Magnolia Cake I did this cake a few weeks ago and a lot of people asked me about it. The flower is a specimen of Magnolia called "Magnolia X Soulangiana". A beautiful flower with pink tones in it.
The cutter I used is available at the webstore. Press on the photo to get to
it. At the base of the cake I used a mold. I don't have the mold available in the website but here is a photo
of it: I had to mold each square to make the ribbon at the bottom of the cake.
To finish it I use the extruder on top and bottom of the ribbon
I created.
The cake was covered in fondant. I started with a base of purple and used a brush to
handpaint it with some luster dusts. For more photos of the cake go here: http://www.designmeacake.com/id122.html
On another note, The Central Florida Fair is coming soon. March 1-11, 2012. Here is the link to their
website: Central Florida Fair
I just posted some photos that were taken the
day of our Challenge!
Challenge started with a trip to Denver. Our episode was filmed April 1, 2011..April
Fools day! We arrived 2 days earlier and started by doing some shopping and getting ready for the Challenge.
We had a meeting where we met the other contestants and the judges. We were competing against: Jennifer Matsubara
(3 time winner) with Mariella Ortega Lorie Burcham with Jason Burcham (their second Challenge) Burton Farnswoth
with Sandy Sheppard.
Our Judges were: Keegan Gerhard Kerry Vincent Ashley Vicos (Guest Judge)
The day of the Challenge is a long hard day. We had to be there by 4:30 am. Usually, Challenge gives contestants
8 hours to finish the cake, but with filming, time can be cut to almost 7 hours.
Our Challenge was intense.
We had to do Extreme Aliens. Paul and I decided to combine both our strengths in the design. His sculpting abilities
with my finishing touches. I was supposed to do a mini-tiered cake with flowers in an hour and a half, while he sculpted. We both met our time-line well, but
the unexpected twists were insane.
The first twist was at the 2 hour mark. I already had done the mini cake, and
was helping Paul with covering the cake in Ganache, when they took the time clock away from us. They took our watches
and phones away, too, so ther was NO way to know the time. All we could do was keep moving.
While I kept finishing,
smoothing and texturing the skin, Paul kept covering arms, legs and head. Time came for the SECOND twist! NOT FAIR!
There is never more than one twist in Challenge, but guess what? We were in for another one!
For the second
twist, they took all of the assistants away. One thing that people forget is that this is a Challenge that needs 2 people.
Food Network gives us the name "assistants" but, in reality, we are teammates. Each teammate has steps to follow
for the piece to be finished. Taking me away was the worst thing they could have done to Paul and I. Paul had never worked with my tools, so while we did the the "Mini-Challenge" twist, he wasn't sure what to do with my
stuff.
The Mini-Challenge took around 1hour & 15 minutes. We
had to make a UFO and fly it across the room with cables. That UFO was heavy! Imagine flying a wedding cake..not nice! Talk
about having a heart attack! I had to get back to Paul, so did the other teammates, so we worked as fast as
possible to accomplish the goal.
As soon as I returned to Paul we got moving with the piece again. Still, we didn't
know the time remaining, so we were rushing. Paul was putting the head on the body while I was finishing the aliens attire.
We both started airbrushing like crazy.
We were almost done with the airbrushing and applying the hair when
they stopped us to tell us we had one hour left...ONE HOUR! After the airbrushing was done, there was not much we could
do!!! Had we known we still had a full hour left, we could have done much more with her attire, then airbrushed.We
decided to add a few more strands of hair and a few more details.
Finally time was up and it was time
to move the cake to the judging table. Burton and Sandy moved their cake. It was leaning a bit already, their piece fell.
I couln't believe it. What if that were to happen to us?
Then is was Lorie and Jason's turn. They moved the piece
and activated their extreme elements. The head didn't move, but they had other elements.
It's our turn next.
We had 4 people help us move our cake. It was hard to be even and straight with so many people helping. One toenail fell
off! Oh No! The judges noticed. We had to take our piece back to the table to fix the nail, per the rules. Not doing so would
mean that the judges would take away points, but moving the piece was dangerous. It could fall.
We decided to move
it. As Paul fixed the nail, I noticed the head move a bit sideways and had a hairline crack formed around the nose. We asked
if we could fix it, but it was not allowed. We moved the piece back to the judging table as I kept saying "straight,
straight, straight" with every step we took.
