...and we're back

I'm back from a long hiatus!  And I have lots to share.  Since most of my life revolves around making and completing lists (OCD much?!), I decided to share my news in list form:

1. I'm officially finished my third year of university!  Or as you Americans like to say, "junior year of college".  Only one more year to go!

2. I'm going about 3000 km west this summer - to beautiful British Columbia! I'll be working hard in Vancouver and hopefully getting a chance to take in all the gorgeous scenery.  I'm absolutely ecstatic to be spending the next four months there.  Does anyone know of any must-see places in Vancity?

3. I realized that we haven't yet had a formal introduction.  Hello, my name's Marie.  Nice to meet you!

  Yummy dessert for my lovely blog readers.  

4. Some baking adventures of late...

My Italian friend introduced me to Pizzelle cookies, and we spent all afternoon yesterday making these delicious wafers.  They're incredibly addictive.

Chocolate banana ice cream, anyone?

My fail-safe banana bread (actually, it's Food Network's fail-safe banana bread).  Love that you can have the batter mixed and ready in less than 20 minutes.  Then just pop it in the oven... and wait for the intoxicating aromas of cinnamon and banana to fill your home.  Far more efficient than any air freshener or candle. True story. 

All packed up and ready to go!

5. The feather clutch tutorial will be posted very soon, I promise.  And the Burberry-esque skirt is coming along... rather slowly, but it's coming!

sleep deprivation

I've been MIA!  I'm sorry.  And I'm sorry for the absolute laze (is that a word, laze?) of this post.

Life has been put on hold because of exams.  I promise to return with baked goods and DIYs (Burberry skirt, anyone?!) very very soon.  And I have news!  Exciting news!  Oh, the suspense!

(Though not quite as exciting as this teaser from Glee!  Who's ready for cheesy mashups and more Mark Salling?)

forty days

Forty days without shopping!  Whew.  No trips to the new H&M.  No trips to the new American Apparel.  And worst of all... no trips to my favourite store, the F21 online shop.  Now that Easter's past and Lent is over, I think it's time for a little retail therapy!

Speaking of Easter, what were you guys up to?  We took advantage of the beautiful weather that we've been getting these past few days.  I organized an Easter egg hunt, had a small-ish picnic brunch with some friends (featuring crepes, red velvet and vanilla cupcakes, and some of the best homemade Skor bars I've ever tasted!) and enjoyed a delicious duck dinner with my family.  Overall, a lovely way to usher in the spring.

Fresh berries & crepes ♥

Caught red handed - our guest of honour was the lovely Mr. Squirrel, who made off with an Easter egg! 

Mmm.  Must. Have. Desserts.

Banana Mousse Cake with White Chocolate Genoise.  I don't understand the cake decorator's obsession with gooseberries?  They don't taste very good...

Ahhhh!  The strawberries are leaking!

Happy Easter - I hope each and everyone one of you had a wonderful weekend!

vanilla cupcakes with raspberry cream filling

I'm just a tad embarrassed that since starting this blog, I have literally not lived up to my name.  "Cupcakes and Catwalks" was meant to showcase two of my passions - baking and fashion. And while I think I've been keeping up with both topics, there are no posts of any sort to do with cupcakes or catwalks!

As they say, it's better late than never. So with that I present to you my inaugural cupcake venture:

What you can't see in this picture is the yummy layer of raspberry cream tucked in underneath layers of cupcake.  Mmm.

Plump, juicy raspberries are just starting to hit the grocery stores again, and work perfectly in Giada's delicious cupcake recipe. The fresh raspberry cream is delectable - so light and refreshing!  I made my vanilla cupcakes from scratch, but any recipe will do.  (Yes, even a Duncan Hines 'recipe' - don't worry, your secret's safe with me!)

skirted

I have an entire folder on my desktop labelled "fashion ideas". It's essentially my inspiration board for future DIYs. There are almost 200 pictures in the folder, but here are some that I may attempt in the near future...

The Fringe skirt from Vena Cava F/W '09
[shopstyle.com]

An interesting two-toned ruched skirt I bumped into while browsing on facehunter
[http://facehunter.blogspot.com]

Alas, everyone's favourite Burberry Prorsum S/S '10 draped silk skirt
[mytheresa.com]

My DIYs so far have been rather simple. But a skirt, now that can be a daunting task. Which one shall I start with? Any suggestions?

birds of a feather flock together

DIYs always make for good study breaks. My studding (as witnessed here) has been put on hold until I can thrift a leather barrel bag and get my hands on a super-sized bag of rounded studs (I've got A. Wang's Rocco in mind). Right now, my DIYs have taken a detour into the land of our fair-feathered friends.

The ingredients? A package of feathers from the local Michaels and an old clutch in desperate need of a makeover. I'll put up a tutorial later in the week. But for now, I've got to clean up all the little feathery bits stuck in my bedroom carpet.

Who would have thought that this...

...could come from this?

say hello to my little friends

Double post today! I finished up a few DIYs this weekend so I thought I'd share. More to come this week, featuring... feathers?!

You've already been acquainted with my studded shirt [left].
Introducing my new shredded ribbon tee [centre] and silk panelled tank [right]!

Close-up of the shredded bottom hem

Silk panels and a little ribbon detailing sewn into the sides of a plain white tank.