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Crystal Candy Edible Fabric & Lace Figurine

Crystal Candy Edible Fabric & Lace Figurine

Crystal Candy Edible Fabric & Lace Figurine

New products in the baking world are like nuggets of gold to any baker so no wonder I had a glint in my eye when Ray of Crystal Candy asked me to try out her new Edible Fabric on a figurine for her. I was inspired by a wedding dress I had seen on Pinterest which was perfect to combine the Crystal Candy Lace and Edible Fabric. I used the Lady LoveLace Lace Mould to cover the bodice and fitted skirt of my figurine and then draped the satin look Edible Fabric to mimic the draped folds of the bridal dress. What a privilege to be asked to work with your new product Ray and create this sweet bride daintily clad in your Lace and Edible Fabric.

Crystal Candy Edible Fabric & Lace Figurine

Crystal Candy Edible Fabric & Lace Figurine

Pink Roses & Midnight Garden Lace Cake

Pink Rose & Wilo-the-Wisp Lace Cake

The beautiful peaceful gardens and Italian ambiance of Casalinga were the setting for the surprise 70th Birthday Lunch for Brenda last week and this pretty Pink Roses and Midnight Garden Lace Chocolate Cake looked so pretty on the table against the backdrop of greenery twinkling in the South African sunshine.  Brenda met my mom in hospital over 48 years ago.  My mom had just given birth to me and Brenda was about to give birth to her beautiful daughter, Robyn. They became life long friends and as my mom couldn’t be there for Brenda last week, it was so special for my dad and myself to be there with Brenda, her family and friends for her special celebration.  Thanks to Tracey, Tom and Robyn; Brenda enjoyed a special lunch in a beautiful setting.

I made pretty pink sugar paste roses and added  Midnight Garden Crystal Candy Lace to a chocolate ganached cake. I used the same mat to emboss the pink board around the cake and finished off with a woven pink ribbon.

Happy 70th Birthday Brenda!

Pink Rose & Wilo-the-Wisp Lace CakePink Rose & Wilo-the-Wisp Lace CakePink Rose & Wilo-the-Wisp Lace Cake

Sylvanian Families Cake

 

Sylvanian Families Cake

Even though my children are well grown past the age of small character toys, I am often magically transported back to my childhood with so many of my cake orders for young children and this was definitely the case with this cake for Jané. Who could nor find these little Sylvanian Family characters an absolute delight at any age? What fun it must be for children to collect these sweet character families and all the room accessories that go with them. There is a beautiful innocence in the design of these characters that is refreshing to come across these days.

As Jané’s party was a sleepover party, her mom, Janita, asked me to do a bed with these 6 Sylvanian Family characters on and around the bed. The colour palette was a pale pink and delphinium blue, so I embossed a rose pink sugar paste with daisies and covered the bed with this adding the white paste for the sheet along with the Crystal Candy Graceland Lace Mold lace trim. I lightly air brushed the pink duvet cover and blush pink throw and also the wood embossed headboard and base board of the bed. The blue pillows and floor mat were the perfect addition for the accent of blue on this pretty bed.

Sylvanian Families CakeSylvanian Families Cake

Sylvanian Families Cake

The characters included a Zeelandia sugar paste rabbit, mouse, hedgehog, squirrel, cat and piglet all from the Sylvanian Family collection. I matched the outfits as closely as possible to the photos Janita sent me and then popped two of the happy creatures on their comfy bed and the remaining four on the wood embossed sugar paste floor. The baby hedgehog stole my heart with her cute hair do and gorgeous dress. Janita was once again delighted with this cake for her daughter and the best compliment ever was her saying that she loves ordering cakes from me as it makes her feel like a child again!

