Sunday, June 28, 2009

Sometimes, it takes a village ......

I knew June 27th was going to be a busy cake day ... three weddings ... two had changed their reception start times to within 30 mins of each other. How was I going to get from Duluth to Cumming to Chamblee to Alpharetta ... decorate cakes in all spots ... all within two hours ??? You call on your friends ... that's how. Liz is a 2010 bride of mine ... Kelley is a 2007 bride of mine ... both, I consider friends.

I had a great cake prep week .... my new kitchen assistant, Shelby, took care of cleaning all of my pots/pans/bowls ... which believe it or not, really helps me alot and alleviates much stress leaving me with enough time to get my job (cakes) done. With the exception of 4 layers, all of the cakes were done late Friday night .. leaving only 4 layers to finish early Saturday morning. My project management experience of my pre-cake days really paid off this weekend. I created a timeline to get us thru the day .... and it worked. We all wore matching appropriate "cake lady" t-shirts (Clay is the Cake Wrangler; Liz/Kelley were the Cake Lady's assistants; and I, of course, am the Cake Lady).

We did it !!! All cakes were delivered safely and set up on time. Thank you Liz, Kelley, Shelby, and Clay ...... I'm sure we'll do this again soon.

Scipioni-Warchol, Windemere Golf Club, 6/27/9







The 1st of 3 deliveries ...

Oh my gosh, what a busy day !!! Liz and I headed to my first of three deliveries of the day ... Windemere Golf Club in Cumming, for the wedding and reception of Jen Scipioni and David Warchol While I was setting up their cake, I noticed David walking around, still in casual clothing and wearing a baseball cap. He made it over to the cake table to tell me how beautiful the cake looked and to thank me.



This was my first trip to Windemere ... I can see why it's popular .. the large room is simply decorated, large windows provide a beautiful golf course view .. giving any bride the opportunity to personalize it any way they want. Jen chose Aqua and Hot Pink and White as her color scheme. Tables had Aqua sashes / white linens / and her centerpieces were adorable ... picture white boxes, with a single aqua ribbon around the box and tied into a bow. The center of the box had a hurricane shade/candle and at the base of the hurricane in the box ... hot pink roses. Too cute. I'm sorry I didn't take a photo, but I know the photographer did - I'll try to get a copy and post it later. By the way, I think Jen's mom played a dual role of Mother of the Bride AND Florist.

The cake was also White/Hot Pink/Aqua .... white buttercream, bordered in hot pink and aqua ribbons. Everything looked so well put together. The cake design was my "Molly" design .. different dot design on each layer.

When we arrived, the heat of the day was causing the sky to darken ... and thunder rumbled .... but by the time we were finished, the "storm" went around us, leaving a warm sunny day for the outdoor ceremony of Jen and David.

This was a first time working with this vendor: BIG THANKS to Pam Jones of Paris Mountain Photography (www.parismountainphotog.com)for the quick turnaround on these cake pics ... great job !!! I'm sure I'll be seeing you again in the near future.
Clay has already left home and headed to the site of my second delivery ... and Liz and I follow.

Mach-Yee, China Delight, 6/27/9

MY PICK OF THE WEEKEND !!!!

and the 2nd of 3 deliveries ...

Liz and I arrive at China Delight ... 10 mins off schedule (not bad) ... to find Clay waiting for us in the parking lot. The cake was already inside, waiting for me to construct. Clay's knee was all skinned up however. My first question to him was not 'honey, are you ok?' but ... "Did you fall with a cake in your hands?" He assured me he did it all buy himself .. no cake layer was involved. PHEW !!! (he and his knee are fine).

China Delight is located on Chamblee-Tucker Road. By day, the building is white, with a blue roof. By night, however, it changes into a Neon red/green/yellow building. It is on a dark stretch of the road ... hardly any lighting. I'm sure the owners of China Delight felt they had to make it stand out and be noticed .. and they did. You can't miss it. Once you get out of your car, the aroma draws you inside. YUM YUM YUM.





I think Tuquen Mach and Benny Yee had three ceremonies ... the first was held in the morning and was a traditional asian ceremony; the second held early afternoon for immediate family; and the third was later in the afternoon .... so after all the formality, it was time to celebrate. Tuquen hired John Bravy (Go With The Flow DJ services) to provide the music and Ally Haggerty (Unforgettable Soirees) to make sure everything happened that was supposed to.


I was looking forward to this one. The cake looked great in my refrigerator ... each tier on a different shelf .. I knew it would look great all together. Tuquen came to me with a set design in mind. A delicate twig with baby pink and hot pink flowers, bordered in hot pink ribbon.


It was tough to take a photo of this cake ... as it was on a "stage", on a table, and 5-tiers tall. I hope Tuquen was pleased.



Best wishes, Tuquen and Benny.


I had sent Clay off to meet up with Kelley who was delivering the 3rd and final cake of the day. Liz and I headed to ... The Arbors.

