MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Just wanted to wish you all a wonderful Christmas...filled with joy, peace, laughter, love and hope. May your families be blessed this Christmas as we remember our beloved saviour, who came, that YOU would have the choice to follow Him and live a life filled with hope, with purpose and with love. Love each other this Christmas...be blessed.

I have thoroughly enjoyed embarking on this world of blogging and it is YOU who make it so worthwhile! Thanks for following me, for reading my posts and for leaving lovely comments.

love you all!

God bless you richly this Christmas...and beyond.

your 'sister'...jessie xx

Lynn, my Christmas loving friend

Had to put in this pic of my friend Lynn and her FABULOUS gingerbread village...and a bit of her Christmasified home around her....soo beautiful! And those are the christmas baubles hanging in the foreground that she made when we got together...more making tomorrow as others are keen to create.

And the Christmas Star cookie tree too...too cool!!
ciao bellas
jessie xx

A bit of Glam for Christmas Morning tea with the gals

My friend Lyn has beautifully decorated her home for Christmas and today she had an 'open house' morning tea for any girlfriends who cared to drop by and see her little tribute to Christmas...with choc/raspberry tarts, fruit mince pies, white choc truffles, dark chocs, lemon tarts, fresh strawberries and cheese crisps! (it's ok, there was something savoury there!!)...so I added some red to a pink flower/rosette pin I'd made and voila!

Nothing like doing a quick bit of sewing before you dash out the door with your plates of delicious goodies to share...

Didn't quite get a great shot of it cos my darling daughter Beth's camera is not at hand and had to use the webcam...

But this is finished pin, on. didn't it go with my top perfectly? Pink and red and all frothy...I was also wearing a delicious red frothy skirt from Trelise Cooper, a well known NZ designer. A lovely morning was had by all...and now have 'bookings' for Fri arvo to make the stars and christmas baubles!(which Lyn had also made and were on display)...so we'll have a little Christmas high tea on Friday and create to our hearts content!!
Thanks for looking!
have a fab week
luv jessie xx

Oh the beauty...and divineness of it all!!

Oh my, oh my, oh my!!!!! Talk about inspirational, beautiful, amazingly gorgeous giftwrapping!! Pop on over to Sande Chase's blog to be blown away by fabulous giftwrapping and gift ideas...look at these fabulous boxes...which are full of...



...fabulous giftwrapping supplies!!!...now THAT'S a gift I wouldn't turn down...mind you, look at that box before it was opened...I read on her blog that someone had sent one of these gifts to a friend and the friend left it unopened for 3 days just to look at the beauty of the wrapping! Now that's a gift that keeps on giving...opened to find gift wrappings galore...and SO SO sumptuous!! If only we had this in NZ...perhaps my next job??

And then there was this pic she'd found of this FABULOUS, DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS DRESS!! Now WHERE WAS THIS when I was mother of the groom in October?? huh??? Oh my goodness!! This dress is to die for...maybe another wedding soon isn't such a bad idea?? haha...JUST KIDDING KIDS!!! After Italy! ;)

Just gorgeous and had to share...thanks to Sande for sharing her talents with us.

ciao bellas

jessie xx

Playing with blog design...

Sooo...having a play around with my blog design...something new for Christmas...knew I shouldn't have started it at midnight!! Now it's not quite how I want but it's nearly 2am (!!) and I MUST go to bed...so will have to continue tweaking tomorrow! yay for free blog designs and layouts like Itkuppilli and Shabbyblogs...find their buttons on my blog and check them out...
night night pumpkins ;)
jessie x

Blast from the Past - Heavenly Cakes

Several years ago I opened a cake bakery...my youngest baby had just started school and so I branched out from making cakes for my family and friends into the world of 'real business'..lol. Wans't in it for the business tho...I just loved making cakes and making people happy...and so The Heavenly Cake Company was born - "Divine Inspiration and a Taste Sensation" was my byline!!...it was fun times...here are a few pics from back in the day...thanks Tammy for inspiring me to go browsing my photos :)...all the best with your venture when you take the plunge!...

