Time to Celebrate Baby #2!

Round 2 of babies is in full effect in my circle of friends and I couldn't be more excited for them!  Me?  Not yet!!   I am having too much fun planning Sprinkles for my favorite mommies-to-be x2!

Some of my girlfriends and I are busy at work planning a Sprinkle for two of our dear friends who are due this Spring!   We have started this tradition in our group of friends, because, EVERY pregnancy is special and EVERY baby should be honored in some way.  :)  

A lot of people I talk to have never heard of a 'Sprinkle'.  Let me tell you...they are SO. MUCH. FUN.   First of all, the pressure is lower than that of planning a full-blown Baby Shower.  This is more of a relaxed atmosphere kind of event - in my opinion.   Gifts are given - which usually involve new clothes, books and highly desired new 'Gear' that may have hit the market between baby #1 and baby #2.

Games?   They are not really my thing - but I am all for notes to the mommy with advice or something that involves thought and even a tangible 'gift' that is actually able to be used. (what am I going to do with a plastic pacifier giveaway - no offense to anyone who has done this...)  Great example:  My friends had a scrapbooking table at my baby shower and each person was asked to create a page out of the different materials each of them brought from their scrapbooking collection.  THIS.WAS.AWESOME!!!   Now, all I need to do is add the photos to my amazing scrapbook and BOOM, baby book - done. 

More to come as the plans unfold.  In the meantime - check out more information on Sprinkles.  Let's be completely honest - who doesnt LOVE an excuse to get together with friends and have fun?!  :)   I hope some of you start this tradition with your group of friends too!  So fun!   

What are your favorite baby shower and sprinkle activities/decor/go-to gifts?

Welcome Spring!

Hi everyone!  Long time, no blog!  A lot has happened since the last time I wrote on here.  I gave birth to our son, Zachary, in December, right before Christmas.  Needless to say, I have had my hands full with him and that has left little time for Diaper Cake Making.  :)   I have slowly started to create some new designs and have decided to tweak my diaper cake products a little bit.  I am still in the beginning stages of planning and pricing, but I will be posting more details about all of this soon! 

Basically, if I dont use it, it is not going to be included on one of the cakes I design, unless someone specifically requests it.  As a new mommy, I have found certain products and brands that I love and use on a daily basis.  I want to only include these types of items in my cakes.

I created a couple of large cakes in the last month.  One for my friend Melissa who just had her second daughter.  I made a large 4 tier cake - the largest cake I offer.  WOW!!  IT IS HUGE!  If you want a show stopper and diapers for 2 weeks, this is the option for you! :)   The second cake I made went to a lucky new mommy out in NYC.  It was a Springtime theme and had all sorts of fun colors, a 4 peice outfit and a stuffed animal.   This is just a small taste of the direction my cakes are going in for 2012!

Summer Days and Cute Cakes

Ah, Summer is back and it has already been a busy one!  We have family in from Greece, my full time job is starting to get into the busy season, cook outs and gatherings...you know, the typical Summer to do's.  :)

I have been able to still enjoy squeezing in a few diaper cakes here and there between the choas.  One of my good friends in New York City sent me a message wanting a diaper cake for one of her good friends who was going to have a baby girl any day.  She wanted a large 3 tier cake decorated in pink and lavender to match the nursery.  I got to work right away, found the CUTEST 4 piece outfit which had pink bears that matched the pink bear topper perfectly!  :)  Added a purple blanket flower for the bear to be perchd on and VOILA, cake is complete and on its way to NYC...should be there on Monday!

The blue 'Spunky' cake to the right is another cake a local business purchased for one of their expecting clients.  :)   Such a considerate and impressive gesture for a business to celebrate their client's future kiddos.  :)  This cake is loaded with goodies too!  The Gund dog on top barks and is holding a burp cloth.  There is a onesie and coordinating bib and a blanket topper on this cake as well.  I am sure the parents to be loved it!  :) 

I hope all of you are enjoying a great summer too!  :)



Great Gift for a Client who is Expecting

What a great way to show your client how much you appreciate their business.  (that is, if they are expecting a baby in the near future)  :)  These two cakes were given to two lucky mommies to be from a local business.

