online class

MR. CLAUS IS ALSO COMING TO TOWN

sallybr2 Comments

There is no way Mr. Claus would leave the love of his life alone, so here he is! Another amazing online event by Amy, from @seriouslysweet, I could not decorate live with all the other participants because we were away on a trip, but the moment I came back home, I baked the cookies and went to work. This cookie cutter set is also available at dotsandbows with a click here. For a flashback to Mrs. Claus, go here.

Totally smitten with this cute old guy… So many details and techniques in this set! I finally got the hat effect – a folding of the fabric – to work. As I mentioned before, this type of detail I do not feel ok about sharing, as this was a paid event hosted by Amy. I am thrilled that it now worked ok for me. Poor Mrs. Claus went with a flat hat, without enough pizzazz.

We started by sketching all the details on the cookies, then slowing decorating each area, using all the methods of piping, from flood consistency to very thick for the white details. I feel that I messed up the eyes a bit, they did not turn out as good as Mrs. Claus’ but overall I am happy with this set.

My favorite technique is definitely the little ruffle on top of the gloves and boots. I just love doing it, and once you get the consistency and strength to squeeze the bag (with no icing tip), it’s very easy and fun.

So this closes the double Christmas set, the Claus Couple, ready to spread Holiday Joy around the world!

Amy, thank you once again for your super detailed instruction and patience with all of us following your online adventures!

ONE YEAR AGO: Zentangle Strikes Again

MRS. CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN

sallybr2 Comments

Too early? Nah, never too early for the visit of such a cutie pie… I am so enamored with this set, made thanks to the detailed online class hosted by Amy last weekend. Isn’t she adorable?


Amy taught some super cool techniques, and I cannot share the details, as this was a paid class and it would be unfair to her to publish it for free here. Trust me, though, if you are interested in improvement for your decorating skills, her online classes are a must! You can join her Facebook page and get updates on future classes with a click here.

This set of cookie cutters is from dotsandbows, and you can find it here. They work as a stacked composition of four to make Mrs. Claus in all her cute glory. Before class we needed to have the cookies baked, Royal icing in different colors and consistencies made, and fondant decorations dry and painted.

Below, some of the steps, starting with the sketch of all we would do to each cookie, everything drawn by hand, Amy explaining exactly where to place each line, how to curve it, etc. For me, who cannot draw a full moon… super helpful!

The coolest technique was to make the hat. I did not hit it correctly, but Amy showed us how to make the hat acquire folds, and wow, that was something! But my consistency – rather the consistency of my Royal icing – was a little too thick and I need to re-visit the issue in the future.

I also love the detail on the rim of the glove and the top of the boot, it is the second time she uses this technique in her decorating classes, and I now feel pretty comfortable with it.

I just loved this cookie design so much! I look at her and it is impossible not to smile… Thank you, Amy for another fun couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon… I look forward to the next adventure!

ONE YEAR AGO: Baby Turkey Cookie Platter

AMY’S STACKABLE PUMPKIN SET

sallybrLeave a comment

To join Amy’s Facebook group and be on top of future online classes, click here. 


Here I am to report on yet another great online class taught by Amy. If you don’t want to cut the cookies by hand (which is what I did), the set is available at dotsandbowsdesigns, with a click here. Amy’s classes are great to teach several different tricks using the same basic cookie and this was no exception. This particular set takes the pumpkin concept to a higher level of elegance, and it would be a perfect centerpiece to a Fall get-together or a Thanksgiving meal. I learned so many cool tricks… So let me just briefly walk you through the process. Obviously, I cannot share specific details, as it is part of her class.

The cookies are baked, and the pumpkin piped in stages to allow the different sections to have enough definition…

This step is quite straightforward, the only thing you need to master for that is the icing consistency, but that is pretty much the most important aspect of cookie decorating, and only practice will give you what it takes. Keep in mind that no one was born with that skill, we all more or less struggle through the learning process until it becomes second nature. Do not get discouraged. The real fun begins with the side floral panels, and a progression is shown below.

Every step of this process used a new technique. Once again, it is all in the consistency and I got all of them ok, except the blue roses, the icing was just a tiny bit too soft. But I think I still got the shape to stay. My favorite bit is the grapevine, such a cool way to pipe it! And the little pumpkin shown from the top, another brilliant way to bring that to life. Cookie life, that is…


To finish the set, I just added a little shading to the pumpkin and a little touch of luster powder (Khaki color) on the stem and leaves.

I just love all the details and how much I learned in this class. Amy is very encouraging, and even when we need to do something that is intimidating, she insists it is easy and doable, and makes us try it on parchment paper first. That really helps a lot.

Amy, thank you so much for this fantastic online experience!


ONE YEAR AGO: Sally Cookies Sally

DON’T CALL THE GNOME POLICE!

sallybr3 Comments

Is there such a thing? Could I be in serious blogging trouble for publishing two gnome posts in a row? Let’s hope not, because today I want you to meet Pippin, The Gnome. Design and tutorial by Amy from Seriously Sweet on Davis St (click here for her IG page).

