Monarchy Mondays ,Cookie & Fruit Cake, The Royal Wedding Cake

It's got gray icing, I can't even begin to think how you make gray icing" - M'Lynn about the red-velvet armadillo grooms cake

It's a bleedin' Armadillo Grooms cake !

Millions, I have watched the movie "Stella Magnolias" millions of times and my favorite scene is Shelby   and Jackson wedding, the grooms cake !! Weezer cuts off the butt "nothing like a good piece of ass" I say nothing says love like a cake that looks like road kill ! So I guess Im not the only one who likes the idea of a grooms cake, along with a traditional  British Wedding fruit cake, Prince William also will have a grooms cake made out of chocolate cookies, made by Mc Vities cake company. Paul Courtney, the firms cake designer, has said "the grooms cake will have broken up pieces of tea biscuits and special secret ingredients"

The wedding cake will be made by wedding cake baker, Fiona Cairns, the cake is multi-tired traditional fruit cake, Kate Middleton is said to have help created the cake theme. The actual design remains a secret but what we do know is the cake will have a British floral theme and use the Lambeth Method, a popular English style that relies on intricate piping and scrollwork. The ingredients, dried fruits such as raisins, walnuts, and cherries, if you are a guest and allergic to nuts, you're screwed but you do have the grooms cake to the rescue. The grooms cake contains dark chocolate and biscuits type cookies, sounds much better then a fruit cake but Im american so fruit cakes is something we make fun of at Christmas, not have at a wedding.

Wedding fruit cake, sounds nasty but if it makes the couple happy then we at Urban Buddha like it !  Have a craving now for red velvet cake with sweet cream cheese frosting, yum .

Put a Bird On It, So I Did

When I saw this skit from the Portlandia on Sundance Channel I almost fell off my desk chair laughing and was embarrassed  because I knew they where talking about me ! So I have forbidden all purchases of anything bird or any cute homemade bird type things. Today I was a naughty girl and broke my own rule, not my fault, when shopping at Home Goods you must buy now, the chances of it being their tomorrow are slim. Been resisting the temptation to buy any peel and stick art work too but today I found cute birds in gray, gold metallic and toile print. Guess you can say that I can't help myself, cute birds things make me weak. The wall above my shower was bare, needed a little something to jazz it up, so I put a bird on it !

Monarchy Mondays, Toilet Changed Royal Protocol !

Score one under "change of Royal protocol" for the commander, Kate, who will marry prince William this April ! To avoid an embarrassing future of unflattering "Royal toilet humor" their official monogram will read CW not WC. “WC” is the abbreviation recognized throughout the world as the water closet, or better known as a toilet. This oversight could have been the makings of years of unlimited jokes, the newly married couples Royal monogram could have been mistaken for the toilet. Here is where the problem lies with following Royal protocol, putting the initial of the more senior partner (William) would have meant that "W" would lead first, hence "WC" for water closet . So for the first time in British history, a spouse will have her initial placed before a Royal on the Monogram. The monogram will now read "CW" complete with Prince William's crest, the changes have already been made and inscribed on Royal Wedding memorabilia and souvenirs. So all is better, "Keep calm and carry on" a potential lifetime of very "bad taste" funny jokes will never happen now. Now that this issue is solved, the shit did not hit the fan, no pun intended, what fabulous and very expensive wedding dress will Kate ware for the wedding

Japan Tsunami Relief, Here is how you can help donate.

Today I was flooded with the same question from my clients "is your Aunt alright". My aunt Paula lived and taught English in Japan for twenty years, six months ago she moved back to the U.S. Paula lived eight hours south of Tokyo, in the city of Wakayama, in the region of Kansai right outside of Osaka. The seaside town she lived in is fine, minor damage but everyone in Wakayama and my Aunt are recovering from the earthquake. I love Japan, the best vacations I have every had, my love for Japanese culture started with Hello Kitty, 80's pop groups and the exotic allure of Tokyo. Urban Buddha will do everything possible to help, so today when I hear about Cost Plus World Market promotion for Japan relief I could not wait to help out and spread the news. "Cost Plus World Market will donate 100% of its net proceeds of sales of all products produced in Japan to Direct Relief International, to aid in the relief and humanitarian efforts currently underway in response to the country's recent earthquake and tsunami. Beginning March 23 through the end of September 2011, customers can shop and know that all net proceeds from the sale of popular Japanese food and beverage brands, including Pocky, Meiji, Kikkoman, Ramune, Sapporo, and Kirin will go toward aiding victims of this tragedy". Bravo World Market !!
Links to follow.
www.worldmarket.com
www.directrelief.org

