they take it out on you because they know you love them and always will. So hug them and support them through it! Enjoy the feeling of the warmth from the sun on your skin as you look up into the sky and breath in the fresh air. Feel the cool of the grass as you step outside in bare feet. Go out into the rain and feel the coolness and prickles on the rain drops and watch the beauty as it reflects in the streetlights. If a stranger is rude, smile an walk away knowing that you are special and hopefully your smile reminds them to change their attitude. Always say thank you! To a cashier, a lolly pop lady, a doctor, a hairdresser - no matter what their job - big or small - they have a purpose and it's nice to let them know they are appreciated! There is no difference between a high paid doctor and a volunteer lolly pop lady. They are both keeping you safe! Surround yourself with positive and uplifting people. You need comfort, support and happiness in your life not drama and game playing! When a butterfly flies past stop and watch its beauty and magic as it flutters around. Cherish every minute of family time you have! They are gods greatest gift to us! They will always be there for you when others aren't. Believe in yourself! Even when everything around you falls apart believe in yourself and your strength and you will get through anything. Always have hope. It will get you through each day. Never give up on hope. Things happen for a reason. There is a plan...your destiny. Go with the flow and make every minute more special than the last. Enjoy life and have fun! See this beautiful world through your innocent eyes and don't stop believing in magic.

You are so lucky. Every minute of every day is such a blessing.

My Birthday wish...

~ Cherish those special moments ~ They will be memories that will last forever ~

x S.K.K x

wordless Wednesday

happy wednesday to you. Please add your wordless blog post to the list below & enjoy all the wordless images you come across. I thought next week would be fun to have a Christmas themed WW....see you then!

Winter Woodland Christmas cake

I made my Christmas cake a few weeks ago, and have been feeding it with brandy to keep it moist and taste even lovelier! Then came the fun part: decorating it. I want it to be the centrepiece of my Winter Woodland dessert table so I went for a sugar paste reindeer sitting amongst a snowy woodland. Here's how I did it:

Winter Woodland Christmas Cake

Ingredients
Christmas cake (gluten free recipe)
Marzipan
Apricot baking glaze
Roll on white icing
Royal icing
Sugar paste reindeer x 1
Sugar paste acorns x 5
Iced leaves x 35
Meiji mushroom cookies x 2
White hologram glitter
Brush on dust in Ivory Shimmer
White petal paste
Icing sugar
Sugar pearls
Chocolate orange Matchmakers broken into pieces 3-5 cm long

Equipment
Cake stand or board
Rolling pin
Cake smoother (optional)
Sieve
Ribbon
2 pins
Icing bag fitted with star nozzle

Decorating instructions

Place cake on cake stand upside down so top is completely flat.
Knead marzipan into a ball.
Dust icing sugar onto a hard clean surface and roll out marzipan to 5mm thick.
Melt the apricot jam.
Brush cake with apricot jam.
Lift up marzipan using rolling pin.
Place on cake and smooth out so entire cake is covered in marzipan.
Cut off any excess, leave to dry for 24 hours.
Knead roll on icing into a ball.
Dust icing sugar onto a hard clean surface and roll out roll-on icing to 5mm thick.
Lift up icing using rolling pin.
Place on cake and smooth out so entire cake is covered in icing. (I use a cake smoother to give it a polish and professional finish)
Push sugar pearls into side of cake where cake meets cake stand.
Wrap ribbon around side of cake and secure with 2 pins.
Make up royal icing as per instructions on packet.
Spoon some royal icing in a large circle on top of the cake, using a fork to lift it into snowy peaks.
Lightly push sugar paste reindeer into royal icing in centre of cake.
Lightly push leaves and chocolate Matchsticks into royal icing around outside edge of circle.
Lightly push mushroom cookies and acorns into royal icing around reindeer.
Spoon remainder of royal icing into piping bag with a small star nozzle at the end.
Pipe a small amount of icing onto back of leaves and press into centre of ribbon around cake.
Dust cake in sieved icing sugar.
Sprinkle cake in white glitter.

Have a sweet day!

Petal paste Reindeer

Ingredients

Equipment

Latex
Paint brush
Vaseline
Christmas deers

Instructions

Coat your deer in Vaseline.
Paint a thin layer of latex over sides and allow to dry.
Repeat step 2 over several days until you have a layer about 5mm thick.
Leave to dry for 12 hours.
Carefully pull off latex mould from reindeer.
Dust the inside with icing sugar.
Thoroughly knead sugar paste.
Push paste into mould, so head is full of petal paste.
Push petal paste into body of reindeer so all sides have at least 20mm of petal paste on them.
Leave to dry for about 30 mins.
Carefully pull mould away from the icing, starting at the back.
When you get to the neck begin to carefully cut mould away.
Put petal paste reindeer to one side.
Bend wire into antler shape.
Mould with your fingers some petal paste around wire antlers, leaving a prong at the end.
Push antlers into top of head.
Push iced robin into petal paste reindeer's back.
Brush ivory shimmer dust on reindeer's hooves and antlers.
Leave to set hard.

I love my Christmas Deers from Camel & Yak, so much so that I couldn't think of anything more perfect to go on top of my Christmas cake this year. So, I decided to make a latex mould from the doe and hand craft the antlers from wire and petal paste. I love how he turned out, even if his neck is a little on the wrinkly side! That came from me being clumsy when I cut the latex mould from around the petal paste. I was worried if I didn't get him out from under the latex he would not dry properly and in my haste his head fell off! I re-attached it back on with a wooden cocktail stick and painted over the join with royal icing.

Thank you to the lovely ladies at Blue Ribbons who gave me advice on how to make my hand-made doe mould.

Have a sweet day!

Mad Hatter's Tea Party

Last weekend was one of those fabulous and crazy weekends that was just filled with party after party - four in total so I have lots to share over the coming week! Today I am going to start with a bright and exciting Mad Hatter's Tea Party that I helped put a table together for.

My friend Lisa decided she wanted to have a tea party for her daughter Emily's 6th Birthday party so I told her to look at Kim from The Tomkat Studio's wonderful Alice In Wonderland printable collection.

From the moment she glimpsed at the invitation she knew that this was the theme of the party and so we set to work finding lots of goodies for the table.

A fabulous tea pot cake was at the centre of the table and it was surrounded by lots of yummy brightly coloured treats. We used tea pots, tea cups, candles and candle sticks as props