Every Cake Tells a Story.

This week, I had the pleasure of creating 2 birthday cakes, for 2 very different women. It's always interesting to hear the client explain their requirements for the cake, and to hear them describe their friend or whoever it is, they are ordering the cake for.

The first cake was for someone turning 40, who had many, many loves. She was very much into her family, skiing, fine coffee, music, and most of all - Yoga and handbags.

Not just any handbags, mind you. It was a Birkin. And the other, an Olympia Le-Tan clutch book bag. Both, very unique in their own right, and both with celeb status.

Needless to say, the person ordering the cake for her, also had a very clear picture of what she wanted the cake look like. I racked my brain for over 2 weeks, trying to accomodate all her requests, and all the little details she had specified.

Finally, after many conversations over Whatsapp (oh, what would I do without you?), we concluded on a cake with yoga silhouettes (they had to be Ashtanga, or nothing else!), the Birkin, the OLT clutch, a Hermes scarf, and I was also going to add a pair of skis as well, on top of the cake. Finished with a ribbon and a single sugar flower.

I think it must have been about 4 days before the cake was due, when I receive a Whatsapp message at 11.30pm. It was from my client. She was at the first birthday bash for her yoga-loving friend that night, and there was a cake there too.

Not just any cake. This cake was 3 tiers, with a figurine on top, in a sitting yoga pose, surrounded by a Birkin, yoga mats, and flowers. Around the cake ALSO had yoga silhouettes.

She was FUMING. I was in DISBELIEF. 

Ok ok, what do I do? 

Keep calm. Think. Of. New. Cake.

So I immediately reassured her, that it's all good. We'll come up with a different idea in the morning, and that I would be in touch.

Sunday afternoon comes, and we are in touch again about the cake. I suggest we move completely away from the yoga/bag theme, and do what I do best, which is something pretty with gorgeous, sugar flowers. 

"Let's do that. All girls would love a pretty, floral cake."

Unfortunately, the birthday girl is all about the yoga. So the cake needs to go ahead with the yoga theme. We finally decide that we will make the Olympia Le-Tan clutch the star of the cake, with a scarf spilling out of it. The yoga silhouettes, are to stay, and I need to make sure they are SPECIFIC Ashtanga poses. Not quite like the other cake, she had seen over the weekend.
 
By the time I was half way through the cake, I knew I had a winner of a cake on my hands. Every element turned out great, even though I had to forego the sugar flower, and I was very happy with the end result. It was classy, elegant, and most of all, it depicted what the birthday girl was about. This was most important to the client, and that is what makes a successful cake.

The other custom designed cake I had this week, was for a doctor who loved shoes and bags. The cake was ordered by a regular client of mine, for her very good doctor friend. 

She initially sent me the photo of a stack of Chanel boy bags, and from there we changed the stack of bags, into a stack of medical books. She also wanted a shoe on the books, and a stethescope draped over it.

We discussed colours and what would work best. She was so open to any suggestions I had, and I love when clients say, "You know what works best. I'll go with whatever you think".

Aaaah....that's bliss to my cake designer ears. 

It gives me full confidence to push ahead with my ideas, with that creative freedom. 

I chose to do vintage medical books with gold trims and detailing, to match the black bag and gold shoe. I love how everything came together, and I think once the cakes were ganached, it took about 5 hours to ice and finish the cake off. 

I had most fun putting this cake together and when I posted the work in progress pic on Instagram and FB, it created a stir! More so, when my client posted it on her Instagram account, it went off the charts! She really generated a LOT of interest to my business from all possible means of communication. It's been unreal.

If you are reading this blog post, thank you SO much for supporting my business. You can also follow me on Facebook by clicking this link www.facebook.com/msshortcakes

xxx Miss Shortcakes