casual wedding dress

The typical wedding reception entertainment scheme of pretty flowers and background music is fine for some people, but all kinds of options exist to spice it up a bit and provide a celebration that everyone is sure to remember for years to come.

Before planning any of the following wedding reception entertainment ideas, please take this short bit of advice: discuss it first. These inventive ideas will hopefully bring amusement and vibrancy to your wedding reception entertainment, but it could spell tragedy if you surprise everyone (particularly your spouse) with something completely outlandish.

Build your wedding reception entertainment around a theme that suits your personalities and interests. Some specific examples could be:

For the country bumpkin in you, try a theme centered around the old west. The ol' watering hole should be a big hit. Plant some (fake) muskets and six-shooters around the area and see what kind of drama erupts.

The renaissance era gives many options for a wedding reception entertainment theme. If you have ever been to a renaissance festival, you know what fun it can be. Hazah!

In this 21st century, much of the science fiction of the past has already come to reality. This is very fortunate for the tech-savvy couple looking to design a high-tech reception centered around a sci fi theme. Laser beams and shiny, metallic things always look futuristic.

Arrrh matey! Not all pirates are from the Caribbean, but they can all throw a wild party! A big treasure chest filled with Styrofoam peanuts can hide treasures for the kids to discover.

Ancient Egypt is always an intriguing theme for any party. Design a secret hieroglyphic message for your guests to decode and win a prize. The favorite and most important symbol for your ancient Egyptian wedding reception entertainment: the Ankh.

If you really want to get the guests roaring, try this: Hire absolutely the worst band you can find in the city. Allow them to play a couple of songs before you encourage the guests to boo them from the stage. Your real band can then emerge from the crowd and "save the day" with beautiful, professional tunes. (You will still pay the sucker band for their full set, of course. They did their part.)

Instead of subdued background music between sets, hire a comedian to perform during the band's intermission. An hilarious and upbeat act will keep your guests attentive and help them catch a second wind for another round of celebration.

There is no rule book that says wedding reception entertainment must be confined to the stage. Magicians, mimes, and jugglers are a few examples of entertainers who could meander through the crowd and keep everyone on their toes. They can scope out the folks who might look bored or ignored, hopefully prying open a few smiles. Remember to ask the juggler to please forgo the flaming torches - just this once!

These are just a few wedding reception entertainment ideas to get you started. What you eventually decide to do should reflect your own tastes. But whatever you do, the key ingredient that must never be forgotten is: fun!

You have found yourself searching the wedding websites, reading article after article, browsing through magazines, but you still have not found your perfect wedding favors. You're not even sure at this point if you should give wedding favors out. You should, and here's why, plus we'll offer some simple solutions to your wedding favor dilemma.

Don't underestimate the importance of wedding favors. They are the universal symbol of gratitude that the newly married couple extends to their guests. It is one of the most traditional aspects of the wedding - dating back many, many hundreds of years - extending thanks to your guests for sharing in your special day. Think about all the weddings you have attended, how would you feel if you did not receive a little "thank you" token of appreciation? The problem is, most guests expect favors - despite what some newer wedding articles might try to make you believe.

Your favors need not be expensive to convey a simple thank you. All your favors should do is be functional - something practical that people can use. How many times have you received a thank you gift only to place it on a shelf, or worse yet, tossed it in the trash, because you just did not know what to do with it. Unfortunately, some couples put very little thought into their wedding favors. Often it seems, that wedding favors are cast aside and treated as a last minute idea - leaving the puzzled wedding guests to scratch their heads and say, "What is this?"

Don't fall into the category of silly unconventional favors! Give your guests something that serves a purpose. Why not edible wedding favors? Most people love a sweet treat, and if it can be consumed - it most likely will be used! From simple to gourmet, edibles including candy, chocolates, cookies, coffee, tea, hot cocoa, honey and mints, will satisfy the most discriminating wedding guest - and are available in price ranges to fit any bridal budget.Some tips to keep in mind when deciding on edible or candy wedding favors:

