LilyBel Studio

2011-07-19T18:00:00.000+12:00

Gorgeous New Bunting Flags In Stock

Just arrived are our new bunting flags in seven different colour ways so there's one for every occasion, choose from a rainbow medley through to pretty pinks, beautiful blues, gorgeous greens and bold red and black.

And as if the colour selection wasn't enough, these bunting flags are designed to be tough, durable and tear resistant so they can be reused over and over again. Each length of bunting is 2 metres long and is made up of 11 flags.

Perfect for our New Zealand climate and our love of outdoor parties the garlands are also water resistant (and champagne resistant!) so you can use them outside as well as inside.

Weather tested in the US by being left hanging outside in the snow and rain, they really are a unique product that are so much more user friendly than normal paper bunting flags.

Also in our range are these adorable polka dot designs available in light blue and light pink, perfect for baby occasions including, baby showers, christenings, first birthday's and once the party's over use them to decorate your little one's room!

The bunting flags are now available at LilyBel Studio for $15.95 ea...

Happy Shopping!!

2011-07-02T13:31:00.000+12:00

Calling All Princesses...

Just arrived in store are our petite princess carriage boxes! These petite favour boxes are the perfect size for a princess favour gift such as, lollies, lip gloss or a pretty princess trinket.

They're very simple to assemble due to their 'pop up' design and with double sided print and a '3 D' design, they finish off a princess themed party table perfectly. Each petite carriage box retails at LilyBel Studio for only $1.50....simply cuteness in a box!

Happy Shopping!!

2011-07-01T18:17:00.000+12:00

FIRST BIRTHDAY & SALE TIME !!

It's our first birthday and while we're enjoying some birthday cake here at LilyBel Studio, we thought we'd extend the celebration to all our customers, by having our very first sale!

We have a selection of party items on sale including some of our best selling products, because a sale shouldn't just be on 'end of line' or 'clearance' items! So products now on sale include our very popular wrapped noodle boxes, printed balloons, giant foil balloons, invitations and party tags and a small selection of our paper drinking straws. Don't miss out as our sale will only be on for a limited time!

Happy Sale Shopping!!

2011-06-21T14:21:00.000+12:00

Bottle Labels For Your Little Guests

What do little guests at a party love more than their own name on party table items? It's easy to create your own bottle wraps using our paper belli bands, which you can coordinate with your choice of table runner. Simply trim the strip of belli band to fit around the size of bottle you're using and use letter stickers to spell out each name.

Our belli bands come in seven colours and patterns so there's one to match every table runner we stock, making coordinating your party table super easy. Each belli band is 90mm wide and available in metre lengths and as it retails at LilyBel Studio for only .50c per metre it's a very affordable way to decorate your party table.

Happy Shopping!!

2011-06-14T16:34:00.000+12:00

Wooden Cutlery Now Available...

We've been having a lot of new arrivals in store lately and our most recent addition is our wooden cutlery range available in forks, knives and spoons, all of which are biodegradable. Perfect for little ones to use at parties as it's light weight, smooth and not too big, wooden cutlery adds a super cute charm to a party table!

Group the cutlery together in patterned paper cups or pop into cute containers which fit in with your party theme. The wooden spoons are the perfect addition to use with our Paper Eskimo baking cups, simply fill the baking cups with jelly or mousse, pop in a spoon and you have an instant (and easy to eat!) party dessert.

Available at LilyBel Studio in convenient packs of 6 which retail for $1.80 each.

Happy Shopping!!

2011-06-11T11:52:00.000+12:00

Three Weeks To Go!

Have you chosen your theme if you win our $100 theme party prize pack? there's still plenty of time to enter as our competition doesn't close until June 30th, so simply 'like' us on our facebook page and you'll automatically be in the draw.

Double or even your treble your chances of winning by letting friends and family know so they can also enter and if they win, we would be more than happy to transfer the prize to the lucky person they choose to nominate (which could be you!!).

Good Luck!!

2011-06-04T17:37:00.000+12:00

Super Cute Party Pegs...

Another new arrival this week are our wooden pegs which add the perfect finishing touch to your party bags and pails, use them to attach party tags and ribbons or to hang party decorations. It's easy to coordinate them into your colour scheme by attaching pretty coloured bows with double sided tape.

Our large size pegs are 73cm long and come in convenient packs of 12. Each pack retails at LilyBel Studio for only $1.50, making them a very affordable finishing touch to your party table!

Happy Shopping!!

2011-06-01T08:30:00.000+12:00

The Latest Colours In Our Paper Straw Range

Just arrived from the US are two new colours in our candy striped paper straws. The aqua and white stripe is a lovely soft turquoise blue/green and is a perfect match to our Caribbean aqua bakers twine.

