Hey there Fancycakes!

I'm big on DIY. 
My kids love pancakes.

Now, I know these seem like two completely unrelated statements... but they're not. Every single time we're in the grocery store we pass by the section with pancake mix in it and there's inevitably some gadget thing that makes your pancakes look like Mickey Mouse, Darth Vader, Hearts, Stars, Flowers, Worms, etc etc etc. And my kids WANT them. My little one has a rather funny little sing-song (in a very deep, kind of "scary" voice) that goes "IwantitIwantitIwantITIwantITIWANTITIWANTIT!"

But, let's be honest - Mama ain't gonna buy a pancake thingy for like $8-$10 that makes ONE shape for the rare amount of times that I actually give in and make pancakes. No no. Mama's gonna D.I.Y.

SO - I started out by drizzling runny mix onto the griddle with spoons, basters, etc etc... it worked... but the results were meh.

THEN I went to the closest DIY paradise: aka Dollarama - and I picked up a couple of these:

 

Just your basic refillable squeeze bottle thingies. I think they're meant for condiments? They were 3/$1. 

Then, I make up my mix, water it down so it's CLOSER to the consistency you'd use for crepes, but not quite, and then funnel it into the bottles.

Next - everything's better with COLOUR!

Bust out your food colouring, whatever you've got. I've got these:

Now - they'll both work, the icing colour will give you a deeper colour, but remember it's GEL colouring, so you'll need to make sure it's REALLY REALLY mixed, and even then, you could end up with a glob of gel colouring in the middle of a pancake. Won't hurt you, but it'd probably taste pretty gross.

Put in a little, or a lot, or whatever, and mix. I like to put the cap on and shake them viciously. Stress relief.

Then you heat up your griddle (or frying pan or whatever) and just go to town! Use the bottles like paint pens and write on your griddle. Remember, if you're doing any actual text, write it backwards.... because you're going to flip over your pancake.

If you're using two colours, make sure you let the first colour "set" a little on the pan before filling in.

Et voila! Beautiful lil' fancy-cakes. In a RANGE of shapes and colours.... unlimited*! And your kids will love 'em. :)

DIY reigns again. Make 'em for Valentine's... and every other holiday... or those days when your 3 year old screams in the kitchen "But I want a MICKEY MOUSE PANCAKE!"
Ah... family.

Oh, and they're really, really great with tea.

*limited only by your imagination... and your drawing abilities. :P