Chocolates need extra care, from shipping with ice packs during the summer months, to storage both in your home before the reception and at the catering facility for your reception. You don't want melted favors! Allergies: some people are allergic to chocolate, some people peanuts, others can't have sugar. You may want to offer two different types of favors, and have your wait staff distribute them, stating they have sugar free options available. (Also good for the low-carb dieter who may want to indulge!) Hard candies and mints make excellent choices, as they do not melt. Jellybeans are loved by both children and adults alike. With so many colors and flavors available you can even match them to your wedding colors! Don't forget about drinks as edible wedding favors. Coffee, cappuccino, tea, hot cocoa, cocktail mixes, honey - all are items which can be consumed and used. They require no refrigeration, are relatively inexpensive, can be personalized, and go wonderfully with a little edible treat! Cookies and miniature cakes - a small package of cookies (maybe even with a cookie cutter attached?) or a miniature cake they can take home - make delicious treats! Jordan almonds are a traditional and lovely token of gratitude. Whatever you decide to give as an edible wedding favor you can be sure it will not leave your guests wondering what to do with them. You wedding favors will not go to waste; they will be enjoyed! You can decorate them as you please in pretty packaging - sure to match your wedding decor. It's the idea that your gift to your guests counts the most; that you took the time to think of them. If the wedding favor you give comes from the heart, it will leave a lasting impression and memory on your guests.

One of the highlights of having a tropical wedding are beach wedding flowers. Many tropical locations have unique colors and varieties of flowers that are only found on islands like Hawaii and the Caribbean. Even if you aren't having your beach wedding on an island, it has become relatively inexpensive to find them on the mainland as well.

The first step in picking your flowers is to know what types are available where you are getting married or know what can be imported to your location. Local styles and customs will also change depending on where you are.

Once you know what is available at your wedding location, you can plan your flower budget accordingly. Working with a florist or local wedding planner or expert can help tremendously in this area. Knowing what is available will also help with deciding on what your wedding colors will be for decorations and bridesmaid dresses. Some tropical locations have flowers and colors are unique to it which might open up different color schemes to choose from.

Listed below are five beach flower ideas to get you started:

Hawaiian Wedding Flowers

Hawaii is known for beautiful flowers, and there are several fun, colorful options for your wedding flowers. Leis are probably the best known Hawaiian tradition that can easily be added to your wedding day.

Also a Hawaiian tradition, a Haku wristband, headband or anklet is another Hawaiian tradition that you could use to sprinkle color and uniqueness to your wedding.

Orchids

These colorful flowers are very resilient and can withstand hot, tropical weather. Typical colors include white, yellow, pink, pale green and purple.

Use them alone or with other colorful flowers to create stunning bouquets. They can also be part of your ceremony and reception decorations.

Hibiscus

Typically found in red or pink, tropical hibiscus will add color and class to your wedding. Many island brides match hibiscus red with their bridesmaid's gowns and wedding accent colors.

Hibiscus can be used by themselves in bouquets or paired with other tropical flowers like orchids or lilies.

Lilies

Heat resistance is just one of the reasons that make lilies a favorite among beach brides. They are also striking beautiful when used in bouquets or by themselves as decorations.

Many brides choose bouquets of white, sometimes accented with red roses or other flowers. Other popular lily colors are pink and yellow.

Roses

Popular for any wedding, roses do very well in hot climates which make them a popular choice for beach weddings. Use bouquets of red roses, or combine them with other beach wedding flowers like lilies or bird of paradise.

As you probably already know, roses come in more colors than red. Try mixing white or yellow roses in with bright, tropical flowers.

The best way to thank your guests on your wedding day is a wedding favor. These are typically an essential part of most receptions and in some cultures they are important and guests would take offense to not receive one.

A wedding favor is a small gift that is given to each guest at the wedding reception. If you are having a rather large wedding you are probably not going to want to go out and spend a bunch of money on these favors.

Below you will find a list of ideas of homemade wedding favor ideas that are simple to make and will take very little time.

1. The first favor you could give to your guests is a champagne glass filled with chocolates. This is a very simple favor to make.

All you need is to get a champagne glass, the cheapest way is to go with the plastic glasses, and fill them with a couple of chocolates. Then then cover the glass with tulle.

The tulle should go down to the stem of the glass where you can then tie it into place with a ribbon. You can further dress the gift up with a charm or silk flower.

2. Almonds in tulle is another homemade wedding favor idea that is great. You simply need to cut small squares of tulle, no more than 6 inches by 6 inches, and then place almonds, the most popular being sugar coated almonds, into the center of the squares. All you have left to do now is tie a bow with a ribbon and you are done.

