Amber's Quinceanera

I have known this beauty since she was about 8 years old.  This was her quinceanera, which is, of course, her fifteenth birthday.  I was happy to participate in her celebration.  

There were some language barriers, as her mom was the one to order the cake, but with Scott translating, I think I got what they were going for.

I wanted it to be slightly different from a traditional wedding cake, since it was not a wedding, but it also needed to be girly, and over the top!  So, I used the hexagon on the bottom tier, for interest.  The cake was strawberry cake.

On delivery, my son accidentally stuck his finger in to one of the corners of the bottom tier, as we set it on the table.  Fortunately, I was able to use paper towels to smooth the area out, and you couldn't even tell.

The cake looks so small next to that dress, but it was 16" tall!

As you can see from her gown, and the cloth on the table, lime green was the color of the evening!  I liked how the different shades of green played on the cake, without making it look like overkill.

Miles and Natasha

It is always so fun to see friends who have come through trials, triumph! 

This couple has had their share of troubles, but now, they have each other, and I couldn't be happier for them.  

I used a new tool for this cake; Marvelous Molds.  They are silicone mats with a design on them.  You just press the rolled out fondant on to the mat, remove the negative spaces, wet the back, and apply it to the cake, using the mat.  Voila!

Ok, it's not as easy as it sounds, but it is pretty slick, once you get the hang of it.  I found that using meringue buttercream worked better, because I was able to get the frosting hard in the fridge before applying the fondant; that kept the mold from leaving marks on the cake.

Marvelous Molds silicone mat

The cake, before delivery

I love it when the florist makes my pretty cake look amazing!  But this cute, happy couple outshine the cake altogether! 

The finished cake.  Beautiful colors!

Americana Baby Bottom Cake

Here are a few pictures of my latest project. It is another baby bottom cake, done in Americana colors. It is for a mom I have known for a little while, but I have known the dad since he was a teenager. As always, it is so much fun to be a part of these milestones in their lives, especially when I have seen them grow through so many others!

I learned a lot about mixing colors on this cake. I thought I could just darken some already red and blue fondant, but I was using the wrong colors to darken, so I just kept getting a brownish mess!  After a couple if trips to the cake supply store (thanks, Georgia!) I had the colors I needed.

I really love that she is using these colors for the nursery!  They wil be very versatile if she ever has a girl (did I mention she is having a boy?). They are just great, traditional colors all around!

Something I did differently on this cake was to make the core of the baby feet out of Rice Krispie treats. That made the feet much lighter, and made them easier to work with.

The cake stand was supplied by the mom-to-be. I think it turned out just perfect!

Draper open house

I was SO excited about doing this cake.  The mother of the groom brought me a picture months before the event.  The couple was getting married in Miami, in August, and not doing an open house here until September, and the mother of the groom had pretty much free reign for it.

I was so happy to have a client who wanted color on their wedding cake!

The bride had chosen a beautiful combination of oranges and purple for her colors, and the cake in the picture incorporated all of them.  

I am still learning to mix colors and get the shades I need.  To top that, I only had an image on my computer to go from.  For that reason, the colors did not seem exactly right to me, but I went with them anyway.  It turned out, they were a perfect match!  I really loved how the cake was displayed in front of a mirror, and loved that the orange flowers and lamp shades tied together the flowers on the cake.

The cake was a hit!  I have had comments and calls from people all week.  That always feels good!

Three Sisters

This was a simple, last minute cake for 3 sisters who all have Sept. birthdays. They always celebrate with extended family on Labor Day. Two of the sisters are twins who are in marching band with my son, Trevor.  One of the girls is on drumline with him, and the other is the drum major for the whole band.  

I had auctioned off a cake at the summer fund raiser, and their mom, who organized the event, got one of my cards, and called me on Wednesday, for a cake on Sunday.  Normally, I do not take last minute requests like that, but my whole family was out of town, and I had the opportunity to do a cake uninterrupted!

She said only that she wanted something like I had auctioned off, and that the girls' rooms were pinks, purples and lime green; a perfect color combination!

Here is the final result.

Mom and the younger daughter came to pick up the cake.  They were ga ga!  They just couldn't say enough good about it!

Later that night, I got a text from the mom.  She said that the entire family had loved it, and that when Natalie, the drum major, saw the cake, she exclaimed, "I always wanted a cake like this, and never thought I would get one!"

Those are the best texts to get!

Gender Reveal Cake

I finally got to do a gender reveal cake!!!  Wow, no pressure or anything!  I was the only one besides the ultrasound tech (and my family, who saw the color of the cake) who knew the gender.

Jamie is a friend from church, and is also a wonderful hair stylist for my crazy, curly hair.  She and her husband, Roth, are expecting their first child, and so she called me and asked me to make her birthday cake a gender reveal cake.  She had the ultrasound tech write down the gender, and put it in an envelope.  She dropped off the envelope to me on Tuesday, and had to wait until Saturday to find out what she was having.  Talk about patience!  However, what a great birthday present, and great time to cut the cake, with all of her family around.