This was part of a “simple” online class taught by Amy… I say “simple” because there were only two cookies, and not much preparation required for class. We only had to make a few fondant pieces and paint them, nothing else. In fact, Amy told us we could do them early in the morning as the class was around 4pm. A few colors of Royal icing – not that many – and some in very small amounts. A real “no big deal” event, right? Right? Well, let me tell you, I went into a few cycles of hyperventilation during the adventure. Have you noticed Pippin is showing his feet and hands? It turns out that we were asked to pipe his fingers and toes. Please be kind and don’t go carefully checking how many fingers in each hand. Pippin has a genetic condition, but it is a minor thing and he lives a happy and fulfilled life.

So here is our countertop right before class started, all pieces of fondant painted, cookies baked, and Royal icing colors ready in bags.

It all starts by drawing the overall placement of all the cookie’s features. Then the hat is made with pieces of fondant (I used modeling chocolate instead), rolled into small ribbons and then sculpted with a clay tool. Amy had a pretty clever way to make the very top, but I could not quite do it like she demonstrated…

By far the trickiest part was piping the fingers and toes, all made in stages so they would not all glue together. Pippin is not a frog, so please, no webbed feet. I loved the detail of Pippin’s nose, which is made with a tiny shell painted gold.

The second cookie of the set was a sandcastle, quite a bit simpler. We did the whole thing during class, speeding things up with a dehydrator. That cookie would probably go well in a beginner’s class, whereas I consider the gnome as advanced. Too many things can go wrong.

Painting the hat was left for the following day so that the fondant(or modeling chocolate) was fully set. We used dry dusting with many shades of luster powder, super fun!

The level of detail in this project was something! I don’t know now Amy can think of so many little bells and whistles to add to her productions, but I am glad she does, and also explains so well how we can do the same. The shading done to turn the feet a little dirty was brilliant!

I close this post with all the cookies I made that afternoon, which had a beach-summer feel…

Amy, thank you one more time for yet another great adventure,
you always push my limits, and I LOVE IT!

ONE YEAR AGO: Hungarian Folk Art Cookies

AMY’S TROPICAL TREASURES

sallybr6 Comments

To join Amy’s Facebook group and be on top of future online classes, click here.


This is the 8th online lesson I took from Amy… time flies when we are having so much fun, right? This lesson was medium to advanced, and as is often the case with Amy’s designs, lots of different techniques were involved, often several in a single cookie. There were three videos before the online event to make sure we had all the preparation done correctly. Without further ado, here is the full set of my tropical babies!


There were seven cookies made as the main set, and we also had the option of making a few more in the shape of half-hexagon.


Below you can see all the prep work for class made the evening before…


Some pieces are painted fondant, some are Royal icing transfers (like the hibiscus, made in two stages, flower and stamen).

Of all the techniques involved, the one I need to get better at is stenciling with thick royal icing. I have issues keeping the stencil in place (even using the frame to hold it), and making a smooth layer. We did three different cookies, one with a solid color to stencil, and the other two with two-tones (purple and green). I had some issues with each of these three, but in the end they got other decorations on top and I did my best to hide the “boo-boos.”


Let me highlight some of the cookies and list the techniques used for them…


Flood with purple. Two-tone stencil with thick Royal icing. Flower is painted fondant. Leaves are fondant and Royal icing transfer.



Flood with purple with texture (embossed paper). Brush embroidery flower. Leaves are wafer paper and fondant.


Flood with green and diamond dust for shimmer. Royal icing stencil. Hibiscus flower is Royal icing transfer. Leaf is painted fondant.


Flood with solid purple. Royal icing transfer for hibiscus flower and leaf. Maybe my favorite cookie of the set.

I loved this class and the use of very few colors to make all cookies, so that they flow together beautifully. Purple, green and ivory, in different shades and textures. Perfect for a wedding or as a Birthday gift for a special friend. Thank you so much, Amy, you ARE a master teacher!

ONE YEAR AGO: Jeweled Butterflies

AMY’S FABULOUS FLORAL CLASS

sallybrLeave a comment

I fell in love with these cookies moment she shared their pictures to announce the online event. I would not say this was a beginner’s level adventure, but Amy explains each step so well, that I believe even someone very new to cookie decorating could follow. Plus, to give you an idea of her level of detail when preparing for the event, the week before she uploaded SIX videos of cookie preparation. Some cookies had to be flooded, some fondant decorations had to be made and painted. It is a set perfect for Mother’s Day or any romantic occasion. Engagements, weddings… Pure beauty.

The set is designed as seven hexagon cookies to form a beautiful platter when joined together. One of the things that are required is baking the cookies over a perforated mat. Actually, these mats are a complete game changer as far as cookie baking goes, so I highly recommend you get one. I simply never bake over parchment anymore. The base of the cookies is perfect when you use the mats. Many brands available, like this one. Amy used the texture given by the mat as part of the design in two of the cookies.

The cookie on the left is flooded allowing part of the base to show. That gets painted in gold. The effect is simply amazing, don’t you think? On the right, several colors of icing in thicker consistency are smeared over the base.

