Meh.

As a lover of blogs, I feel that I have to say something more here. I didn't want to leave all 2 of my readers in a lurch (if even you 2 are still left...) but I just haven't felt very bloggy in a while. Not sure when the feeling to blog will come back, but I thought there should be some closure.

Ok, enough 'blog as verb' usage. I think I'm stuck because part of me doesn't want to share our wedding. Our feelings and emotions that day now feel very private (even though we were surrounded by 132 of our nearest and dearest) and I have been living in my head a lot lately, feeling like I need to shield myself for some unknown reason. It feels safe here, so I think I'll stay for a while.

So, farewell internet friends. At least for now.

Kara's Cupcakes

image found here

Kara’s Cupcakes

3249 Scott Street (at Chestnut)
San Francisco, California 94123
P 415 563-CAKE (2253)
www.karascupcakes.com

First things first: the cupcakes are tasty. The cake is moist, the frosting is buttery and in generous proportion. These are better cupcakes than many out there, and you can’t go wrong with the lemon.

If I could just shut off my brain and enjoy them, I totally would. Or if magical cupcake elves dropped them at my door and I never had to step into the shop, I wouldn’t complain. However…

Kara’s was a brand new business back in 2006 (I think…) just around the corner from our apartment. I had been stalking the bright pink storefront for quite some time, just itching for it to open and love me. I had very high expectations, let me tell you. I needed a weekday cupcake fix (Chestnut Bakery only makes cupcakes on the weekend…. WHY?), and Kara’s was sure to solve all my problems.

So, B and I walked over to Blockbuster one fine evening, and while walking back, what did I see? A bright shiny and OPEN Kara’s Cupcakes. Delight! B and I were drooling. We walked in the door, proceeded to the counter, and I (somewhat embarrassingly) started rifling off all of the flavors I wanted to the person behind the counter. I got halfway through “Rasberry Dazz…” when I was cut off. The salesperson, who with the feigned accent of Heidi Montag, pronounced “WE’RE CLOSE FOR A PRIVATE PARRRRTYYYYYY!”

No “So sorry”. No apology whatsoever.

I’ll admit it, I started to get indignant. I am a stickler for customer service, and won’t tolerate being treated badly in a store. I responded, “Oh really? Says who?”

Evil Heidi spawn, “Huh?”

Me: “If you are closed, you should have a sign on the door. No one should have even let us walk through the door.”

She: “Ummmmm… OKAAAAAAAAAAAY”

So, very very dejectedly we left Kara’s cupcakes, and I cursed all the way home.

I will admit that I was lured back to Kara’s once after that (months later, after I regained some of my dignity). The buttercream siren song was just too much to bear. The ‘cakes were good, I’ll admit. But the whole time I was there, I thought of the evil spawn, and it kinda effected the whole experience, you know? Funny follow up: was recently waiting in line at Magnolia Bakery in NYC next to a woman who was going on and on about Kara’s and how fabulous they are. I looked at her, said “Eh, they’re OK. Kara is a bitch”.

Pros:
• Cake’s are good

Cons:
• Service is the worst ever.
• Parking is a nightmare

Bottom Line:

Go here only M-F. If you’re jonesing for a cupcake on the weekend, trek a few blocks down Chestnut street to the Chestnut Bakery and treat yourself to some real honest delicious bakery goodness. The people there are lovely.

Cupcakes Anonymous: Magnolia Bakery

Magnolia Bakery

401 Bleecker St
New York, NY 10014
(212) 462-2572
www.magnoliacupcakes.com

Many believe Magnolia to be the Holy Grail of cupcakes, and I mostly agree. B and I never fail to make the pilgrimage to Magnolia every time we visit (it’s not tough – they are open until 12:30 AM on the weekends!) We always buy way too many cakes, try to shove them in our carryon bags, and then eat the mashed little wounded soldiers when we get home. Still good!

The cake is tasty (if a little dense sometimes) and the buttercream frosting can’t be beat (plus there is always A LOT of frosting). The shop itself is super cute (vintage mixers and retro kitchen gadgets abound) and the neighborhood couldn’t be better. There’s even a park across the street to sit and commence the sugar shock.

Pros:
• Really excellent frosting. My favorite, by far.
• Red Velvet. Best flavor.
• Cute shop and surroundings
• Easy hours
• Featured in one of my favorite SNL Digital Shorts, Lazy Sunday (google it) SNACK ATTACK!

Cons:
• Cake sometimes dry/dense
• Lines often long
• Tourist attraction

Bottom line:

If you have the time, absolutely go there. Realize though that on the weekends you will probably stand in a line that snakes around the corner. It moves pretty fast, but it can be excruciating standing there with the smells just taunting you.

For sale!

Oh my.. such a tease

I promise I didn't forget about the cupcakes, heavens no.

This weeken has been dedicated to reclaiming my home from the gobbling wedding monster. Cleaning, Ebaying, and Craigslisting is so fun.

Katie the Lady, Cupcake Expert

I’m considering adding an official title. I have spent the past few weeks traveling around the US, and realized that somehow and someway, I always end up at these fabulous cupcake joints. So, I was thinking a series of posts was necessary to review my faves.

Of course, there are entire blogs devoted to cupcakes, so hop over for some instant gratification Cupcake Takes the Cake Blog

Why I heart Etsy. part 2.

