u/nunpizza

hi all!

so next weekend i am baking for and attending a wedding where my cakes will need to travel approximately 260 miles, and am seeking some feedback on my plan for how to handle this and the supply list of what i’m planning to take with me day-of for setting up, as well as possibly assisting with cutting/serving.

i’ve attached the inspiration pic for the main cake. i am doing a 2-tier rather than a 3, and the top tier will be a 3-layer 6 inch, and bottom will be a 3-layer 8 inch. the layers are vanilla with a caramel filling in between and it’ll be frosted in a mock swiss meringue buttercream (made using pasteurized liquid egg whites). there will also be 2 half sheet cakes for the guests.

what makes it all a bit tricky is that the wedding venue is 4 hours away and i’ll be driving down the day of, so to keep my cakes stable during the drive i’m planning to freeze both tiers and both sheet cakes overnight the night before and stack the tiers before the drive. i’d rather not stack the tiers at the venue because i like to stack them when they are at least fridge cold so the icing is hard. i’m also considering adding some meringue or milk powder to the buttercream to help stabilize it a bit; i’ve done meringue powder before but it was in american buttercream, so wondering if anyone has tried it with mock swiss and if so what your results were. for reference, my ratios/recipe for my mock swiss is: 1 cup liquid pasteurized egg whites, 2 lbs powdered sugar, 10 sticks butter, 1 tbsp vanilla. if anyone has tried either, could you also recommend how much to add for my recipe?

i am planning to arrive for setup approximately an hour before the reception begins, and will also be adding the decorations at the venue since they are fairly minimal and so the condensation as it thaws won’t affect the edible ribbon. by the time i arrive at the venue, my cakes will have been out of the freezer for approximately 4 1/2 hours, give or take. i estimate they’ll be cut and served maybe another 2 1/2 - 3 hours after that. so all in all, it will be approximately 7-7.5 hours between when the cakes leave the freezer to when they are cut and served. i really just need some feedback/reassurance that they will hold up during this time, provided i have the proper supports and ensure everything is level.

i also am hoping someone can double-check my supply list of what i’m planning to bring with for setup/decoration/potentially assisting with the cutting and serving. my clients are also planning to take home and freeze their top tier. my current list is:

- headband/hair ties for tying my hair back if needed
- hand sanitizer
- gloves
- cake server
- offset spatula(s)
- box/board for top tier
- saran wrap
- cake topper
- cake stand
- edible ribbon
- scissors
- hearts
- edible glue
- extra frosting
- whatever piping tips are needed

whew!! i know this is long and am so thankful to all who offer their feedback 🫶

TLDR: i’m baking for and attending a wedding which is 4 hours away, and need feedback on my supply list for the day of as well as my plan of attack for transporting and setting up my cakes (vanilla with caramel filling), which is to freeze everything the night before as well as maybe add some meringue or milk powder to my mock swiss meringue frosting.

TIA!

okay so i am attempting this patriotic crochet top pattern, and the basics of it are that you crochet two rectangles, seam them together, scallop stitch along the armhole and neckline edges, and hem.

based on my measurements & the sizing chart included, i should be a 2x, so i did a chain of 152 & am supposed to stop at row 25 for each rectangle. well, i’ve reached the end of row 25 of my first rectangle and i’m so confused about how this is going to come together. maybe i’m not trusting the process like i should (and if that’s the case pls let me know!) but when im looking at the diagram of how this is supposed to fold together at the end i feel like the length is WAY off. for reference the gray shirt i have on in the picture is the shortest i own & it’s still way shorter.

am i misunderstanding the folding directions or were my measurements off somewhere? full transparency, i know i did accidentally chain to 153 rather than 152, so at the end of row 1 where it says “until 3 chains remain” i actually had 4 but still double crocheted in the last. i also accidentally added an extra DC cluster at the end of row 3. could either of those be the reason for my issue? i am beyond lost with this. maybe i should just make a headband for the 4th and call it good 😅

here is the link to the pattern i’m following: https://zamiguz.com/easy-patriotic-crochet-top-pattern/

thank you so much to anyone who can help!

so i have never been a daily makeup wearer but as i get older and grow to be more and more of a homebody, i have less opportunity to get fancy and do a full face - so im trying to become a daily makeup person

i am trying to refine my routine to be around 15-20 minutes and want to include a skin tint/tinted moisturizer/bb cream to give me some coverage but not be too thick or heavy.

yesterday i wore the wet n wild bare focus tinted hydrator. i actually liked the product quite a lot, as i found it to be easily blendable, coverage was buildable, and it wore well throughout the day. the problem was that the shade range isn’t great, so the shade i got was already kind a shaky match to begin with and then oxidized like crazy on my face so it ended up looking super dark

i was chatting with my coworker yesterday and she recommended the covergirl clean fresh blurring skin tint, so i picked that up last night. the shade match is MUCH better but i’m just not a fan of this product. i found it to not blend well, lift when trying to build coverage, and then it immediately was slipping around and becoming patchy.

SO, i come to you for recommendations of alternatives i can try. my skin texture is combo but leans dry, and my primary wants for the product are something that isn’t drying, blends and builds well, doesn’t settle into fine lines, and (i know this may be a stretch) holds up to the nose pads of my glasses

attaching some pictures of the wear on the covergirl so you can see what i mean. pls help 🙏

hi crochet friends!

i am making a blanket similar to this for my niece who turns 1 in august. i am almost done with my squares and about to start on the bows. before i do i want to ask other folks opinions about if this will still be washable with the bows. my primary concern is that she will get her little baby fingers twisted up under them or that the bows will get tugged off over time with washing and whatnot. i want to make sure this will be a durable blanket for her through toddlerhood & especially with two older brothers around.

my plan was to make all the solid squares, make the bows & attach them to the squares that need them, and then join all the squares together & crochet a border. i was also going to back it with some kind of fabric. will that be durable enough? what is the best way to attach the bows? if anyone has a video or tutorial they like & could point me to that would be amazing.

if the bows will not hold up, is there a different type of appliqué i could do? maybe flowers instead?

TIA for any opinions/insight!