Cute Japanese Pastries

Bake and Break is a super cute Japanese baking blog with the most adorable, little homemade pastries! The creator, Sakura, is a young Japanese lady making anything from swan shaped cream puffs, green tea caramel and fresh cream scones to name a few. I’ve included a bunch of pictures below, but be sure to check out her full blog because it’s pure awesomeness!  You’ll get tons great ideas for your upcoming Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s parties.

What bakery might these lovely buns be from?

It’s no bakery; it’s Sakura’s home!  Amazing!

Drool for choco scones…

Love Muffin tops!

Cutie bear cookie

More scones…with fresh cream!

Homemade caramel?  Green tea flavor?! Want want want!

I’ll only eat cream puffs if they’re shaped like swans from now on.

Source: Bake and Break

Super Cute Play Rug

Do you have adorable kids? We don’t! Not that they’re not adorable…it’s just that we really don’t have kids.

But if we did, I’m sure Alisa would buy this super cutie patootie 3-D Play Rug for us all! Otherwise known as activity rugs, these lovely pieces of fabric will no doubt create an endless amount of joy and genuine good ol’ play time for your beautiful children.

Forget traditional doll houses and Micro Machines (do they still make those?) Give your kids a chance to play with an entire city. Teach your little ones the rules of the road and why traffic jams and accidents occur. If you have a darling princess-y type little girl like our dear Bao, you can smile and sigh while you watch her eyes light up as she goes crazy with interior decorating and organizing her purses and shoes.

And the play rug is a true space-saver. All your kids need to play is a few horses, houses, people and some props, and they can sit there for hours, interacting with their fellow children-kind. So before toasting your child’s brain and body with inactivity and television, make sure to give these adorable 3-D play rugs a shot!

Alisa calls them, “Rugs so cute, it will make you want kids.”

Inspiration from Bao’s niece, Kyla Madison Grant – pictured ever-so-cutely below <3

Kyla in her stylish outfit (check out the gold sandals!)

Obviously, we just like showing her off because she’s so cute.
Thanks to Bao-Thy for these adorable pics!

3-D Rug pictures courtesy of lmnop.com.au

What?! That’s a CAKE??

About a month ago, Mari came to me and said I MUST see these cakes made by her friend, Laurie. It was really cute because Mari said her words would do no justice to just how amazing the cakes were. She tried earnestly to describe it and got really flustered because I guess she saw I wasn’t getting it.

That is until I actually saw the cakes myself. Holy crap, UNBELIEVABLE!! When I saw that purse cake, I was completely baffled. How can that be a cake?!?!?! I mean, look at it. It looks like real leather to me. And the detail!!  Then I saw the next picture – the purse was cut, and yes, that is definitely a cake.

From that point on, I could not stop talking about these amazing desserts. I made everyone look at the cakes and forced them to guess what they were. I loved everyone’s reaction upon realizing that it was a cake (try playing the guessing game with your friends – you’ll love their reaction too).  So I finally decided it’s something that really needs to be shared with the masses.

The talented individual behind these masterpieces is Laurie, a super cute artist and a self-employed cake designer, making custom cakes (among other things) from scratch. I absolutely love how she incorporates items all girls love  – designer purses and even the coveted light blue box from Tiffany, with a lovely white ribbon turned perfectly into a cute bow. These cakes are every girl’s dream.

I’d like to say more, but Mari’s right – Laurie’s cakes are too cute for words.

Please check out her profile and more custom cake pictures on her Facebook Page.  If you have any inquiries or would like to order, email her at laurie.sanae@gmail.com.  Mention you saw it at LIVINGcute!

Beautiful, Colorful Pasta

Jazz up your summer pasta entrees with this unbelievably beautiful pasta by Pastificio Pozzo del Re. The rainbow colors will simply astound you. Each color is actually indicative of different all natural ingredients like spinach, tumeric, red beet, tomato, carrot and red peppers. How clever! The pasta is also very flavorful.

La Table de Nana, one of Alisa’s favorite bloggers, prepares this pasta with shrimp just perfectly. The below description is taken directly from her blog:

We baked the shrimp in the oven while I was cooking the pasta. In a saucepan, I warmed some EVOO and butter..added fresh garlic,red chili peppers from Italy….some lemon juice and white wine.. ..Reduced it all .. then quickly added the cooked shrimp..loads of chopped fresh parsley from my little herb pots..and lots of grated lemon zest..tossed w/ the pasta.

The scrumptiously delicious looking pasta below is the result:

Omg, drool…

Click Here to Buy  – a bit pricey

Cute, Contemporary Wall Candy

I went to the Cute and Dangerous Art Exhibit in Laguna Beach, CA and bought this too-cute-to-be-true piece of art. It is titled “Ocean Boy” and created by Hsinping Pan. She is an animator and illustrator living in Los Angeles (Originally from Taiwan). Isn’t it adorable?  Only $40 with a frame!  Love it!