It's was on the table, the face still there, the mini-wedding
cake was straight, but the plate it was on was a bit sideways. Our piece was safely on the table. The extreme elements
worked well. The Alien's arm with a scanner in hand moved up and down. She talked and fog came out of the small volcanoes
on the board.
Finally, Jennifer and Mariella moved their cake and did their extreme elements. We where done,
except for judging. Now we wait. It's been a long day with no food, so we ate and went to a room off the set with
the other Challengers.
Every competitor wass called one a time to go in front of the judges, while the rest of
us waited and talked about what happened.
Everybody was dead tired. Finally we were called out to hear the decision. WE WON! The day was hard, but the outcome was great. We left the next day to go home to Orlando and couldn't tell
the outcome for 6 months. That was hard.
Paul Joachim is a great Sculptor. We complement each other skills
so well. I am glad that I was his teammate. People were calling us the "Dream Team." As it turned out, we were.
This
past Sunday, the Cake Challenge episode was aired on Food Network Channel. We can finally talk about it. I've been really
busy the past few weeks. I Just came from Oklahoma where I was a Judge for the Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show (OSSAS). Then
the Episode aired the day after I arrived home.
I have lots of photos to post! For today, please
enjoy the Challenge Episode "Extreme Aliens." I will post photos on the next blog.
Food Network Challenge!!! Paul Joachim, Kerry Vincent and Edna de la Cruz at the set of Food Network Challenge On April Fool's Day this year, Paul Joachim and I taped our episode for Food Network Challenge
- Extreme Alien Cakes. We now have the Air date!
Sunday, October 9th, 2011 @ 8PM Eastern Time on the Food Network Channel (check your local listings and set your DVR's!)
So many of you urged me to compete and this was the perfect opportunity! I appreciate the encouragement
from all of you!
This week I decided to play with SugarVeil®.
Here is the result of my playtime.
Many people asked me "What is Sugarveil®?"
SugarVeil® is
almost like a sugar plastic. It's not a dough, like Fondant or Gumpaste. It comes in a powder form and you mix it with water. It
has a Royal-icing consistency at first, with a bit more elasticity to it. You spread it over a silicone surface and let
it dry. As soon as it's dry, you can pull it off and play with it. It can be shaped into a lot of things and it doesn't crack
as easily as gumpaste.
Spreading it over the Silpat with a spreader or comb is an easy way to get started playing with the product
and learning it's consistency. It may be used in a piping bag, as well.
SugarVeil® Company has added their own line of silicone mats that have beautiful designs that can be used with this product. I actually used the back side of their silicone mat to do my sheets of SugarVeil® for this cake.
Here is a video
tutorial where Michelle Hestner, the creator of SugarVeil®, shows how to do the lace mats.
I love SugarVeil®! I can't wait to play with it more! Of course, when working in sugar, practice
makes perfect. I'm excited to find new uses for this great product in my future cake designs! I will post more photos
of this cake in the New Photos link of the website.
Make sure to read the instructions on this cake. Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 stick of butter
1 cup of water
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup of brown sugar
Lemon juice
4 large eggs
Selection of nuts
2 bottles of wine
2 cups of dried
fruit
DirectionsSample
the wine to check the quality. Take a large bowl, check the wine again. To be sure it is of the highest quality, pour one
cup and drink. Repeat! Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Add one teaspoon of sugar.
Beat again. At this point it’s best to make sure the wine is still OK. Try another cup…just in case. Turn off
the mixerer thingy. Break 2 eggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruit.Pick the frigging fruit up off the floor. Mix on the turner... if the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers just
pry it loose with a drewscriver. Sample the wine to check for tonsisticity. Next, sift two cups of salt. Or something. Check
the wine. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or some fink. Whatever you
can find. Greash the oven. Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over. Don’t forget to beat off the turner.
Finally, throw the bowl through the window. Finish the wine and wipe counter with the cat.Then finally go to Walmart and buy cake!
I will be a judging in this competition in Ocala, FL, and doing a Demo, also, on how to make
flowers with no cutters. The flowers will include blossoms, simple blossoms, hydrangeas and lilacs.
The Florida I.C.E.D. Cake
Competition is a sugar arts competition benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Central & Northern Florida.
The Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition will include a cake design, accessories, and tasting challenge in the theme of "Romantic
Wedding Dresses." Sugar art entries
will be judged by highly qualified professional judges. The winners of novice,
advanced, and professional divisions will be announced at the conclusion of the event.