This particular client was very open to any sort of cake I wanted to make.  She told me colorful and fun and set a budget for me of $65.00 per cake.  I had a ball!  The first cake is another one of the popular Jungle cakes I have had lately...I really do love this theme!  I used a Ty Monkey stuffed animal, 3 piece Gerber layette set and a coordinating Carter's flannel receiving blanket. 

The second cake I made was also a Jungle theme cake (surprise!) and full of fun toys for the new baby!  Another Bright Starts cake full of more toys than ever before.  Topped off with a fun Elephant crinkle rattle and adorned with wrist rattles, a bar bell rattle, keys, teething rings and a pacifier and wrapped in colorful ribbon, I think we accomplished 'colorful' on this one.  ;)

New design and a double order!

Phew!  Catching up on some long-overdue blogging.  :)  The other day, I received a request for 2 cakes.  One was for a last minute shower 2 days from the request, the other was to be sent out on Tuesday.

The cake for the shower she was going to was to be a 'Girlie Cake'.  I decided to use pink and brown because I love that color combination and think it is just stunning!  :)  This is a small 2 tier cake with a single blanket flower and a onesie. Super cute!

The second cake was shipped to Texas for a shower gift.  My instructions were to make it 'Under the Sea' theme for a boy.  I found a CUTE set of 3 washcloths with a whale scrubbie for bath time.  I tried out a new type of flower--the wash cloth flower!  I absolutely love this one!  Between the new design and the fun colors, it is so striking and so fun!

Both cakes were ready the following evening and the woman who placed the order was thrilled with the results!  Excited to be working with her again soon!

Future Football All-American

This cake is everything football!  :)  My good friend, Sarah, ordered her second cake from me a couple months ago.  She told me that her friends husband is a HUGE Colts fan--so, anything Blue and anything Football would be great.  

This cake was fun and challenging at the same time.  It is Spring, so there are all sorts of Baseball baby items out--not a whole lot of Football though!  I turned to Amazon.com and found the most adorable knit hat, made by Mud Pie...it looks like a football...really adorable!  My go-to-bear!  I love this Chocolate and Blue Mary Meyer bear.  He comes in pink too and both have been featured as the topper to many of my cakes because they are a great size and they are SO soft!  I also found a 'Little Colts Fan' bib, which is displayed on the back of the cake...Thank you Amazon.com.  :)  

The football rattle and Football themed creeper were a great find when I was out shopping one day!  It was the last football hand rattle left.  :)  I am so thrilled with the results and it reminds me...hard work will ALWAYS pay off in the end.  Sarah loves the cake and that was my end-game goal.  :)

Jungle Fun!

 Monkeys, Giraffes and Elephants...oh my!  The Jungle theme has taken over Smiling Girl Designs this past week (there is one more Monkey cake on the way later this month!) but I just had to write a quick blog about these 3 because they are just so darn cute!

The Jungle/Safari theme is perfect for a neutral nursery.  Not only are the colors fun, but the animals are so adorable and there is such a wide variety of things you can do and add to your cake when you use the generic 'Jungle' theme.

Think about all of the fun things you could do to decorate at a baby shower you are throwing with a jungle theme!  Of course, this would include your jungle theme diaper cake from Smiling Girl Designs.

I have had a few questions about how to order one of my diaper cakes lately.  If you are interested in ordering a diaper cake, go to the 'Request a Quote' page of my website and fill in the form.  I will get back to you quickly with any questions and a quote.  :)

Have a great night!

Way Out West!

This cake traveled all the way to Denver to make an appearance at a baby shower.  I was really excited about this cake, as it was the first (almost) cross-country SGD cake order.  This is a large 3 tier cake with a 3 piece outfit, pacifer and Baby Gund Lamb rattle. 