Her site is super cute too. http://www.hsinpingpan.com

Click Here to Buy Other Prints from Hsinping Pan

Cute, Colorful Sundae Spoons

The girls and I were able to enjoy a nice little dinner for Mari’s birthday. We started off with some drinks while chit-chatting to catch up on our latest updates. Everyone looked very cute, and Bao was even wearing the Mixed Charmed Bracelet from Forever 21 and rocked it in her recommended oversized t-shirt and skinny jeans.

We quickly moved on to our favorite part of birthday dinners: GIFTS.  Mari got a lot of cute, practical and very useful gifts such as a mini travel blow-dryer from Brookstone, Luckies Zipper Pulls, a large silver shower head and an adorable strawberry plant that sits in a little egg.

My favorite among the gifts was from Alisa. Her gift included these SUPER cute, candy-colored, acrylic Sundae spoons from Crate and Barrel. I absolutely love sundaes, smoothies, ice-cream, parfaits…pretty much any kind of dessert so I turned into the green-eyed monster when I saw them and vowed to get my very own set. And it’s perfect as they are on sale on the Crate and Barrel website. Only $3.95!

Top-rack dishwasher-safe

On sale for $3.95 (regularly $4.95)

Click here to buy

How to Make Super Cute Piggy Pancakes

Mari is pretty much a genius when it comes to finding adorable treats that are fairly simple to whip up…or at least she makes it seem that way. Her item of choice today is a splendidly charming piggy pancake, no doubt inspired by our piglet friend, Bao.

The recipe below is direct from Betty Crocker and makes 10 delightful pancakes. Only 25 minutes to prepare. Click the play button below the instructions to watch the how-to video.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1 cup milk
2 eggs
Fresh blueberries, chocolate chips or raisins

Step by Step Instructions:

1. Heat griddle or skillet over medium-high heat or to 375°F. In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, milk and eggs until blended.
2. Lightly oil griddle. For each pig face, pour slightly less than 1/4 cup batter onto hot oiled griddle. Pour scant tablespoonful batter onto griddle for snout and another scant tablespoonful for ears.
3. Cook pancakes until edges are dry. Turn; cook until golden.
4. To serve, place large pancakes on individual serving plates. Place 1 small pancake in center of each face for snout; poke 2 holes for nostrils with end of handle of wooden spoon. Cut second small pancake in half for ears; place at top of face.
5. Use blueberries for eyes. Or like the video, use blueberries for snout and chocolate chips for eyes. (LIVINGcute prefers the former over the latter)

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

Success Tip:
Flip pancakes only once! Repeated flipping will toughen the pancakes. Pancakes are ready to flip when they’re puffed, covered with bubbles and slightly dry around the edges. Cook the other side until it is golden brown.

Nutrition Information:
1 Piggy Pancake: Calories 120 (Calories from Fat 35); Total Fat 4g (Saturated Fat 1 1/2g, Trans Fat 1g); Cholesterol 25mg; Sodium 310mg; Total Carbohydrate 17g (Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 2g); Protein 3g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 0%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 6%; Iron 4% Exchanges: 1 Starch; 0 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 1
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

More info at Betty Crocker’s Website

Perfect Plant for the Cute and Lazy

Love cute plants but too lazy to water and re-pot? If this is the case, Gabriela Mombach’s Broto Aeroponic Plant Pot is perfect for you. Although, it’s just a concept right now, Mombach uses the Aerogarden technology so that you don’t have to make sure the lighting is perfect. No more watering plants, no more dealing with mud, and no more worries about not being able to grow herbs in the winter. This will definitely look cute in my kitchen.

Cute Laptop Desk

Meet Dave. Dave’s quite the match-making people pleaser. He’ll make sure your date with Mr. Sony Vaio is a comfortable one. His height will adjust accordingly depending on whether you want to hang out standing up or sitting down, how considerate! Feel like a couch date? Dave’s right there with you and won’t ever let you strain you neck or burn your thighs from holding Mr. Macbook on your lap. He’s really quite the sweetheart.

$17.99 @ ikea

Click Here to Buy

Cute, Colorful Cups!

I stumbled upon these insanely cute cups, and I believe these lovely items need to be shared with the world. This colorful bunch, called Hula Tumblers, are made of glass and have a rounded base so they wobble back and forth. Wobbly glasses? Then won’t they spill? I guess not, as the blog I found them on describes them as a great conversation piece that dances across the table without spilling the liquids inside. Must purchase immediately!