Monarchy Monday, Lady in Waiting

Kate Middleton,the British princess-to-be must choose a lady-in-waiting. News of this development caused a frenzy with fans and royal watchers to hit the Web. The question Urban Buddha ( and my minions) wanted to know "what is a lady in waiting"? Dictionary.com defines the term as a woman attending on a princess or queen, this position is basically a personal assistant to the princess. For those of us who are caught up on episodes of "The Tudors" know that most ladies in waiting usually became mistress to the king (oh how we miss the naked bedroom scenes ). This role is traditionally taken up by a person close to the royals, such as a family member or friend. The duties of a lady-in-waiting include handling the mail and traveling with the royal party on official visits. While the job is probably ideal for the sister of the bride (who will also serve as maid of honor at the wedding), there could be a hitch. Kate may go for someone more schooled in Royal etiquette at first, before asking her sister,Pippa, who may have little knowledge of royal "household" rules .

Safety check your Bungalow !!

Daylight saving time started last night, did you set your clocks forward or where you an hour behind like me today. Twice a year, when the time changes, this becomes the perfect time to make any safety check around the house. A few simple safety changes could save you and your loved ones life. Start with the smoke detectors. Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are better equipped when they're powered on by a new "fresh" battery. Safety experts recommend replacing smoke and carbon monoxide detector batteries twice a year. Replace light bulbs, non working light bulbs are a safety hazard. Consider replacing conventional bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent or LCD bulbs. The U.S. Environmental Protection estimates that replacing standard bulbs with energy-efficient ones saves over $30 in electricity costs over their lifetime. Celebrate time change sunday with new batteries, light bulbs and a bloody mary !!

Orange and the Subconscious Mind

"Orange is a color that is heavily associated with eating, overeating, and feeling full. Its presence in many shades tends to illicet thoughts of food in the average person. Many restaurants use red and orange lighting in order to stimulate the appetites of their customers. These effects make orange perfect for kitchen decorating".

Fantastic; the color orange will be perfect for the remodel of the kitchen !! My devoted Minions after careful consideration I have chosen two colors from Dutch Boy Paint from OSH Hardware, Pasadena. Appetizing color number one, Papaya Whip, for the cabinets, soft off white color with a hint of pale orange. Number two, Tinsel town, for the walls, light warm orange with a hint of brown and peach. The hardware for cabinets, Im going with Cost Plus World Market in an antique "looking" brown glass knobs. You can't go wrong with World Market, when in doubt I look their first for ideas. Now this is going to be a "hugh" project so Urban Buddha is soliciting any help or ideas you may have. This will include the best way to drill new holes in cabinets.

Monarchy Monday, Questions about the Royal wedding

Urban buddha has been asked basic questions about the Royal Wedding. The busy bee's (that would be me, a mac notebook and a diet coke) have been researching the most asked questions. We are not an official Royal watcher blog but we like to fancy ourselves as one. The answers come from; Reuters Royal Watchers at Yahoo and BritishRoyalFamily.com

1. Why is Kate arriving by car instead of the traditional carriage?
No official reason has been given for what appears to be a break with tradition. A number of explanations have been put forward, such as costs, security and modernity. Traveling by car is cheaper and less ostentatious, more in keeping with such austere times.

2. Where can I buy official Royal Souvenirs
Try Amazon, search under Royal Wedding, Royal Collection’s online shop as well as the shops at both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle and Royal Collection shops in Central London.

3. Why aren't the Obamas on the guest list?
While the wedding is clearly a royal occasion, because William is not the heir-to-the-throne it is not a state event. Thus members of royalty from around the world have been invited but not heads of state, so the Obamas have missed out, as have leaders of European countries such as French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

4. What will Kate's title be?
Middleton's title will largely depend on that of her husband. If William has no new title, then the experts at etiquette specialists Debrett's say his wife would probably be known as Her Royal Highness Princess Catherine of Wales, although even that is not certain.

And the most asked question, Who is going to design Kate's wedding dress. The answer; I have no idea, can't seem to find this information on line yet.Even though mum's the word, there are some interesting rumors that point to the late Alexander McQueen's fashion house as having been given the commission. What I can tell you is that I will be waiting on pins and needles ready to report this information to you once I find out.

New Hardware

New knobs on the dresser, thank you Cost Plus World Market. First down on my game plan list change the hardware on dresser. My grandmothers dresser, she must of had it since the late 1960's, beautiful piece of furniture but the hardware was looking a little run down. My solution, change the hardware, so I added eight new purple knobs to the yellow dresser. The dresser still need's some T.L.C but this is a good start. Now on to the kitchen, the busy bee's at Urban Buddha are still deciding on what color orange to choose so stay tuned.