3. If you do not have a centerpiece for your wedding yet and also are in need of a wedding favor, small potted plants are the way to go. Not only will the plants make the day much more colorful, but the guests can enjoy them after the wedding, which is not possible with most centerpieces.

All you have to do to make these favors is plant small flower pots with seeds. It is best to plant the seeds so they can grow before the wedding.

These are by no means all of the homemade wedding favor ideas, but are just a few of my favorite. Regardless if you just want to leave your guests with a little piece to remember your wedding by or you are following the traditions passed down by your culture, guests will love having a memory of your day long after it is over.

Your wedding is one of the view days where you really want your individuality to stand out, so why not start with the first part of your wedding- the invitations!

There are plenty of individual and striking designs out there, and you needn't be restricted by colour or materials- so your invitation can truly reflect you and your partner, and be completely in keeping with your wedding theme.

A really nice idea is to use 3d pieces that can add texture to your invitation and are also a great way of representing your interests. For instance for a recent wedding we hosted, the invites featured a button and a shell. the groom was a keen surfer and spent all his spare time at the beach, and the bride was a seamstress, who also made button jewellery- so the combination of the 2 items was perfect.

You can also display your green credentials using your invitation too. One of the best invitations I've seen was created on recycled paper from sustainable forests, and featured interesting images and words related to them, cut out of old newspapers. This eco friendliness was carried into their wedding- with organic food and eco friendly table decorations and napkins.

A nice personal touch is having a photo of the happy couple on the invitation- and if you're not comfortable having a posed picture on there, then how about a silly one from one of your nights out together, a couple of baby snaps, or even better a mock up of the two of you together when you're old and grey.

If you really want to be unique, then why not move away from traditional paper invitations, and use something really innovative.

A simple but effective idea is to send an object that will come in useful at the reception or wedding. For instance, a pair of castanets would be perfect for a Spanish themed wedding, where flamenco would be the dance of choice at the reception.

Or how about a badge as an invite, with just the time, place and the couples names on it to add an air of mystery- perfect for a more low key wedding.

Finally, a relatively new idea, that is loved by the tech savvy, is a DVD invite, with the couple announcing the wedding (almost) face to face. just be careful with this one- as great grandpa or aunty Mabel may not take kindly to this type of invite.

Hope this has been useful, and whatever you decide to use to invite friends and family to your big day just remember to make it unique to you!

To some, music is the language of the heart; it speaks to the soul in ways that mere words cannot, it creates ambiance and can relax or invigorate the mind. Whether you are a musician or a music lover, creating a music themed wedding can be fun and exciting for both your guests and the happy couple. You may like country or you may like rock n' roll, your sweetie may play in a hard rock band or may be a violin virtuoso in a classical ensemble, but whatever you musical background is, you can make your reception come alive with both music inspired decorations, sounds and even music wedding favors.

First decide on a musical style for your wedding. A country western theme could be designed around country music, cowboy boots, haystacks and even a live country band. A classical music wedding seems very elegant, black tie and upscale. Hire a pianist for the cocktail hour and a classical ensemble for the reception. If you decide on a rock n' roll theme, you can design your wedding around a particular band or performer - or even a particular decade of rock music. Riding in on a motorcycle as newlyweds and using electric guitar place card holders would be fitting for such a theme.

Whatever style of music you decide upon, incorporate it into every aspect of your wedding. The reception can be decorated like you are viewing a band in concert, or you can incorporate the instruments themselves as decorations. Centerpieces could be designed around sheet music on stands surrounded by flowers. Tables can be names of songs instead of the usual numbers. Ice or flowers could be sculpted into music notes. The dance floor can be highlighted with lights and even fog. Your wedding cake could be designed as an instrument of your choice.

For your escort cards, there are a variety of music inspired place card holders to hold your seating assignments such as pianos, guitars, violins, brass ensembles, music notes, or music stands. For wedding favors, why not offer a personalized music CD with some of the songs which played at your reception? Or for a universal wedding favor, why not purchase CD holders? The possibilities for designing a music inspired wedding theme are endless, but you may have to think outside of the box as this is a nontraditional and highly unique wedding theme.

When planning how to decorate a wedding cake, there are several important decisions to make. You'll want to be sure you have enough cake for all the guests, so the size of the cake is an important decision and one that may affect your decorating choices as well. Then there are the obvious and fun selections of flavors and colors that might be the first thing you'll consider.

