Hi! I hope everyone is remaining safe and healthy, and that the required social distancing isn't driving you too stir-crazy. I had the first great day I've had since the quarantine began, and I think it was due, in large part, to...
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...
Frangipani, pomelia, and plumeria are all different ways to name the same beautiful flowers. I like the contrast of their white color against their dark green foliage and brown branches. Under each frangipani tree, you can...
When I used to sell my cookies, practicality was my worst enemy. It was an infuriating little voice in my head whispering sad truths: “too fragile”, “ too big”, “too sticky”. Every design had to live in a little bag without risk of breaking, smudging, or becoming stale on its path to the customer’s event. Now...
Years ago, I received two mini hot water bottles from my sister. They had plain knitted covers. One of them was red with a white heart on the front, and the other had the same knitted cover with the colors inverted. (They were too cute together for my sister to buy only one of them!) This memory...
When my kids were little, they loved advent calendars, especially ones with hidden chocolates. They’d start hounding me to buy them in the beginning of October, long before I wanted to think about the winter holiday frenzy. I assumed it was the (subpar) chocolate that appealed to them. But...
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...
My first child is packing for college as we speak. Her once overcrowded room is looking practically stark as more and more boxes accumulate in the hall. These visual reminders of her departure have me thinking excitedly about where this new journey will take her...
In real life, my tastes verge on plain. I’m a no makeup, jeans-and-t-shirt sort of girl. Naturally, my wedding ring is a simple gold band, and that’s exactly how I like it. Despite these tendencies...
Hi, all! My site support team, Hoop.la, recently completed a Cookie Connection software upgrade. A number of things were improved that only I, as an admin of the site, can see. But two new features were added...
Hi, everyone! Happy 2018! We're fresh from ringing in the New Year, but I'm already releasing spring and Easter sets for you! I know, I know, I feel like I'm living in some kind of time warp...
After two 3-D cookie tutorials in a row, I wanted to make something flat but with some easy added depth and dimension. So I decided to create a simple two-color winter cookie wreath, where the cookies are...
My parents recently moved, and while I was packing some of their boxes, an old Fathers' Day card, made by myself about 40 years ago, popped out from a drawer. I remember drawing that card at my elementary school like it was yesterday...
I have a cookier confession to make . . . I own not a single food mold. Not a one. And so, it should come as a surprise to no one, that I have also never made a molded cookie...
Welcome back! I hope your hands are well rested after making the trays and the flowers in Part One of this tutorial, and that you're now ready for the "baking".
This post is all about my introduction to meringue powder, one of the subjects that initially spurred the idea for this Toolbox Talk column. Questions about meringue powder come up regularly on Cookie Connection, as there seem to be many differences between brands...
Easter is coming, and with it comes warmer weather, bright and lively colors, and (yeah!) lots of baskets full of candy: marshmallow peeps, swirl pops, chocolate bunnies...
I know, I know, you've all been waiting with bated breath for this announcement! Yes, the nominations for the 2015 Cookiers' Choice Awards have been cast and tallied! Hurrah!
Well, I wouldn't have guessed it, but after a week of being on vacation with nary a cookie in sight, I was overjoyed to return to work (aka Cookie Connection ) on Wednesday, and to be inundated with all of your fabulous creations! I couldn't...
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...
It's spring! It's really taken its time, and I'm sorry to those of you who are still feeling chilly (and those who are heading into autumn!), but we've finally had some warm sunny days here and I'm in the mood for blossoms!...
Remember this cookie set I posted here recently? Well, since then, I've been asked if I could explain the steps to create it. What a great idea! Let's do a tutorial!
Hello, everyone! I've got some good news, and some other news for you today! Other news first: After much reflection, I've decided that these Practice Bakes Perfect challenges are too much of a time commitment for me at...
Well, well, the nominations for the 2014 Cookiers' Choice Awards are all in, and they have finally been tallied! But before I spill the beans, thank you to those who cast votes in celebration of the accomplishments of their fellow cookiers. It's...
You know what’s all the rage right now? Stencils. And why is everyone talking about stencils? Cause they are so cool. Yes, so cool. Even if you don’t have an airbrush. (Insert cheers and clapping!) First of all – where did this...
***** THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED ***** Hey, all! Cookie Connection is partnering with Zazzle this week on a terrific giveaway surrounding their blow-out Christmas in July sale that's running from today, July 21, through July 25, 2014. ...
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...
