Ducks!

So in the town I used to live in for a couple months, there was a road called Duck Slough. I still don't know how to pronounce it. And that story has nothing to do with the duck cake I made, I just thought it was interesting.

Now, to the cakes!

My roommate loves rubber duckies! And why not? They're cute! And since I knew she loved duckies, they were the basis for the birthday cake I made for her. Birthday cake AND cupcakes. Because, well... why not?

The only problem is, I am a procrastinator. Surprise. I swear that's what gets me everytime I go to make a cake. This time it was because I couldn't find the candy molds I needed, and I didn't have time to order them online. So I called or visited 4 or 5 craft stores, and none of them had rubber ducky molds!

Then inspiration hit, and I remembered the cake decorating supply store in Tampa. So I called them up, and guess what? They had one mold left! So I had to book it there before they closed, and silly me, I had to drive there in rush hour traffic. (Terrible idea, by the way. Someone on 275 totally almost killed me.) Never again, I say, will I procrastinate! Oh, how I wish that were true...

I am really glad that I finally made it out to Cakes Plus. It. Was. Awesome. They had a ton of display cakes that were gorgeous, and sold all kinds of supplies that I'm sure I'll need/want some day. Gumpaste flower molds, fondant, cake pans, you name it! I was like a kid in a candy shop. (That's funny right? Because they sold candy... It's a little funny?) :)

And luckily traffic wasn't too bad on the way home, so I got back in time to make the little candies, and decorate the cupcakes to look like bubbles. The cake, of course, was decorated in the same theme. (I tried to "ombre" the cake, but the buttercream I used wasn't smooth enough. I can do it at work, no problem, but the buttercream there is a lot smoother and lighter. I bet IMBC would take to the ombre effect perfectly!)

And that's the story of how I once again procrastinated, but somehow pulled off another awesome cake.

Happy Birthday Danielle!

Gumpaste Flowers Galore

I finally finished taking the last Wilton class (finally), and my tentative plan is to try and teach the classes after I finish taking them all. So hopefully I'll stop procrastinating and put my application in to be a Wilton Method Instructor!

I love taking cake classes. I wish they weren't so darn expensive (the class + supplies + gas money, etc) but I understand that education ain't cheap. When I was in Florida, I drove all over the state to take classes, and they were all worth it. I still wish I had a chance to go to the mini classes at ICES in Orlando a few months back, to take Kathleen Lange's Lambeth bootcamp, but hopefully I'll still get another chance one day. Anyway, back to the class I'm in now! The advanced gumpaste flowers class is really helpful, especially when it comes to wiring the flowers. That part is such a pain, but I learned so much that I didn't know before, so hopefully that will help with all my future flowers.


The dusting part is really fun, too, which makes me think that I might enjoy taking some painting classes after I've finished all the Wilton ones... (dusting is just like painting, right??)
But you've got to have some serious patience with these flowers. Especially when they break. I'm not saying that I hotglued one of the petals back onto my briar rose after it broke, but... ;)

If you're interested in taking the gumpaste class, the class information is on Wilton's website, and so is their supply list. Just make sure when you sign up that you're getting course four because at first, the cashier at Michaels tried to sign me up for course three, which is Gumpaste and Fondant, not Advanced Gumpaste Flowers. Although that was a fun class too...just a bit different!

And final sidenote about the supplies: if you opt not to get the course 4 kit (like I did) because you already had the big box of gumpaste flowers, just know that you'll have to buy other stuff, like the sweet pea cutter, and floral wire/tape, and the purple foam (I just used the pink, to be honest, and it worked fine), and there's no briar rose cutter, so I just used the small rose cutter and cut out the five petals individually from there. Also I didn't have the yellow stamens to use for the briar rose, so I just used white. It didn't look as cute, but it was do-able in a pinch. If you find the yellow stamens anywhere, though, let me know! :)