And...

It's a BOY!!!!!!

This is the envelope and card she dropped off.  I gave them back to her for her baby book.

I immediately got to work making a blue cake.  

The next issue was, how to make a birthday cake that wouldn't even hint at the color inside.  I decided that it would be best to use many colors rather than a color scheme.  This is what I came up with.

Sorry about all the clutter.  I took the picture just as soon as it was finished.

Jamie came and got the cake on Friday, and STILL had another day before her birthday.  I don't know how she could stand it!  I hardly said anything to her, for fear of ruining the surprise.

But finally, she and Roth cut the cake, and found out that they are having a baby boy.  

So excited for them!  He will be a very loved little guy.  It's always a happy occasion when a beautiful, new spirit comes into the world, and I feel privileged to have been a small part of their new adventure.

Thanks you two! 

Hydrangeas and Filler Flowers

For some time now, I have been following Craftsy, and drooling over all of the different classes they offer; not only in cake decorating, but knitting, crocheting, and even some fun sewing classes.  Every time an interesting class came along, I felt like I didn't have the money, or the time, or both.

Finally, one day, I logged into my email, and there was an offer for a free Craftsy class!  The selection was limited, but gum paste flowers have been on my list of techniques to learn for a very long time, and there was one free gum paste flower class available, so I pounced on it.  

The way Craftsy works, you purchase the course you want, and then you can do it on your own time, and replay it whenever you need to.  That is exactly what I needed, because, although the class was free, time was still an issue; so, the class sat in my account for nearly a month while I finished up some wedding cakes.  Finally, with a 2 month break between cakes, I sat down and started.

The title of the class is "Handcrafted Sugar Flowers."  The instructor covers hydrangeas, their buds, and filler flowers (tiny made up flowers to fill the arrangement) with their buds.

I first sat down to view the introduction and tools needed, and found that there were a few things I needed to buy first.  This turned out to be more of an expense than I would have liked, but because the class was free, I justified the cost.

I moved my laptop to the dining room table, and sat up my "classroom."  Whew!  There was a ton of stuff!

(Believe it or not, there is organization to this madness)

The instructor began with the basics of buds and flower centers.

I did one or two along with the video, and then turned it off and kept practicing.  After that, they sat for a few days until I had the time to sit down again.  

The next step in this class was to make the hydrangea petals, and later the different filler flowers.  She taught several techniques, and I tried them all.  

And no bouquet would be complete without some leaves.

Once everything had dried, I dusted the leaves with different colors and shades of luster dust, (a very finely milled food grade powder) and brushed some of the leaves and buds with confectioner's glaze.  Once that dried, the instructor showed how to arrange everything into a bouquet to go on a cake.

Now, I just need a cake to put them on!

Devin and Blythe

No time to rest after Will and Mal's reception!  I went straight home and finished up the cake for Devin and Blythe.  Two totally different cakes that weekend, for two totally different brides; each uniquely beautiful.

Devin and Blythe had their reception in downtown KCMO.  It was, by far, the coolest venue I have ever delivered a cake to!  The building was built in 1906.  They have preserved most of the original walls, fixtures, etc.  All of the hardwood floors are pieced together and uneven, just like they have probably always been.  The first two floors are filled with artist's studios and galleries, along with a hair salon, and a massage spa.  Above those, on the top floor, is a large room for special events, like wedding receptions.  3 walls of the room are windows overlooking downtown, and the city skyline.  All of the walls have exposed brick.

To deliver the cake, I had to drive down the alley between 2 buildings, to a loading dock in the rear.  The events coordinator came down, and opened a large garage-style door to the freight elevator, which appeared to be original to the building.  I carried the cake on, she closed the two roll-down doors, and up we went!

The theme for this reception was a vintage shabby chic.  Their colors were purple and sage green. 

Here are some pictures of the venue.  They don't do it justice at all, but I wanted to share the reason why I was so excited for this one!

So, what kind of cake do you do for a wedding like this?  Well, here it is...

I love the succulents, and the wedding coordinator had a really pretty stand that we set the cake on.  The circles on the sides were cut with my Cricut machine.  (I should clarify here, that Courtney rolled out and cut most of them for me.  I really kept her busy as well!)

The cake was lemon poppy seed, with a lemon curd filling.  The frosting was made from a recipe for crusting cream cheese frosting.  It was a little more difficult to smooth than I am used to, but after some struggling, I got it fairly well smooth.  Looking at the cake after it was done, I think that imperfection really lent itself to the vintage feel, so, again, win-win!

After this reception, I went home and CRASHED!!!  No more cakes scheduled until September, so I plan to use the time learning new techniques on Craftsy.  I will post my class creations as I finish them.

Will and Mal

Whew!  This was, by far, my most challenging wedding cake yet, but I think I rose to the challenge.  I have known Mallorie since she was probably 3 or 4, so, again, this had that extra excitement of being someone I know, and am so happy for!

