It's Quiet

If you have been to one of our shows, then you have heard me sing my mom's praise in the products she brings to our table.  I am completely smitten with the amazing hats and booties she crocheted, the fun hair bows and fancy tutus, the adorable pacifier clips... her's was an imagination that truly knew no limits.  Every time we spoke, she had a new idea for something great to bring to the shows for you.  We would text pictures of our latest crafty creations back and forth and we were so excited to see you all this Fall.

In June, my mother was suddenly taken from us.  I have been living in a world without her light, and that is truly a dark place.  This is why you haven't seen the new website I was going to surprise her with, or the neat products that she was going to surprise us all with.  She was my crafty partner in crime and she never ceased to amaze me.  This is why it has been so very quiet on the page.  It is so very quiet in my heart now.

This is the only picture I have of us together at a show.  If you happen to have one in your stash, I would love to have a copy:  orders@curiouscakeshoppe.com.

I can't say if or when I will be back to doing shows.  I will still be open to discussing new orders and our current inventory via the website, email, and phone, but my work load will be reduced for now.  Her's was a beautifully inspired mind and making these products for you all was truly her joy and peace in rough waters.  For those of you who stopped by and told her how much you loved her work, I thank you.  You brought sunshine to her life and for that, I will be forever grateful.

Tania

Upcoming Shows :: April

Craft Fair at the Market
"Craft Fair at the Market will feature the distinctive hand-created work of many local craftsmen and women. FREE admission and one of a kind affordable gifts. Weather Permitting. Bike and pet friendly event."

April 9th 2011
8:00AM - 1:00PM

Downtown Arlington Farmers Market
215 E Front Street
Arlington, TX

Check back, more shows will be added soon!

Another half-a-dozen for the road

I have been working on a lot of fun new things for The Curious Cake Shoppe, from new products to website updates and everything in between (it seems)! It was high time to march my way over here and share a few of our latest cakes to find happy homes.



As you can see from this side by side, I am still working on figuring out the perfect lighting for these pictures. Feel free to hit me with opinions!

The Anchors Away Cake (top-middle) is one of my personal favorites. Everything here is "Made From Scratch" including the blankets, washcloths, and burp-cloth. I even created my own anchor design and embroidered it on some of the set, along with the topper. It was a blast to work on and I couldn't be happier with the end result!

Which one is your favorite?

Shoppe @ The 3rd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling

Last weekend was The 3rd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling, and we had a blast!



With over 100+ vendors, a charitable raffle, and pet adoptions, there was no shortage of things to see and do! We were setup as both The Curious Cake Shoppe & The Curious Canvas.



We had lots of original Curious Cake Shoppe goodies, as well as many fun new products!



My favorite part of every show is meeting so many amazing people. And on that note, here is the last image I left the show with, and I want to share it with you!



If that doesn't melt your heart, I just don't know what will. Thanks to this precious baby and her lovely mom for letting me snap this adorable picture!

For more pictures, check out our album here.

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Upcoming Shows

The Peddler Show
"For the past 34 years, The Peddler Show has offered Texas shoppers a truly remarkable and one-of-a-kind shopping experience. Currently operating over 25 shows annually, The Peddler Show Staff is committed to maintaining a contemporary and unique marketplace – offering repeat shoppers something new with each visit. Shoppers will find a vast selection of exclusive items including personalized designs, home décor, hand crafted jewelry, fashionable clothing, gourmet treats, creative gifts and so much more!"

March 18th, 2011
3:00PM - 8:00PM
March 19th, 2011
9:00AM - 6:00PM
March 20th, 2011
11:00AM - 4:00PM

Irving / Las Colinas Convention Center
222 W. Las Colinas Blvd
Irving TX, 75039

Admission covers the ENTIRE weekend and is:
$6 Adults
$5 Seniors 65+
$5 Children 5-11
Children Under 5 FREE
Parking is FREE!

Buy 1 Get 1 Free Adult Admission Coupon Here!

Upcoming Shows :: March 2011

The Peddler Show
"For the past 34 years, The Peddler Show has offered Texas shoppers a truly remarkable and one-of-a-kind shopping experience. Currently operating over 25 shows annually, The Peddler Show Staff is committed to maintaining a contemporary and unique marketplace – offering repeat shoppers something new with each visit. Shoppers will find a vast selection of exclusive items including personalized designs, home décor, hand crafted jewelry, fashionable clothing, gourmet treats, creative gifts and so much more!"


