One Direction Cookies

Reflecting back to my youth, I would say my first celebrity crush was John Schneider - he played Bo Duke on the television show the Dukes of Hazzard.  His posters hung on my bedroom walls and Friday nights were all about the show.

John Schneider as Bo Duke

My first musical crush was Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones.  John Schneider's posters came down and Mick's posters went up.

Mick Jagger back in the early 1980s

But my biggest famous person crush was without a doubt John Taylor from the British band Duran Duran.  I was completely nuts about the entire band, but the bassist was, in my opinion, absolute perfection - that accent, those broad shoulders (that could have been the 1980's shoulder pads), his fashion sense, his swagger and all those sexy videos!

John Taylor, 1980s

Duran Duran - even today their music lifts my spirits and brings me back to my teenage years

Recently, another British band has a lot of females swooning.  One Direction, a group of good-looking young men, has Kristyna all worked up and her friend CJ wanted to surprise her with custom One Direction cookies!  It was my pleasure of course, especially since the very talented Sweet Sugar Belle had created a fun tutorial that I used as inspiration!  Kristyna's special love is band member Niall and we even managed to convince her he loved her back by creating the centerpiece cookie with his and her initials (yes, any of you die-hard One Direction fans know I messed up his initials, but fixed them before delivery!!)

So, who was your biggest celebrity crush?

TBT - Triathlon Cookies

My husband and I are members of a triathlon training program.  There are no an actual events in my near future, but I do love the social aspect and the training in the pool and on the bike.  I made these cookies last year to share with my fellow trainees and have made them many times since for customers, some travelling as far as Florida to be consumed by hard working athletes!  Read my original post with the story of my fear of the water and how I overcame it here.

Toopy and Binoo Cookies

 It is hard to believe Mya just turned 3!  It seems like only yesterday I made her 1st birthday cake!  Mya loves Toopy and Binoo and these cookies fit the bill for her special day.  Happy birthday sweet Mya!

Construction Cookies

Carla's little guy turned 2 this past weekend and just like last year, his birthday party featured Sweet Handmade cookies!  Sock monkeys were the theme last year and this year the theme was construction!  I love these cookies and hope it was a great day! Check out last year's cookies here!

My Friday Fix - Spring Flowers

This week's "fix" serves two purposes - it satisfies a craving for cookies and for spring!  Despite the calendar telling us spring is here, Mother Nature seems to have other plans for us with snow and freezing rain in the forecast tonight!  Today's cookies are 8 for $20.  There is one box of 4 available for $10.  Contact me to claim your box and arrange pick-up.

TBT - Baby Shower Cookies with an Elephant Theme

For today's Throwback Thursday, here is a darling baby shower cookie made to match the baby blue, grey and teal colour theme.  Original design by Sweetface Cookie Boutique.

Scooby Doo Cookies

Finding common ground when it comes to movies and television shows has never been easy in our family.  We all have diversely different tastes.  Sure, when the girls were really little my husband and I happily cuddled up and watched Franklin or Sesame Street with them.  But as they got older, the shows got sappier and way too girly.  However, a couple of years ago we found common ground in Scooby Doo and for a number of months we spent Friday nights together on the couch watching Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne (aka "those meddling kids") solving mysteries.  For my husband it was a trip back to his childhood, for the girls it was about the silliness and for me it was just nice to spend time together.  Recently I got a phone call from a gentleman in Florida.  He was looking to send a gift to his friend and his friend's nephew in Toronto.  Originally the plan was for Maple Leaf hockey jerseys, but for a number of reasons plans changed and instead we decided on a Scooby Doo set.  I was more than thrilled to comply and love how they turned out!!  What is your favourite childhood cartoon?

John Deere Tractor Cookies

To celebrate a John Deere tractor themed birthday, I created these cute cookies!

Birthday Cookies

This adorable set was created for siblings, one turning 23 and the other turning 12!  I loved how it turned out with a great mix of both masculine and feminine colours.

Luck of the Irish St. Patrick's Day Cookies

To celebrate St. Patrick's Day - these lucky shamrocks and gold coins (the ones found at the end of the rainbow, I am sure!) aim to please.