In addition to being a challenging design, they also ordered 200 cupcakes to give as a gift for each guest  For that reason, I hired my daughter, Courtney, as an apprentice.  Boy, did she get a crash course in cake decorating.  Not only did she bake, and frost the cupcakes, she helped cut and shape the 50 or so petals on the cake. 

To top all of that off, I accepted another wedding cake for the next day, rationalizing that it was far simpler, and wouldn't be a big deal (Ha, ha!)

Mallorie's cake was like one giant rose, and had fresh roses sprinkled on and around it by the florist.  She requested white cake, colored pink, for the entire cake, and all of the cupcakes.  Her colors were pink, navy blue, and silver, so it was very appropriate, I think.

 This is the picture Mallorie gave me, and said only that she wanted the edges silver, instead of gold, and that she wanted it to look like the picture. (No pressure, or anything!)

Here's the finished product!

At the reception

This is right after the florist put the flowers on

Another view

I learned a really big lesson with this cake; when working with fondant and/or gumpaste, always let the cake come to room temperature before delivering!

It was so humid that day, that the cold cake got a lot of condensation.  That caused a few of the petals to "wilt," but I think it really gave them a little more of a natural look, so win-win.  But I won't risk it next time.

Like I said, the cake was not the only thing I made for this wedding.  Courtney and I made 200 cupcakes.  Ever wonder what 200 cupcakes looks like? (probably not, but here they are...)

Fortunately, I did not have to package all of them.  We made the cupcakes with a sand colored swirl, graham cracker "sand," and a sprinkling of pearls.  Then, the day of the wedding, we met up at the reception site with the mother of the bride, and the bridesmaids, and set up an assembly line to finish them up.

To explain the cupcakes, you have to know how Will proposed.  They were on a service trip to Trinidad with other students from the University of Wyoming.  They kept a traveling journal, which they took turns writing in, and would then hide it for the other one to find.  Will and Mal took a walk on the beach one night, where Mal saw "Dig Here" written in the sand.  She dug, and found the journal, wrapped in plastic.  She opened it to read, and the entry said, "Keep Digging."  When she dug deeper in the sand, there was her ring, and Will got down on one knee...

Here is their story, re-created on a cupcake.

Each cupcake got a flag, and a ring, and then went in an upside down cup and lid, with a "thank you" sticker on the front.  

Congratulations, Will and Mal!

Read my next blog entry for the rest of my weekend cake fun!

Chipotle burrito, step by step

So, I thought it might be fun to show a little of the cake process with this cake.  Courtney and I were playing with my phone camera while decorating.  

At the top, you can see that I put a thick crumb coat on the cake, and then covered just the exposed end with white fondant, which I had Courtney knead some of the cake crumbs into to give it more of that tortilla look.  We laid the fondant over one end, and folded it under the cake to look like a wrapped burrito.

In the bottom picture, you can see that we wrapped the other end in foil the same way, overlapping the fondant in the middle.  Fold back the edge of the foil, and you have a burrito!

A plain, uneaten burrito would look pretty boring, so we used a round cookie cutter to take a "bite" out of the corner. (I promise, Courtney did not actually make that bite herself!)

We then iced over the "bite" mark and filled the hole with rice, beans and tomatoes made from fondant. The meat was chunks of the cake.  The sour cream was marshmallow fluff, and the cheese was grated white chocolate.

The woman who ordered this cake was surprising her son with it, and they were having his birthday dinner at Chipotle.  She loved it!  Haven't heard, yet, what the birthday boy thought, but I hope he had a happy birthday!

Rebecca and Claude

I've always said that the most fun cakes are the ones I do for friends and family.  I have known this bride since we both had toddlers (who are now 19!).  I watched Rebecca struggle through single motherhood.  Yesterday, it all paid off; she married the love of her life, and a really great guy.  Lots of happy tears from all of us.

Their colors were black and white.  I knew that humidity might be a factor in a June wedding in Kansas, so I decided to go with gum paste swirls, instead of buttercream.  I cut all of the swirls on the Cricut machine ahead of time, and kept them in the freezer.  Here they are laying out to dry before being put on the cake.

These are the two top tiers assembled and ready for delivery.  A toothpick sticking out of the bottom marks the front.

Adding the finishing touches at the venue, 3 hours before the ceremony.

The cake table all decorated and ready to go.  It always surprises me how small such a big cake can look on the display table!

The finished product!  If you look very carefully, you can see a small fingerprint on the second tier from the bottom, dead center in the front.  Some small child couldn't wait for a piece of cake.  I didn't notice it when I took this picture, but saw it just before the bride and groom cut the cake.

Wedding dress cupcake cake

This marks another first in my cake career.  This cupcake cake was done for a bridal shower of yet another cute girl I have known since she was a child.  They are simple rosette cupcakes, laid out in the shape of a wedding dress.  I stuck them down with double sided tape.  The jewelry was supplied by the bride's mother, and added at the shower.