March 18th, 2011
3:00PM - 8:00PM
March 19th, 2011
9:00AM - 6:00PM
March 20th, 2011
11:00AM - 4:00PM

Irving / Las Colinas Convention Center
222 W. Las Colinas Blvd
Irving TX, 75039

Admission covers the ENTIRE weekend and is:
$6 Adults
$5 Seniors 65+
$5 Children 5-11
Children Under 5 FREE
Parking is FREE!

Buy 1 Get 1 Free Adult Admission Coupon Here!

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Funky Finds 3rd Annual Spring Fling
"The 3rd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling is a free 2-day family AND pet-friendly event showcasing hip, unique handmade goods created by 100+ artists, crafters & designers! Photographers will be setup both days to take FREE pet portraits. There will be a charitable raffle benefiting CASA of Tarrant County and The Humane Society of North Texas, who will be on-hand facilitating pet adoptions. The first 75 shoppers each day to purchase a minimum of five $1.00 raffle tickets will receive a Funky Finds tote bag full of free swag donated by the artists at the show!"



March 12th, 2011
9:00AM - 4:00PM
March 13th, 2011
11:00AM - 4:00PM

Will Rogers Memorial Center
Small Exhibits Building (Poultry Bldg.)
3409 Burnett Tandy Drive
Fort Worth, TX 76104

All things new for 2011

Greetings to all our Curious readers! 2011 is off with a bang and we hope that you too are finding your new year filled with excitement and possibilities! We have been spending our time-off getting ready for a year full of new shows, new products, and new faces.

NEW FACES
Speaking of new faces, I'd like to introduce you to the newest addition to our Curious family: The Curious Canvas!


The Curious Canvas is a combination of the many art forms I love: digital photography, graphic design, and textiles. Each canvas is handmade and my own little whimsical twist on the world we live in. I hope you love them as much as I love making them!

NEW PRODUCTS
I always try to have fun new products to show you at our shows, and this year is no exception! Come check out our booth at The 3rd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling and be one of the first people to check out our new appliquéd onesies, adorable hats, fresh truffles, cupcakes, and more!

NEW PAYMENT METHODS
And since The Curious Cake Shoppe has always been about making gifts that are cute and convenient, we are now accepting credit card payments at all our events! Free gift wrapping, convenient payment methods, adorable gifts... can it get any better than that?

NEW SHOWS

Funky Finds 3rd Annual Spring Fling

"The 3rd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling is a free 2-day family AND pet-friendly event showcasing hip, unique handmade goods created by 100+ artists, crafters & designers! Photographers will be setup both days to take FREE pet portraits. There will be a charitable raffle benefiting CASA of Tarrant County and The Humane Society of North Texas, who will be on-hand facilitating pet adoptions. The first 75 shoppers each day to purchase a minimum of five $1.00 raffle tickets will receive a Funky Finds tote bag full of free swag donated by the artists at the show!"



March 12th, 2011
9:00AM - 4:00PM
March 13th, 2011
11:00AM - 4:00PM

Will Rogers Memorial Center
Small Exhibits Building (Poultry Bldg.)
3409 Burnett Tandy Drive
Fort Worth, TX 76104

stay tuned for more shows this spring

Is there cake on your TV?

As you know, I will be vending at The Funky Finds Experience coming up very soon on Nov 6th & 7th. I am very excited about this event because I think it's going to rock the socks off of DFW. What you don't know is: I was asked to be one of three vendors interviewed for a Sneak Preview for the event!

So, I packed up a few samples of our products, along with a new surprise line that we will be revealing at The Experience, and headed to Cabbage Rose in Fort Worth. Interested to see how it went? Well, me too! Ha!

The interviews will be aired on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010 on The CW (channel 33) during the 9PM news. Check it out to see The Curious Cake Shoppe, a preview of The Funky Finds Experience, and a sneak peek of our new product line--which I will be writing more about next week!

In the meantime, I hope to see you at our upcoming show in Coppell this Saturday! The weather looks to be beautiful and The Curious Cake Shoppe will be out in full force.

Old Town Coppell Farmers Market and Arts & Crafts Show

"This event features a variety of activities and a bounce house for the kids. There will be a full house of farmers
market vendors, in addition to the last Arts & Crafts Show of the year!"

