Just Crazy About Cupcakes ...

We love cupcakes, edible or not (made of wax of course!) we love them all.  It got us thinking one day about their origins.

 

Around 1828 ovens could only bake small items so the American ‘cup’ measures were used.  Teacups were used for weighing the ingredients and also used to bake the cakes in.

 

The explosion in the popularity of cupcakes is believed to be attributed to the fact that adults associate them with their childhood, evoking happy memories.  They are also very convenient one portion size and they are terribly easy to eat, one after the other!!!  There are many more recipes and flavours available now than back in the 50’s and 60’s and as a result their popularity has soared.

Everyone is crazy about cupcakes and so are we - always coming up with new gourmet flavours like this new Ice Cream Parlour Cupcake.  Infused with the heavenly scent of luscious ice cream this perfect little cupcake was inspired by many recent visits to an American ice cream parlour.

Ditch the plastic!

Here at Corfe Candles we are situated in the village of Corfe Mullen which is on the outskirts of the picturesque market town of Wimborne.

The name Corfe Mullen is derived from the Old English for a cutting or pass; 'corf' and the Old French for a Mill; 'molin'.  The mill referred to is the old water mill on the River Stour, mentioned in the Domesday Book where the village originally stood.

St Huberts Parish Church

Wimborne is following the example of some other towns in the country to 'ban the plastic bag'. Did you know that we use on average 300 plastic bags per person per year and these carrier bags will last up to 1000 years in our enviroment? So a plastic bag you throw away today could last until 3009!!!! 

Wimborne is full of character ...

It is well documented that plastic bags break up into toxic bits that contaminate our waterways, ocean studies found 8 years ago that there was 6 times more plastic than plankton, only 5 years later the plastic particles had increased by 200%, this figure will increase by 100% every 3 years!

Studland, Dorset

Its estimated that over 1 million seabirds choke or get tangled in plastic debris every year, and about 100,000 seals, sea lions, whales, dolphins, other marine mammals and sea turtles suffer the same fate, although some scientists believe this figure to be much higher

• About 80% of all marine litter comes from land, swept by the wind or washed by rain off the roads, down streams and rivers, and out to sea - only 20% comes from boats
• Nearly 90% of floating marine litter is plastic

What can you do?

The Kings Head

Use your own shopping bag -  re-usable shopping bag is the best alternative. When offered a plastic bag don't be afraid to say "I don't need a plastic bag, I've brought my own!"

The High Street

Set the trend - encourage your friends and family to use their own bags too. 

The Minster

Make your own bag! www.morsbags.com provides all you need to know about how to make your own shopping bag.

We never get snow ....

Well ok - so we did this week, several times in fact.

and everyone enjoyed themselves, even the hare and the rabbit ...

Though we never had more than a couple of inches everything still managed to grind to a complete halt!

Despite the fact that it causes havoc and can be inconvenient no one can deny that it's very pretty and does make us stop in our tracks and enjoy the moment.

Even better if you've got children and can get stuck into making snowmen.

'The Girls' with Mr Snowman

And it's a very good reason to take a break from work and enjoy the moment!

High Tea and Cupcakes

Anyone for tea?

"How sweet are these limited edition tea cup candles"? wrote Tara of

Green Lashes and Fashion an organic and ethical beauty website for those not wanting to comprise on quality.

You can read the full article here or search for other gorgeous lifestyle products by clicking on the logo above.

Food Glorious Food!

Handmade yummy Flapjacks ... really?

Wax is such an incredible medium to work with, it can take on many different forms ranging from liquid to solid and anywhere in between which is why Corfe Candles is able to achieve so many different effects with it.

Things aren't always what they seem ...

How do we do this; well the secret to this is ... well you don't think we'd give away all our trademark secrets do you?!!!!

When we met Barbara Cox from Nutrichef earlier in the year we talked at great length about our Waxed Dipped Bears and also our gorgeous Cupcakes.

Barbara was stunned and amazed at how real the Cupcakes looked, and how like food you could make wax appear.

Our customers tell us that they look good enough to eat?

Barbara came up with the idea of creating candles for her staff as a Christmas present that would look just like the flapjacks that Nutrichef produce.

So Barbara kindly gave us some samples of the real thing* to work from and we did our best to recreate their flapjacks but in wax! And when I say 'recreate' I mean Apple and Ginger flapjack, the wax is made to resemble the exact colour of the edible flapjack and the texture is that of real oats. Can you tell the difference? Also if you look closely at the photo below you'll see we even included slices of apple (yes, that's apple made from wax), and our own bespoke blend of apple and ginger fragrance!

* and purely for the purposes of research you understand, we just 'had' to sample them - ummm, they really do taste good!

Apple and Ginger Flapjack Candle!

... But we didn't stop there; we also recreated Nutrichef's Cherry and Almond Flapjack (heady marachino cherries with almonds - yum!!!!). And what I mean by this is that we managed to create almond flakes (wax) complete with cherries (yes wax again) in each slice infused with our own bespoke cherry and almond fragrance - the scent was incredible!

Cherry and Almond Flapjack Candle!

In fact the embedded fruit in our flapjack candles was so realistic that we had trouble convincing David Cox (Barbara's husband) that they weren't real - he kept asking what would happen to the fruit when the wax melted away!

Barbara was delighed with the results: "We all adore the flapjacks and they have been very well received."

Barbara has just won Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 - congratulations Barbara, for your achievements in delivering healthy and nutritious meals to your door.

For more information on Nutrichef visit their website http://www.nutrichef.co.uk/

For more information on our bespoke work visit http://www.corfecandles.co.uk/store/WsAncillary.asp?ID=22 or to commission your own delicacy contact us at sales@corfecandles.co.uk  

Birthdays!

There's certainly something magical about Birthdays, they're special no matter how old we are or who we're with.

It sometimes amazes me how a simple card can move someone's world.

Yet every time I receive one myself, I get excited - someone cared enough to send me a card!

I guess that's just human nature.

Age is strictly a case of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.

And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years ...

If you're celebrating or know someone who is we'll design and make one of our very own special 'Sprinkles' Cupcake Candles with your age embedded into the cupcake. We'll sprinkle it with glitter and Happy Birthday wishes just for you.

So for everyone out there today who is celebrating have a Wick - ed time from all of us here at Corfe Candles!

H A P P Y B I R T H D A Y !

Leave us a message with your name, age and how you're celebrating and we'll send one lucky winner a Cupcake Candle all of their own.

"Let them eat Cake!"

Well, we all remember those famous words but our cakes really do look good enough to eat. That's what all our customers say when they see them. They not only look good enough to eat but they smell delicious too.





You have to agree - who wouldn't want to take a bite out of one of these?

Any of our Sprinkles Cupcake Candles are a perfect match with our newly launched Vintage Teacup Range. Filled with White Tea and Ginger this is a perfect combination.

You've all seen our Hot Apple Cumble Cake TM but our new Rhubarb and Custard Cupcake takes the biscuit or should we say 'cake'!!

We've got some stunning fragrances to tempt you like Caramel Nut Cluster, Birthday Cake (perfect for those special moments), Butter Cream and Frosted Carrot Cake and many, many more.