In addition to Grand Prize, 1st Place,
and 2nd Place awards in each skill division,
a People's Choice and a Decorator's Choice will be
awarded.
Pastry chefs, professional cake decorators, culinary students, and at-home bakers from across the nation are invited to
compete. The show is open to the public and all are welcome. In fact, brides & grooms looking for original,
cutting-edge ideas are encouraged to attend! And all attendants are eligible to enter to win "sweet" raffle
prizes benefiting our chosen charity.
If you have never entered a competition,
this is a good way to be part of a competition, and help to raise some money for a good cause.
February 4 & 5 I will be in Burlington,
New Jersey for the 2011 Garden State Cake Show. Don't miss this event! There will be a Cake Competition in
which I will be a judge too. All levels of decorators are welcome to join.
I will be teaching 2 classes at this show . Friday February 4,
I will teach the cake above. We have 3 hours to sit down and learn the techniques needed to make the cake and the Gerbera
Daisies made in gumpaste.
Saturday Feb. 5th, I will be teaching how to make a 2 tier
cake using horizontal drapes and swags.
I will be teaching how to finish the swags using molded broaches
and how to make fast bows.
The show will have Demos by other teachers and will have vendors so you
can shop for all of those cake toys we like to have!
For
more info on the show go to: http://www.gscakeshownj.com/ I have some info on my News and info page about the class with a list of
the materials needed for the class, but to separate your space you need to go the website above.
March 27, 2011 is Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition. I will be a judge in this competition
and I will be doing a Demo. For more info visit: http://www.floridaiced.com/
I hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday Season! Here's some information on classes just around the corner.
January 15 & 16
The first class
of the year will be held in Deland, Florida. I will be teaching a class for 2 morning sessions January 15 &
16.
This is the cake that I'm teaching. The first day we will make roses, leaves and buds.
The second day we will be making swags and horizontal drapes.
I will show you the techniques so
you can learn them and have fun with them.
Below is a photo of what I call swags. This technique is very easy and
will make any cake look elegant.
Swags can be finished in many different ways. I used bows with this cake, but you can use medallions, flowers, tassels
and even more swags.
To the left you will see a photo with the horizontal drapes. This is one of those designs
that people ask me constantly how to do.
The horizontal swags can be finished with a lot of things, too. I have used real broaches to do
this cake before, but on this one I used a gumpaste medallion mold. This is just one mold. You can use any medallion
mold you want, a real broache, or even a bow.
Your choice will change according to the design you want
on your cake.
I will teach how to place the roses in the cake. Keep in mind that the we have a short amount
of time in class, so if you are not able to finish the whole cake there, you will have all the knowlegde and tools to
finish your cake at home.
You can also contact: Kelly Benge at 386-295-1988. Or E-mail - cakekween@gmail.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
February 4 & 5, 2011
Garden State Cake Show Tabernacle
Baptist Church Unity Hall 150 East Second Street Burlington, NJ 08016
I will be teaching 2 classes and judging a cake decorating competition.
The First class will be on Friday on how to make Gerbera Daisies, just like the one to the left, as
well as, how to make simple daisies
The second
class will be Saturday and I will teach how to make Horizontal Drapes and Swags.
There will be a competition at this show, for thise of you who
wish to participate. Visit the website for registration and rules.
Competitions are the best way to push
yourself to learn new techniques. Don't be scared of them. Just go and have fun with it! I will be part of the
judging team and I want to see your work!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 27, 2011
Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition Ocala, FL
I will be
a judging in this competition in Ocala, FL, and doing a Demo, also,
on how to make flowers with no cutters. The flowers will include blossoms, simple blossoms hydrangeas and lilacs.
The Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition is a sugar
arts competition benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Central & Northern Florida.
If you have never entered a competition, this is a good way to be part of a competition, and help to raise some money for a good cause.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Don't forget that the Central Florida Cake Competition is coming soon. The fair
runs from February 24 - May 6, 2011. If you plan to enter you have to apply before January 31. Here is the
link to the information for this event:
It's already Christmas time again, and I am in the mood to design new cakes. I know that a lot of people see Poinsettias and they are not sure how to use them on cakes. Since they range in size you can use one by itself, or
you can add many.
This is my Winter Theme Cake. A light royal blue tone cake with white details. The bow its just like
the bow I teach in my tutorial on "How to Make Bows".
