It may have been noticed by some of you (Hi Mom!) that I have been somewhat absent in the last year. I apologize to those who enjoy seeing my creations on a regular basis, but I have been per-occupied with more personal matters. I'm back now! So hold on to your hats, here is a review of all the projects that kept me busy in the last year...
The first project after Declan's cake was the cakes for the twins - Ethan and Ava. I've had the pleasure of making their birthday cakes every year now and they are always a blast to make. The basketball took me hours to cover in tiny orange buttercream stars and my hand sure felt it afterwards, but it was worth it! The Strawberry Shortcake cake was so adorable, I almost didn't give it up. Being a ginger myself, I loved Strawberry Shortcake growing up and this cake would have been one that I would have loved to get as a little girl.
The next project was this two tired Bubble Guppies cake for Maheer. I had to consult Google about who the Bubble Guppies were, since I'm old and out of the loop. I think the cake turned out great in spite of my ignorance!
My niece Jessie's birthday was the next event that I was lucky enough to be part of. She wanted a "Frozen" theme, so in preparation, I had to watch the movie...twice. It was amazing! I recommend it to anyone. I wish the picture did this cake more justice... what you can't see is all of the pretty silver edible glitter that COVERS this cake. This was by far the most sparkly cake I have ever made.
This cake was for a fall baby shower. All of the elements from the owl, to the leaves, to the little pumpkins on the cupcakes were hand made and are all edible.
In November of 2014, I took on my first show. I was invited to participate in a holiday charity sale by a friend of my sister in law, which was a great opportunity. I made cupcakes, cookies, peanut butter poppers, but what I was missing was gluten free options. It was a very valuable learning experience.
In January, my niece Jamie turned into a teenager and my nephew turned 11, so it was decided that they would rent out the local indoor soccer field and have a HUGE game of boys against the girls. So, I decided to go with the theme and create a soccer cake. The top cake is completely 3D, and of course, the kids wanted to cut that part first. It was a fun day!
This cake was a special cake for me because it was my Mom's 60th birthday cake. After going through the cancer scare the year before, it made me realize how lucky I am to be able to make a birthday cake for my mother. Since her birthday is in February, her birth stone is an amethyst. I decided to use purple as my theme for this cake and I hand made and hand painted each flower in different purple hues.
I was delighted in April when I heard from a former co-worker (and friend!) requesting a 40th birthday cake for her husband (who also happens to be my mechanic). She sent me a very clear design with an example she found on the internet and I was able create my own version of it. A few days before the cake was due, she asked if I could also make a cake for her nephew, whose birthday was near to the same time. I decided to use the same theme, but in a younger colour pallet. The best part was meeting the birthday boy's mother when I delivered the cakes!! SO CUTE!
The next event was my friend Tara's second "miracle" baby's baptism. She requested a cupcake cake in the shape of a cross, with a white fondant swag swung across it. Along with the cake, I also made some fresh strawberry shortcake cupcakes. Sadly, I failed to snap a picture of the cake before one of the little girls, all dressed pretty and innocent in white, dug her grubby little hand directly into a cupcake and pulled the cake apart. :) She was ninja fast!
The month of June brought a Lady & the Tramp project that wasn't really mine, but was still a lot of fun to work on. I got to stand back and put on my adviser's cap for this one, only stepping in to do some of the more technically challenging aspects, so I can't take too much credit for it. I can take credit for the spaghetti and meatballs cupcakes though, those turned out awesome!
As the summer started and the weather got nicer, it was time to get ready for my first wedding of 2015. I prepared several mini cupcakes as samples for the happy couple. Some of the flavours here include: Vanilla Bean Buttercream, Chocolate Overload, Lemon, Lime and Mocha.
I apologize for the poor quality on this image - you really don't get to see the ombre airbrushing very well. This cake was for a 90th birthday for an avid knitter. There were 50 cupcakes all together that were displayed on a 3 tired tower with the cake on top. I heard afterwards that the birthday girl refused to cut her cake because she loved it so much. She wanted to take it home and put in the freezer to save it. Save it! If that isn't optimism, I don't know what is! She's 90!! You go, Gladys!
And these are the wedding cupcakes from the post one cake up from here. These are full size cupcakes and have the finishing elements added. The finishing elements included candied lemon peel, cured lime zest, Belgian chocolate ganash, peanut butter cups and chocolate buttons.
Declan (not Dedan) turned 3 this year and his Mom said he was very much a Paw Patrol fan, and wanted lots of toys on his cake, so we went with this design. I cheated a little bit and had the shield printed with edible ink on rice paper instead of making it out of gum paste and fondant.
Well, we have come full circle...we're back to the twins, Ethan and Ava's birthday, but this time they turn 4. I should really start getting pictures of the kids with their cakes so I can see how they change year over year. Ethan's block of cake is marble with a chocolate icing. It was super fun to throw "dirt" all over Ethan's cake. Ava's cake is vanilla, but the I dyed the cake batter to be pink ombre as well, so the inside matches the outside. I wish I could have been there when she cut it open!
OK, that was a looong one. Thanks for sticking with me. I promise to try to post more frequently again. Thanks for all the love and support to everyone out there.
Amy
OK, that was a looong one. Thanks for sticking with me. I promise to try to post more frequently again. Thanks for all the love and support to everyone out there.
Amy
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