In the past week (where I have been woefully absent), the following things have happened:
*We hosted 8 extra people at our house for a toddler filled weekend of fun.
*I made dinner for 12 on Saturday night.
*I had the flu.
*My husband had the flu.
*Niko had the flu.
*Niko had Croup (not recommended)
*Our beloved babysitter got a great job and is off for greener pastures.
*We had to track down new long term daycare for Niko.
SO. For this reason, I am posting about caramels, because this is about all I can wrap my brain around right now. To be fair, they do look exceptional. From Fusion Sweets. Taro Butter Caramel? Rose Orange Blossom Vanilla Butter Caramels? Come on! I'm not sure candy could melt away a bad week but this something else entirely!

Fantastic favor idea from All Jarred Up - single serving pies in a jar! YUM!
Have a great weekend everyone!

So (as you may have guessed), it turns out that I am not allowed to share my news. Suffice to say that I was very busy last week traveling for some exciting press coming out on Kenzie Kate this fall. I know, that was such a tease. You'll be the first to know when it hits the news stands.
In the mean time, please allow me to make it up to you with some Monday morning eye candy, perfect little treats to beat these summer heats.
Peruvian Chocolate Caramellows
Nutty French Nougat
Vanilla Fleur de Sel Caramels
and Assorted Macarons

Check out the literal eye candy over at Amy Atlas! Complete with behind the scenes glimpses at the making of three amazing dessert tables. Photography by Andrew McCaul.

In keeping with yesterday's dessert theme, I spotted these adorable cookie cutters yesterday over on Ohdeedoh. I thought they could work beautifully for cookie favors i.e. "Ann and Bill 1.29.10". OR! place cards/seating cards that double as favors! I realize this would involve resetting the type for each cookie then stamping a different name on each, but wouldn't that be cool? No doubt it would be kind of tedious for a large wedding (I wouldn't recommend it if you were expecting say... 400 people) but it wouldn't be expensive, and in my opinion, the best seating cards are edible seating cards! Message Cookie Cutters from Williams Sonoma.

I posted a few weeks back about popcorn at the reception, but check out this idea from Utterly Engaged... A popcorn bar! I love the champagne flutes, they make the ordinary popcorn seem like a true delicacy. Guests can experiment with all sorts of fun flavor combinations, and it would be quite inexpensive to set up all on your own!

I'm back from a very productive weekend of Ikea shopping and house cleaning. With my due date about a week away, I realize that my days of solo shopping trips to Ikea on lazy Saturday afternoons may be limited, (which is really too bad, because solo shopping is one of my favorite sports, I'm very good). Hopefully this next chapter in our lives will be just as much fun as solo shopping, and I will not miss it one iota! Speaking of which, I should warn you that it's possible that sometime this week or the next (hopefully not the week after that) I may be mysteriously absent for a few days (maybe not that mysteriously absent, but absent none the less). Rest assured, I will be back with photos of the little one and updates just as soon as I am able. In the mean time, I will just keep on bloggin about pretty things. Keeping busy keeps me patient!
Speaking of patience... I found these amazingly detailed cookies on Sweet Ambs. Martha Stewart, eat your heart out! They are just so... perfect! I made lemon cookies the other day and got so sick of scooping batter after about 20 cookies, I started making them HUGE so I could be done. I can't imagine having the patience to create these little wonders by the dozens.

Amy from Sweet Designs just sent me these amazing pics of a poolside dessert table she styled for a Hampton's birthday party. Aside from the amazing table scape, I LOVE the idea of popcorn in little boxes! I'm a huge popcorn lover and I love it when people fancy it up, it really is the perfect party food - an inexpensive crowd pleaser every single time. I would be delighted to see boxes of caramel corn on the dessert table at any wedding, and the boxes are such an adorable way to display your monogram or your wedding colors. These would even be great as favors, if you added a little wax bag to keep the popcorn fresh. Everyone loves a late night salty snack after a few drinks!
Photography by Dawn Giarrizzo.

