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Sand Pail Cupcakes + Cupcake Topper Tutorial

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I shared yesterday the details of my daughter’s Under the Sea 4th birthday celebration, so if you’re just tuning in, you might want to head over to that post first to get the full scoop of this party.

Today, I’m sharing with you how I put together the Sand Pail Cupcakes for the cake display, as well as the cake toppers for each cupcake.

Assembling the Cupcakes

To start, I baked my cupcakes in ice cream cones using the same method I detailed in the wrap-up post from Charlotte’s ice cream party last year. I have found these “Cone-Cakes” to be absolutely marvelous for children’s parties for a number of reasons, the top two being the ease of serving and cleanup. Not to mention, kids love them, and they are super easy!

Important: In order for the cupcake wrapper template linked below to fit, you must use the JUMBO cake cones, and not the standard-sized ones.

Once my cupcakes had cooled completely, I tinted store-bought white frosting to a pinky-brown sand color using gel food coloring. I then used a star-shaped piping tip to pipe the icing onto the top of each cupcake. To finish things off with a flair, I added gold sprinkles to the top of each one to mimic the look and sparkle of sand on the beach. 

Creating the Sand Pail Wrappers

Supplies:
Sand Pail Cupcake Wrapper Template {{Free download}}
Cardstock
Various patterned papers
Paper trimmer
Scissors
Scalloped-edge scissors (optional)
Scrapbooking adhesive

First, print the wrapper template onto cardstock, and cut it out. Now, trace the template onto your patterned paper. (I printed my own paper onto white cardstock using my computer and the Something Fishy Paper Pack from Lettering Delights to coordinate with the rest of the graphic elements I used for the party.) You will be able to fit two wrappers on each 8.5×11 sheet of paper.

Cut each of your wrappers out, using your scalloped scissors to cut the longest edge, if desired. (This is the top edge of your pail.) Now, cut strips of paper that are 1/4″ wide and 6″ long to go with each of your liners. These will be the “handles” for your sand pails.


Now, roll up your wrapper so that the short edges overlap by 1/2″. Secure with scrapbooking adhesive. Carefully slip your wrapper over the base of your cone. Take one of your 1/4″ strips of paper and tuck each short edge down below the top edge of your wrapper at each side your wrapper to serve as the handle for each pail. Finish with cupcake toppers, if desired. (Tutorial below.)


Making the Cupcake Toppers

Supplies:
Lollipop sticks
White cardstock
Colored cardstock
Your desired graphics (I used the Birthday Fishes clipart set from Lettering Delights)
Die cutting machine, optional (I used my Epic cutting tool and Nesting Lace Circle dies)
Dimensional foam adhesive dots
Hot glue

Print your graphics onto white cardstock in your desired size. I resized each graphic to approximately 2″ so the size of each topper wouldn’t overwhelm the cupcake, but you could make them larger or smaller, depending upon your preference. Use sharp scissors to cut each graphic out.

Cut circles from your colored cardstock in a size large enough to accommodate the size of the graphics you just created. (I used my die cutting machine and nesting circle dies to simplify this step, but you could easily create your own circle template to trace using your computer, or even by tracing the top of a drinking glass.)

Adhere a graphic to the center front of each circle using your foam adhesive dots. (You can use stand adhesive for this step, but I personally love the dimension rendered to the toppers by the foam dots.) Adhere a lollipop stick to the center back of each topper using hot glue, as shown. Allow each to dry completely before tucking them into the center of your cupcakes.


And that’s a wrap!

As you can see, I also chose to make a single larger topper to go in the center cake for the display, which I made using two layers of cake baked in 4-inch ramekins.


Tomorrow, I’ll be sharing the details for how I created my Hula Girl Octopus Pinata, so I hope you’ll stop back by!


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Comments

  1. Heidiopia says

    Too, too, cute, Amy ~ I’ve bookmarked this to do for my class when we have our ocean unit. 🙂
    Thanks for sharing!
    xo Heidi @ Show Some Decor