White chocolate pencil curls with fresh strawberries...mmm

These were my tiny 'Love Bites" that I made one year for Valentines day...sold them in pvc cylinder boxes...they were choc fruit and nut truffle cakes...divine!! and SOO cute!

A display cake for my shop front...even the pebbles are icing ;)

A choc truffle croquembouche...with fresh roses...mmm

chocolate with golden icing grapes...

This was my friends daughters wedding cake...she wanted it to look like an oldfashioned punch bowl filled with multicoloured flowers... Next we have Chocolate Raspberry Mudcake Cupcake tower...my first I think...when the 'cupcake rage' for weddings was just beginning to take hold downunder..lol

And these are some cute wee Christmas Truffle Trees I made one year ...ooh I might make some for my Christmas table centrepiece!! Aren't they cute??!! I TOTALLY loved making these...they would sell in little pvc cylinders with lids and could be sent internationally!(and were!)

Another client designed wedding cake...orange and purple icing ribbon cascading down dark chocolate mudcakes...

I always swoon with white on white cakes tho...much as I love the colourful and the unique...traditional white on white just has something about it!!

Lovely pastels are quite dreamy too don't you think?

This one was white chocolate slabs with wired paua shell trim...a Pauanesia theme...quite Kiwiana!

And another White Choc slab cake with choc curls...very popular style!...wonder why?!!

And a final tumbling cascade of roses...I always loved making the roses...I think I love making flowers from all sorts of mediums...icing, paper, fabric!! Just love them!!

Thanks for looking...hope you enjoyed it :)

ciao for now

jessie xx

More Christmas Craft

Latest creativity going on here...I found a photo of these folded paper/card christmas balls online somewhere and set about recreating some of my own...these were the first few...have continued making them and got some more fabulous papers and card to use...will post those soon. Aren't they gorgeous? Just waiting for ribbon to hang them...I've hung all of mine from the light fitting above my dining table making them like a hanging chandelier...must take a pic of that..after my friend Lynn saw them we set about having a creative day...making stars and then these baubles...in her FABULOUSLY CHRISTMASIFIED home....Christmas trees EVERYWHERE!! She's totally into christmas and decorating...if only she had a blog!! (but probably doesn't have time!)...anyway...

I particuarly like the two tone effect...and have found a better way of attaching the bead at the bottom so it hangs free a little better...have also found some new fabulous beads! which helped :)

A view from the top...well, actually the bottom, in this case...not meant to have that wee gap above the bead that you see...need to 'squish' that back together while the glues still wet :)

This was a lovely flocked paper...gorgeous. Just before I inked the edges...

thanks for looking :)

happy creating

luv jessie x

Starry Nights and Pies

And this is the white star, spraypainted silver! Wanted a silver one ...no silver paper to hand...but cans of spraypaint, oh yes indeed! Of course I had to spray it outside then couldn't hang it for a day due to the fumicious smells! (NOT at all christmasy!)...


And did the other side red...y'know, just cause I could!...no red paper, soo....

Funny how all year long I don't even give Fruit Mince Pies a thought, but come November/December...they're ALWAYS on my mind - the beautiful little star(or sometimes heart)-topped bites of deliciousness...and often in my mouth...mmmm....I always make some wee lemon ones too for my non-fruit-mince-eating friends and family...but seems i'm slowing making my way thru these every time I put the jug on for a cup of tea or make a coffee...hmmm...were meant to be gifts...but ahhh that sweet short pastry...now you CAN'T buy that in a supermarket! It cries out to me as soon as I look at it's crumbly sweetness, knowing it will melt away in my mouth around that sticky, fragrant fruity filling...aaahhhhh...think it's coffee time already....

Aren't they delectable? I love the tiny ones most particularly...not so fond of the larger more standard size...just a bite or two is all you need...

Now...must step away from the computer and attend to more mundane things...like appointments and putting the rubbish out...I hear the truck coming.....

ciao bellas

jessie xx