Equally important in planning how to decorate a wedding cake are the choices for the type of icing and decorations you'll use. These decisions may be based on which decorating materials you're most comfortable working with or what type of look you want to achieve. In the planning stage, you'll need to make some decisions and get at least a general idea of how the cake will be decorated.

The size of the guest list will determine the minimum size of the cake, although for larger parties the display cake can be supplemented with plain sheet cakes for serving. They're easier to cut into servings, and using them frees up some decorating time and expense so you can spend more of these resources on the display cake.

At this point in planning how to decorate a wedding cake you'll also need to decide which type of icing and decorations will be used. Buttercream icing is simple to make and use and has a great flavor. Fondant, on the other hand, looks terrific, with a sleek, professional finish, but it's a little more challenging to use. Store-bought prepared fondant can be expensive and usually doesn't taste very good. A homemade marshmallow fondant is much tastier and is inexpensive to make.

The decorations you choose may be determined by the wedding theme or formality, or even simply by your comfort level with your decorating skills and the time and budget you have to spend on the cake. For example, if you don't want the stress of assembling and transporting a tiered cake, you can get a similarly impressive look by using individual cakes on matching cake stands in various sizes and heights artfully arranged on a decorated table.

The actual decorations on the cake can be as easy as a purchased wedding cake topper and fresh flowers or simply piped icing borders, or as complicated as dozens of handmade gum paste flowers and fondant lace. If you have the time and patience, gum paste flowers can be made well ahead of time and stored, so you can take your time making lots of them for a beautifully covered floral cake. If that's too intimidating or time-consuming, try a similar design with fresh or silk flowers. Either way, these are things to decide early when planning how to decorate a wedding cake. There will be enough preparation to do as the wedding day approaches without having to worry about trying to find the perfect cake topper at the last minute.

Before any baking can begin, you'll also need to choose the flavors of the cake, icing, and filling, and find or create a recipe for each. Colors will also come into play at this step, as you decide whether to make a very traditional white cake or something more modern. The icing and decoration can have subtle touches to match the wedding color scheme, or the entire cake can be boldly matched to the wedding colors.

Planning how to decorate a wedding cake is not complicated, but it is an important step that should be considered carefully. When the wedding day arrives and your beautifully decorated cake is the focal point of your reception hall, you'll know that the time spent planning how to decorate a wedding cake was well worth it.

So you are getting married? I am sure that which wedding cake design to choose is on your mind! There is a wide variety to choose from. Your wedding cake can be as glam, contemporary or traditional as you like. A Bridal shower cake signifies the joy and ecstasy of celebrating the beginning of a new life. Although designing a wedding cake may sound complex, the number of professional bridal cakes bakeries coming up eases the problem. You just have to pick one from the large variety available. Also the other important accessories like the decoration, cake topping and designer wedding cake box have to be decided on. All of these are easily available in the market. There are a number of internet sites selling everything as a complete package.

Choosing A Wedding Cake Design

Bridal cakes have always been of great importance in all wedding arrangements. Your wedding cake can be the centerpiece extraordinaire or just a simple, elegant cake. There are numerous varieties available. The only limiting factor is your budget. But the most exotic and coordinated wedding cake design can be something which goes with the color and feel of your wedding dress, flowers and decoration settings. Out of a simple make, you can create an excellent variant. Deviating from a classic white to a pastel color changes the entire look of wedding cakes. Going by the number of people attending your marriage, the cake can be from two to three tiers. There are many flavors to choose from. Fruitcake is a traditional cake. Flavor variant can be chocolate, banana, carrot, lemon Madeira cake, truffle, hazelnut and almond filling. If you choose a multi tiered one, each tier can be of different flavor.

How Creative Can You Be

Wedding cake design appears more creative if its decoration is planned well. Embroidery design with colored cream can completely change the look of your cake. A simple arrangement of fresh flowers on the top of a tiered cake can make it look amazing. You can try roses, peonies, orchids or lilies. You can add some floating decorations on your cake by wiring few butterflies, hearts or flowers to hover above your cake.

Presenting Your Bridal Cake

No matter how deliberate you have been in choosing your cake, it is imperative that the cake should reach the cake cutting ceremony in the perfect shape with all its decorations intact. Thus you might also want to take a look at the wedding cake box that the baker has. Also if you plan to bring the cake to the party in its box and open the surprise package right in the middle of excitement, then a designer wedding cake box is what you will have to go for. Finally the presentation of the cake will only be complete if you have a knife which goes along the occasion. Only then is your presentation complete.

