the plan:

to throw a sweet little dinner party
for my brother & his wife, who are
expecting their 1st baby…after a good
meal, they’ll cut into a cake to find out
if they are having a boy or a girl……

as a busy working mother, i need a little help…so my mom
was nice enough to bake the secret cake & bring it to the dinner…

tyring to find inspiration for decorating i turned
to one of my favorite magazines DONNA HAY

this was my decorating result…..

and the official baby cakes result-IT’S A GIRL

& i for one cannot wait to meet her

congratulations lauren & jon….xoxo

here’s to the sweet (& short) life of a cheesecake…xoxo

sure, wedding cakes are beautiful creations of art…..
but what really matters (like in most things in life) is
what’s on the inside….xoxo

xoxo

this truly lovely bridal shower is featured in the new issue of
C-MAGAZINE…you simply must pick it up…serious eye candy….

wishing the beautiful bride a wonderful wedding…xoxo

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C MAGAZINE CREDITS

Cake/desserts: Cupcakes - www.cupcakescouturemb.com
Florals: JL Designs - www.jldesignsandevents.com
Stationery: Momental Designs - www.momentaldesigns.com
Scent Station: Kamilyin - www.kamilyin.com
Linens: La Tavola - www.latavolalinen.com
Champagne: Nicholas Feuillatte - http://www.feuillatte.com/
Production: Be Inspired PR - www.beinspiredpr.com
Photos by Elizabeth Messina – www.elizabethmessina.com
Catering by  Cory Martin Events – www.corymartinevents.com

had a baby….
a beautiful baby girl named harper….
harper just celebrated her 1st birthday & i was
lucky enough to photograph her & her sweet family…

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brady & tiffani & harper

this is one of the sweetest families i’ve ever had the pleasure of photographing

there is such love everywhere…from the lovely beautiful details that fill there home…both tiffani & her husband are artists…the “harper” sign was made by tiffani….& brady is a wonderful painter & illustrator…the couple even made & decorated their daughter’s first birthday cake (my kinda people)

the afternoon was full of hugs & laughs (notice my dear friend
viola from CHEWING THE CUD’s beautiful fabric wrap)…..

my favorite thing about brady (besides his artwork) is his sense of humor….

everything pictured above was made by either tiffani or brady….

pure beautiful love….xoxo
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happy birthday harper!

yup…i have a serious sweet tooth…so do my little ones…every year between august 6th & september 6th we have four birthdays in our house…that’s right 4 out of 5 of us were born during that one month period…so every year we over indulge our collective sweet teeth during that time…i have begun to plan for the chocolate mayhem that is about to come…that’s right i am planning what cakes & sweets i will make for each celebration…as you probably know, i also insist on photographing these adventures in sweets before anyone can enjoy them…so here is a recipe for one of my favorite ever chocolate cakes…it’s really almost like fudge…a little messy & sure to satisfy any sweet tooth…..

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FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE CAKE

ingredients

4 ounces bitter sweet chocolate
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
(plus a little more for sprinkling)

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Preheat oven to 375°F & butter an 8-inch round baking pan.
Line bottom with a round of wax paper.

Chop chocolate into small pieces. In a double boiler or metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water melt chocolate with butter, stirring, until smooth. Remove top of double boiler or bowl from heat and whisk sugar into chocolate mixture. Add eggs and whisk well. Sift 1/2 cup cocoa powder over chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined. Pour batter into pan and bake in middle of oven 25 minutes, or until top has formed a thin crust.

Cool cake in pan on a rack 5 minutes & invert onto a serving plate.

Dust cake with additional cocoa powder and serve.
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your sweet tooth is gonna love you…xoxo

a royal inspired shoot created by MERRYL BROWN….see all
the loveliness tomorrow on GREEN WEDDING SHOES…xoxo

nothing says sweet like homemade easter cookies
from the SOLVANG BAKERY….they also make the
most adorable little wedding cake cookies….xoxo

ONCE WED + ELIZABETH MESSINA

because life is full of love & possibility…xoxo
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this shoot was styled by JOY THIGPEN for ONCE WED….
beautiful florals by MINDY RICE FLORAL DESIGN….
hair & makeup by ERIN SKIPLEY….
cake by ERICA OBRIEN