The yellow and white stripe is a bright, fresh yellow which looks fantastic mixed in with our 'Barnyard Tales' or 'It's a Jungle Out There' themes. The straws are available in convenient packs of 12 so you can mix and match colours, try combining the yellow and white stripe with our red and white, blue and white, lime and white or black and white stiped straws! A pack of 12 straws retails at LilyBel Studio for $5.90.

Happy Shopping!!

2011-05-31T13:45:00.000+12:00

Additions To Our Wrapped Noodle Box & Table Runner Range

We have three new designs in our wrapped noodle box range and each new design also has a new coordinating table runner...

Now in stock is our black and white polka dot design which has a gorgeous glossy finish to the paper and looks fantastic with red, lime green or hot pink...

The black and white striped design is perfect for a pirate, jungle or Paris themed party...

And the red and white wrapped noodle box and table runner are ideal for a pirate or circus themed party!

All seven of our wrapped noodle box designs are available at LilyBel Studio in packs of 6 for $9.95 or as singles for $1.70ea, so you can mix and match designs for your party table.

Happy Shopping!!

2011-05-25T13:49:00.000+12:00

New In Stock From Sambellina

Image courtesy of Sambellina

To complete our range of red and white striped tableware, we now have the cute red and white striped cups from Sambellina to match their yummy plates. Not only do the striped plates and cups work really well together but they look fantastic mixed with the polka dots too.

All of our Sambellina plates and cups range are available in packs of 12 for $10.50, or very conveniently you can also purchase then individually for $1 ea. Being able to purchase them individually gives you the ability to mix colours and patterns together, without having to purchase more than you need to create the perfect party table just for your celebration!

Happy Shopping!!

2011-05-24T08:40:00.000+12:00

New Additions To Our Foil balloon Range...

Just in are two new designs in our giant foil balloon range, this supershape giraffe foil balloon measures 81cm and has double sided print. He would be perfect for a Jungle or Zoo themed party!

Our supershape tiger foil balloon measures 76cm, has double sided print and would make a great addition to a Jungle, Zoo or Circus themed party. As with all our balloons our new giraffe and tiger are of the highest helium quality and come with 1 metre of coordinating curling ribbon. Both designs retail at LilyBel Studio for $15 ea.

Happy Shopping!!

2011-05-22T20:58:00.000+12:00

It's Competition Time...

We're currently running a competition for a prize of a LilyBel Studio Party Pack, to the value of $100. The winner will receive the following party goodies in the theme of their choice....

12 invitaions with co ordinating envelopes and envelope seals

12 party tags with co ordinating ribbon

12 party bags from our solid colour range

12 patterned paper straws

12 sambellina patterned plates

12 sambellina patterned cups

12 cupcake toppers

25 paper eskimo baking cups

12 printed balloons with co ordinating ribbon

18 plain balloons with co ordinating ribbon

Entering couldn't be simpler, all you have to do is 'like' us on our Facebook page and you'll automatically go into the draw!

Terms and conditions of the competition can be found on our website

2011-05-03T14:41:00.000+12:00

Beautiful Flower Grass Mats...

We're back from the US where we were searching for lovely new products for LilyBel Studio and these gorgeous flower grass mats are a new product from the States, available from today. The grass mats are plastic, completely reusable and come with hot and light pink flowers which are also removable so you have the option to use the mats as plain grass too.

You can use these as individual placemats or as a extremely pretty table runner down the centre of your party table. Each mat can be joined together so you can make your runner as long as you like. As an equally pretty but simple alternative, use one table mat as a centrepiece and top with a vase filled with fresh hot and light pink flowers.

These mats are the perfect addition to any garden, fairy or butterfly party and look amazing when used with hot pink, light pink and lime green table ware. Available from LilyBel Studio, each mat retails for $16.95 and there's limited stock available for now.

Happy Shopping!! xx

2011-04-10T15:23:00.001+12:00

We're On Holiday...

Just to let our customers know we will be closed for a holiday from April 12th to May 3rd and this means we won't be available to process any orders or answer any enquiries until our return on May 4th. Apologies for any inconvenience but we're off to the USA to source some new and gorgeous party ware for LilyBel Studio, so hopefully we will have some yummy new products to offer you later in the year!

2011-04-09T14:14:00.000+12:00

Happy Easter!


Image courtesy of Bakerella

Easter...what's not too love?? It's a time of celebration with beautiful flowers, chocolate, too cute bunnies and chicks, all types of eggs and (did I mention?) chocolate. I love the fact that you can celebrate with the traditional colour scheme of baby soft pastels, or add a little more 'pop' with hot pink and lime green worked into the mix.

