Feng Shui

Greetings LIFEers! Today we were joined by Katherine Ashby from Feng Shui Houston who gave us a crash course in the Chinese Philosophy of Feng Shui. We learned how to calculate our Kau numbers, determined if we are eastern or western people, and how those two things impact our Feng Shui patterns. Check out the websites below and see if you can add a little harmony and balance to your life through some simple adjustments.

What is your Kua number?

http://fengshui.about.com/od/mainconcepts/qt/fengshuikua.htm

How to calculate your Kua number (or someone else's).

http://fengshui.about.com/od/fengshuicures/qt/kua_number.htm

Visit Katherine's website at

http://www.fengshuihouston.com/

Cupcake Magic with Fondant

Greetings LIFEers! Our reward for braving the ice and wind today was cupcakes! Librarian Krissy Conn joined us to teach us how to make fondant flowers for decorating cakes, cupcakes, a table setting or just playing with for edible fun.

Fondant (pronounced fon-dent in English and fon-don in its native French) means "melting", because fondant rolls out very smooth and has an almost liquid-like appearance, which is why bakers like to use it on wedding cakes instead of icing, which can look lumpy and textured. But beyond making cakes look smooth, fondant is popular because it can be rolled or sculpted into just about any shape, making decorating ideas almost limitless. In our class today, we practiced making fondant roses.

Fondant dries out very quickly, so make sure you keep the fondant you aren't working with in a sealed container or bag. Roll your fondant into 9 marble sized balls; 6 being a little larger than the other 3. Pinch one of the larger balls at the bottom and form the top into a little cone shape for the center of your flower. One at a time, pinch the 3 smaller balls into petal shapes, and attach them to the center piece, overlapping the petals. When you have the first layer of three petals, pinch the edges to be very thin, like a flower petal. The petals should always be higher than the center. Repeat this process with the 5 larger balls, making the larger outer ring of petals. See photos below for an example of a completed rose. You can use paste or food coloring from a craft store to color your flower when you are finished.

Remember, fondant is similar to clay, so if you don't like what you created, mash it all up and start over. After kneading it for a minute and adding a tiny bit of water, you should be able to shape it again.

For ideas of fondant projects, see Wilton.com

http://www.wilton.com/decorating/fondant/

For fondant supplies, visit your local craft store like Hobby Lobby or Michaels.
http://www.michaels.com/Fondant-Gum-Paste/products-bakeware-fondantgumpaste,default,sc.html

Food Network also has some good tips on decorating with fondant.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/decorating-with-fondant-recipe/index.html