The finished product! I’ll show you how I got there in a moment.

The grand plan sketched out. I saw the daisies in my yard as I was heading for the store and instantly fell in love with a textural yellow/white/black theme (with daisy accents of course). Cupcakes are far more fun than one big cake, but I wanted to be able to write something, so I decided on one mini-cake for the middle and then a ring of cupcakes around it. 

This little guy was very attached to his carton.

As it turns out, all that business about water and oil not mixing is spot on.

The batter! High elevation cupcake baking tip: only fill the cupcakes up half way. Anyone that tells you two thirds have never baked somewhere that snows in June.

The base frosting. My little sister found this brilliant recipe which melted smooth. Pretty sure it is made entirely of powdered sugar and butter (like all good things).

My leaves in progress! I made them on wax paper and then put them in the freezer till I was ready for them. I’m not sure if this is orthodox frosting technique, but it worked for me!

My dipping method! I allowed the frosting to dry a bit then I just dunked them in and rolled them around in the sprinkles. Worked like a charm.

Words done, leaves starting to go on.

Final steps, putting on the fresh daisies!

Polka dots and sprinkles oh my!

I’ve been drawing cyclopses a lot lately. Couldn’t resist a cute frosting ‘clops for one of the extras!

Another spare. This one later got turned into a full cupcake of frosting grass.

And then…. I had to find a spot for it in the fridge. We worked it out (just barely).

Candles on! *cue bad (but heartfelt) singing*

Happy Birthday Gma!