I have never been good at art. I cannot draw, paint, sculpt, or any other type of art that so many people seem to be able to do. I am good at taking candid photos or photos in general of people. Since starting this blog, however, I have realized that I am not very good at taking food photographs. I think it’s because they have to be staged and prepared. I have gotten a bit better but still have a long ways to go. Since I am not very artistic, it is no surprise that I am not very good at decorating cakes, cupcakes, or other food items. I know once I get a piping bag it will improve, but I still recognize my own flaws in the baking-decorating world.

To improve this skill I look at photographs of food on pinterest & the web for inspiration. The other day I was looking for Halloween ideas. I happened to come across a photo that I had taken in an image Google search of “gory desserts halloween,” and I was reminded that once I did do something artsy in the food world.

Two years ago I entered a contest. It was a Halloween contest from Food for Hunters that required you to make a Halloween themed dessert. I decided to make cupcakes with body parts & blood. I bought gummy candy body parts, baked some cupcakes, frosted them, and made fake edible blood. They looked awesome. I did end up winning the contest and won a camping knife set, which was so cool, but I am most proud of the cupcakes. They look simple but they look fantastic (at least for me). I even ended up posting the recipe Gory Cupcakes on Better Recipes which I also forgot about.

I should have remembered this because I look at a photo of me with these cupcakes everyday on pinterest, twitter, and the About Me page of this blog. Sometimes what is right in front of you gets missed the most.

I know that I have a lot of work to do in terms of artsy-pretty food but also know that if I keep at it maybe one day I will be able to do it with ease or at least be able to do it and be satisfied with the result. If all else fails, at least I have this contest to remind me that I did accomplish it once.