Gift-Box Teddy

I'm quite sure this soon-to-be-six little lady will be delightfully surprised at what her mum had thought for her as a cake for her party this weekend. Even my Little Miss was smitten by the whole cake. It all started with mum looking into Smurfs and Pocoyo since these were popular, but I wasn't too keen to pursue it for a 6 year old girl who'll be entering Year 1 in a month's time. I personally felt that those two cakes, especially Pocoyo weren't age-appropriate to Heyley. So, I gave mum a couple of ideas and she went for a teddy bear theme. She wanted something that guests will notice when they step into the room. Well, I hope this cake did the trick.
Now, girls any age wouldn't say no to Teddy but I can't do sculpting (plus there'll be too much cake wastage), so had to think out-of-the-box (literary). Inspired by a British cake designer, I stacked the chocolate cakes and had Teddy pop out of the gift box. I made Teddy's head out of rice crispy treats (completely edible but it'll be hard on those milk teeth). I could have done the head in cake as well, but it would be too heavy to sit on the already stacked-cakes support. My first attempt at home-made rice crispy treats was hazardous. Scalded my fingers trying to sculpt it into a ball whilst hot (hardens really quickly) and I doubt I'll attempt it again anytime soon. The box cover was done two days ahead.
A lot of breath-holding with this cake but I'm pleased with the outcome. My scales went screaming when I weighed this Chocolate Cake - a whopping 4kgs excluding the boards used in the cover and as the base!.

Purple & White Hantaran

Chose to keep this purple and white-themed hantaran cake simple because it's a small cake. Can't tell right? Well, this cake was only 5.5"x 5.5" with a 2.5" height. And no, I did not cover the cake with layers after layers of fondant, mind you. I simply chose to visually add height by using vertical stripes in various shades of purple (violet) and placed emphasis on the centrepiece. I also avoided complicated swirls and imprints because it will crowd the flowers. My reliable retailer of gumpaste flowers as usual, has some of the most beautifully crafted roses in violet and white. They are not cheap but like I said before, they're worth every sen if you look at them here. Realistic and looks a million bucks! This Lime-Syrup Sponge Cake weighed only 1.3kg without the flowers (those are charged separately as they are retailed). Chose to do this cake because it's a moist cake (and was further moisten with the lime syrup) and will stay moist in the next couple of days for the wedding.

Sexy 45

My dearest cousin sister and I were pondering over what to surprise her girlfriend on turning 45 last weekend. We truly wanted to cheer her up and trust me, no matter what all the Sophia Lorens and Goldie Hawns of the world say about 40 being the new 30, 50 being the new 40 etc. (in SL's case 70 being the new 50??), the fact is we cannot defy gravity. Spiritually, yes. I whole heartedly agree that we are as young as we feel but physically, well.....I have some complains myself. And don't go all Oprah on me. No one ever complains about the pot-belly bloke but a muffin-top woman....I rest my case. Nonetheless, we both agreed that we should have a pin-up girl to represent us all - imaginatively. The girls love Great Bakes' infamous carrot cake and since cream cheese is dairy, there's no way I can work with the cake in advance so our sexy 45-er has to lie on the side, full frontal. The finished cake weighed about 1.5kg.

The Tennis Pro

This was an easy cake. The client pretty much knew what she wanted (even did a rough sketch down to detailing what her boyfriend wears for his tennis sessions!) and I just had to put in the finer work. While I was given attire details, I wanted to add a couple of accessories to complete the cake. If the birthday boy was an ardent tennis player, he'd have a favourite player. When you look at what he's wearing (and the colours), I think it's a give away  that he's a Federer fan. I was right (phieww!). So, I chose to make a miniature replica of the Wilson-Federer tennis racquet and the bag that goes with it. The Nike water tumbler was modelled after my daughter's pink version. The client also requested for the Wimbledon logo on the 1.8kg Lemon Blueberry Cake. I believe the birthday boy was so pleased with his unique present that he chose to wear the same ensemble during the party!

Pocoyo Off To The Zoo

I know Pocoyo's awfully cute and what not, but I have to say this...Not again!! Yes, another cake dedicated to Pocoyo but I do appreciate the fact that 1-year old Trisztan's mum thought out of the traditional Pocoyo box. She suggested a scene with Pocoyo visiting a zoo. Sure enough, there is a Pocoyo-Zoo scene and instead of trying to recreate, I copied the scene. I was happy with the finished cake because it was simple, to the point (as is with the series), bright and cheerful...but most importantly, it met the client's need to stick to a cake size/weight. It's a tall order when I have to work with limitations because there is a need to compromise and expectations need to be managed. So, I work honestly. If it can be done, I will do it but if it can't, I will not deliver substandard work. Cheers to yet another successful Pocoyo cake!! Psssttt.....Let's get off the Pocoyo bandwagon shall we? *wink*