October 30th, 2010
8:00AM to 12:00PM

Coppell Farmers Market
Coppell, TX 75019

Chilly Weather, Cute Hats

If you live in Texas, then you've probably noticed the weather has gone from hotter than hot to... pleasant? Yes, it is an unusual state for Texas weather and no doubt it won't last long. As it starts to get chilly, you might want to check on your cute crocheted hat inventory. You will not want to be caught low on stock!


This adorable picture was sent over by Melanie Melugin, one of the wonderful shoppers that I met at the Cowtown Indie Bazaar.


Melanie- these pictures are amazing, thanks for sending them over!

*Although adorable for photos, The Curious Cake Shoppe suggests wearing a little more than just a hat to tackle the chilly weather. But, just like this fellow above, if you get the hat right-- the rest will come easy! :D

Do you have product shots that you would like to share? Send them over to orders@curiouscakeshoppe.com and I will post them here!

Thanks Mealine!

Cowtown Indie Bazaar Fall 2010

I spent several weeks gearing up for this fun event, and it feels like my feet haven't hit the ground since! That is exactly why I am so late in posting all about it.



The Cowtown Indie Bazaar was a blast! I met so many new people and truly enjoyed chatting with and every one of you. I was very excited about this show, because I had worked on a brand new display and had several new product lines to show off.



My mom came down for this show and helped me out with setup and sales pretty much all day Friday and Saturday. We had a great time!
(Neither of us like being in pictures that much, and so you wont see any of us, ha!)



One of our brand new product lines is our hand crocheted hats. You can see several of them above. The pumpkin hat was a particularity big hit-- is it sad that I want one of my own to wear?



Amber of A Shade Better Than Stick Figures, was set up next to me, which always means a good time!



In addition to her amazing drawings, Amber was also selling the sock plops you see above. Outside of being absolutely adorable, each one is completely unique and very affordable!

For more pictures, check out our Flickr album.

See something you like in the pictures above? Come check us out at one of our upcoming craft shows! At our next show, A Shade Better Than Stick Figures will be our neighbor and we will both be sporting all these awesome products plus more!

Upcoming Shows:

St Thomas Aquinas Mothers' Association's October Market
"The St. Thomas Aquinas Mothers’ Association’s October Market is one of the largest gift and holiday markets in the Lakewood/White Rock Lake area. We take special care in selecting a variety of merchants offering unique items in order to ensure our patrons a great shopping experience, while allowing our merchants to maximize their sale potential."

October 9th, 2010
10:00AM to 6:00PM

St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School
Lower School Campus
6255 East Mockingbird
Dallas, Texas 75214

Old Town Coppell Farmers Market and Arts & Crafts Show
"This event features a variety of activities and a bounce house for the kids. There will be a full house of farmers market vendors, in addition to the last Arts & Crafts Show of the year!"

October 30th, 2010
8:00AM to 12:00PM

Coppell Farmers Market
Coppell, TX 75019

The Funky Finds Experience

"The Funky Finds Experience is a 2-day indie art & craft fair to be held November 6 & 7 in Fort Worth, Texas. The event will feature the work of over 120 talented artists, crafters & designers that hand-craft various goods. The first 50 guests both days will receive a free swag bag! Raffle tickets will be sold both days and benefit Toys for Tots."

November 6th, 2010
9:00AM - 5:00PM
November 7th, 2010
10:00AM - 4:00PM

Will Rogers Memorial Center
Amon G. Carter Exhibits Building
Fort Worth, Texas

Hope to see you there!

Half a Dozen Sweet Treats!

Okay sure, you can't eat these sweet treats, but, The Curious Cake Shoppe continues to supply adorable cakes that do not contribute to the daily calorie count-- and that's gota be worth something, right? :D

Here are a handful of the latest cakes that have recently found new homes:


I'm afraid some of the pictures got cut off in the Mosaic Maker, so feel free to hit the Flickr photostream for better pictures and more information about all our cakes!

Even better than Flickr, swing on by The Cowtown Indie Bazaar on Saturday and check out our latest and greatest cakes yourself! We will have a lot of new designs and new products including our super adorable crocheted baby hats!

Here's a sneak peak...

Cool Weather, Cool Events

The last couple of months have been hectic between orders, life, and a little bit of vacation! I've been hiding indoors from this sweltering heat, but cool weather will soon be approaching (hopefully!) and so will some very cool shows! Here is some information about just a few that are on the horizon:

Cowtown Indie Bazaar



This free, family friendly event will host more than 80 select artisans, designers, and crafters showcasing how innovation and craftsmanship combined create unique, modern, handmade goods. Find handcrafted jewelry, original artwork, stylish decor for the home, upcycled and repurposed vintage wares, and more. Enjoy live music, FREE crafts for children, FREE photo booth, food for purchase, day long raffles benefiting the Tarrant County Food Bank, and FREE goody bags filled handmade treasures for the first 50 customers.

