Next Project: Cupcake Challenge!

I love to bake, but let's be honest, unless you have somewhere to go or a specific event to bake for, coming up with inspiration can be challenging.  Of course, I never need an excuse to bake, but it helps to have an audience in mind.  Enter the Cupcake Challenge!  For the past two years I have posted pictures of my cakes to the Web site Cake Central (www.cakecentral.com).  As I was uploading my recent pictures I came across a posting for a contest to design a cupcake based on a vintage teacup.  (You can check out the posting here: http://cakecentral.com/b/inspiration-challenge-cupcakes.)  I've never entered a contest before so I'm a little nervous, but I thought it would be a good theme to challenge myself with.  These days I'm looking for anything that gets me excited to get in the kitchen and start experimenting!  The contest deadline is January 14th so I don't have much time, but I do have some ideas on where to begin.  I'll post all the steps as well as the finished product here on January 14th so check back to see what I come up with.  Oh, and the winner will be featured in an upcoming issue of Cake Central's magazine.  While I truly don't expect to win it would be a great treat!