The snowflakes are made with cutters that I will be adding to my
website soon. I added some Disco Dust to them to make them sparkle.
For those of you who have never done a Poinsettia, I do have a DVD on how to
make them. These flowers are beautiful and make a statement on a cake. You can make them in a variety of colors so they can match your cake and the ocassion.
Here is the
DVD on "How to Make Poinsettias".
For those of you who ask what materials you need to make these
beautiful flowers, you will need your basic tools for gumpaste.
As for a cutters, you can stay with a simple
3 Poinsettia Leaf cutter or you can make big flower like the one on the bottom of the blue cake using a
5 Poinsettia Petal Cutter. A Poinsettia Veiner will always give a more realistic look to your flowers,so it's a nice addition to your
cake toys. If you have a double sided Rose Leaf Veiner, that can achieve a nice flower too.
If you want to see more photos and details
on the cake go to the Christmas 2011 link. Keep in touch with me through facebook. Plus post photos of your cake for me and other
Hope you are having
Happy Holidays! Ta, ta Edna :)
What is OSSAS? It's the Oklahoma
State Sugar Art Show. The biggest cake competition in the USA and around the world. Every year this is the destination
for lots of the best Cake Designers. The Show is Directed by Kerry Vincent, who is a judge for the TV Show Challenge
on the Food Network.
I started attending this event in 2007 and it was amazing. Now it has become my favorite event in the "Cake
World". I attend every year and mark my calendar for the year to come. Not only is it a "Cake Person's" fantasy
land of inspirational works, it has competitions for all ages and skill levels. It is held at the Tulsa State Fair,
so the entire family can enjoy a wide variety of exhibits, rides, games, and foods. Admission to the fair and to visit
the Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show is a mere $10, certainly a great value for every person in your family. For those of you
who enjoy cake, but have family to consider, this is a great vacation where you can learn to increase your skills ( the demonstrations
are free) while the family enjoys the fair.
Every year a theme is picked for the show. Wedding Cakes are designed with the theme given. Last year it was a sea theme called
"Of Sea and Shore". This year's theme for the Wedding Cake Competition is "Mansions and Monasteries".
My imagination goes wild with this theme so I am expecting to enjoy beautiful cakes. Plus there are other competitions runing
additionally to the Wedding Division. Including one for Cricut Cakes.
For more info on the show you can visit the
OSSAS website www.oklahomasugarartists.com For those of you who want to know the schedule for the Demos go to: http://oklahomasugarartists.com/index.htm These Demos are done by Celebrities in the Cake World and they
are a lot of fun! Hope to see you there. Don't miss the fun!
Kerry Vincent I would like to make a comment to share with the contestants.
First, some of
the cakes have been photographed way too close, so the detail has been lost because the image is blurred, it is very hard to judge something fairly when the view is distorted.
I can only judge what
I see, not what I imagine.
Second, very few contestants are finishing their boards properly; a beautiful cake on
an ugly board will lose
points, cover the board with buttercream, marzipan, rolled fondant, or whatever medium you like and edge the board with ribbon, much prettier.
I am not expecting cakes
at these levels to be a masterpiece in cake decoration, but the over all skill was very good. I look forward to seeing massive improvement a year from now.
These comments apply to both levels, beginners
and intermediate.
Best wishes,
Kerry Vincent
Silvina Barbosa I want start by congratulating everyone who entered
the contest! You each are already winners and you are one step closer to your dreams!!!
To all the contestants: Try to take pictures with natural light, it's the best lighting for photos.
Originality, proportion, attention to details, color combination
and presentation, are all requirements
for a good final product.
Be original! Have fun! Don't quit! Accept the challenges!!! Like I always say,
"PRACTICE, PRACTICE, AND MORE PRACTICE!" that is the only secret to success.
Eric Woller I do agree with Kerry, the photos were hard to make out, but the cakes were all really great. In my
opinion...the beginners had better ones to choose from. It was tough! The intermediate / advanced..... this division needs to watch out for the beginners!!
Edna De la Cruz
I didn't judge in the contest, but here are my opinions.
This is the first time for a lot of you to enter a contest, so keep this in mind when you enter your next one:
*Rules are meant to be followed. Points are deducted when rules
are not followed.
*Get a good photo of the cake
with a good resolution. If the judges can't see the cakes, they can't judge it well.
*Stay with the theme of the contest and design accordingly.
