wild things

long ago, Mary Jo recommended me to her daughter Jamie to make bridesmaid dresses and now Mary Jo has called again because Jamie has a new little Maddox, to be honored at a Where-the-Wild-Things-Are-themed baby shower. 

and i was all, "uh oh, i never read that book."  it's true, it was always checked out by other kids and i never got my turn (lip quiver) no, it was always checked out, but i just read other stuff.  i knew the pictures, and the movie previews looked awesome, but still, never read it.  so i Googled for pictures and discovered that my "Frosty the Snoman" plus a mini crown, plus a leaf for a tail, meant that the main character would be a snap.  those monsters? (were they called "monsters"?) they were many and intricate, and while i have to admit i took the easy route, it is a book about/ a shower for a little boy [and if you know little boys, they're all "main characters."], and when i dropped them off, Mary Jo said that any stuff they found for the party was always the monsters--nothing about the kid.  so now they have him, featured as a cookie!
i used to have a policy against licensed characters, considering that at one end of the talent spectrum, i could make a well-known character look ridiculous, thus disappointing my customer, or the other, that i'd make them well enough for someone to point out my copyright infringement.  i figured if you wanted a Barbie party, i'll make pink stars; or Harry Potter would get some white owls; stuff like accessory images.  but if i allow for it to be like "fan art" where the artist redrawing it isn't trying to mimic it, but reimagine it, then i'm not so nervous about characters.  i've seen "Regular Show" characters drawn like Anime, or the Star Trek crew as cookies a la Playschool's "Little People," and it's fun.  my "little ponies" weren't "My Little Ponies" so my little "wild things" turned out just right--this artist's interpretation of a cute little boy going "Rarr!" in some white pajamas. 
Congrats to the whole family and welcome little Maddox!  and coming soon, some softballs, purple butterflies, Easter, a couple birthdays, and now that i'll have coworkers, maybe some projects just for fun? 

Daydream 500

James [he does art stuff here] dropped me a line and asked for some race cars for the Daytona 500.  ok, i said, then bit my nails a little wondering how one would do all those stickers.  i mean, it's really not a modern American stock car without sponsors covering up the paint job.  i went with royal icing spread very thin and dried until it was like a stiff fruit-roll-up.  edible markers made my little nonsense companies, "E-Co" and "Jeff-Co" and "LJ" for Lisa and James, plus some letters, little graphics, and my own initials. then i just cut them out with scissors and dropped them into the wet icing.  i wanted them more flush, but once i had the "99" airbrushed [they're Carl Edwards fans] and dusted them with pearl dust, they turned out alright.  i even baked a spoiler onto the back of them.  [i call spoilers "car mullets."  ha.]
i have to include a paragraph about Viking Thrift and Artwork where we did the cookie drop off.  Elgin is horrible with their signage codes, so you have to look for their mint-green dock doors, but once inside you'll have a good idea about what the inside of my head looks like--hip vintagy things, arts and crafts, eclectic housewares... James has some art there, and it's run by cool people, and i was totally agreeable when it was suggested that i make cookies for future events.  i wanna hang out there and read/nap on their many gorgeous couches.
thank you James and Lisa for your order! coming up, i may be doing a story book theme.  still scratching my chin, so check back. 

29, for the 11th time...

S-I-L Heather turned 40.  her hubby Dan was awesome enough to hack into her email and invite just about everyone for a surprise party.  and of course, i insisted on marking the day with morbid over-the-hill cookies.

they start out nice enough, with pink icing and treble clefs in honor of Heather's work in the church choir, Voices to Go, and the Elmhurst community band, drawn with my mid-60's cartoon motif stylized scribble, then looming over the cake is mr grim reaper, with grey hood and scythe.  mwa-hahaha.
but no one thinks of Heather as old, that's why at lunch the next day, i corrected her siblings' teasing and told the waiter, "no, she's 29 again."  happy birthday Heather!  here's to another 40.  or 29. :)
coming soon, the Daytona 500.  and some teapots maybe?