The day before class, this is what we had to get ready… Several cookies flooded, some wet-on-wet flower motif, and one cookie flooded and immediately covered with embossed parchment paper.

Apart from that, fondant decorations and wafer paper decorations made and painted.

Side-note…. Amy demonstrated how the exact same silicone mold can give you two quite different flowers, depending on how much fondant (or modeling chocolate) you add to it.

There were a few techniques totally new to me, like working with edible fabric to make a bow. It is a little tricky but not that bad, actually. A little patience is required.

I also got to use this super cute ring to hold glue for the first time. It makes it a lot easier to work with the wafer paper bits and tiny sprinkles. You touch the glue with the needle and apply where you want it, no need to reach for the big bottle and risk making a mess. She included one in the box sold independently of the online class, I’ve only found it for sale in bulk (click here).

It was also my first time working with printed wafer paper, which adds a lot of elegance to a cookie.

I’ve participated of several classes online with Amy, each one teaches me so much, but this was truly special. Each cookie fascinated me. Below, my top three favorites. The first one required piping the roses and leaves on the cookie, so perhaps it was the most advanced of all, but Amy guides each step of the piping with perfect attention to details. How to hold the piping bag in the perfect angle, how to move your hand at each petal. A great learning experience!

Amy, I cannot thank you enough for yet another amazing online event. Already looking forward to our next adventure together…

EGGSCELLENT EGG HUNT: ONLINE CLASS WITH AMY

sallybrLeave a comment

Today I share the outcome of yet another zoom event organized by Amy, from Seriously Sweet at Davis St… This time the whole set was Easter-inspired, and I am absolutely smitten by this collection… Several different techniques were used to make them. We finished the six cookies in under 2 hours, they went by so fast. Yes, we had fun! I invite you to join her Facebook group, so you consider joining us next time.

Before class, we were supposed to bake the cookies, have two of the Easter eggs iced in white and fully set, and make a few Royal icing transfers using the templates that Amy designed and shared earlier. A few more details as fondant decorations, and we were all set!

Below you see some of the steps involved for a few of the cookies.

The lamb used thick icing pressure-piped to make the wool appearance. And the eyes were Royal icing transfers, super cute… The watercolor egg used a technique new to me, coupling luster powder with everclear sprayed with a little atomizer. So cool! The wooden sign used royal icing sculpting, and the egg a nice wet-on-wet pulled with a needle.

To me, the trickiest technique once again was using the stencil coupled with thick royal icing. The present version was a little more complex than the one we made for Christmas cookies because we now used three different colors at the same time. I barely managed to get the design to show, as you can see in the photo below, on the left.

I loved them all, and everybody did well in the class, even those who were just beginning to decorate cookies, because Amy goes at a nice pace, and explains everything in great detail.

It is hard to pick favorites, but my heart flips between the two below…

And to add my own interpretation to my favorite cookie of this series, I made a batch of chocolate dough and used it for the sheep, in a way that considerably reduces the amount of Royal icing. It does not have the same dramatic look of Amy’s version, but if thick icing is a concern for those enjoying your cookies, this version might please you.

All you need is to ice the body in white, wait 20 minutes or so and add texture with a fondant ball…

Once that is done, pipe and/or glue your decorations and you are done!

Amy, thank you for another great class, I can hardly wait for the next!

AMY’S CHRISTMAS COOKIES: A FUN VIRTUAL CLASS

sallybrLeave a comment

If you follow my cookie adventures, you know that I am always trying to learn from the great decorators out there. I recently joined a virtual event hosted by Amy, from Seriously Sweet in Davis St, and it was a lot of fun! The class was supposed to be beginner to intermediate level, and we had to make six designs. The picture above shows two of them, plus two small cookies I made with leftover icing from class. Everything super well explained, all we had to do was bake the 6 different shapes, and have four of them iced the day before, so we could work with stencils, stamps, and colors during class. Since the event was by zoom, we could always ask specific questions and even show our cookies to her and other participants in case of eventual drama.

For the preparation, we flooded the angle tree with green, the center of the ornament with red, the candle and the star with white. We also had the option of making little fondant decorations, if we wanted to follow her exact design, which I obviously chose to do. During class we did brush embroidery for the angel, and painting with watercolor technique for the star and candle. All at a nice pace, with very detailed instructions by Amy, who was decorating hers, in real time. The only cookie that gave me trouble was the tree, I could not make the stamp go smoothly over the whole surface, but still like the effect. I need to practice stamping, it is not that easy for me.

It is hard to pick a favorite, for me it is a tie between the ornament and the wreath…

The painting method for the star was very cool, and as Amy pointed out during class, the technique can be used for many different designs. For a more advanced adventure, she suggested we could write “Fa-la-la” over the tree with the musical sheet in the background, but I did not feel quite up to the challenge. Writing with Royal icing will require a bit more mental prep from me.

So here they are, my six babies from class!

Amy, thank you so much for organizing this class, I always learn a ton of stuff during your events… I look forward to the next one!

If you’d like to join one of Amy’s future classes, visit her IG page and join her Facebook group, you will meet lots of cookie-addicts and will improve your skills while having a lot of fun.