I used to think that no one, (above the age of 11) could have serious feelings about marshmallows (unless they were accompanied by graham crackers and a chocolate bar). This was before I tried the NEW marshmallows. Not the Jet Puff variety, not the kind that you take camping, I'm talking about the fancy ones you get at Whole Foods, or The City Bakery. These marshmallows are a completely different story, and completely worthy of your serious feelings. While I've had them dipped in chocolate and rolled in toasted coconut, I've never had a lemon, cherry, or blueberry flavored one. This will soon be rectified thanks to Mia Mallows.

A bunch of eye candy (and real candy) from Amy Atlas to make up for my spotty posting this week. I hope Amy's wealth of images keeps you busy for the day while I regroup!

Gumdrop Cookie Shop has created a ton of new designs for their adorable cookies, including a bunch of different varieties for monograms and a specialty cookies for showers and engagement parties. The good folks at Gumdrop will also package these up for you to use as favors. Who wouldn't like a cookie?

You're not the only one who needs to get dressed up for a special occassion, your cupcakes need a fancy outfit too! Love these ones from Estilo. Who, by the way, is having a sale right now, sweeeet!

These are cute! Having a winter wedding? A travel themed one? These would be adorable at the shower or as favors at the wedding. I love the detail in the snowflakes. I wish I knew how they did that. Thanks Brenda for the heads up!
Have a great weekend everyone! I'm off to my parent's place for an escape from the heat. Stay cool!

I stumbled across One Girl Cookies in my travels today and fell in love with her adorable favor presentations. Little did I know she's based right in my old backyard in Brooklyn. As much as I love Providence so far, I haven't got my local chops up enough yet to support my new local vendors. So I'll support my old local vendors.

Love these stylish little cookies from Gumdrop Cookie Shop. Their vanilla sugar cookies come frosted in a variety of pretty patterns, or you can have some custom made to suite your wedding theme. They'll make perfect little favors or a stunning tray on the dessert buffet.

Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday, and a Happy New Year! I'll be doing a little baking over the holiday, something I'm really looking forward to (more for the outcome than the process). If you also happen to enjoy baking, and haven't yet discovered the Cupcake Bakeshop you should definitely check it out. Cheryl Porro posts amazing cupcake recipes like Pine Nut and Candied Orange Peel Cupcakes with Christmas Spice Buttercream Frosting (!!) or Adzuki Bean Paste Filled Chocolate Cupcakes with Matcha Green Tea Frosting. Yowza! I made her recipe for Pomegranate-Grapefruit Cupcakes last year on New Year's, and I've never been so pleased with myself.
I'll be back in regular circulation on the 2nd of January, in the mean time I hope everyone has a restful holiday with the ones you love!

I'm back home in Connecticut at my parent's house, hanging out with my sister, eating good stuff. I'm signing off for the weekend, but I'll be back in action on Monday morning. I hope everyone has a warm and cozy holiday with the ones you love.
Toasting glasses and pretty leafy trivets from Rockett St. George. Cheers!

In need of some gorgeous cupcake wrappers to dress up your cupcake tower? Paper Orchid has some really pretty filigree ones that could also work as cups for favors or candies. Love the butterflies on the right.

I found this gorgeous Horchow cupcake stand thru Hostess with the Mostess, I couldn't resist! It's perfect for hosting a bridal/baby shower, or purchase a few in varied sizes for a small wedding. I love that the different stands all have different skirts, so pretty. AND they're on sale!

I know it's Monday morning, and cocktails are more of a Friday afternoon kind of post, but I just couldn't help it. They're pretty! Whether you're looking for a signature cocktail to serve at your wedding, a pitcher of fun for the bachelorette, or planning ahead for Friday, Hostess with the Mostess has a great collection of cocktail recipes (among other things). Love the scorpion bowl idea-- so retro.