*Always do your best work, and don't think that because you didn't
win, your cake was not good enough. There where a lot of beautiful cakes in the contest, but there can only be
so many winners. Maybe next time you will be the one with the winning cake.
Thanks to everyone that participated in the contest. My special thanks to the Judges who took
time out of their busy schedules to participate.
Don't forget to check for competitions in your area to enter. Remember OSSAS is just around the corner! (October 2 - 3 In Tulsa OK) For more info visit: http://oklahomasugarartists.com/
Thanks to everyone! Until my next Blog post, Ta ta! Edna :)
Meet
the Judges! Here they are, the judges for the Summer Sensation Contest.
Kerry Vincent Master sugar artist Kerry Vincent was inducted into the International Cake Exploration Societe Hall of Fame
in 2004 and then the inaugural Dessert Professional Hall of Fame in 2010. Vincent is the cofounder of the Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show, and founder of the Grand National Wedding Cake Competition. A skilled designer,
Kerry has invented unique techniques in sugar craft, which includes the Vincent Marquetry, and movement in stenciled or painted
sugar flounces and skirting. Vincent is also a successful author, freelance writer, international presenter and wedding cake
style advisor and designer and very active in charitable event support. Her best selling book Romantic Wedding Cakes is in
its fourth reprint and is beloved by followers worldwide. Recognizing that a well-crafted flavorful cake is important under all of that sugar, Kerry developed her own signature cake
recipes, which were long standing favorites of her former clients. Widely traveled, Kerry has lived in the United Kingdom,
Mexico, Switzerland, Singapore and Holland and visited scores of other countries. Always focused on food, she was ready to
challenge her palate no matter where she went. Closing the door on her competitive career in 2001 with more than a hundred
blue ribbons and Best of Division and Best of Show awards under her belt, she was in the right place at the right time when
another door opened with an option to judge for Food Network Challenge. Vincent has been named a Tulsa Oklahoma hero
for her service to the city and October 6 is Kerry Vincent day in Tulsa. The Grand National Wedding Cake competition, the
event that she founded, has become the toast of the nation and has been taped and broadcast by Food Network multiple times.
The event has also been named a centennial icon by the City of Tulsa and the Tulsa World. An Australian born citizen
and extensively traveled Kerry originally hails from Wyalkatchem in Western Australia, with widespread roots in the Murchison,
Mt. Many Peaks and Perth before she left to travel abroad 40 years ago. Australians are known for a ‘no nonsense’
approach in speaking their minds and Kerry is no exception, she is the judge with the tough love message on Challenge. Vincent has demonstrated sugar-craft at a variety of international venues and celebrity occasions, and those locations include,
United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, Mexico, Peru and Belgium, as well as making hundreds of television appearances to promote,
educate or judge the art. Her background in communications and modeling was a great launching pad into the public life
she now leads; not to forget that in 1964 Vincent was a Western Australian state finalist in the Miss Australia Quest a prestigious
pageant that is now recognized with a special exhibition in the National Museum of Australia in Melbourne. Her special
features and editorial have been included in magazines at home and abroad and have been translated into Spanish and Italian:
Vincent’s artistry has appeared on many magazine covers principally in the United States, United Kingdom & Peru.
Kerry’s designer cakes have also been chosen as exceptional by Brides magazine wedding style editor Maria McBride
in the first instance in the top fifty, and then the top twenty most beautiful cakes in the America. Her cake design was also
included in Brides invitational lineup for Cakewalk at Grand Central Station in New York. One of the very first to promote
cake as a true art form, in 1985 Vincent spearheaded an exhibition of winter season wedding cakes in the Philbrook Museum
of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma. One of Kerry’s favorite newspaper quotes came from writer Barbara Durbin The Portland Oregonian “ Kerry Vincent’s
not a cake decorator—unless you call Michelangelo a church painter!” Her work has inspired complimentary mail
from a variety of interesting personalities. They include; The Honorable, The Lord Wedgwood; Lady-in-Waiting Phillippa de
Pass on behalf of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II; Parisian fashion designer Christian Lacroix; Sheila Lampkin, Publishing
Editor (ret.) from Cake Craft and Decoration -- (UK) and Gilles Renusson Chairman Emeritus U.S. Pastry Alliance. Recently
Vincent was chosen as one of eight judges nationwide to determine the outcome of the USA pastry trials that chose the representative
team members for the Coupe Du Monde de la Patisserie (World Cup of Pastry) competition to be in Lyon, France, January 2011.