September 4th, 2010
9:00AM to 6:00PM

Will Rogers Memorial Center
Round Up Inn
3401 West Lancaster Avenue
Fort Worth, TX 76107

The Funky Finds Experience



This free, fun, family friendly, two-day event will host a variety of artists and crafters showcasing their handmade creations. Both Saturday and Sunday, handmade swag bags full of free goodies will be rewarded to the first 50 attendees to purchase $5 worth of raffle tickets, benefiting a local charity. Bring a new unwrapped toy to donate to Toys for Tots and receive a free raffle ticket!

November 6th, 2010
9:00AM to 5:00PM
November 7th, 2010
10:00AM to 4:00PM

Will Rogers Memorial Center
Amon G. Carter Jr Exhibits Bldg.
3400 Burnett Tandy Drive
Fort Worth, TX 76107

Click here for information regarding parking at Will Rogers.

We will have a lot of fun new products and designs to showcase at both of these exciting events. Hope to see you there!

A Centerpiece or Seven...

One of the many things that I love about diaper cakes is their versatility. There is a diaper cake to be created for every theme and color scheme; and each is as unique as the person who ordered it. Diaper cakes can be given at baby showers, received in the mail, or even delivered to the hospital. Diaper cakes are gifts carrying gifts, and the end result is so adorable and fun... they are practically centerpieces in and of themselves. So, when I was contacted to help decorate a baby shower by creating 7 zoo themed diaper cakes to serve as centerpieces on their tables, I was thrilled at the challenge.

I set out shopping for all things zoo related, on a mission to make each individual cake just a little different and special, but to still have them match and tie the theme together from table to table.

Here is what I came up with:



As individual cakes, I wanted them to look adorable. But, as a group, I wanted them to look amazing! What do you think?

I did receive an email after the shower, and I was excited to hear that the cakes were a big hit! Everyone loved them, and several even tried to take them home. Can you imagine how neat it would be for the guest of honor to find out that they are all for her? Poof: there is an instant supply of matching bedding and stuffed animals for her adorable little baby boy, and decorations galore for her nursery!

Can you tell I'm just crazy about gifts that keep giving?

If you're planning a baby shower and are interested in ordering centerpieces for your tables, contact us at orders@curiouscakeshoppe.com for your custom quote!

Thrice as Nice

My computer recently decided to give up on me, so I've been without all my files and unable to post any updates! It's a good thing that I don't need a computer to keep making Curious Cake Shoppe goodies, matter of fact, I've probably been even more productive because of it.

Despite the technology vacation, I'm happy to be back and I have a few cakes to share with you:

Click the image above to visit our Flickr gallery for larger pictures and more information on each cake.

This last cake was an extra special treat to work on! It was my first diaper cake for twins, and I had a wonderful time creating it. The theme I was given was a lot of fun, but two of anything is twice as nice. So, in the spirit of that, I decided that sharing three cakes at once might just be thrice as nice! I hope you like them. :)

Our Shoppe @ Friends of the Bedford Library Bazaar

Mark your calendar for Saturday, April 17th for beautiful weather and great shopping! The Curious Cake Shoppe will be set up at the "Friends of the Bedford Library Bazaar" and we've got lots of fun new products including diaper cakes, hair clips, tutus, cupcakes, truffles, lollipops, and more!

Show Info:

When:
Saturday, April 17th 2010
9:00 AM to 4:30 PM

Where:
Pennington Field
Bedford, TX
(Click link for map)

The bazaar will showcase aisle after aisle of vendors selling jewelry, antiques, furniture, clothes, baby items, collectibles, bedding, scrapbooking, and much more.

Hope to see you there!

DFW Craft Shows - Community and Craft Calendar

The Curious Cake Shoppe is excited to present... DFW Craft Shows!

DFW Craft Shows is a community for artists, crafters, and shoppers to share and learn about local arts & craft shows in North Texas. The goal is to help local artisans and their communities connect. Artists and crafters find out about new opportunities to share and sell their crafty creations, and local events are promoted and supported in hopes of granting them successful shows and bringing them back year after year.

If you know any artists, crafters, or shoppers that might be interested, please help us spread the word!