The shower is for a mommy who is expecting a girl and my instructions were to make it girlie.  She likes pinks, yellows and browns.  This cake has everything girlie!  Butterflies, cupcakes and a lot of pink!

So sweet and I cannot wait to hear how the shower went.

Packaged up with a Smile

I would suggest the Large 3 Tier cake size to anyone who asks!   It is truly stunning and my favorite cake size!   I love them all but this one just hits me a little differently. :)

This one is being shipped to North Carolina in transit to new parents who welcomed their baby girl into the world earlier this week.  I think they will love it!  The Large 3 Tier cake has 90 diapers which should last them well over a week and a half.  I used my favorite bear again...it is so soft and sweet.   

This month, my husband and I have packaged and shipped 6 cakes around the country!  Virginia, Texas, Florida, Colorado and now North Carolina!   Ah, the wonders of Social Media Marketing.  :)   It thrills me to know that my company is going to be receiving exposure at baby showers around the country and humbles me to know I am helping create something for a new/expecting mother that she will always remember.  A gift she will love.

SGD has been something I have been able to use as my creative outlet...I really enjoy designing each cake and bringing a smile to client's faces when they see it for the first time.  :)  I also love all of the support my husband has given me since I started SGD...from designing my business cards and website to finding shipping boxes and helping out with the 'man stuff' side of the business.  :)  

Thanks for all of the support everyone, it means the world to me!

New Site and a New Cake

Wow, a new look to my site.  I really love it!!  I walked downstairs last Saturday to see what my husband, Basili, was up to.  He was working on designing a new, clean look for my website!  :)  TA DA!

He is so patient with me and is my perfect match (I know, BLAH!  haha).  Being the perfectionist I am, there were lots of little tweaks here and there, but he made it better than I had envisioned! 

Shameless plug time!!!!   If you need a website designed or new logo for your company, I will be happy to put you in touch with my husband or you can check out his website and send him an email.  :) 

One of the cakes I made this weekend was for a girl I grew up with/was in youth groups/choirs with at church.  She saw my cakes on Facebook and submitted an order.  I was so excited to hear from her again after all these years!  She requested a girlie cake with a red and pink color scheme.  I have seen a lot of this color combination lately...the lady bug theme is the 'cute bug' nursery theme of the season.  I knew I had to use it, they are just so darn cute!  I paired the lady bug ribbon and the lady bug blanket flower together with some bright pinks to really set it off...I just love this!

I am shipping this to the mommy to be in Florida, so unfortunately, my friend won't be able to see it in person...but she loved the photo!  :)

Have a great Saturday!

Bear-y Fun!!!

Hi everyone!

It has been a little while since I have had a chance to sit down and post some news and photos.  Before Christmas, it was very exciting around here.  I had cake orders coming in for Christmas gifts and shower gifts.  Since I was leaving to go out of town, any cakes for showers prior to January 14th needed to be completed as well.

I was so happy with the way all of them turned out!!  :)  

The 'Blue Beary' cake was an order I received right after the Channel 8 segment which aired in December.  Needless to say, 30 minutes after I was on air and I had an order, I was thrilled.  I worked within her budget which she specified and created this adorable cake for her and she loved it.  I hope her secretary loved it as well!! 

The Large 2 Tier cakes have quickly become the most popular SGD cake size ordered.  This 50 diaper cake currently comes with a double blanket flower and onesie for only $45.00!!  Feel free to customize your cake with a different topper/items.

Have I mentioned that I just LOVE this bear?   I had an order for a pink and brown themed cake for a little girl...this bear was PERFECT!   I found an adorable sleeper and blanket which fit the order to a 'T'.   It was fun shopping for this cake and I absolutely love the color scheme...then again, pink is my favorite color, so maybe that made me a bit biased?  :) 

I hope your friend loved her cake and the shower was wonderful!  :) 

SGD Live on Indy Style TV!