This is the first time a sugar artist has been included in this line-up. Kerry Vincent is married to Doug Vincent founder
of Angel Flight in Oklahoma, petroleum engineer and landowner.
Theresa Happe
Theresa Happe began baking and decorating
cakes at 8 years old when she took a course with the Girls Scouts. The childhood hobby led to decorating cakes in a local
bakery. Drawn to the family business, she received her degree in Literature & Rhetoric and, subsequently, worked in her
father’s advertising agency, Austin & Williams, writing copy and buying media. As
companies began turning to the internet to market themselves, she began writing optimized copy for websites
of all genres. In 2007, she merged her love for writing and cake decorating by creating Cake-Decorating-Corner.com. In December 2009, she created CakesWeBake.com cake decorating community
to provide a more interactive experience for her website visitors.
Jacque Savage Benson
Raised in
Texas, after high school, Jacque tutored under a European Master Tailor and spent the next 30 years as a master tailor before
retiring from sewing.
Having always loved baking, and occasionally decorating fun cakes for family and friends,
Jacque decided to take her first cake decorating course in 2004.
It was then she fell in love with cake decorating, but it was going to her first ICES Day Of Sharing that opened her eyes
to the range of creativity that the medium of sugar offered.
There she saw the most amazing and talented ladies
creating art with sugar, such as Glenda Galvez, Ruth Kirmser, and Carol Bershears just to name a few!
Awed by the
incredible talent of the Sugar Artists who demoed that day, Jacque began pursuing this as a passion. Since then, she has taken
classes from Ruth Kirmser, JoAnne Misener, Jo Ellen Simon, and the Two Sweet Sisters, Martha Hebert and Becky Guidry, and
Earlene Moore.
Jacque Benson has served as Texas State Representative and Area 2 Alternate for Texas ICES, is a
Co-Administrator of the Sharing and Caring Blog, and spends most of her time with her favorite passion--sugar! Visit her personal
Blog to see her wonderful work! Cakes Du Soleil.
Denise
Guntner Talbot Denise started cake decorating 6 years ago, 5 years professionally.
Her love is doing gum paste flowers and chocolate sea shells. She is the founding member at her local
cake club and served as president of two cakes clubs simultaneously.
A proud member of ICES and the
Texas Area 4 ICES representative, she has attended 3 ICES conventions and demonstrated her techniques. She
competed on two of TLC's "The Ultimate Cake Off " Challenges as a member of Martha Hebert's team, winning
the Peterson Automotive Museum's challenge.
Denise is a contributor to the Sugar Teachers blog, creating pictorial and video tutorials that she loves to share with other fellow
cake decorators.
Her love and Passion for making cakes pushes her to keep taking classes and learning
new techniques so she can bring the best to her customers.
Silvina Barboza Silvina's background is in Theater, Stage Design, and Graphic
Design. This gives her all the support and knowledge that she needs for cake design. Her first cakes
were for her daughter’s birthdays. With time, she continued improving her sugar modeling skills. After a few years of making cakes for family and friends she decided to enter her first contest at the Best of the
Best 2009 New York City Cake Decorators Meetup with her “Corpse Bride” cake. This cake got The Best in Show
Award. In 2009, she decided to enter OSSAS in the wedding cake category. Her entry “The Dragon Prince
and the Swallow Princess” got a Ribbon and Certificate. Between more than 900 entries her cake ended in the
final 20.
Silvina went next to The New York Cake Convention 2010. Her cake, “The Princess
and the Frog” got 2nd place. After this she started to teach. She participated at a First Live
Cake Challenge at the CT Cake Competition 2010 as Chef Vanessa Greeley's Partner, winning the Silver Medal. The next cake show was in Virginia at The Great American Cake Show 2010, where she won the First Prize
at the “Nursery Rhymes” category, professional division. The next cake show was in Maryland at The National
Capital Area Cake Show 2010, she got 2nd place at the divisional category with her “How to Train your Dragon”
cake."
Silvina has developed her own style of modeling figurines, and she's been teaching them at
Cake Shows, private classes and soon she will be teaching overseas.
Eric Woller
Eric Woller, a self-taught sugar artist, began dabbling in
the world of cakes a little over 2 years ago.With his passion for the arts, Eric continues his quest of
artistic fulfillment by mastering all mediums.Eric then discovered he could incorporate his master skills
with all the mediums in the sugar arts, especially, cake.In his short time in the industry, Eric’s
skills have been recognized by some of the top names in the cake world.Eric has already been part of 3
winning teams on TLC’s "Ultimate Cake Off."With the combination of his welding and
carpentry skills and his master artistry, Eric has the ability to take a cake design to another dimension and with special
effects!
