What you may have missed...

You wouldn't believe what just happened, well actually you would, it happens to everyone. I went to post this big and very extensive post and the site crashed and I lost almost everything. There was that split second before I hit the button where I considered copying the text, but no, I had faith... how naive. I am now a little tired, which makes me forgetful so here is my best attempt at a recovered version, maybe time will be an improvement....

There is a short history to my cake design career, so why not take a quick look back before we go forward. Not only that, December 2010 was a fairly busy month for sweet creations and really I was a little late in getting this blog underway.

I can pretty much pinpoint the two moments that sent me down this road, about two years ago:

Moment 1.) Its my best friend's wedding coming up and her mum (Heather) is starting to get things organised. Its a DIY afair and everyone is pitching in. So I pipe up... 'Heath, what can I do for the wedding?' Casual as anything she replies, 'Rach, why don't you make the cake'. Oh... right. I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into.

Moment 2.) After a week of baking and designing and creating with the exceptional Yvonne by my side.... who was right there to help me before I even realised how far over my head I was in it..... I came out with this piece of ART. Thats what struck me... I didn't realise I would see it as art. I was so proud.

Here is the result of those defining moments:

It was almost exactly a year later before I made another professional cake. It took that amount of time to get my confidence up to make something for anyone other than my best friend, who would have loved anything I made. Once again, I was in complete awe. Partly that I managed to pull it off, there were many moments of doubt until it was all in one piece, and also how much I felt like I had created art rather than just a cake:

After completing that beauty I delved into a world of birthday cakes and learning how to figure out what people are looking for in their cake. Its an interesting balance between guiding them towards something that will look gorgeous and giving them what they want. I began to work with colour and mediums other than chocolate and berries. To sum it up... it was nerve wracking. I was constantly and fervently googling to find online tutorials on how to use different ingredients and make certain things... not that I don't still do that. Poor Stuart... not only does he calmly deal with my craziness and talks me down from the ledge as required, but he watches each cake walk out the door without so much as a small sample. Here are a few from this last year:

DECEMBER! Its a fabulous month... not only is it getting sunnier and warmer, but theres parties, celebrations, good drinking, good eating and plenty of time with family. It also inspires me to want to make goodies for anyone and everyone. I do have to reign myself in... I tried one year to do it all. While I loved the result and handing out bags of treats like Santa (very self satisfying)... it possibly wasn't worth being in my kitchen to the small wee hours coating chocolates and making (what felt like) hundreds of cookies. So this year I kept it simple... JUST chocolates, ONLY two flavours - mint and orange. It was very hard to stay within those confines, but I made it without straying into other exciting ventures that could have caused me having a small litter of kittens:

This is a 21st cake that I whipped up (but not really) for a party a week before Christmas:

Last but definately not least is a wee surprise engagement cake for our friends Craig and Charlotte. This was my first attempt at making little people. It might have not been the smartest idea to base these first little gems on people I know. But I think making them cartoon style probably saved me. The little buggers gave me some problems though - trying to keep their arms, legs and bodies all joined together and stopping them from sliding off the cake while the 'glue' dried was somewhat trying. I think I will chalk this one up to a success though, mainly because Charlotte was attached enough to the cake that she carried the top layer all the way home on the plane. Happy people = a good cake:

Phewww... we've made it to the end, it has certainly taken longer than expected. But we are now caught up on whats been happening. So whats next you ask? Many things infact... two cakes due in February. One that I only have SOME idea of how to make, lucky I have half of January off so I can figure it out! Also lucky that the recipient is well aware of this fact and infact likes choosing something I don't know much about, but more about him in another post. The other is going to be a rather large wedding cake for my cousin - I'm excited, I get to hang out in gorgeous Tasman Bay and spend a week making a cake (which I DO know how to make). There will be some secret squirrel elements for both, but I will share what I can, when I can. January and February will be full of cake adventures... stay tuned!