would you like a....cupcake?

Watching Cake Boss again...Seriously does this guy ever NOT shout? Kind of annoying, but that is way besides the point. For some reason I really got in the mood to make cupcakes today, but I am saving it for later this week. I picked out a recipe and went shopping for the ingredients tonight, so I will have them when I am snowed in yet again (probably) later this week. The recipe I chose is a surprise, but I will be sharing i with you after I make them ;) My friend MG is obsessed with cupcakes, and perhaps she is rubbing off on me haha. Ok they are yummy but I think more than that they are SO cute. So, I thought, why not find some cool cupcakes online? Lots of less calories when you are just viewing them in pictures :) hehe. Anyways, I plan on making more posts about cupcakes, but this one is cupcakes that do not quite look like cupcakes. I think all of these are really cool! ...And look fun to make hmmmm.... and eat :)

Apple Cupcake:


Ice Cream Cone Cupcake:


Sushi Cupcake:


Burger Cupcake:

watercolor & ink

I took a watercolor painting class in one of my last semesters at GCU. I had never watercolor painted before, but was up for the challenge. It really takes some getting used to, if you have ever painted with different mediums before. Since it is watered down, you really have to think about which colors you are putting down. The colors bleed in to each other and layer over each other to make new colors - but these are not always faults, rather also techniques to use while painting as well. I really turned out enjoying the class, even more than I had expected myself to. It is a very calming form of art. I literally could sit for hours painting - even in silence, happy as a clam. I will mention though, it is NOT a cheap hobby. Each tube of paint is about $8 a POP for a small tube, granted each tube goes quite a long way when it dries and you add water. All the supplies needed for watercolor painting adds up- pretty much like any art class. I don't have any photos or scanned copies of the paintings I made during my class, but I will take some soon and share them with you. I have really been in the mood to do some watercolor painting recently, but since it isn't class anymore I decided I wanted to have a little more fun with it. I am not a huge fan of still-life art (which most of art classes consist of - UGH) so I wanted to do some fun design/text art and I LOVE using mixed medium so I decided to do some watercolor and ink. Here are just a few small paintings I did recently:

toyota ads.

Here are some Toyota ads that that I have found in a few magazines recently. It is a series of several words that Toyota used to describe themselves. I really like that they created the letters out of objects that are car-related. I also think the long, horizontal shape of the ads is creative just because it is not the usual. I only managed to get photos of 2 of the spreads I saw, but on this Ads of the World website, they have all the images. You can also see the words in use on the Toyota website.

stunning dresses.

So, you can not turn on E this time of the year without seeing the "Fashion Police" playing and replaying. I watched the Golden Globes a few weeks ago, some of the SAG awards and the Grammy's the other night. I never really follow award shows, but since they have all been on in the past few weeks I did watch more of them than I usually would. I didn't pay close attention, as I was doing other things while the shows were on, but I did take note of some of the celebrities dresses, acts and speeches throughout. However, a big part of these award shows is all about the fashion. Although I was originally going to make a post a few weeks ago about Golden Globe dresses that I liked...but as the weeks have passed and I have seen more red-carpet dresses I like - I thought i would change my post. I have decided to share 3 of my favorite dresses. These three dresses are from the Golden Globes, SAG awards and the Grammy's all worn by Lea Michele from Glee. I love all three of these dresses and would wear any of them in a heartbeat. Although there were many dresses I liked, I thought these would be the best to share since they were all worn by the same celebrity. Here are the three dresses:


This black dress she wore at the Golden Globes was absolutely stunning. Some people claim it was too costume looking with the volume but I think it was a beautiful gown. I love how the top is a wrapped around, sweetheart, lace piece. The bottom is a textured, volumous gown which has just the right shape. It isn't too poofy but it also doesn't just hang. I also think the color black is very classic.



Love love love this dress she wore to the SAG Awards. The color green is the perfect shade of green that looks amazing on brunettes. I think the plunging neckline is amazing and the waistband hits her in just the right place. The sleeves are not usually my favorite kind of sleeves, but the frills are just the right size - not too much. The frilly sleeves and flowing skirt make this dress soft, but the neck and waist bring it together and the pop of color make this a very strong dress.




I am a big fan of one-shoulder dresses/shirts. This hot little dress was quite the hit at the Grammy's and the Fashion Police agree. The navy is a nice deep color. The lace detail is cool since you can see through to the strapless part of the dress. It also wraps down tightly around her torso very nicely and then to the bottom that has a feathery effect to it. Again, the bottom is not over-done and is not too poofy. I am not so in to the black heels with the navy dress, however I have realized that black and blue are okay together sometimes ;) I love this and think it is a great night-out dress. So cute.

I love all of these dresses and hope you enjoyed them as well!

core creek park.

I have been away from my camera for too long. To be honest I have been slightly disappointed in my camera recently :( Pictures have been coming out quite dark - even ones that would usually be fine. However, until I have the money to upgrade to a newer, better one I have decided to work with what I have and rock it. I LOVE to take pictures and it makes me SO happy to get some great shots. I had a stressful day at work this Sunday and wanted nothing more than a happy, relaxing Sunday afternoon. It has been a while since I went and took photos, which I noticed when I was in the mood to PS the other night. I decided to take a trip to Core Creek Park since I have not been there in years and it is only minutes away. It was freezing out but the sun was beautiful in the late afternoon and I was excited to take some shots of the lake! It took me a little while to even find the lake since it had been so many years since I have been there and I was concerned the sun was going to vanish before I got some shots! However, I found a nice little (rather, not so little) spot near the lake and woods in the park. To my surprise it was quite beautiful! I usually go to Tyler Park, so a change of scene was nice! I walked around under the trees and along the edge of the lake until my hands hurt so bad from the cold, that even through my fleece gloves I could barely bend my fingers to take photos. Here are some of my shots from the day:
















(Ok, It is a lot of pictures- it was a good afternoon :)