Monday, August 31, 2009

An Interview with Fran from Cakes by Francesca

I recently interviewed Fran from Cakes by Francesca. Fran's passion for cake decorating is infectious and she is an absolute credit to the industry.

How did your passion for cake decorating get started?
When my daughter was born I decided I wanted to make her fabulous birthday cakes every year.It took until her 5th birthday for me to try fondant, and my introduction was a 5 tier mermaid cake design by Debbie Brown. It was awful, but I was fascinated by the medium and bought every cake book I could get my hands on and made birthday cake after birthday cake.

What do you most like doing and why?
Whilst I started with birthday cakes, my real passion is wedding cakes, I just love the ceremony and romance of weddings and creating a couple's reception centrepiece is a real buzz for me.

Who inspires you in your work? What do you love about them?
My biggest influences are Natalia Leelavetchabutr of Nati's Cakes and Planet Cake. I'm very fortunate to have close personal relationships with both. The perfection Planet Cake produces each and every day has always amazed me and I can pick one of their designs out of a magazine any day.
Nati encouraged me to go forward and make cake my career, without her friendship and encouragement I would still be making kids cakes for free. It's brilliant having a best friend who is as insanely addicted to something as you are, it continually gives me someone to chat with, complain to and seek advice from.

Do you have any advice for others that wish to persue a similar path?
Start with your council if you are beginning at home, like so many of us do.
Make sure you charge a reasonable amount from the start, trying to up your prices later on is difficult. Never be embarressed to tell someone your price, they are under no obligation to buy from you, you are under no obligation to sell to them.

How do you approach each new cake you make?
I usually chat with the client, get an idea of any designs they may like and then try to come up with something that will reflect their style and ideas for their function.
I will often sketch up something quickly for them, and then draw up a better design later.
I like to make sure the design is something achievable and stylish, and most importantly, something my clients will be thrilled with.

Is there any particular technique that you are known for? How do you achieve this?
I guess most people would know me for my madhatters and the sharp edges, both of these are achieved by attending classes at Planet Cake with the Madhatter Queen Anna Marie Roche and being fortunate enough to now be a part of their team, which allows me great access to the brilliant skills of Handi Mulyana and Margie Carter as well.

Where do you wish to go in the future with you cake work?
I hope to continue teaching with Planet Cake in Melbourne and also expand my business.
I would also like to educate the public on how a fantastic looking cake can also taste amazing.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Barbie Birthday Cake

Last week was very special in the Hutchinson home as we celebrated Erin's 3rd birthday. Here is a photo of her Barbie cake. I chose to carve the cake as opposed to using a dolly varden tin as I think this gives a much better shape.
Here are Isaac and Erin just before we sang Happy Birthday.


Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Amazing Male Birthday Cakes

Today I want to quite simply show off! I'm so impressed with Alison's beautiful handpainting - bravo Ali you clever thing! This first cake was made for an avid Manchester United fan (obviously). The plaque is handpainted and completely edible.


The young man receiving this cake is going to be completely blown away by this cake I think. Jake is into ... you guessed it! Pig shooting! Isn't it perfect!I really love this cake.

It has a hand painted plaque and the cake has also been finished with hand painting to complete the look.




Monday, August 10, 2009

The talented Amy Atlas


I subscribe to the blog Sweet Designs A blog by Amy Atlas because her work is quite simply beautiful. She is all the way over in New York so we are left to admire from afar!

What I love most about Amy Atlas desert tables:
* Her use of colour. Amy is totally commited to the colour theme and it really is eye candy!
* The simplicity and cleanliness of the overall design. She always has the perfect amount on each table. Don't misunderstand I am not saying that what she has done is easy, in fact, I think she is quite genius. Each piece on the table is crisp and clean and finished but not over powering. She has her wow pieces but she ensures that every piece is not fighting for attention - as a whole they make the most beautiful scene.
* The way in which she uses the one design element across a variety of foods. For example you may see the pattern of a place card used as the basis of the design for the main cake and then a simpler version of the pattern on the cupcakes or cookies.
* The balance of her designs
* Her attention to detail. Whilst each element blends beautifully with the next a close examination will show that every piece has been thoughtfully presented whether it be the choice of plate, the paper pattern or the little labels. Each piece is perfectly finished.

Inspired by Invites


There are lots of things that inspire me in cake design and invitations are definitely high on the list. I came across the gorgeous website for Invite Me Scrumptious Stationary recently and it just delighted me to browse through.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Madhatter Wedding Cake

I made this madhatter cake for Natalie and Zachary's wedding this week. They are getting married on Saturday but wanted to pick the cake up today(Thursday) which is a really great idea as it saves money on delivery and doesn't leave all the running around til the last minute.

Natalie's mum was still getting over the fact that they weren't having a traditional wedding cake but both agreed the cake looked great and just what the couple were after!

There are many different ways that people make madhatters (or wonky/whimsical cakes as some like to call them). I am a big believer that the art of cake making is a way for the cake artist to express their own style and ideas but this madhatter shape is by far my favourite. The sharp edges and the carving just give a great wow factor.

To learn this style I attended at cake demo last year at Planet Cake and found it so useful. I'm not sure if they are running this as a demo any more but it is well worth attending a workshop.