Image courtesy of Bakerella

Although food wise Easter is traditionally celebrated with eggs, it's great to add other baking delights all decked out in the Easter theme. Take your ordinary cupcake and transform it into a bunny, chick, or create a baby bird nest on the top.

Image courtesy of Martha Stewart

Cake pops have also become huge and when it comes to Easter themed cake pops, you're only limited by your imagination as the very talented Bakerella proves below...


Images courtesy of Bakerella

Of course we shouldn't forget the traditional Easter egg hunt and both painted and chocolate eggs are perfect for this...little one's love nothing more than running around the garden with a basket, hunting for that treasure!

So, however you choose to celebrate Easter this year don't forget to eat large and ridiculous quantities of chocolate....


Image courtesy of Bakers Royale

Happy Easter xx

2011-03-24T08:41:00.000+13:00

Bella Cupcakes...

Image courtesy of Bella Cupakes

Once in awhile someone's amazing talent stands out and makes you stop in your tracks and that's what Vanessa Iti from Bella Cupcakes, gorgeous and amazing cake creations do! The above jungle cake would look amazing on a party table, set with our jungle themed tableware from our zebra printed paper cups to our lime and white striped paper straws.

Image courtesy of Bella Cupcakes

This beautiful princess crown cake would have any party princess beside herself with glee...and I'm not just talking about the little party princesses out there! Continue the soft lilac, light pink and white colour scheme with our 'Once Upon a Time' invitations and party tags, pink and white striped table runner, pink and white striped plates and cups, finished off with our soft purple and white striped paper straws.

Image courtesy of Bella Cupcakes

What little boy doesn't love fast racing cars, especially super cute one's like these that fit on top of a cupcake and are personalised. Set your party table with our racy striped table runner and bright primary coloured plates and cups and finish off with our shiny, bright jelly pails down the centre of your table filled with yummy party food.


Image courtesy of Bella Cupcakes

To view Vanessa Iti's amazing creations on her Bella Cupakes site click on www.bellacupcakes.co.nz and be prepared to be there awhile...it's hard to leave such a beautiful site!

2011-03-23T11:28:00.001+13:00

Gorgeous Cow Print And Zebra Print Paper Cups Now In Stock

Planning a Barnyard theme party?, well our new additions will be perfect for your party table. These super cute 250ml cow print paper cups are now in stock and look great coordinated with our cow print table runner, wrapped noodle boxes and cow print balloons. Team them with bright primary coloured plates in red, blue or yellow.

These 250ml zebra print paper cups are the perfect finishing touch to our 'It's a Jungle Out There' party table and look fantastic with our black and white, or lime and white striped paper straws popped inside. Team these with bright lime or yellow plates and our zebra print and paw print balloons.
Both the cow print and zebra print cups are available at LilyBel Studio in packs of 12 which retail for $10.50 or individually for $1.

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-03-12T08:24:00.001+13:00

The Vintage Table


Image courtesy of The Vintage Table

What little girl wouldn't love a vintage tea party for her birthday?, if you're searching for some beautiful china to hire for your little one's tea party then check out The Vintage Table. They hire lovely children's vintage china tiered cake plates and stands, as well as child size china trios.


Image courtesy of The Vintage Table

Tea party's are such a pretty celebration, think vases full of flowers, tiered cake stands full of high tea goodies such as scones, cupcakes and club sandwiches, beautiful fabric buntings and little girls dressed in all their finery! The perfect setting would be in a flower filled garden, but it's easy to bring the outside in by using lots of vases full of flowers in your chosen party room.

Image courtesy of The Vintage Table

For information on hire costs and items available at the Vintage Table, visit www.thevintage table.co.nz

2011-03-10T09:18:00.001+13:00

New Designs From The Paper Eskimo Baking Cups Range

Image courtesy of Paper Eskimo

These cute new designs from Paper Eskimo in their baking cup range are too cute to resist! New in store are the white and red polka dot, pink and white polka dot and pink heart baking cups. Our range of baking cups at LilyBel Studio now includes 10 different patterns and colourways to choose from, a pack of 25 retails for $8.95. You can create cupcakes in these cups simply by standing them on a cookie tray for baking, as they don't require patty pans...super simple and user friendly!

Here are some delicious ideas for these sweet little baking cups courtesy of Paper Eskimo...

Jelly Cups

Kids will love eating jelly from these colourful cups that are the perfect serving size for little appetites.

Make jelly mixture following packet instructions. Cool jelly mixture in the fridge for at least 1 hour before pouring into the baking cups. Return filled cups to the fridge to set completely and serve.