When four local boys set out with teammates from Ontario and New York to Switzerland, Italy and France to play hockey as Team North America, they wanted to bring along some Sweet Handmade hockey jersey cookies complete with their unique logo.  Four dozen cookies made the trip across the pond where they are playing right now!  I hope they are having a fabulous time!

Make-up Cookies

From one beautiful woman to another - Suzanne and Nicole are life-long friends and are both lovers of my cookies!  A set of make-up inspired cookies was the perfect gift for Nicole's birthday!

My Friday Fix - Dreaming of Warm Weather Flowers

My Friday Fix this week is for all of us who don't get to go south for March break.  We may be stuck in Ontario's cold and snow (more snow expected this weekend), but we get to enjoy these sweet Hibiscus flower cookies.  They make a great gift if you are visiting friends!  Pick up your box of 6 for $20.  Pickup is today from 6 until 9 and tomorrow morning.  Very limited quantities are available.

Throwback Thursday - Cruise Ship Cookies

Throwback Thursday!  This great set was made last year for the first time, but has been made many, many times since.  I've made them for people to eat during departure (instead of partaking in a celebratory drink), I've made them for people to surprise/tell their kids about their upcoming vacation and I've made them as thank you gifts.  I still love them as much as I did the first time I made them!

Bachelorette Cookies

Nadine was organizing her sister's bachelorette party and together we came up with this set for the party - heels and diamonds in the wedding colours of navy and silver.  Much happiness to Elise and Chad for their upcoming nuptuals!

Angry Birds Cookies

Another great set!  Angry Birds for a 3rd birthday celebration.

Minion Cookies

I've been waiting for an opportunity to make these cute cookies, and so I was thrilled when I got asked to do them for Chanelle's 9th birthday!

Oscar Cookies

I am introducing a new Sweet Handmade feature. I am calling it "My Friday Fix". Every Friday (schedule permitting) I will have a limited number of cookies available for pickup. The design will be unpredictable and the price point will be low. Watch for My Friday Fix in this space each week until the Farmers' Market starts in May - your best bet however would be to join my mailing list (->). 

So this is what I am offering for this week's Friday Fix. In honour of this Sunday night's Academy Awards, I created Oscar Statue cookies. They are an elegant and delightful way to enhance your Oscar viewing plans.

I have a limited number of boxes available. Each box is $20 and contains 6 lovely cookies!

Contact me right away by emailing me at sweethandmade@rocketmail.com to claim your box. Pickup is available tonight between 6pm and 9pm and tomorrow between 10am and noon.

Alphabet Block Cookies

This set was created for a family who wanted cookies just because.  I ended up spelling all of their names in alphabet block cookies.  I'm actually quite crazy about this design and I am quite taken with the colour combo combined with the sparkly sugar at the edges.  

Celebrating with Hockey Jersey Cookies

Yesterday was pretty special all across Canada.  I am not sure the whole country has ever woken up at 7am on a Sunday, but we all did because Canada was playing for gold medal in men's hockey at the Sochi Olympics.  Our team did not disappoint, they dominated the entire game and came away with that beautiful gold.  I like to think my Olympic Hockey Jersey cookies brought the team luck!  One of my customers sent me this picture of her family enjoying their cookies as they watched and cheered on the game.  I love these pictures!!

Snowflake Cookies

The snowflakes keep coming down so hard that after shovelling the driveway, I could truthfully start all over again.  It's one of those days and one of those winters.  These snowflake cookies are the only snowflakes I like anymore.

Repost - Family Day Cookies

A wonderful mid-winter holiday for residents of Ontario is as good an excuse as any to celebrate with cookies.

Love this set with the pregnant mom!

I love this one because of dad's tie and the daughter's pom poms.

Glasses and skates make me smile with this family.

Guitar and two daughters - this family would most closely represent mine.

Family Day is officially celebrated today in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta, but is actually something to celebrate all day, every day!

Team Canada Hockey Jersey Cookies

The whole country of Canada is on edge as Team Canada takes to the ice for their first game in Sochi!  Go Canada!!

Cookie Packaging

Here is a video of me packaging cookies.  A special shout-out to Needham Promotions!