Conclusion

The variety of wedding cakes available in the market today is amazing. You can even have a look at amazing designs or order them on the internet. All you have to do is be clear about what you are looking for and have a wedding cake design in your mind.

Inexpensive wedding cakes are a great way to save some of your wedding budget but they can look cheap and that is not the look you want in your wedding photos!

Rather than spending a fortune on what in the end is just cake, have a look at the cakes that your local supermarket is producing. Most stores will now sell celebration cakes in a variety of flavors that are decorated in white icing and you can buy various sizes if you want your wedding cake to have several tiers.

To make your store bought cake look gorgeous you can decorate it in a number of ways.

Tie a ribbon that matches your wedding colors around each cake and then add a cake topper for a simple and classy look. You can buy lots of different cake toppers online or choose a light weight ornament to use instead. Fresh and silk flowers look gorgeous, all you need are the heads of the flowers and some ivy.

Fresh fruit can work in miniature and you can add an extra sparkle by covering in egg white and sprinkling sugar over. Sugar petals look expensive but they are so easy to make and look great with just a few petals on each tier. Curls of chocolate look great on the cake and also around the cake. Either make your own or buy ready made rolled fondant and from this you can create hearts, monograms, flowers, butterflies and lots more. Use these to decorate the tops and sides of the cake.Cupcakes are a popular trend to use for an inexpensive wedding cake and although plain cupcakes are cheap to make and buy, when they are decorated they can be expensive.

To avoid buying expensive cupcakes look at making your own cupcakes and decorating yourself or buy the plain cupcakes from your local store. Decorate the cupcakes individually with fruit, flags, stars, fondant hearts, or even sprinkles! Really anything works on cupcakes.

The cake stand you use to display your wedding cake will also add a touch of glamour to your wedding photos, most wedding venues will have their own cake stands that they will lend free of charge for your wedding - you just need to ask!

What level of income are you looking for? This is an important thing to ask of any business - how much money do you need to get from every cake and every week so that your cake business is viable and can maintain a living income? An easy method to work this out is to start with a standard 40 hour working week (although most people who run their own business put in a lot more hours than this, and you should be prepared to as well). Basing the calculation on a random figure of $500 per week as the minimum required, for a 5 day week, you need to make $100 per day. If you are selling cakes for $50 each, and your profit on each cake is $20, you will need to make and sell 5 per day. I have just used random figures here, but this shows a fairly straightforward method on which to base your pricing strategy. Before you can come up with realistic prices, you need an achievable goal regarding income and profit, you must establish an accurate production time, and the cost of doing so. (See part 1 for more information on costing).

The Market - Competition Once you have completed the costing process, and know your income and profit targets, it is important to then find out what the competition is charging. You will find a considerable variation in price between more exclusive cake designers like you who discuss individual requirements with clients and create top quality cakes to order, and the supermarkets and bakeries who mass produce their products using stock designs.

This brings us to a very important point, and one that we should consider before going any further with our study of how to arrive at a realistic price for making and decorating cakes. As a personal design business, it will be very difficult for you to undercut or compete on price with the bulk suppliers, but nor will you want to. Although their products are fine for those who want them, they are catering for the convenience market - people who want a quick, easy, and inexpensive cake that they don't have to make for themselves. What you are offering is a a customer focused design service based on a first rate product made to individual requirements, and clients will pay a lot of money for this. Your selling point is a top quality, personalised product and trustworthy service.

Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind at all times is to have self belief, and trust in your skill and ability. And don't think that you have to worry about quality of product between yours and the shop bought ones. I have yet to eat any bought dessert or cake that is any better than what I make at home - most supermarkets and a lot of bakeries now use premix for their cakes and breads, and any self respecting home baker can whip up a much better, and cheaper cake than that. In the city where I live, most of the three or four dozen supermarkets all get their premix from the same supplier - they buy it by the pallet load and just add water and eggs. Trust me - as a home baker who can follow a recipe, you have nothing to be afraid of in any kind of comparison! Your true competition is other professional designers, and this is where you should be looking to find out the sort of prices the market will bear. Ask friends and family how much they have paid for cakes (make sure you know where they got them from, so you can keep your informationr elevant to your niche market), and ring other professionals to find out what they are charging for a similar service. Many of these now have websites (as should you!), so you can usually get a good, and up to date information from these (without having to identify yourself as a competitor!).