Siewart-Anderson, The Arbors, 6/27/9

The third and final delivery of the day ....


We (Liz and I) arrive at The Arbors. Kelley and Clay were already there ... the cakes were already inside. I got straight to work constructing a cake I call "All Dressed Up" for April Siewart and Josh Anderson. April chose a moss green color for the triple fold ribbon detail. It's a pretty cake.

Once constructed, it was time to place the flowers. I asked the staff at The Arbors for the cake floral ... they looked around and we all determined it was the large yellow and white roses the florist had left that looked like a border at the base of the cake. Those roses would have been fine, but the florist had totally cut the stems off each rose, leaving just the head of the flower. I checked my paperwork, and realized that the bride wanted white roses with green hydrangea on her cake ... there was no hydrangea left for me to use, so we improvised. First, we inserted toothpicks into the white roses to give me something to anchor the roses into/on the cake. Then we carefully snipped green hydrangea from the centerpieces to give me enough for the cake - I'm sure no one noticed. We turned the stemless yellow roses into beautiful rose petals.

When I went back for the plateau later in the evening (11:00), their DJ had every single person up and moving. I didn't even get a chance to sneak a peak at the happy couple.

Best wishes, April and Josh.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Ryans-Foreman, Lambert Place, 6/20/9

Lindsay Ryans and Darren Foreman's ceremony and reception was held at Lambert Place.

Each tier had a different design ... the top had alternating rusty red and white dots ... second layer had a single dot design in white .. third layer was embellished with a satin bow and gorgeous broche ... fourth layer was my quilt design.

Looked lovely when it was all set and flowers placed.

Pro shots provided by Lindsay (the bride).
THANK YOU !!!

Hallman-Weiss, Magnolia Hall, 6/19/9


Bria Hallman and Aaron Weiss married on Hilton Head Island with immediate family present. The big party for all who couldn't attend the original ceremony was held at Magnolia Hall.

The outdoor temperature (according to my truck) was 101 degrees !!! But when we opened the door of Magnolia Hall .. the air was so refreshing. NICE !!!

Bria wanted an all-over scroll design on her cake. Her florist did a great job placing peachy-orange gerbera daisies and green roses.
Exactly one week later, I have pro-pics to share. Not all of Bria's pictures are ready, but her photographer sent these early for my blog .... Thank you, Robin Goucher (www.robingaucher.com)

FAREWELL ......ART PINNEY

June 6th may well have been the last time that I get the chance to work with Art Pinney Photography (http://www.artpinney.com/). He and his family are going home ... to Seattle in a couple of weeks. Although I wish him my very best for a safe trip, smooth move, and success in Seattle .... it certainly will be Atlanta's wedding industry loss. Art Pinney is an artist, his camera is his brush.

Thank you, Art .............. you never fail to make my cakes look incredible (not to mention what you did for the many brides that had the good fortune to hire you).

I have updated the following post with pro pics from Art Pinney.
- McIver-Perry, Country Club of the South, 6/6/9

I've also updated ... Photo Gallery - 2009

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

*** NEW *** NON-WEDDING SECTIONS

I receive many emails and phonecalls for cake requests other than weddings. So to give you some ideas for a child's next birthday party; or if you're giving a baby shower and need ideas for the cake; or perhaps you just want a pretty cake for some occasion.... and to just show you some "non-wedding" cakes that I've done .... take a look at a couple of new sections:


KIDS CORNER will have cakes of all kinds specifically created for Children of all ages.
BABYCAKES will have cakes created for baby showers
PULL-A-PART CAKES ... made from cupcakes ... just grab n' go ... no cake cutting needed.
HELLO, CUPCAKE !!! Cupcake designs for all occasions.
***NEW *** JUST PLAIN PRETTY ... these were created for bridal showers, feminine birthdays, etc.
COLLEGE ... Looking for a college logo ?
PRO LEAGUE .... My interpretation of pro-Baseball / Hockey / Football logo's
*** NEW *** JUST FOR FUN .. I didn't really have a category for these, but they are fun cakes.

Some are still under construction, but I'll have them up soon.

I hope you enjoy browsing .....

NWR Cakes: JUST FOR FUN
















NWR Cakes: JUST PLAIN PRETTY
























































NWR Cakes: PRO LEAGUE
















NWR Cakes: COLLEGE BOUND










































































































NWR Cakes: PULL-A-PART CUPCAKES CAKES









A different "cake" for fun celebrations ... made out of cupcakes, frosted flat with a design on top. Grab a cupcake and go .. no "cutting of the cake" needed. Perfect for birthday celebrations or fun celebrations of any kind .....












Be sure to heck back for future updates.

NWR Cakes: HELLO, CUPCAKE !!!

Cupcake Anyone ???? These are a great grab n' go kind of dessert. Perfect for any occasion.