[EDITOR'S NOTE: I'm thrilled to announce the addition of another top-flight decorator to our team of contributors - the fabulously talented Lucy Samuels of UK-based Honeycat Cookies . Every other month, Lucy will be pushing your (and possibly her!) creative boundaries with an innovative cookie design and technique tutorial. For her debut post below, she explores an interesting twist on the wet-on-wet technique, which, as you'll soon see, is a great way to get some relief (so to speak)...
It's never too early to start planning for Christmas, especially when that planning involves a challenge with over $700 worth of prizes! (Yes, over $700. You heard me right!) Thanks to the very generous support of several sponsors (see below),...
Last year in April, I shared a cookie tutorial featuring dimensional royal icing flowers on lattice cookies. I used a huge round cutter to create the lattice, a tool normally used to cut an entire lattice pie crust top in one fell swoop. In this tutorial, I...
With Christmas just two days away, it seems only appropriate to feature our top-trending Christmas cookies again! So that's what I've done! This week's hot list is also confined to...
It’s almost December, and after so many years of sharing tutorials on Julia M. Usher's Cookie Connection, I declare my November/December 3-D Christmas tree cookie tutorial a tradition. This year's tree...
We are in full Thanksgiving mode at my house. There will only be a small gathering this year but I am still pulling out all the stops. The bird, the sides, and, of course, all of the sweets! I like to do...
Oftentimes, working through the process of one cookie project will spur an idea for another. Last month when I was gluing loads of little pieces of wafer paper to my vulture, it inspired another project in which I could...
At my house, we've had so much fun these past few months. It has been the first stretch since the pandemic that a season has felt completely familiar. Now...
"Summer! Summer! Summer!" Such was the rallying cry of a recent house guest as he jumped in the pool. Buck naked. To give context...
In my last tutorial, I lauded rice paper as an incredibly versatile medium and listed off some of the different ways I've put it to use. Here, I have yet another example for you. This jellyfish design plays to...
I haven’t baked and decorated cookies since February. I just couldn’t get myself into the kitchen for a few months. But today I am really happy to be back with an easy project - another...
This month, we get better acquainted with our May 2023 site artist, Chikako Fujii, aka Atelier Chez Malo. As we learned in her earlier forum introduction...
The stretch between the middle of spring and the beginning of summer feels like a continuous celebration. Birthdays! Father's Day! Graduations! I've mentioned this before but...
Hi, everyone! Welcome to a new Watch-Learn-Create challenge! The theme for our 54th challenge is piped flower bouquets, and award-winning Ganna (aka Anna) Oliinyk of @Anna_Sunday_Cookers is our featured guest...
In my neck of the woods, spring has sprung. The gardens are an avalanche of color and texture. Not only are the flower beds overflowing, but so are the calendars. There is...
The change of any season is an inspirational time. For me, the transition from winter to spring is particularly so. There is so much new growth...
This month I have a tutorial for a dimensional cookie platter comprised of two flowers whose petals, centers, and leaves are contoured. When I was thinking about how to decorate the cookies, I decided to...
Hi, everyone, and welcome to a new Watch-Learn-Create challenge! In this 53rd challenge, our featured guest Laura Saporiti shares all of the tools, techniques, and tips needed to paint watercolor florals on fondant...
Like so many others, I’m smitten with the golden and crimson hues of autumn leaves. But they shouldn’t get all the love. On close inspection, the leaves of each season have their own unique beauty...
I love flowers of all kinds, but I have a special fondness for flowers that look a little unique. The coneflower, with its spiky, vibrantly colored seed cone and skirt of purple petals, definitely fits the bill. Apparently, bees are just as partial to them as I am, so...
Hi, everyone! I am so happy and honored to be taking over the Cookie Connection challenges from Christine Dutcher (aka Sweet Prodigy) who has inspired us for the past 11 challenges in the Practice Bakes Perfect edition. Thank you, Julia M. Usher, for giving me the opportunity to host these challenges in the new Watch-Learn-Create format, which involves...
Hey, all! Thanks for your patience as you've waited for the next Close-up. I've had a rough couple of weeks with helping to pack up my mom's house to ready it for showings. She'll be moving nearer to me here in St. Louis, hopefully by year end, and the real estate agent who's listing her house was adamant that...
So, at long last, no more waiting on pins and needles! Today I reveal the winners in the 2-D and 3-D categories of the 2021 virtual edition of Julia M. Usher’s Cookie Art Competition™. In addition, I'll be unveiling the one entry that...