The link is : www.DFWCraftShows.com and below are a couple of badges with code that you can copy and paste into your website or blog!

Open-Air Market, Air strikes back!

If you joined us out in Grapevine on Saturday, then it's no news to you that the wind was certainly present and accounted for. This time when I said : "The show was fun! My products were flying off the table!" I meant it quite literally!

Within 30 minutes of starting my setup, I got a first hand lesson in "Wind Proofing." After a gust of wind and a loud thump, I looked over to find one of my diaper cakes had flown off the table and landed, quite safely, on the chair next to it. Whew! Considering myself lucky, I started securing products the best I could. Despite the ongoing battle with Mother Nature, the day was fun-filled and I made many new acquaintances.

Thanks to everyone who braved the wind to come say hello, and a big thanks to everyone who brought back any rogue products they found several feet away from their proper vendors. All those dedicated vendors deserve a big round of applause for hanging in there and doing so with a great big smile on their face!


Click the link above to visit our Flickr Show Set and see more pictures!

Sunshine, and just in time!

It's 70 degrees out and parts all over the metroplex are still covered in snow. So much for the first day of Spring! The good news, however, is that spring-like weather is heading our direction this weekend, which is just in time for the Cannon 1st Annual Open-Air Market!

Show Info:

When:
Saturday, March 27th 2010
9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Where:
Cannon Elementary
1300 W. College
Grapevine, Texas

The open-air market will feature a variety of crafts and products, including handmade jewelry, art, children's clothing and accessories, baby's clothing and baby shower gifts, fresh made grain foods, home decor, kitchen items, leather items, sunglasses, hats and much much more.

For more information visit their event listing.

The Curious Cake Shoppe will be out in full force, enjoying the beautiful weather and hoping to see you there!

Go ahead, share a smile!

We LOVE receiving customer pictures of our products! If you have any pictures of your favorite little ones running around in Curious Cake Shoppe gear, or any our gifts at your baby showers--send them in! Not only will it put a great big smile on our faces, but we'll post them here so our readers can share in the smile too!


















This picture was sent in by Greg. Here are 3 of his adorable nieces sporting a few of our hair clip and headband sets! These sets look great at every age: from infant and up. I didn't even need to say that, did I? The proof is in the picture!

Thanks, Greg, for sharing this lovely picture with us!

Our hair accessories are not up on the website just yet, but we are in the process of site updates and will be adding them soon! Meanwhile, for anyone interested in purchasing their own set, contact us at orders@curiouscakeshoppe.com.

Funky Time at Funky Finds!

The Funky Finds Spring Fling was a blast! There were so many super talented artists and crafters at the show, not to mention all the wonderful people that came to shop and support the art and crafts community.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our booth to say hello; it was a treat to meet you all! One of those lovely people was Cindy from Art&Seek, who posted the following coverage of the event for KERA:



We are thrilled that she took the time to swing by our booth and share our crafty creations!

For those of you who were not able to attend the event, here are a few pictures of our setup:









Who's that next to you, you might ask?



Why, that's Amber of A Shade Better Than Stick Figures and my super supportive hubby, Richard. (Not pictured, but equally wonderful, was Alonzo--Amber's pit crew--and my mom, the super talented contributor of hair clips and tutus.) I was very lucky to have such a great booth posse at this show (and I hope at many more)! Thanks guys!

For more pictures of the event, check out the Funky Finds Spring Fling 2010 Flickr Group.

Funky Town

This weekend is quickly approaching and with it comes The Funky Finds 2010 Spring Fling! The crew over at Funky Finds have been preparing for this show since November, and have done a spectacular job of advertising the show and supporting myself and my fellow frazzled vendors (all 120+ of them)! There are going to be so many vendors all selling unique, amazing handmade gifts, so you're not going to want to miss this one.

The show is March 13th, 9am until 3pm (or until the crowd simmers down).

The first 50 people to spend $5 in raffle tickets will receive swag bags which consist of items donated from many of the vendors. The raffle will consist of items donated by ALL the vendors, and not only will you get the chance to win some of these awesome goodies, but all proceeds will go towards the North Texas Humane Society and Casa of Tarrant County! As if that weren't enough, Funky Finds is also sponsoring pet adoptions at the event. All in all, this is going to be a spectacular event and I could not be more impressed with the lovely people in charge of it.

Don't forget to swing by and say hello, I'd love to see everyone and show you the fun new goodies we have made!