By day, Eric is employed by one of Orlando’s favorite water parks and works as a scenic carpenter, building props and
renovations to buildings.However, by night he hangs up his tool belt (then maybe not – he might
just need it) and transforms into a crazed cake designer who can sculpt flour, sugar and eggs into the most extreme and amazing
works of art.
Eric lives in Winter Park, Florida with his wife Patty, children Casey, and
her husband Kyle, and Dan, and Zach, and granddaughter Jessica.
Rhonda Hines Christensen Rhonda lives in Leslie, ID. She started with cake decorating
classes about 5 years ago after watching her first Food Network Cake Challenge. She felt like the classes didn't
teach her enough, so she started learning everything she could from books and the internet.
She has entered local cake competitions at the Eastern Idaho State Fair Sugar Art Show for the last 3 years and has placed
in the top 4. She will be competing again this year. She taught as a Wilton instructor at Michaels for about a year
and a half and sometimes teach local classes in her small community.
I made this video basically
for 2 reasons. I wanted to talk about Cake Competitions and Contest, and encourage my cake friends to join
them. There are Cake Competitions around the USA that you can join and in the internet there
is usually a Cake Contest.
Cake Central and Cakes We Bake are comunities that hold contests all the
time and are always fun to join. Plus I decided to do my own cake Contest too!
In this video I show the Cake
I made for the Central Florida Cake Competition. It won First Prize and Best of Show. I will post photos soon
in my website but in here I talk more about it.
Plus I added a section where I show the Central Florida Cake
Competition.
Don't
forget you only have a few days left to join my contest. The rules are in this blog so if you are planning to join, go
and read below this post.
The photos are already being posted in the Galleries under the "Summer Sensation Contest". There is a page with The Beginners photos and another page for Intermediate/Advanced. Even though I am inviting everyone to sign the guestbook with their favorites,
the winner will be chosen by Judges. Photos are still being posted so come back and visit. I will keep you posted
as soon as all the photos are uploaded and when the winner is chosen. Thanks for participating!!! . Enjoy, ta ta!! Edna :)
Ingredients
Swags can be finished in many different ways. I used bows with this cake, but you can use medallions, flowers, tassels
and even more swags.
tutorial on "How to Make Bows".
Every year a theme is picked for the show. Wedding Cakes are designed with the theme given. Last year it was a sea theme called
"Of Sea and Shore". This year's theme for the Wedding Cake Competition is "Mansions and Monasteries".
My imagination goes wild with this theme so I am expecting to enjoy beautiful cakes. Plus there are other competitions runing
additionally to the Wedding Division. Including one for Cricut Cakes.
I do agree with Kerry, the photos were hard to make out, but the cakes were all really great. In my
opinion...the beginners had better ones to choose from.
Recognizing that a well-crafted flavorful cake is important under all of that sugar, Kerry developed her own signature cake
recipes, which were long standing favorites of her former clients.
Vincent has demonstrated sugar-craft at a variety of international venues and celebrity occasions, and those locations include,
United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, Mexico, Peru and Belgium, as well as making hundreds of television appearances to promote,
educate or judge the art.
One of Kerry’s favorite newspaper quotes came from writer Barbara Durbin The Portland Oregonian “ Kerry Vincent’s
not a cake decorator—unless you call Michelangelo a church painter!” Her work has inspired complimentary mail
from a variety of interesting personalities. They include; The Honorable, The Lord Wedgwood; Lady-in-Waiting Phillippa de
Pass on behalf of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II; Parisian fashion designer Christian Lacroix; Sheila Lampkin, Publishing
Editor (ret.) from Cake Craft and Decoration -- (UK) and Gilles Renusson Chairman Emeritus U.S. Pastry Alliance.
It was then she fell in love with cake decorating, but it was going to her first ICES Day Of Sharing that opened her eyes
to the range of creativity that the medium of sugar offered. 
The next cake show was in Virginia at The Great American Cake Show 2010, where she won the First Prize
at the “Nursery Rhymes” category, professional division.
By day, Eric is employed by one of Orlando’s favorite water parks and works as a scenic carpenter, building props and
renovations to buildings.