If the standard rate seems too high, you can certainly lower your price, but why undercut yourself? If the other operators are charging this, it means that the potential is there for this to be a lucrative business opportunity. If the prices seem too low, you will need to have another look at your figures and streamline your operation.

Remember too, that all businesses struggle to make a profit when they first start out, but plenty of people just like you make a lot of money in this industry, and with commitment to your craft and the service you provide, there is no reason why you cannot be as good as anyone else in the market.

n as the Christmas Star in its native Mexico because of its star-like shape, blooms profusely in the wild at Christmas time in Hawaii, the Caribbean islands and its native Mexico.

This Christmas plant is favored so much in the United States that its holiday season purchases total more than the annual sales of any other potted plant here with 80 percent of these plants coming from a California grower. So it stands to reason, your cakes decorated with the perennial popular poinsettia will be a big hit!

Decorating with buttercream poinsettias is a beautiful (and with the following instructions) easy way, to bring Christmas cheer to your cakes whether as a featured decoration or as part of a Christmas scene you create.

Before we go on to the piping how-to's for this incredibly easy to make flower, here are some striking ways you can use the scarlet red (hands down, the most popular variety) poinsettia on your Christmas cakes.

-A border of small poinsettias will provide a pretty frame for many Christmas cake designs. -Poinsettias can be part of the design. For example, on a cake decorated with snowmen, pipe a poinsettia on Mrs. Frosty's hat. -Use the Christmas star in lieu of a bow on a cake decorated as a gift (where icing ribbons run horizontally and vertically over the top and down the sides like on a package).

Pipe a large poinsettia in the center. -Create a poinsettia wreath around the top of the cake. Pipe a few rows of leaf borders (using dark green icing and overlapping), and then pipe your poinsettias on top of the wreath. Then with round tip, pipe red, holly berries in between the poinsettia. In the center of the cake, write your Christmas message. -Decorate a multi-tiered, stacked Christmas cake (or Christmas wedding cake) with cascading poinsettias. -Create a bouquet of poinsettias with cup cakes. Pipe the Christmas flower on top of each cupcake and then assemble your Christmas cupcakes on a large platter. Or place them on a tiered stand, and on the top tier, arrange real poinsettias in a vase.

And here are the buttercream piping instructions for your Christmas cake poinsettias.

First, you'll need:

-Icing bags or parchment cones.

-Leaf tips (nozzles) 352 and 366 (Poinsettia petals are technically bracts, modified leaves, so it makes sense we use a leaf tip to create them :-)

-Buttercream icing in red, green and a tiny bit of yellow.

-White frosted cake or cupcakes. (Cream-cheese frosting or snow-white buttercream works well, but the poinsettias are also pretty on chocolate ganache.)

Directions

1. If you're going to write a Christmas message on your cake, remember to leave room for this. Practice first because you pipe these flowers directly onto your cake (or cupcakes).

2. With red buttercream icing and tip 366 in your bag, squeeze and pull out for each petal, continuing around until you have five. The wider end of the petals will meet in the center (it's ok if the middle is a little empty because you will be adding more petals).

3. For your second layer, stagger the petals on top of the first layer. And, you may want to add a few in between on the bottom layer.

4. Then for a more natural look, use tip 352 with green icing to stagger the green immature petals behind the bottom layer of the red. This also sets off the red nicely and creates a more Christmassy look.

5. Finally, using round tip 3, pipe a few yellow dots in the center.

Variation: You could also create the green leaves with tip 366, making them the same size as the scarlet petals. Or conversely, if you want smaller flowers, use tip 352 for the petals.

Here's a final, but important tip for your Christmas cakes. The amount of liquid food coloring needed for your red icing will bring a bitter taste (due to Red #2 in the coloring), so here's what you can do to battle the bitter:

- Use more concentrated forms of color gel, paste and powder colorings are all more intense than liquid. These are found in specialty stores, large crafts stores, such as Michaels, and online.

Begin with an icing that is naturally colored with a pink or red juice concentrate, such as cranberry or pomegranate. Then you won't need as much coloring to achieve your Poinsettia red.