Sylvanian Families CakeSylvanian Families Cake

Sylvanian Families Cake

Christmas Cupcakes with Nougat

Christmas Cupcakes with Nougat

Christmas would not be complete without sweet nougat, dainty gold stars and naughty angels to delight the Christmas sweet table!  Michelle, Tanya and I always have a pre-Christmas party before we all start our festivities with our families and as usual it was a great chance to chat, laugh and eat! Thanks to Michelle we had tasty eats and drinks and a beautiful Christmas table to sit at. I made these Christmas themed cupcakes with rich red cranberries, sweet juicy pieces of glace pineapple, white chocolate drops and a hint of vanilla. Before I baked the cupcakes I added a large piece of macadamia nougat to each cupcake and as they baked the nougat bubbled over the baked surface of the cupcake. Of course with it being a festive girly celebration I laced each cupcake with orange liquer, dusted them with icing sugar and sprinkled them with a galaxy of tiny ethereal gold stars from Nicoletta. No wonder Michelle’s angels had these sweet grins on their faces when they saw these heavenly cupcakes arrive!

Christmas Cupcakes with NougatChristmas Cupcakes with Nougat

Yellow Flower Cupcakes for Gaby!

Yellow Flower Cupcakes

Yellow Flower Cupcakes

Gaby celebrated her 18th birthday yesterday with family and friends and as she has the most gorgeously warm and sunny personality and just because yellow happens to be her favourite colour, I made an array of Yellow Flower Cupcakes for her. Ceire mentioned that she loves sunflowers so I added  a couple of 2 toned sunflowers with chocolatey brown centres and then I made sugar paste ruffled flowers in shades of valencia, sunflower and mimosa. The final flowers were the 5-petaled flowers. I made these with daisy embossed flower paste in the same shades and added mixed pastel non-pareils and then bright yellow embossed centres. To seal the deal on the yellow theme for the day I made passion fruit and white chocolate cupcakes and added a creamy swirl of pale yellow buttercream before adding the bright yellow array of flowers.

To our beautiful Gaby, it has been so great watching you grow all these years into the beautiful young woman you are today. May your sunny disposition take you into many more hearts and wonderful memories as you start on a new adventure in your life.

One of the tiniest guests of the party loving his cupcake….. just made my day!

Yellow Flower Cupcakes

Sweet Delight!

Bride & Groom, Romance & Lace

Bride & Groom (Lace) Figurines

Inspired by the photo of this bride’s exquisite lace dress for her wedding day, the groom’s elegant suit and the fun photos of this couple together, I created this Bride and Groom Sugar Paste Couple for Mandy-Lou of Annah-Fudge Gourmet Cupcakes.  After having tried every sugar paste available on our South African market for modelling faces and figurines, I am delighted to say I finally found one that is just so easy to use for modelling and that is, Zeelandia Sugar Paste. It is not quite as magnificent as the Italian modelling paste I have been privileged to use but it rushes up to the winning post as a really close 2nd.  It is beautifully pliable and does not get the cracks and quick drying out flaws that our other pastes so easily get. It also colours beautifully with gel and powder colours. A huge thank you to Kelly Jayne’s in Decor Park for stocking this wonderful paste, it has made a huge difference to the quality of my modelling work and is saving me loads of  time with it being so easy to use. No more tearing my hair out to create beautiful faces! These 2 characters perfectly show off the soft translucency of this paste for figurine work.

Bride & Groom (Lace) Figurines

The Zeelandia paste was also perfect for this bride’s dress as I needed it to fall as elegantly and simply as the actual wedding dress. I draped the paste on my petite figurine and then added the lace detail of the dress by first making some lace using the Crystal Candy Midnight Garden Lace Silicone Mould and their Crystal Lace-Signature Blend. The lace mimicked the intricate details of the brides lace dress and with this lace detail I was able to capture the open lacey back of the dress with the added pearls for the button detail. No wonder this sugar bride looks so beautifully radiant and serene showing off her gorgeous dress. The sugar groom was not to be totally outshone by his bride and he is proudly wearing his long-tailed jacket and bright purple cravat and waist coat. Once again Zeelandia paste to my rescue for the soft cuff, tails and collar details of his crisp white shirt. Wishing this couple all joy and love as they begin their journey as husband and wife!

Bride & Groom (Lace) Figurines

Bride & Groom (Lace) FigurinesBride & Groom (Lace) FigurinesBride & Groom (Lace) FigurinesBride & Groom (Lace) Figurines