Hi, all! I will keep this post brief, as I am on vacation, but please read it. It is very important. In recent weeks, I have cited a few people for use of copied work without permission. (This is an ongoing issue, truthfully, even though our copyright rules are posted all over the place.) If I have to...
If you can remember as far back as July (my bad for getting behind on these Close-ups), the wonderful Cookies Fantastique, aka Carol Mattison, was our featured site artist, wowing us with a rather spectacular Fourth of July set! In her site artist forum intro published around that time, Carol mentioned that...
In this edition of Toolbox Talk, I'm zooming in on another ingredient that can mystify cookiers outside of the United States (US): corn syrup. It is sometimes listed in royal icing recipes, but it is not available all over the world...
What makes the difference between a cookie aficionado and a cookiepreneur? Profit! Remember we are talking business here, and the bottom line is the bottom line. I am going to dive right into this two-part series. Part I, Creating a Successful...
I don’t know about you, but I have faced many challenges in my lifetime, the biggest of which knocked me down so hard I thought I would never survive. Oddly enough, it was through that challenge that I found my true calling and built a small...
Styles and designs in the cookie world are constantly evolving, and it seems as though there are always new techniques and trends to capture our attention. At the same time, there are the "classics"...
Ah, summer. When my kids were in grade school, those first few weeks of summer vacation were like paradise. Sleeping in, staying up late, slumber parties, and lazy days - summer was everything they thought they wanted. As the days passed, however, they’d always reach a point when...
Just mention the word "marketing" to a cookie maker, and she'll most likely want to run and hide under a blankie. We all know marketing is really important, and we know we need to do it, but we don't entirely understand what it is or...
Well no one's ordered any autumn cookies from me this year, and I do love a collection of pumpkins and gourds. I always have a few in the window where I work. I particularly love the quirkily shaped, knobbly gourds, both beautiful and funny! Though...
There’s no debating it: Halloween is one of the best, if not THE best, cookie seasons of the year - which is why I’ve got a second Halloween-themed release for you this month! This time, it’s a...
A few months ago, I made a water lily pond cookie set inspired by a couple of real ponds that I saw during a trip. One pond had pink flowers, and the other pond had white ones. That set was my...
Hello, all! I’m Hallena and this is the Fantastic Bakes and Where to Find Them 's first tutorial. I will be showing you how to create your own Kopykake copycat for a fraction of the price. What is a Kopykake? According to the...
This week, I'm changing things up again, all with the intention of casting the spotlight on a tremendously valuable, but sometimes overlooked area of the site...
I'm back from Japan - and from the associated jet lag (I think)! Thanks, everyone, for granting me a little reprieve from Spotlights as I tended to my cookie courses. While the classes and whole experience were magical, it is nice to once again feel home turf underfoot and to be...
Our November site artist Kari Arroyo, aka Yankee Girl Yummies, is no newcomer here! From January to December 2014, she contributed a wealth of wonderful tutorials to Cookie Connection, all under the title of Dear Yankee Girl.
Day 8 (February 10), 10:30 am. Gad! How indulgent! I hate to admit it, but I sleep in much later than any reasonable person should. But what counts is that I've recovered from my marathon weekend of cookie decorating and teaching, and I'm ready...
Fellow cookiepreneurs, the holidays are upon us, and I hope this month’s post finds you in high spirits and looking forward to the coming days. Before I begin, I wanted to share that I recently received feedback that some of you would be...
This month's tutorial is all about royal icing transfers, which are decorations piped on parchment paper or acetate and then attached to cookies once they are dry . . . but we are not using cookies! Although I like the idea of decorated cookies as place cards, I like less the idea of...
This "Welcome Back" cookie by Ryoko ~Cookie Ave. is an apt cover image considering it's been a couple of weeks since I wrote a Spotlight! It's not only apropos, it's also impossibly cute! What a...
The idea for this project was sparked by an ad on Instagram promoting stamps to make real wax seals. I initially wanted to make an entire wax seal cookie, but I instead ended up using royal icing to make seal transfers to go on larger envelope cookies. For the envelope design, I...
Upcoming Mother’s Day and orchids are the inspiration for this month's tutorial design. It couldn’t be any other flower, as I am currently living in Thailand where orchids are everywhere, in every color and in every shape. In fact...
With one of the year's biggest cookie holidays barely behind us, it's already time to get the creative juices flowing for the next big one - Valentine's Day! Phew! The work of the cookier is never done...
For those of you who haven’t been around Cookie Connection that long, you might not know that this is our second (yes, second!) Cookier Close-up with Anne Yorks of Flour Box Bakery fame. We last spoke with Anne back in 2014 when she was...
Before I dive into this interview with Berni Solti (aka @Gingerland), please stop whatever you’re doing and give her a huge round of applause! Berni now holds the official record for site art submissions, topping out at five in total with four more still to post...
The sun is shining; the birds are singing; it’s a warm, wonderful spring that's quickly turning into summer. It's a time for new beginnings! I’ve missed all things cookie while I’ve been away, and so it’s with great pleasure that I...
