Christmas Present

This is a very special
Candy Buffet.

It was offered to very special customers...

... children.

They live in a very special place, with very special people, in an institution - Casa da Criança - that helps children from women who are in jail, until they can get out and (re)start living their lives with their child... (or sometimes not.)

So I came up with this Santa Claus:

The ideia was to portrait Santa in a "informal" way, holding in his hands the most precious presents these children could ever wish for: love.

This is a view from the table:

With a side "mini-buffet", so children would feel free to grab some candy in case they were intimidated by the big table...

Throughout the table, I give thanks to all the sponsors of this Candy Buffet:

Amazonia Hotel

...for the place, desserts, patience and dedication of management and staff. Couldn't do this without you.

Horto do Campo Grande

...for the beautiful plants and decoration items that make this table unique. Thank you so much for all the help you gave me.

Maison des Macarons

...for the gourgeous, delicious macarons. Please continue to bake them!

La Maison by Amora

...for some wonderful decoration pieces that give this table the nostalgic and enchanted touch I was looking for.

Denegro Chocolates

...for these lovely chocolate lollipops! Many thanks!

*

I guess the kids were not intimidated at all....!

*

Here are some of the treats...

Chocolate Mousse and simple Cupcakes

Custom design cookies

Santa's Cake

Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Swirls in Christmas Cupcake Wrappers

Cookies

Popcorns (a huge success!) and Chocolate Lollipops

Homemade Brazilian Truffles

Candy!

And more Candy!

Some glasses of warm milk...

And a happy farewell!

I wish from the bottom of my heart that Santa brings all the love you need...

Rapunzel, Rapunzel,... where's the party?!

Oh, I loved planning this party!

Let's first take an overview of the table...

The theme was princess, namely, Rapunzel and I used pink and green, because it's my favorite colour combination for girls.

Paper pom-poms and a handmade personalized banner:

And the birthday cake with sugarpaste work:

I had a few major conditionings for this party: I would have to prepare most of the food a few hours before the party and I had a small fridge and no oven.

So what?!

I love chalenges!!

So this is what I did...

(the cake was the last thing to prepare at home and it lasts long hours because the sugarpaste seals the cake)

Lots of royal icing decorated cookies, because they can be made several days ahead:

A chocolate sauce that took me 15 min to make...

To dip in these grissinis...

A fruit salad prepared a few minutes before serving...

... with those chocolate covered cookie cups (prepared a few days ahead):

These cupcake wrappers were waiting for some special cupcakes. They were actually a "cake/pudding", made the day before:

(no buttercream swirls - no time and no storage for that)

Lots of candy, of course!:

 At the side table, a small savory buffet:

 

Quail eggs cooked at the spot (anyone can help you remove the shells!):

Guacamole with tortilla chips:

Simple ham and cheese sandwiches:

Fries were places in paper bags:

Hot dogs with homemade (frozen, defrosted and heated) pimento-sauce:

It was actually very pretty, practical and tasty...!

(unanimously speaking!)

Here, here Kitty!

Unfortunately, for this party, there are only two photos.

The table was decorated with paper balls, white drappings and a handmade banner with Kitty.

The theme was "Kitty's having Tea with some Friends" so I bought this little white furniture to present the scene:

There were two cakes here: the small cake at the centre and Kitty's body. Her head was a styrofoam ball decorated with sugarpaste.

The cat and Kitty were dressed with coordinating fabrics, with the same pattern as some tags and banner.

For the guests, I organized a "headband decorating station", where they could make their own Kitty headband with stickers:

There were also some presents for the guests and other interesting features but...

... no pictures!!

Pure Sugarcraft

This post is not about parties or cake.

It's about pure sugarcraft.

For the first sugarcraft exhibition I ever participated, I came up with the idea of making an Alice in Chocolateland,  where Alice would "melt" with the taste of a chocolate bar.

This is the making of... 

The first tier would represent the black-and-white-swirl floor, the second tier represented the enchanted forest where she meets other characters. 

Mushrooms would add a "gloomy" and "mysterious" look to it.

The third tier would be Alice.

The final work:

I ended up adding a lot of details at the bottom and would probably continue, if I had the time...

I loved this...! 

It's exactly what I envisioned and that, my friends, feels very good!

(details include: rabbit, clock, keys, the cat, cards, a hat)

(oh, and more chocolate bars!)