Icecream Cups

Set up a icecream sundae station and let your little guests create their own sundaes.

3/4 fill the baking cups with icecream. Fill remaining cups with sundae toppings such as fairy sprinkles, chocolate drops, hundreds and thousands and mini mallows. Set up your sundae station and let your little guests get creative.

Chocolate Crackle Cups

Use these cute cups to serve up an all time party favourite...chocolate crackles! Choose white or milk chocolate as your crackle base and add yummy extras such as mini mallows, m&m's and coloured chocolate drops.

Best Ever Cupcake Recipe

Preparation time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

2 eggs

thickened cream

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

3/4 cup caster sugar

1 cup self-raising flour

Method:

Set oven to 180 C. Crack eggs into a 250ml measuring cup then fill to the top with thickened cream. Pour into mixing bowl and beat with electric mixer for 1 minute. Add vanilla extract and sugar and beat for 3 minutes. Sift the flour and fold into mixture with wooden spoon until blended. Place mixture into baking cups and bake for approximately 15-20 minutes until golden. Makes 12 cupcakes so double the mixture to fill 1 pack of Paper Eskimo baking cups.


Image courtesy of Paper Eskimo

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-02-25T08:58:00.000+13:00

New Sambellina Range Of Plates And Cups Have Arrived....

Image courtesy of Sambellina

Sambellina's new range of paper plates and cups are just gorgeous and have arrived at LilyBel Studio!. The range includes new colours in their polka dot pattern and new luscious striped plates with matching cups. I've been dying to get my hands on these, as they're a perfect addition to our current range of tableware and compliment our 9 themes beautifully.

Image courtesy of Sambellina

In the polka dot range choose from light pink and white polka dot, hot pink and white polka dot, white and black polka dot, lime and white polka dot and red and white polka dot. In the striped range choose from light pink and white stripe, or red and white stripe. We are retailing all the plates and cups in convenient packs of 12, as well offering you the flexibility of purchasing the plates and cups individually. This way you can purchase the exact amount you need and also have the opportunity to mix and match the colour choices on your party table.


Image courtesy of Sambellina

If you're polka dot mad then check out our balloon selection as we have a polka dot balloon to match each Sambellina colourway. A pack of 12 plates or cups retail at LilyBel Studio for $9.95, or you can purchase the plates and cups individually for .95c ea.

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-02-11T14:08:00.000+13:00

New Additions To Our Bakers Twine Range

Image from LilyBel Studio

Our range of bakers twine has been proving popular so I've decided to add 2 new choices into the mix. 'Charcoal' is a bold black and white colour way (it reminds me of licorice) and 'Blossom' is a very light and soft pink and white colour way (it reminds me of bubblegum...why do I associate everything with food?!). These twines are 100% cotton and are as super soft to touch as our other colours.

Image from LilyBel Studio

I'm looking forward to mixing the charcoal with the peapod green for our 'It's a Jungle Out There' theme and also mixing the charcoal with the pink sorbet for our 'Ooh La La' theme. The blossom pink would look lovely mixed with the pink sorbet for our 'Little Cupcake' theme, or the blossom pink mixed with the lilac for our 'Pirouette' and 'Once Upon a Time' themes...choices, choices!!

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-02-07T08:54:00.000+13:00

Beautiful Rose Cake...

Image courtesy of i am baker

I discovered this beautiful rose cake tutorial and had to share, as not only does it look divine but it's so easy to do! If you have ever created buttercream swirls on top of cupcakes then you could easily do this, it simply takes the right icing tip and a icing bag.

Image courtesy of i am baker

This tutorial is just for creating the rose icing but 'i am baker' will be posting another tutorial soon for the yummy neopolitan cake hiding under the roses. If you'd like to read the tutorial for the easy 'how to' then simply go to http://iammommy.typepad.com/i_am_baker/

How perfect would this cake be for a afternoon tea of garden party?!

2011-02-04T10:54:00.000+13:00

Belli Bands...The Perfect Finishing Touch To Your Party Table


Image from LilyBel Studio

New to LilyBel Studio are our belli bands, a fantastic and versatile product that allows you to carry your theme throughout your party table, with gorgeous patterns and colours. Belli bands are long narrow strips of paper made from the same designs as our table runners and they have a multitude of uses!

Choose the belli band that co ordinates with your table runner and use it to wrap around noodle boxes or jelly pails, or line your platters and serving ware with it. The belli band strips make perfect drink bottle labels so you can personalise bottles for each little guest and they look gorgeous wrapped around candy bars too.

Originally designed to make wrapped gifts look even more beautiful, these belli bands are also perfect for gift wrapping. Simply wrap your gift and then wrap a co ordinating strip of belli band over the top...you're really only limited by your imagination!