Image from Littlekittysville's shope - http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=14148657

Alex P. Kitten needs this now. The kitty in the photo is practically his twin, also.

Yours for a mere $49. And would fit in with our decor so well...

Married!

Ah! So it actually happened. All of the obsessing and kvetching worked out. I was the most blissfully oblivious bride in the whole wide world. Apparently a toddler trailed me down the aisle, but I have no memory of that (though, I hope the photog caught a good shot!) Apparently the bluegrass music was incredible. Nope, didn't hear it. At some point my shoes became untied. Didn't notice until we got to the hotel at the end of the night. I just kept telling anyone who would listen "Best Day Ever!" and it was so true.

Anyway, I don't have many photos to share (yet) - but I do have this:



Photobooth - awesome. With it's own frustrations as well, but I'll save that for a later date.

It's good to be back! So... what do I obsess about now?

Manzanita update..

They are so ready for their big debut..

oh ps: the hanging votive holders and lcd tealights are from flowersandsupplies.com. woohoo!

Greetings from Craft Central!

Six days to go, people! Only limited amount of crafting left.. but you know I'm going to pack as much in as I can :)

Registry? Nah.

Guests, take note. Non-registry gifts are not so bad. We have received gifts of:

1) A Wii
2) Beef Jerky

'Nuf Said.

mailbox stalking

Can you guess which is the "no" pile? So much for the small wedding... :)

Manzanita pics!

Some inspiration...

(image here: http://www.cupidsarrowweddings.net/image_uploads/DSC01333.JPG)



The real thing coming soon!

I heart Manzanita

So I posted a while back about how to cozy up the reception space, and my caterer had suggested renting trees. It just didn't do it for me (plus it was darn pricey). I racked my little brain, and I found some inspiration:

Manzanita branches! And not just some wimpy small ones, no sir. With the help of my dear internet friend Amanda, I have 6 huge "branches" that are over 60 inches tall!

Pics to come...blogger is having some trouble loading photos at the moment. These are like sculpture, I'm so impressed. I'm still debating exactly what to do with them, but I am for sure hanging some LED votives off of them. I might include some flowers.. but B is not sold on that. He thinks they will look great with just the candles, and I worry that they will look like something from the Haunted Mansion without some added "softness". Anyway, potato potahto. I'm just happy to have them.

Invites.. better late than never, right?

Life has kinda crashed lately. Lots of work travel. Stomach flu/food poisoning. Cat personality disorders. Whew. Calgon take me away.

Anyway, here are some shots of our lovely invitation suite. Which I love dearly. And plan on framing and gazing adoringly upon daily.

So where did you draw the line?

Something that has been weighing heavy in my mind lately (and creating a big pit in my stomach): when it came to invitations, where do you draw the line?

Early in the planning, B and I drew some very arbitrary lines, and firmly agreed to stick to them (however flimsy they may have been). One rule: no children of cousins are invited. I have A LOT of cousins, and most of them have kids. The exponential growth was astounding. So that was one line.

Second: no one we don't know, or haven't spoken to in years. Seems to be a no-brainer, right?

Insert parents and kid-clinging cousins.

First, B's mom gave us her list. I didn't question it, because I didn't think it was my place to do that. Turns out she included her cousins, and their children. She also included neighbors from 10 years ago. She also included her personal friends. All ok and fine with me, as her numbers weren't huge. But, there are some people on the list who B has never met. There's just something wrong about, "Nice to meet you! Welcome to my wedding!" Anyway. It is OK.

But, my parents are not inviting their cousins, nor any of their friends. Gulp.

So the lines have been significantly blurred, but I still had to go back to one of my relatives (my dad's aunt) and tell her that no, her adult son's are not invited. That was tough.

I think the real lines are lines of relationships. If you are close to someone, you actually talk to them or have seen them in the past year. You feel some sort of bond with them. But the problem with these emotional lines is that you get into the sticky area of "oh so you just don't like me as much as Susie". Double gulp.

I sincerely wish that I could include everyone under the sun. I really really do. But at what point do you give up your vision and your level of comfort (our desire for a small intimate gathering) to please everyone else?

Bad Blogger

So, I have been very busy with the aforementioned invitations, but that's really no excuse. I'll be back soon with updates and new projects and other fun stuff. In the mean time, I just have to say that I never ever ever thought that I would be worrying and debating the guest list this close to the wedding, but we are. For the record, I have caved and we are letting kids come to the reception. I'm kind of pissed at myself for giving in to the drama that certain people in my life created, but I'm not gonna dwell. That's all for now. More soon, I promise!

Invitation sneak peek!

(photo credit: Tara, Ephemera Custom Letterpress)

They're fabulous. They're vintage-y. They have birds.

That's all I'm gonna say for now ;)

I heart makeup

Click here to go to Benefit's website. Click image for a bigger view.

I just love Benefit's new spring line.. Prettier than the Bride. I happen to have gotten a freebie of the silky finish lipstick in "Bouquet Dive", and it is an awesome wear with anything shade. Just adds a tint of "put together", but not, "I'm trying to hard." That's a hard line in lipstick, you know.

How could I have forgotten?

I'm on peyote, I swear. I can't believe that I forgot to post our engagement photos! Well..we had an excellent session with our wedding day photographer, Francis Baker http://www.francisbaker.com/weddings/. Basically, Francis rocks. I'll let his art speak for him.

Here's one..



click HERE to see more!