Blog: Vertical

Need one of Julia’s foolproof recipes? Some stunning cookie decorating ideas? Or a quick fix on Julia’s latest news and events? Well then, you’re in the right place! Here, you can stay up-to-the-minute current on everything that’s happening in Julia’s kitchen and studio – and in that always-churning mind of hers! IMPORTANT: Julia is still formatting blog entries prior to 2021 to conform to the new site layout. Please don’t be surprised if some back entries look a little wacky, and please be patient as she edits them over time.
Julia M. Usher

Package Without Pretension

Julia kept her Missouri 2021 Christmas gifts unpretentious, and very fitting with her farmhouse theme. Spare craft paper wrappings were simply adorned with a single vintage silk flower.

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January 8, 2022
Julia M. Usher

Simply Sweet

This cookie design is one of the simplest styles possible with Julia’s Gingerbread Village Dynamic Duos™ stencil sets, as it contains only one house and no message and frame elements. Even so, it’s sweet as can be, situated as it

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December 1, 2021
Julia M. Usher

It Takes a Village

Of course, one can go all out when using Julia’s Gingerbread Village Dynamic Duos™ stencil sets, as they’re specifically designed to allow for complex layering of elements. Here, Julia has fit nearly an entire gingerbread village on a single plaque

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December 1, 2021
Julia M. Usher

The More the Merrier

Julia likes to refer to herself as a more-is-more person, as she subscribes to the belief that a wealth of design elements, if properly displayed, can lend depth, dimension, and interest to almost any cookie or cake design. This cookie,

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December 1, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Glorious Gift Wrap

Released in October 2021, Julia’s Reindeer Wrap Dynamic Duos™ stencil sets feature a playful two-layer reindeer pattern similar to ones that Julia has often admired on real gift wrap. Plus, the added bows and gift tags in these sets make

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October 28, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Traditional Tones

This Christmas cookie, made with Julia’s Reindeer Wrap Dynamic Duos™ stencil sets, establishes a more traditional tone with its classic red and green palette. But it’s far from predictable! It delivers unexpected twists with the dimensional fondant bow and message

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October 28, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Present with Another Personality

Also made with Julia’s Reindeer Wrap Dynamic Duos™ stencil sets, this cookie takes on a completely different personality than some of the others that Julia made in classic Christmas red and green. The introduction of a bold pop of electric

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October 28, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Kerry’s Gift

Julia’s not just a stencil gal! She routinely designs cookie cutters to go with her stencil releases, and always names those cutters after people who have shaped her life in meaningful ways. The gift-shaped cutter used to make this cookie

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October 28, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Cacti Container Garden

In 2021, Julia had the distinct pleasure of launching a collaboration with the world-renowned Japan Salonaise Association (JSA), an organization that trains sugar artists in Japan and other Asian markets to become teachers or to start other sweets businesses. In

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October 10, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Cacti Container Garden Redux

Here’s a slightly different angle on Julia’s cacti container garden made as a training project for Japan Salonaise Association (JSA). All of the internal structures (even the perfectly rounded hemispheres!) are made of cookies, and most pieces are iced with

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October 10, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Container Close-up

This zoomed-in view of Julia’s cacti container garden made for her 2021 Japan Salonaise Association (JSA) collaboration provides a more complete view of the work required to craft the foreground pots, as well as the cacti and succulents. The leftmost

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October 10, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Splendid Sphere

Julia loves making spherical cookies, partly because they’re the easiest 3-D shape to dip with royal icing, and then, when dipped well, they’re just so satisfying to behold. This spherical cacti container is a case in point. Doesn’t it look

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October 10, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Bud Vases with Sakura

Another project made for Julia’s collaboration with Japan Salonaise Association (JSA), this stenciled bud vase filled with sakura demonstrates two of the easiest 3-D assembly techniques: sandwiching (placing cookies back to back and then standing them on end) and cookie

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October 9, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Blue Bud Vases

Let’s focus for a sec on the details of the two blue bud vases made for Julia’s training session for Japan Salonaise Association (JSA) instructors. Julia used this project not only to demonstrate the 3-D sandwiching technique, but also to

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October 9, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Sakura Cookie Pops

While perhaps not strictly 3-D themselves, cookie pops can look very dimensional by virtue of attaching royal icing transfers to them or arranging them in groups to create “volume” in a larger cookie display. Elsewhere in this gallery, these sakura

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October 9, 2021
Julia M. Usher

Cookie Cutter Kismet

Many cookiers credit kismet for the meeting of Julia’s stencil and cookie cutter product lines. Indeed, there couldn’t be a better, more seamless design fit between the two. In September 2021, Julia unveiled her first cookie cutter, the Denver Plaque,

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September 30, 2021

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