Curling Cookies for the American Olympic Team

These cookies were made for Erika - an American who happens to live in Canada.  She also has a very kind and generous friend who got her these cookies to help here celebrate her trip to Sochi to compete with the American curling team!  Good luck Erika!!

Flower Cookies for all Occasions

Sometimes edible flowers are a nice way to celebrate and they make a wonderful gift for all occasions - birthdays, anniversaries or any event the requires congratulations!  These cookies were made for a charity event.

Flower Cookies for all Occasions

Sometimes edible flowers are a nice way to celebrate and they make a wonderful gift for all occasions - birthdays, anniversaries or any event the requires congratulations!  These cookies were made for a charity event.

Olympic Cookie Countdown - today is the big day!

Well, this is it.  After years, months and weeks of anticipation, today is the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics.  It is a special time and in my family, we always seem to take a moment and reflect on our changes since the last Olympics.  The 2010 Olympics were especially incredible for us because not only were they on Canadian soil, we actually had the Olympic torch pass through our town, an event we witnessed!

Today's cookie celebrates my favourite Olympic sport - speed skating!  My loyalties will be divided as I cheer for both the Canadians and the Dutch!  A really special sport in my eyes, because speed skating can trace its history back to the Netherlands as well as Scandinavia and Northern Europe. (for a lesson on the Dutch/Holland/Netherlands confusion, click here).  It is the winter sport my parents talked most about and their love of the sport was certainly inherited by me!

The speed skating events begin today and finish on the 22nd.  All 12 events are taking place at the Adler Arena in Sochi and the only country that has an athlete in each of the events is the Netherlands.  Hup Holland!!

Olympic Cookie Countdown - tomorrow is the big day!

Snowboarding Slopestyle is an Olympic event that had its qualifying rounds today (you might have heard some results on the news already).  The goal is to perform the most difficult tricks while getting the highest amplitude off jumps, with an emphasis on performing different types of tricks instead on doing on great trick repeatedly.  It is one of the most popular events at the Winter X Games and this is the first time it is an Olympic event.  All of the snowboarding events will be held at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park and the finals will take place Saturday and Sunday.

Olympic Cookies Countdown - Two More Days!

With just three days to go until the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, today we are celebrating ski jumping!  After going down the take-off ramp, the skiers jump and attempt to land as far as possible down the hill below.  In addition to the length of the jump, judges give points for style.  The first of the four ski jumping events will begin on Friday and will be taking place at the RusSki Gorki Jumping Center in Krasnaya Polyana, Russia.  Of the four events, women will be competing in just one and it will be the first time women are competing at the Olympics in ski jumping.

Olympic Cookie Countdown

With just three days until the opening ceremonies of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, today's cookie celebrates the skeleton.  It is a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down.  Athletes can experience forces up to 5g!  Equipment includes helmets with a chin guard, a skin-tight racing speedsuit, spiked shoes, goggles and the sled.  At the Olympics, the events will be held at the Sliding Center Sanki near Krasnaya Polyana, Russia.  The events will be held from February 13-15.

Olympic Cookie Countdown

Today's cookie is representing short track speed skating.  An official olympic sport since 1992, this event has multiple athletes (typically between four and six) skate on an oval ice track.  The most distinctive part of this sport for me is the way the skaters put their hands down onto the ice as they turn the corners and it almost defies logic how far they are leaning.  The gloves they wear help prevent injuries from skates.  I find this sport incredibly impressive.  The eight different events will be held at the Iceberg Skating Palace in Sochi, Russia from February 10th until the 21st.

Harry Potter Cookies

The first book came out and the world's love affair with Harry Potter had begun before I even became a mother.  I heard a snippet or two about the books, learned enough to know they were the fantasy genre and thought "not for me!"  My girls turned out to be ferocious readers.  We would make a trip to the book store and they would finish books before we drove home.  We read book series after book series, but none of them took very long.  It was a frustrating exercise.  My girls were about 9 and 11 when I  finally considered all those people who loved the Harry Potter series might be onto something after all.  I bought the first book and we all started reading.  Before long we had invested in the entire set and we borrowed a second set from my girlfriend.  The three of us couldn't put the books down and as soon as all three of us finished one of the books we would rent the movie (I am a true believer that you should read the book before the movie!)  I will never forget during the first movie when Professor Snape made his first appearance on screen.  The three of us looked at each other and yelled "Snape!"  I am not sure an actor ever embodied a character better!  It took us a couple of months to read all the books, one of us finishing a book first and being anxious for someone else to catch up so we could discuss the excitement or the sadness.  It really was a magical time for my girls and I and we have never had a book or series since that has brought us closer together.  

