4th of july cupcakes and upcycled cake plate

i made red, white and blue cupcakes for new neighbors and some friends! first of all - have you heard about making a cake with a can of soda? all you have to add is the can of soda - how great is that? no eggs, no oil, just soda. i picked cherry flavored soda that happened to be clear with white store brand cake mix - they were scrumptious - i just had to try one before giving them away. i tinted the frosting blue and used red sprinkles for the top.
i also upcycled a plate and candlesticks I found at thrift stores. the plates have a silver band around them so i tried finding candlesticks with silver-ish tones. i glued them on with my faithful e6000 glue and i think they're beautiful.