Making an Itty Bitty Baker's Bag

Last year for Christmas my daughter bought a little, pink, 3 piece kitchen like you see at Pottery Barn Kids, for her 2 little girls. Marisa and Megan spend a lot of time in that kitchen set up in the basement playroom, mixing fake stuff in bowls with spoons, clanging pans in the oven and using their "play food" in unique and different ways.  Tiff showed me the little baskets she had made with different little tags on them to go into the shelving unit. She said 2 of the bins are always out on the floor and used the most. One of them is the stuff to bake with. Marisa LOVES to pretend she is a baker girl.

So this year for Christmas I had been pouring over magazines, catalogs and stores to find mini baking tools to put together a baking bag for her. I found little mini whisks, spatulas, a little pink oven mitt, real mini mixes to make real food from Smiths, (Target was selling EZ Bake Oven cake mixes for $5.00 can you believe that?) cupcake holders in silicone and tin for the mini sized cakes, and also decorative papers, sprinkles and cupcake picks. I shop for Wilton baking supplies at Joannes Fabrics. They have a huge selection and I can always cut out a 40% off coupon on regular priced stuff. I got the sprinkles half off when Thanksgiving was over.  She is gonna be in baking heaven sprinkling the heck out of her cupcakes.

I got this cute, red, gingerbread vinyl purse from Kmart. Purses were 40% off that day! Yipee, what a deal!  I had my daughter do the lettering with her Cricut machine and white vinyl and we added "Marisa's Baking Bag" so she can keep all her whisks and "tools of the trade" together.  I also found a darling tiny mixing bowl like my favorite ones I use with the rubber bottoms that don't slide around, from Target. I had never seen this small size before but it will be perfect for her little 31/2  year old hands.  All the other girls at preschool will be so jealous! 

I found this apron after Valentines Day for half off at Target. The little cupcake on the front gave me the idea to do a baking selection of stuff for her, as I have watched her meticulously decorate a gingerbread cookie for 10 minutes. She has the creative gene from our side of the family. She will love being creative in her little pink kitchen.

 I always shop the sales throughout the year for birthdays and Christmas, Easter and Halloween, even Valentines Day. When I was getting my master's degree in teaching I had to get a part time job working at Kohls to pay my tuition. It was there that I learned to NEVER pay retail. With sales, and our discount, and coupons on top, I got such deals for cheap it's hard to ever pay full price again. Even online I will usually type in "coupon code" and the store name to see if there are any coupons I can add onto my order. I get stuff after the holiday for the next year and save more than 70% usually and still use a coupon on top. The sizes are a bit tricky to estimate ahead a year but I'm usually pretty close. And stuff like stuffed animals, Easter baskets, decorations and trick or treat pails for Halloween,  and funny wiggly headbands and aprons for Valentines are all fun things that will keep in my gift closet for months! 

The mini bundt pans and mini angel food cake pan I got from TJ Max. That is THE best store on the planet.  It always has what I am looking for when I'm not exactly sure what I'm looking for.  The variety and quality of cookware there is quite astounding. I love to get a deal too.

 One of the heart shaped bundt pans I just found recently there was only $2.00 bucks! Now that's fun to catch a deal like that.  Marisa will have fun doing nothing but bundts. Poor Tiff, my daughter's gonna be doin lots of baking this January!