Belli bands are available at LilyBel Studio in 4 colours and patterns, pink and white polka dot, pink and white stripe, cow print and red and white polka dot. Each belli band is 1 metre long, 90mm wide and retails at LilyBel Studio for only .50c metre.

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-02-02T15:08:00.002+13:00

Patterned Paper Drinking Straws - Now In Stock!

Image from LilyBel Studio

I've been eyeing up these gorgeous patterned paper, drinking straws for awhile and after test driving them at my girls recent birthday party, I'm very pleased to say that they're now in stock at LilyBel Studio. They're the perfect way to add a fun, finishing touch to your party table, especially as our range includes polka dots and stripes which is my favourite combination of patterns.

Image from LilyBel Studio

Our straws are available in the following 9 colours and patterns, so there's something to suit every theme!

Light pink and white stripe, light pink and white polka dot, hot pink and white stripe, purple and white stripe, black and white stripe, black and white polka dot, red and white stripe, red and white polka dot, blue and white stripe and lime and white stripe.

Image from lilyBel Studio

Each colour and pattern is available in individual packs of 12, but we also stock mixed packs of 12 so you can have the variety of 2 co ordinating colours in one pack, to add even more fun to your party! The straws are made in the US from FDA approved paper and ink, are biodegradable and a 12 pack retails at LilyBel Studio for $5.75.

These look great in any party cup but as I'm into details, I think they look especially divine in little bottles of coloured lemonade or milk, lined up on a party table. Unfortunately I can't take the credit for the brilliant idea of using little glass bottles this way, as the idea has been around for sometime now, featuring on party sites in both the US and Australia.

Image from lilyBel Studio

The bottles I have used with the straws for our photographs are from the Santa Vittoria range of fruit nectars. Simply empty the fruit nectar (that's not hard as these nectars are yummy..I highly recommend the pear) from each bottle, remove the label, wash thoroughly and voila! one very cute, styley (and reusable) bottle ready to be filled with your party drink of choice and of course, one of our patterned paper straws.

Happy shopping! xx

2011-01-27T12:00:00.000+13:00

Australian Women's Weekly 'More Cakes For Kids'


Image courtesy of Australian Women's Weekly

We've just had a birthday celebration in our house and as usual in preparation I asked the guest of honour what sort of cake they'd like on their big day. After a few ummm's and much thought, the birthday boy requested an ice cream cake. I have to admit I was a little stumped, not because the ice cream cake request had actually come from the biggest kiddie in our house (my 38 year old husband) but because I didn't have any recipes for cakes involving ice cream . It wasn't until I stumbled across a display in Borders that I saw the latest 'More Cakes For Kids' book from the Australian Women's Weekly. Inside this fantastic book are 70 recipes and cake creations that are just gorgeous for little people and luckily they even have a recipe or two for ice cream cakes!

Image from LilyBel Studio

So, on the big day I set about making the giant 'chocolate chip cookie ice cream cake' that I found in this book and it went down a treat not only with the birthday boy himself, but also with our 3 year old twin girls who 'helped' me put it all together and then 'helped' daddy demolish it. I highly recommend this book for lots of inspiration in the birthday cake department...I wonder what the birthday boy will request for his 39th birthday next year, a train, a dinosaur or a racing car??

2011-01-24T17:56:00.000+13:00

Looking For Lollipops?


Image from LilyBel Studio

I wasn't actually looking for lollipops when I fell across these, but as usual my party radar honed in on them and I was instantly picturing them looking fabulous, up front and centre on a party table. These giant lollipops were yelling out to me from a aisle in (what for it)...K Mart of all places and at only $1.50 ea I couldn't resist. They have a great range of colours in at the moment and they actually taste as good as they look, the ones pictured are strawberries and cream and the other one I tested out (all in the name of research) was grape, which was swirled in purple and white. Super, super yummy....!!

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-01-19T14:07:00.000+13:00

New Printed Balloons In Stock

New in stock at LilyBel Studio are these super cute heart printed balloons, just perfect for any little princesses celebration! They're available in a pack of 3 containing, 1x light pink with white hearts, 1x hot pink with white hearts and 1x rose pink with white hearts. As always with all our balloons, each pack of 3 also contains 3 metres of coordinating curling ribbon. The 3 pack retails at LilyBel Studio for $4.20.

To add to our current and very popular range of polka dot printed balloons, we now have hot pink with white polka dots, white with black polka dots and lime green with white polka dots. I've chosen these especially to co ordinate with our new (soon to arrrive!) Sambellina paper plates and cups range. Each colourway in the Sambellina polka dot plates and cups will have a matching polka dot balloon, for all of you out there who can't get enough polka dots!! These balloons are sold individually each with 1 metre of co ordinating curling ribbon, and retail at LilyBel Studio for $1.40 each.

