Sugar, we're going down... Fall Out Boy

No, not really...  I just like the song and it popped in my head while I prepared for this post. 

A few weeks ago,  I volunteered to make cupcakes for the daughter of one of my favorite people.  Addie was turning four.  She's the sweetest thing and absolutely makes my heart melt every time I see her, so I wanted to do something special for her. 

Like most four year old girls, Addie loves princesses.  So her awesome mom decided to throw a princess-themed party, complete with Princess Aurora coming to do magic tricks and balloon animals. 

A few weeks before the party, I began strolling through the web, including Pinterest, looking for inspiration.  After a few possibilities, Addie's mom and I both agreed on the cutest little princess cupcakes. 

Princess cupcakes

Luckily, the picture was from the Wilton website, which also included the how-to AND the links to buy the sugar sheets and punches.  Even luckier - my local Michaels (which is three blocks away) JUST started carrying the sheets and punches in stock.

In my hurry to get started, though, I didn't read the full instructions on the how-to.  So, readers, learn from my mistake:  when you buy the punches, they come in TWO pieces, not one.  You have to buy the white base and the purple insert.   I was running to Michaels at 9 am the day of the party, to get the second piece.   Good thing I work well under pressure. 

And...being that most of my best ideas come right before the project is due...the night before the party I decided Addie's cupcakes deserved a special cupcake stand.  So --- at 6 PM, my little one and I went to the local Value Village and bought three plates and two candlesticks, then cruised to Fred Meyer for spray paint.  

I have a large amount of Mardi Gras beads laying around ( a gift from my favorite aunt who lives in Louisana), so I had already planned on gluing the beads around the plates.  But again - last minute larry - I decided one of the plates needed something else, a little more *oomph.   So, at my quick 9 am dash to Michaels, I picked up some fake fur to glue around the bottom and added some blingy butterflies.

And, here are the fruits of my labor:

For throwing them together in twenty four hours, I was pretty happy with how the turned out.  More importantly, Miss Addie loved the cake stand (I let her keep it!) and the crown.  After all, every princess needs a crown!

The pictures are by Addie's dad, Rick...he's an amazing photographer.  You should head over and check out some of his work here: Rick Takagi photography