Making your cookies look professional with cookie moulds

Taken from Bakerella

Using a cookie mould produces biscuits that look straight from a decadent European biscuit tin but are made with your own efforts. In the picture above, taken from Bakerella, these cookies are made with plain heart-shaped biscuits topped with moulded pink fondant icing. The fondant is secured with some frosting.

Cookie moulds can also be used to produce biscuits with decorative imprints, like the picture below (this is what they were originally designed for.) These can be a little trickier to make because when the cookie dough rises, it can skew the imprint and distort the desired image.

Taken from House on the Hill

Some tips to baking cookies with moulded shapes is to:

• let the cookies set adequately after removing them from the oven - leave them to cool completely.
• roll the dough to the correct width; if it is too thick, it will rise too much and distort the image and if you roll the dough too thinly, the cookie can become too crisp and the image can also be affected.

You can buy cookie moulds at House on the Hill and there are some gorgeous prints just in time for Easter.

Bejewelled kitty kat

I love this idea I picked up from Love Maegan who comes up with gorgeous ways to make your old things fabulous again. I actually have a few of these cat masks at home because I came across some super cute ones at a toy store and thought I had to have them just in case the occasion arose where I would need a mask. You never know. While Halloween is certainly not around the corner just yet, if you are anything like me, I relish any excuse to play dress ups.

To jazz up your cat mask, use a hot glue gun or tough craft glue to secure vintage rhinestone earrings to each side. You will certainly be the most glamourous kitty kat on the block.

A simple way to paint a heart on your nails

Love Megan has a gorgeous and easy technique demonstrated above

Use these simple steps to paint a cutesy heart on your next manicure. All you need is some pink and red nailpolish and you are ready to go!

Photo from http://www.lovemaegan.com

Photos by Kristin Ess taken from http://thebeautydepartment.com/

Kate Spade plates and glassware

I drool over Kate Spade's gorgeous homewares collection, not to mention her clothes and bags! But her glassware and dinnerwear is something I think all sophisticated girls' kitchens should contain whether for entertaining purposes or sheer private delight.

My favourite is the 'silver polkadot' ceramic set called Larabee Road Platinum Set, which comes with matching glassware including old-fashioned round champagne glasses. Kate has also released a range of Florence Broadhurt designs, which are of course stunning.

If you are getting married soon, put this on your wedding registry stat!

A note about novelty cake tins

I made a vanilla and cherry cake a few weeks ago in this gorgeous butterfly tin I bought online at Peter's of Kensington. I didn't ice it the cake because it came out so beautifully, I didn't want to impede on the elaborate design. I served the cake at an afternoon tea for my mum and her friends. I did dust with icing sugar before serving. You can serve with an accompaniment of organic yogurt.

To make the cake, I used a basic low-fat vanilla cake mix (Betty Crocker makes the best premixes) and added 1/2 cup of chopped red glace cherries and fresh vanilla extract. Delicious!

Nigella also loves her kitsch cake accessories, and whilst I was watching her Christmas Kitchen program, she whipped out another favourite. She reveals her pretty as a picture Vanilla Cake in this video, just in time for Christmas. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The aroma of christmas

Scented Christmas candles are a must for this holiday season. They create the sweet aromas of Christmas without anyone needing to step into the kitchen.

My favourites are:
- The Body Shop in Candied Ginger or Cranberry
- Glasshouse candle in Night Before Christmas, triple scented in plum pudding flavours
- Yankee candles in Christmas Eve and Christmas cookies
- Jo Malone candle in Wild Fig and Cassis
- Dusk Temptation candles in Cinnamon Glazed Figs, Winter Nights, and Walnut and Maple Syrup Pancakes.

Missoni plates

I find that the more special you make your meal, the more of a treat it becomes. Regardless of the calorie count, you can make your snacks feel very special by using some gorgeous crockery. After developing a rather unhealthy obsession with Missoni's divine towels, bathrobes and throw, I was soon delighted by their sumptious crockery selection. In true Missoni style, the ceramic collection features stylish bright colours in summery patterns, which look delectable all on their own. Once you pop a few of your skinny sweets on top of your margarita dessert plate, you are instantly in part of the Mad Hatter's tea party, sans the calories.