mmm cupcakes

there are some trends that come in that i really could live without (the fashion of the 80's, ugh). then there are trends that i don't know how we ever survived without them which brings me to today's post about cupcakes. cupcakes today, i suppose, are what donut shops once were. and i think the sudden surge of cupcake shops helped the popularity of donuts come back in but in a much more fun and funky way than the old duncan donuts and the winchell's. for me, a cupcake is the ultimate indulgence. i'm not that into ice cream the way some people are and i feel that if i'm going to eat something fattening, i want it to look really pretty. (st.cupcake photo oregon live)

the first cupcake shop to open in portland was st. cupcake and while the other cupcake shops we have in town are great too, i still love to go to st. cupcake. they have a huge selection and their locations are just so cute. i usually head over to their original location at 407 nw 17th because it's closest to work but the location at 3300 se belmont is great too and has a little shop in it as well.

although i like to splurge on a st. cupcake once in a while, i still really love to make them whenever i get a chance. i needed to make some for a work event and i wanted to find some cute decorations to put on them and i didn't know where to go. i asked some friends and i was told about the decorette shop. i went out in search of this shop that all i knew about was that is was around se foster and 50th. the first time i went by, i drove right past it because there really is not a lot of signage on the building. i turned around and saw a big pink building and thought that it must be a cake decorating shop and in fact that was it. going in, you have no idea what's inside but once you're in, holy cow, they have a lot of decorations!


decorations like these for all of you baking needs. (photo by sugar bloom)

i think it is mainly geared to wedding cakes but there are a lot of other little decorations as well. i ended up buying 75 tiny little flowers in assorted colors to put on top of my cupcakes and it was less than $10. they also have books and pans and cake making supplies, everything you could possibly need for your baking projects.


here is the building i drove right by. if you are heading east on foster, it's on the right hand side at 5338 se foster 503.774.3760. this is one of those portland establishments (open since 1973) that i wish i had known about a long time ago. so bake some cupcakes some time soon, i promise you'll have so much fun!