dedicated, imaginative, observant, pleasant, *ready*

mostly i use facebook for my regular self, but i have a "katie at cookie daydream" page too.  i mostly use the cookie page to post a link to new blog posts, but i sometimes add some observations and truths about my aspirations as a cookie illustrator.  in case you don't follow me on facebook, here's what i've been saying:
1. if you're within a reasonable distance from Elgin and like helping kids, i'm always interested in helping with bake sales.
2. if any of you news-y blog-y folks out there want to write about an unfamous/aspiring cookie illustrator, i'd bake you something special to inspire you.
3. for hire: cookie illustrator/writer with sanitation cert and BA in fiction writing seeks baking or office job. previous experience includes all these [link to here] and a major news service. 5 descriptive words: dedicated, imaginative, observant, pleasant, *ready*
4. have you received my resume, employment application, or friendly letter of employment inquiry? 'cause i'm golly gosh darn-tootin' serious about it. no ditzy hair twirling here, i need me an awesome job. with you. (big professional grin)
--fear not that i would be distracted by my 2-order-a-month hobby, or that i'd want to turn your restaurant into my bakery. i will be dedicated to your recipes and customers.  
so there's all that.   if you're hiring, if you know a guy/gal, if you know some awesome thing i could do with this, by all means, email me.   i've included the camels because of all my pictures, this was the most popular.  just when you might think no one cares about cookies, suddenly camel cookies are all the rage.  delicious buttery food for thought.

i can has purrty cookie?

in honor of Valentine’s day, i offered my friends-&-family rate to all “to spread the love.”  cousin-in-law Kati, who ordered owls for baby JJ, shared the link on her hubby Tony’s wall, and he had the great idea to order 2 dozen for the missus.  he said “some hearts” and whatever i think up.

so i consulted my bags of shapes and picked a still-unused Valentine cat from the 80s, courtesy of Aunt Dahlas passing down surplus school supplies.  i mixed the icing a little early so it was deflating a little bit and behaving little more “flowy” than usual, but casual lines worked—instead of fretting if the toes should be more pronounced, or the whiskers longer, it looks a little floppy and kind of like a long-haired cat, right?  [i considered making a few to look like LOL cat sensation “grumpy cat.”  maybe tearing the heart in 2?  another day.]  my twitchy penmanship was just the right font for cute little-kid messages, like “luv u,” “xxoo,” “be mine,” and “T+K.” the flowered hearts were iced white and airbrushed rose pink through a flower paint stencil.  i enjoy thinking of different color combinations for this pattern. a lot.

then, continuing the pink flowers theme, i made cookies for the kiddo and his cousins; mini blossoms in Valentine colors.  i wasn’t attempting any precision with these either—i wanted them to look casual/biomorphic/breezy, rather than symmetrical.  

i bagged ‘em.  they looked pretty.  and i make my tags from old greeting cards.  shazam.

thanks again cousin Tony, and happy Valentine’s Day to all!  coming soon… well, i have an order, but i’m still working on what it will be.  so it’ll have to be a surprise…  and then i have some Indy cars.  stay tuned!

praying and playing--a busy weekend!

Vicar Fred Gaede has been ordained as a new pastor at Trinity Lutheran, and though he's to be installed this coming Sunday, my M-I-L Bobbi requested early celebratory cookies to share with her Bible study class.

specific requests included "Pastor Gaede" in gold, and a red cross, but off-center with flowers was my idea.
being a cookie illustrator with a 4 year old sometimes means you do your decorating overnight (like this project), which is no biggie for me, it's like writing a term paper, but those without the cookie-touch are wowed by my devotion; i think in this case, if one is devoting himself to a life of spiritual leadership, i can buckle down and make some lovely cookies.  right?  but don't worry, you don't have to be ordained to get me to take a cookie order seriously.

that same night i also made a pile of Es for Evan's Sesame Street themed first birthday. i have so many cookie cutters, i was able to do 3 different fonts.  so yeah, his party was brought to you by the number 1 and the letter E.  get it?  :)
Welcome Pastor Gaede to your new post, and Happy Birthday little Evan!  coming soon, i just found out i have a Valentine's day order.  oh, what to make... (pondering)

who? JJ!

my recent post of little baby birds popping out of shells got my cousin-in-law Kati thinking about an upcoming baby shower for her friend's little boy JJ.  (Kati married into my dad's side of the family, so before i departed from my maiden name, there were 2 of us, minus an E.  i wonder how many old friends of mine looked for me and thought i moved to Milwaukee?)

her idea was little owls, since the mother to be has a thing for them, and in blue and brown, and with the name JJ in there somewhere.  what i came up with were owls in a half shell, in 2 kinds of blue and tan.  "JJ" became the little bow tied around each egg.  i got the baby-owl shape by actually using an Easter shape of a marshmallow bunny peep in a half shell, but i pressed the ears together to make the head, then pinched the corners to make their little horns--instant owls!  their little bewildered owly eyes were detailed with edible marker, and a dust of white pearl dust gave them some glamor.  a big welcome to you, little JJ!
and that brings me current again, so everyone start thinking about Valentine's Day.  :)