I was thrilled when Debbie called me and asked for Harry Potter cookies for her nephew.  He is a huge HP fan (I can relate!) and he probably has every piece of memorabilia out there, except custom cookies!  I hope he shared.  

Olympic Cookie Countdown!

Today's cookie celebrates the parallel giant slalom, a snowboarding event that involves head-to-head racing.  The parallel giant slalom has been an official olympic event since 2002.  At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, all the snowboarding events are taking place at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park on February 19th and 22nd.

Groundhog Day Cookie - Good News and Bad News

Oh, the news is bad.  This is the worst winter we have experienced in a very long while; a lot of snow, ice, frostquakes and freezing cold temperatures.  Days and days of not leaving the house, children not being allowed outside for recess at school, dogs being kept awake in fear of the loud booms in the night (the frostquakes) and the shovelling just never ends!

And this morning, Wiarton Willie predicted six more weeks of winter!

But the news is also good.  Today we heard the statistic that Wiarton Willie has been right only 37% of the time.  With that lousy track record, we can hope that he is wrong with his horrible prediction.

Olympic Cookie Countdown - Six Days Left!

Just six days left until the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics!  Today's cookie celebrates moguls.  Mogul skiing is a type of freestyle skiing where skiers display tricks, jumps and turning abilities on a mogul slope.  The moguls (a series of bumps on a trail) are either formed naturally or are constructed.  Skiers absorb the impact of the bumps by bending at the knees and hips.  In a good run, shoulders should remain parallel to the finish line, turns should be quick and short and skis should not leave the snow surface.

Moguls and all the other freestyle skiing events will take place at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park near Krasnaya Polyana, Russia.  The events are scheduled for February 6, 8 and 10th.  I will be watching!

Olympic Cookie Countdown!

One week from today is the start of the 2014 Winter Olympics.  I plan an evening with snacks and cuddling on the couch to watch (even though I will be taping it earlier in the day and not watching it live because the actual ceremony takes place at 10am our time).  

Today we are highlighting the sport of luge, which is a small one- or two-person sled on which the athlete lays supine (face up) and feet-first.  Steering is done by flexing of the calves or exerting shoulder pressure.  The luge can reach speeds of 140 km per hour and because the sport is timed to a thousandth of a second, it is one of the most precisely timed sports in the world!

The luge events will be held at the Sliding Center Sanki near Krasnaya Polyana, Russia.  There are four events and they are scheduled for February 8-13.

Kung Hei Fat Choy - Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Chinese New Year - Kung Hei Fat Choy!  2014 is the year of the horse!  I hope it is a wonderful year for all!

The Olympic Cookie Countdown Continues

Today, with only 9 days until the start of the Olympics, we are celebrating hockey!!  Officially it is called "Ice Hockey", but of course in Canada the "ice" part is a given.  The competitions will be played at two venues located 300 meters from each other in the Olympic Park.  The Bolshoy Ice Dome will resemble a Fabergé egg.  The Shayba Arena is a moveable structure that will be used after the Olympics in another Russian city.  Both arenas are international sized as opposed to the North American size used in Vancouver in 2010.  Twelve teams will compete in the men's tournament, eight in the women's.  The Ice Hockey events will begin on February 8th and conclude on the 23rd.  I know most of my Canadian friends will be watching these events - will you?  Go Canada!

5-Minute Chocolate Craving Cake!

Through some research, I have discovered the original recipe for this 5-minute cake came from the website seriouseats.com but by the time I found it through a link on twitter, it had already changed somewhat.  Here is my version, enjoy and try it yourself.  I'd love to know how you make out!