Mix and match these yummy new choices with our existing range to get the perfect look you're after...after all, who doesn't love hearts and polka dots?

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-01-17T21:41:00.001+13:00

Just Arrived - Wrapped Noodle Boxes At A Reduced, Introductory Price!


Image from lilyBel Studio

Just in at LilyBel Studio are our new range of wrapped noodle boxes in four colours and patterns. These little cuties are ideal as goody 'bags' or to add to your party table in your choice of theme. I always think it's great to use an alternative to the basic (and well 'used') party bag idea and as these are foodsafe, you can pop in any yummy goodies from cookies and chocolate, to mixed lollies.

Image from LilyBel Studio

Choose from our cow, red and white polka dot, pink and white polka dot and pink and white stripe wrapped noodle boxes and attach a co ordinating party tag from one of our themes. For an extra touch these look lovely with one of our double sided, satin ribbons tied around them in a bow.

Image from LilyBel Studio

Each noodle box is a large 26oz size and comes with a separate 40cm x 7cm wrap, these retail at LilyBel Studio for $1.50 ea or $8.50 for a set of 6, but for a limited time these are available at a reduced, introductory price with a single noodle box priced at $1.20 and a set of 6 at $7!


Image from LilyBel Studio

Each pattern also has a matching table runner to make co ordinating your party table and theme a breeze!

Happy shopping! xx

2011-01-16T15:52:00.003+13:00

M is For Macarons

Image courtesy of Creative Abubot

Have you tried a macaron? (yes, apparently that is the correct French spelling!) These

traditional french pastry treats are light, slightly crispy as well as chewy and can be filled with delicious, amazing fillings from buttercream to lemon curd to ganache.....yum!!

Image courtesy of Serious Eats

They look amazing on a party table as they can be coloured to suit any theme and grouped in various shades they look simply divine. For a show stopping party table display, choose macarons in three colours from your party theme. Stack three decorative pedestal bowls on top of each other and fill each bowl with one colour of the macarons. These delicious pastries also look irresistible stacked in rows of different colours on a large platter, or in individual cupcake cases lined up on a cake stand.

Image courtesy of Nat Cake Artist

For those of you who want to make your own macarons there are a lot of recipes out there. One of the best collections of macaron recipes I have found is at www.tartletteblog.com, Helene is a french pastry artist, stylist and food photographer and her blog is full of recipes and information, including a tutorial on making macarons. For those that don't want to wrangle with egg whites, whisks and baking trays you can order macarons here in NZ on line at www.jaimelesmacarons.co.nz. J'aime les Macarons are based in Christchurch but do deliver all over NZ and they also have local stockists who are listed on their website.

Image courtesy of J'aime les Macarons

Apparently there is a vicious rumour circulating that macarons are set to take over from cupcakes as 'the' must have, sweet treat on your party table. Well, as much as I love these beautiful little pastries I have to say they would have equal footing on my next party table, with the ever reliable and adaptable cupcake. Besides, who says you have to choose?...

Image courtesy of Crumb (A Bakery)

2011-01-11T09:58:00.016+13:00

New Stock Available At Reduced, Introductory Prices!!

Are you tired of always having to wait for products to be either end of line, completely picked over, or generally 'so last season's stock' to go on sale??? Well I don't think you should have to wait for any of those reasons, so I regularly put a selection of our NEW stock on sale for our customers (I know, I know it's just the kind of girl I am!!), including those items that are sure to be very popular and really don't need to be at a sale price to sell. Currently, for a limited time I have our Paper Eskimo baking cups on sale, which are such a great little product as they have a multitude of uses and you can choose from our range of 6 different colours and patterns, available at LilyBel Studio.

To start the New Year off in the best way possible we have some gorgeous new party products on order, that are due to arrive at LilyBel Studio over the next month or so. As these new products arrive I will regularly put a selection of them on sale for you to choose from and just to sweeten the deal, you will be able to earn our Party Points on sale items too!

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-01-05T14:57:00.001+13:00

Miniature Cupcake Stands - Just Arrived!

These super cute, individual mini cupcake stands from the US have just arrived at LilyBel Studio. They're a huge hit in the US and are being used over there for every celebration from weddings to baby showers to (of course!) children's birthday parties.