'Elephant Safari' Diaper Cake
is available for just $60.00

What a truly exciting week this has been!  A week of preparation, nerves and fun!  A great friend of mine gave me the opportunity to appear on Indy Style TV a couple days ago, which is a live, hour long show which airs daily M-F here in Indianapolis.

I had an absolute blast while I was there.  It was very neat to go behind the scenes at the studio and meet the people who work at Channel 8 and of course, show off my diaper cakes.   :)

For the show, I wanted to create a variety of diaper cakes that I offer.  2-tiers to 4 tiers, I showed them all (I do make larger cakes, but I was afraid I would be hidden behind them!)  haha   I worked all week to carefully design and create these cakes.  A couple of them are different than any other cake I have made before...all of them turned out GREAT!

The Christmas cake and the large two tier girl cake I made for the show have already sold, but the others are up for grabs, send me an email if you are interested!  :)




Check out my segment if you haven't seen it already...I know I am a couple days late with my blog.  :)  

Lavender Lamb

This cake was so much fun to make!  I received a referral order a few weeks ago and the ladies ordering the were so nice and knew exactly what they were looking for.  They wanted a lamb stuffed animal and they wanted lavendar and white.

I was out on the hunt for a lamb stuffed animal and a lavendar onesie or outfit for the baby girl.  I searched high and low for a purple onesie, the kind you typically see on my cakes.  Apparently, if you are going to have a girl, Gerber and the other onesie people ONLY want them to wear pink.  :)  While looking for the purple clothing with little luck, I found the adorable lamb that adorns the top of this large 2 tier cake.  I love the Baby Gund stuffed animals...they are all so cute and well-made and fit perfectly on my cakes.  :)

After a few trips out, I stumbled upon a 3 peice outfit which you see on the cake in the picture.  A lavender and white sleeper with a matching hat and bib (on the back of the cake).  It was PERFECT!  I love that the lamb is holding the hat.  This cake just makes me smile. 

My husband saw the cake when I had finished putting it together, he told me this cake was his favorite cake I had made. 

When I met one of the ladies who had ordered the cake, I really enjoyed chatting with her for a few minutes about the shower and loved seeing the smile on her face when she saw the cake!  Good luck with your shower today!  There is a beautiful blanket of fresh snow on the ground...it is a wonderful day for a baby shower!

'Lil Soccer Superstar!

I was so excited to make this cake for one of my sorority sisters who lives in the Indianapolis area.  She was throwing a shower for a friend and wanted to decorate with a diaper cake from Smiling Girl Designs.  :)

The daddy-to-be loves soccer and the colors for the shower were lime green and blue.  This cake was super cute and I am sure it was a huge hit at the party! 

This 2 tier cake has 30 Pampers diapers, a Gund Plush Soccer Ball Rattle and a onesie. 

All Smiling Girl Designs cakes come wrapped in cellophane with coordinating bow.  A custom ingredient card for each cake is attached to the outside so the parents to be can see everything included in your beautiful gift! 

Thanks Katie!!  :)

Welcome Twins!

A good friend of mine wanted to give a special gift to her neighbors who are welcoming Twins in a couple weeks!  This was my first 'twins' cake and I absolutely loved the way it turned out!   Two adorable dogs hug the cake which is full of items for the baby boys.  2 football themed onesies, 2 pacifiers, a travel-size bottle of baby shampoo, 4 washclothes in the shape of roses, 4 diaper pin-stems, 50 Pampers size 1 diapers and 10 huggies size 1 diapers...PHEW!!! 

It was fun to make and a gift that is sure to be remembered forever.  :)

SGD For a Cause

This past week, I was asked to donate not 1 but 2 diaper cakes.  One for a United Way event Silent Auction which will be taking place next week and the other for a local Low-Cost Spay Neuter Clinic raffle which took place yesterday at the 1st Annual Jack o Lantern Jamboree.

It was so much fun to see people out and about enjoying the beautiful Fall day yesterday.  The Halloween/Fall Themed cake was adorable and went to a good home.  I heard the woman who won is going to be taking the cake to some new parents at the hospital this week (perfect timing!)