Considering the thermostat topped 104°F here in St. Louis today, I probably should have entitled this post, "Top 10 (Dog Days of) Summer Cookies"! Even when it gets this hot outside...
In a mere two weeks, the kiddos will be traipsing through our neighborhoods, in full goblin and ghost garb, in quest of Halloween sweets. I realize that we...
Food coloring is arguably the second most important element in cookie decorating after the royal icing itself. The art of choosing colors and/or mixing the exact shade are the subjects of many blog posts...
The first time I heard about shortening was when an American colleague couldn't find it for a recipe she planned to make for Thanksgiving dinner. When she served sweet potatoes covered with melted marshmallows, I wasn't immediately...
Hi, all! I'm back with our "usual" Spotlight after a whirlwind week of triaging the vast amount of CookieCon coverage generated by our talented team of correspondents ! Congrats again to Barb Florin, Beverly Parker, Jen Wagman, and...
I will do just about anything for a prize. I adore free stuff. An otherwise dormant beast is stirred inside me when I hear that word - prize. Big prize or small . . . it doesn't matter. I want to win it. I should be embarrassed to admit this . . . but...
There is something about painting on a cookie that I can't resist. People say it's a great stress release and outlet for self-expression and creativity. For me, painting is not only a very accessible and enjoyable...
Our CookieCon interview series continues this month with none other than Monica Holbert of Cookie Cowgirl, one of the most talented (and most humble) cookie painters I know! We live-chatted with Monica what seems like eons ago (my, how...
It’s hard to believe that the subject of our next Close-up has only been decorating for a little less than three years, but, yes, it’s very true. Marta Torres, aka The Cookie Lab , may be a relative newbie to cookie-land, but she...
Admittedly, I'm a little ODed on pumpkins and ghosts around about this time each year! But considering we've got less than one week to go 'til the big day - and we've got such an abundance of great Halloween cookies on the site - I had no choice...
This edition of "How Would You Cookie This?" is being brought to you by Dana (aka Dana’s Daydreaming Cookies on Cookie Connection )! Just a little background info for all of you who are new to my blog – this fun segment is...
With a mere four days to go to my favorite cookie decorating holiday, my second sweet Valentine's Day Spotlight, promised over three weeks ago, is long overdue - but well worth the wait! Without further ado, here you have it: the hottest...
My dear cookie friends, I was asked about the heavy horse cookie that I posted here a few days ago: http://cookieconnection.juliau...com/clip/heavy-horse . So here it is again . . . in more detail for you. ...
As a cookiepreneur, you have so many important decisions to make - and none more important than establishing both a vision for what you wish to build and the starting point from which to build it. Launching a business without a vision, strong...
One of the perks of being a Cookie Connection member (apart from sopping up knowledge in our awesome tutorials and challenges) is being among the first to learn of great deals offered by our incredible partners. Well, hold onto your pastry bags, because I've got...
We're getting together again! Please join me and Julia on Saturday, October 3, 10 am central time (CT), our usual chat time, for the FOURTH chat in Cookie Connection’s "Cookiers Helping Cookiers in the Time of COVID-19” series. We will again be using Zoom for our live meeting. We love to...
At long last, we’re picking up where we left off in our June 27 (!) chat with Cookie Connection challenge host Sweet Prodigy, aka Christine Dutcher! In addition to organizing and recapping our bimonthly Practice Bakes Perfect challenges, Christine is a precision-piper extraordinaire, best known for her...
A wafer paper flower placed on a cookie spread with royal icing makes a charming and simple beginner cookie project. In fact, that's exactly what I made a few years ago, using a wafer paper sunflower, when I was still struggling to...
My son is getting ready to head off to his freshman year of college, and our talks lately have centered around his future life of independence. The other day, he sat at the kitchen counter daydreaming aloud about...
Woot woot! Another amazing set of ten top-trending cookies! Like last week, entries from our ongoing floral challenge command our hot list*. Pssst . . . that challenge closes on August 30, so...
Hi, everyone. Please take a moment to read this message. It is very important. It relates to the ongoing wellbeing of this community and the respect we show to fellow members, especially our hardworking contributors who do....
I'm back after a week off, and what a refreshing sight it is to see the marvelous cookies that made it onto our hot list tonight. Some have been dancing around the top ten photo feed for several days due to their ongoing popularity, while others are...
If you've been a member of my Stencil of the Month Club or following my stencil journey for the last year or so, then you'll probably remember my Bridal Party Dynamic Duos™ release, which was designed specifically for brides and bridesmaids. Judging from its sales, you guys really liked it, making it a no-brainer to...
These aren’t the cookies I intended to post. I started weeks earlier with a completely different concept. I was excited about the idea and the progress I was making. However, on the final and most risky step, after investing more hours than I’d care to admit, I decided I...
Hey, all! Once again, apologies to all, particularly the 3-D winners of my cookie competition. This special edition of our Saturday Spotlight was supposed to post last weekend (or even earlier), but with my YouTube hijack on last Saturday and my general stay-at-home malaise, I've just had...
