Leg Lamp Cake

Made a 1/2 size replica of the actual leg lamp. The "lamp" is a 10" and 8", (dowel and plate)topped by 2 6" cakes. Frozen and carved with an electric knife.
Stand is a 10" wood top and base with 16" rod connecting the 2 rounds. Leg is made with rice crispy treats (without the butter)molded around the rod. Coated the leg with 2 layers of dyed royal icing "painted" on. Used an actual fishnet stocking for a time saver and actual fringe lace.
Lamp iced in buttercream, painted with pearl dust. Border and shoe are black Marshmallow fondant with pearl dust.

Topsy Turvy cake

A topsy turvy cake is purposely crooked and whimsical. Usually colorful, bright, and tiered. Also many cover it in fondant, but it can be covered in butter cream as well. The cake in this post is covered in butter cream using the Viva towel method (which will be covered in a later blog) and decorations are also butter cream.

Here is a link to a step by step article to make one.
http://cakecentral.com/articles/6/how-to-make-a-topsy-turvy-whimsical-cake

You Tube also has some great videos for Topsy Turvy construction.

Lessons I've learned:
*Use a dense cake, mixes don't hold up as well with a tiered cake and collapse on the sides.
*Dowel graciously!
*Sometimes a little less crooked is better.
*If people think your cake looks like it will fall over, then you've done it right! Ü

Happy caking!
Teresa

Ruffle Cake

To give the effect of ruffles using buttercream, fill a bag with buttercream and a rose tip. The larger the rose tip the wider the ruffles will be. Start at the bottom of the tier with the wider end of the tip touching the cake. Hold at a 45 degree angle downwards and start piping. Circle the entire cake before moving up to the next row.
Ruffles can be the border on their own or a separate border may be added around it. You will notice the top of the cake is done last and as a result the rows circle toward the center making for a unique top design that can be displayed alone or with flowers.

Brush Embroidery

Brush embroidery is a fun way to add a lace look to a cake. The cake can be covered in fondant or crusted buttercream. I have used buttercream and royal icing for the embroidery, but prefer the royal icing.

Pipe frosting with a round tip onto the cake in the desired pattern. Take a paint brush and pull the inside half of the line inwards to fill in the gaps, leaves, petals, ect. Leave the outside half of the line raised to give it a 2D look.

After the icing hardens it is also fun to go over it with luster dust to give the embroidery some shimmer!

See Wilton's step by step pics! http://www.wilton.com/technique/Brush-embroidery

My Happy Place

I have always enjoyed making cakes and once I joined the online cake community my eyes were opened to vast possibilities. I went from making a few a year to at least one cake a week, then begging people to let me make them cake just to try a new technique. A girl's gotta fund the habit! Ü

I've decided to take the habit to the next step and take orders! If baking cakes is my "happy place" why wouldn't I want to do it all the time? So I say . . . let them eat cake !

This cake is a 10", 6" cake with cornflower blue rolled buttercream fondant. Brush embroidery flowers using royal icing. Bordered with ribbon.