The second cake is themed 'Think Pink' in honor of  Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  This cake is my first large 2-tier cake and I LOVE the way this one turned out, it may be one of my favorites.

I am a sucker for a good cause so I really enjoyed being able to donate a couple of my cakes.  :)  The Telemon United Way event is this week, I am excited to see how everything goes!

It's a Small World

My boss was the first person to ask me to make a cake for her...the minute I started talking about making diaper cakes, she told me she wanted one for a baby shower she was throwing for her friends daughter at the lake where they go boating.  The mommy-to-be at the shower is someone I went to Jr. High and High School with...SMALL WORLD!   She is expecting a little boy in November and I am so excited for her.

The shower was a sailing/boating theme so I tried to stick with the theme of the event.  :)  I went out and found a few different items that had sailboats and teddy bear sailors...you wouldn't believe how hard those are to find at the beginning of Fall...sailing is generally a Spring theme, I guess.  :)  I found some great items for the cake.  A paci with a sailboat a couple of adorable outfits and a bib.  Where are the outfits? (I know you are wondering...)  They are the 'filling' inside of the cake!  The outfits were too large to put on the cake so I wrapped them up and put them inside.  The cake ended up a little larger width-wise and there are still the same amount of diapers.  It will give the mommy and daddy to be something to open at a later time.  I love surprises!!  AHHH the possibilities are endless.  Congratulations Liz!

Gave a Diaper Cake Today...

...and it was a HUGE hit!  :)  My cousin's wife had her baby shower today and I gave her a 4 tier cake with a teddy bear, travel size toiletry items, 2 onesies, a pair of socks, 2 wash cloths and a plush frog rattle and 2 pacifiers that were on her registry.  :) 

The top two tiers of this cake are newborn size diapers and the bottom two layers are size 1 so the new mommy and daddy will have a variety of sizes to use as their baby girl grows. 

Not only is this a great way to display all of your gifts, it is all useful...and useful right away! 

2-3-4-5 tier cakes...you tell me what you want...and I will provide you with a memorable, show-stopping baby shower gift that the soon-to-be mommy and guests are sure to love! 

Baby Shower Planners!!  Dont forget about your table centerpieces!  Check out our 2-tier cakes--these would be the perfect way to accent your tables and will be great for the new mommy to use when the shower is over.  Just let me know your shower color scheme and I will get to work!  :)

Keep smiling and have a great Saturday!!

New Cake for Sale!--Reduced Price!!

Colors?  Yes, Please!   I love bright, fun colors for kids!  The bugs on this cake are absolutely adorable!  One of them can be clipped to a car seat or stroller...the other two are easy to hold--all of them crinkle and are great for teething. 

I made this cake with 60 Pampers (size 1-2) diapers, wrapped it with bright, colorful ribbon and topped it with a fun yellow flower--all which complement the cute bugs!

If you are interested in purchasing this cake for someone, the cost is NOW $45.00.  Just let me know, the cake is wrapped and ready to go, today!

Keep smiling  :)

3 Tier Cake

I had an e-mail in my inbox this morning from a woman who is going in with her co-workers to purchase a diaper cake!  What a great idea!  She wanted a specific kind of diaper, which I absolutely loved working with...I love they way they look on the finished product too.  :)  We ended up using 2 layers of new born diapers and 1 layer of size 1 diapers, so the new mom will have a variety of sizes to use.  We customized this cake even further with a cute teddy bear and travel size toiletry items.

The 3 tier cakes start at $40.00 and include 60 diapers (your choice of size).  Items can be added a-la-carte and you can choose from onesies, socks, stuffed animal, toiletries (set of 5), 2 baby wash clothes, pacifier, bottle brush, flannel blanket, rattle, etc.  If you have another idea, just let me know and we will see about making it happen!

Tonight was a lot of fun, really enjoyed making this cake and I hope they love it as much as I do!  :)

Have a great night and keep Smiling.  :)