Image courtesy of Donna Hay

The stands are featured on the cover of the current 'Donna Hay kid's magazine' and as the cover photo shows, they can be used for lots of other goodies on your party table and not just cupcakes. These are so much more versatile than the standard, tiered cupcake stands you see everywhere as you can either put them at each little guest's place setting, or you can group them down the centre of your party table.
The cupcake stands come in a box of 6 and retail at LilyBel Studio for $19.95, making each cute stand only $3.33. We also have the option of a box of 12 which retails for $34.95, making each stand $2.91 and saving you a total of $4.95!

Happy Shopping! xx

2011-01-04T14:48:00.011+13:00

Oh, So Gorgeous Tableware!

Images courtesy of Rosanna Inc

What's a party table without beautiful serveware? My favourite of the moment would have to be Rosanna Inc, who make the most gorgeous range of serveware I've found yet. They have several different ranges from white scalloped cake pedestals and stands, to the delicious mini tea set for children shown above. Perfect for a Mad Hatter's tea party, this modern mini tea set is the cutest, coolest way to take tea -- just like the grownups!

Image from lilyBel Studio

Image courtesy of Rosanna Inc

These bowls from their Gelato range would be perfect for little guests to eat ice cream sundaes out of, if you were having a 'Sweet Shoppe' themed party. What little person wouldn't love to create their own sundae in one of these?

Images courtesy of Rosanna Inc

And because there's no reason why you shouldn't whip up your party food recipes in style, there's the delicious Decor Bon Bon-Colours range. Featuring this mint coloured pitcher and rose coloured mixing bowl, it would be hard to leave these pieces in the kitchen and not include them on your table!

Image courtesy of Rosanna Inc

Last, but certainly not least is the Decor Bon Bon White range. I couldn't resist temptation when I first saw these and purchased both the antique round footed bowl and the square pedestal cake stand. I used both on the party table for my girls 'LadyBug Hug' party (party details featured on a previous post) and they really finished the table off perfectly. For full details of the Rosanna range and for stockists visit www.rosannainc.com.

The antique round, footed bowl I filled with flower cookie pops for my 'LadyBug Hug' party table

2010-12-29T13:36:00.021+13:00

Introducing Party Points - Our New Loyalty Rewards Programme

Image from LilyBel studio

Party Points is our new loyalty programme, effective from December 25th 2010 and is designed to reward and thank you for you for shopping with us! I have sooo many loyalty cards in my wallet for clothes shops, supermarkets and cafes (I have A LOT of those due to my caffeine addiction!) that I decided our customers should receive the same benefit, when buying party goodies and supplies from LilyBel Studio. It's simple and easy to use and here's how it works, when you make a single purchase with us of $50 or more you earn a $5 discount on your next purchase, which is automatically credited to your account. The more you spend per purchase the more Party Points you earn and in turn the more credit you'll receive on your account.

Purchase	Points	Credit
$0-$49	0	0
$50-$99	50	$5
$100-$149	100	$10
$150-$199	150	$15
$200-$249	200	$20

And because you shop online with us your points are electronically saved and stored, so that's one less 'loyalty card' you have to fit into your wallet and carry around with you! Better yet there's no expiry date on the credit you earn, it will simply remain on your account until your ready to use it. And just because I think all our fabulous customers deserve the best deal possible, I will even reward you with Party Points on our sale items!

Happy Shopping! xx

Terms and conditions of Party Points can be found on our homepage at www.lilybel.co.nz

2010-12-28T13:36:00.012+13:00

Bakers Twine - New In Stock

Now in stock from the US is our soft, 100% cotton bakers twine in the following 8 delicious colours, maraschino red, mandarin orange, lemondrop yellow, peapod green, lilac, caribbean aqua, pink sorbet and cappuccino brown. These gorgeous bright, candy striped twines are perfect for tying our LilyBel Studio gift tags to our party bags, jelly pails or noodle boxes. They also look great tied around gifts and can be used on your party table in a variety of ways...you're only limited by your imagination!

Each yummy colour is sold in 2 metre lengths and retails at LilyBel Studio for $1.

Happy Shopping! xx

2010-12-26T19:56:00.018+13:00

Part Two

Chocolate fudge Ladybug cupcakes

For the cupcakes I used a chocolate fudge recipe and baked half the batch in black shiny foil cupcake cases and the other half in red shiny foil cases. For the icing I needed a true white colour so, I made a buttercream icing using crisco and no colour butter flavouring. I swirled the buttercream icing on to each cupcake, sprinkled on white shimmer dust and decorated them with sugar ladybugs and red and black fondant flowers I'd made with the silicone blossom mould. To finish I placed a 'Ladybug Hug' cupcake topper from our range into each cupcake.

Can you tell I've got a serious sweet tooth??, I know I've only shared photos of some of the sweet goodies from the food table and not the savoury...but life's too short for savoury!

Personalized miniature lemonade bottles

I personalized a small bottle of lemonade for each little guest, using 'belli bands' in the red and white polka dot paper (these will be available at LilyBel Studio soon!) and added a cute wooden ladybug by their names. The gorgeous red and white paper drinking straws (these will also be available very soon at LilyBel Studio in a wide range of colours) were tied to the bottles using red and black satin ribbons. The bottles were really easy and quick to put together and looked great lined up on the party table, I don't think I've seen little people so excited over a drink before!

Tissue blossoms

For room decor I added red, black and white tissue blossoms from our range. I hung these from the ceiling in groups of the 3 colours in small, medium and large and as they are hung with thin, transparent nylon they looked like they were 'floating' and were super pretty.

Tissue blossom pots

I also used the tissue blossoms to create flower blossom pots by placing the small and medium sized tissue blossoms on top of red and black jelly pails, which are also available at LilyBel Studio. I finished these off by putting little wooden ladybugs through the blossoms and placed the flower pots throughout the party room on tables...they looked pretty cute and fitted our 'Ladybug Hug' theme perfectly!

Ladybug themed balloons from LilyBel Studio

I helium filled a range of our balloons including the red and black polka dot, red and white polka dot, the large foil ladybug and plain red, black and white balloons. These I grouped together and had coming out of the centre of the flower pots mentioned above, as well as floating freely on the ceiling with pretty long lengths of curling ribbon attached to them. All our balloons come with co ordinating 1 metre lengths of curling ribbon, so you don't have to run around finding curling ribbon to match.

Little guest's goody bags

So, when the party was coming to an end I had these cute goody bags ready to give to each little guest as they left. I used the glossy black and red party bags from our range and attached our 'Ladybug Hug' tags to the bags, with mini pegs decorated with wooden ladybugs...super simple but very effective!.

Ladybug Hug party tags from LilyBel Studio

Once the last goody bag had been handed out and everyone had left I collapsed with a double shot flat white (I'm also a caffeine addict) and a left over brownie...bliss!!

2010-12-25T13:39:00.027+13:00

Ladybug Hug Party


Front and back of the 'Ladybug Hug' invitation From LilyBel Studio

Welcome to the first post on the LilyBel Studio blog. I've decided to start with a little party I recently had for my twin girls 3rd birthday...I say little, but as always the guest list grew and by the morning of the party I was pulling my hair out and vowing to make next year's celebration smaller!

I decided to use my 'Ladybug Hug' theme from LilyBel Studio, as I thought it would be nice to use and work with the bold combination of red, white and black for a change. I started by sending out our 'Ladybug Hug' invitations in their bright red envelopes with matching envelope seals.

Anyway, semi meltdown and general preparation madness aside, the girls had a great time and that's really what it's all about!

The 'cake'...

The cake...hmmm on reflection not such a great idea to take this project on myself as I'm certainly not a professional cake decorator. The truth is I've never even taken a class but then that's probably pretty obvious looking at the cake, I'm just stubborn and decided to have a go myself! I covered the cake with red ready to roll pettinice fondant and cut out circles in the black fondant to create the ladybug spots. The white blossoms were made by pressing fondant into a silicone blossom mould and adding white sugar pearls as the flower centre. I got the ready to roll fondant and silicone blossom mould from Sandra at KiwiCakes. The super cute ladybugs were made out of sugar and I got them online at shopbakersnook in the States. To finish I added a black satin ribbon trim at the base of each cake.

Flower cookie pops

These flower cookie pops were easy to make and proved very popular. I used a basic sugar cookie recipe and rolled the dough a little thicker than usual before cutting out the flower shapes. I found it easiest to insert the lollipop sticks as soon as the cookies came out of the oven, as they're still nice and soft at this stage. To help each lollipop stick stay in the cookie I dipped the end of each stick in royal icing first before inserting it so that as the cookie cooled and hardened so did the royal icing and it acted like a glue. To decorate them I used white marshmallow fondant icing that I made, as this tastes sooo much nicer than regular fondant for little people (and big people actually...), which I then brushed with shimmer dust before adding the sugar ladybugs. These cookie pops are fantastic on a party table but are also perfect as a 'thank you' gift for each little guest, simply pop into a cello bag tie the end with ribbon and attach a 'Ladybug Hug' gift tag from our range.

Fondant Ladybug sugar cookies

These ladybug cookies were also made from a basic sugar cookie recipe and I covered them in red and black marshmallow fondant. I layered the mmf fondant so the ladybugs had a slight 3D effect to them and finished them off with red and black glitter dust. These little cuties didn't seem to hang around on the plate for too long either, but then what little person doesn't love a cookie??!!