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12 BAKING ~ DECORATING ~ SHARING

Cake MastersAWARDS2012

Cake International Special

Christmas CakeFeature

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Editor

ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

BAKING ~ DECORATING ~ SHARING

2012 has been a great year filled with some amazing cakey stories, competitions and events.This issue is jam packed with the usual articles and tutorials to inspire you over the festive season. I love pulling together the magazine every issue and especially love interacting with the online cake community. There are so many of you lovely people out there, it has been an honor to meet and talk to so many of you over this past year.

Highlights for me have been the London Cake Crawl, Cake and Bake Show, filming at Cake International and our amazing entries into the vintage cupcake competition earlier this year. The biggest achievement for us at Cake Masters was the launch of this online magazine. The magazine was really supposed to be a quick newsletter each month, showcasing awesome cakes posted on our wall, but it has evolved into an amazing rather glamorous magazine, which we want to keep free and online so that it is accessible to all.

This issue is packed with great articles, photos of your cakes, tutorials and special features. We have a feature on Cake International, where we have included some of the cakes on display and with profiles of the people who made the cakes. Not only can you marvel at amazing cakes entered, but also find out a little more about the person behind the cake. As an additional special feature, we have an exclusive short video of the highlights at Cake International too - see if you can spot yourself J Another special in this issue is the Christmas Cake feature, where we have displayed some of the best designed cakes, sugar figures, cookies and cupcakes. Thank you to everyone who emailed in with their designs, we did our best to showcase as many as possible. Another exciting feature are the Awards for 2012, I hope you join me in congratulating our winners.

Before I go, I just wanted to say a few thank yous.

Thanks to Michelle from Hat Trick Strategies, without your help we wouldn’t have this magazine! Cake by Chantelle for being our fabulous cover for this issuehanks to Posey Furnish, who has for the second time now written us a great articleA special thanks to Kathy Boynton who shared her gingerbread story with usCharmaine for the excellent tutorial and business articleZach, our new guy for helping out with our magazineKamran for great video production servicesAnd LASTLY To ALL our contributors who make the magazine simply awesome!

Merry Christmas and nest wishes for 2013

Rosie x

Cake Masters Christmas Issue

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The Making of the GingerbreadSnow Globe

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ChristmasCake

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Cake International Feature ~ Page 4Christmas Wish List ~ Page 12Gingerbread Snow Globe ~ Page 14Christmas Bauble Tutorial ~ Page 18Christmas Cookie Tutorials ~ 23Cake News ~ Page 24Guest Columnist - Michaela Saunders ~ Page 25Spotted ~ Page 26Finishing Touches ~ Page 28Cake Masters Awards 2012 ~ Page 30 Christmas Caking Around the World ~ Page 40Beaconsfield High School Christmas Bake Off ~ Page 42Business By Charmaine ~ Page 45Christmas Cake Special ~ 47

Cake International

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Feature

@CAKE INTERNATIONALWe had an great time at Cake International this November at the Birmingham NEC. Cake International is the show of the year that people look forward to - it is a sugarcraft extravaganza all under one roof. The cakes entered this year were fantastic and we loved taking in all the detail. We have managed to pull together a feature on Cake International including interviews from competitors, as we always see the cake, but have no idea who the face behind the cake is. I hope you enjoy this feature as much as we loved putting it together!

Additionally on the day, we were running around with a camera crew and microphone interviewing you and the exhibitors as well as speaking to some competitors that entered cakes into various competitions.

Thanks to Kamran Yasin for producing an excellent video!

Watch NOW!

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Feature

I really got into cake decorating by accident and should I say it found me. I began my career as a Chef working through various establishments. As I progressed through the levels I always had a soft spot for the pastry side of the kitchen without ever giving cake decorating a thought. Obviously as a Chef I was asked at times from family and friends if I could make a cake and of course I obliged but on a very simple scale. It wasn't until I landed a job in the west end of London that it was here it slowly began to become a passion and a labour of love. I was asked here to make a birthday cake for the owner of the company and this is where I immersed myself fully into the sugar world! I started to teach myself making my fair share of mistakes and I plucked up the courage one day to enter the novelty class at Hotel Olympia London 2010. After a stressful and challenging few weeks I delivered my entry and came back the following day to see what I had been awarded. Upon walking to my exhibit I thought I was awarded a bronze and I was already buzzing with excitement that I had achieved this, but on getting closer I saw those magical letters GOLD, I reckon I must have jumped ten foot in the air with the biggest shout and this lit the fire in me! From then I knew I wanted to be a cake designer so "The Pukka Cake Parlour" was born.

The Pukka Cake ParlourNick Smith*BEST IN SHOW*

I'm 41 years old and have 2 daughters aged 17 and 7. I started making cakes in May 2010 - the first one was for my nan’s 97th birthday - she'd always made mine growing up. I'd been telling her about how I'd been making fairy cakes with my youngest who was then 4, when she requested that I make her a birthday cake.It was the only cake of mine that she ever saw as she sadly passed away a month later. I will always be so happy that I made that cake for her! In November 2011 I gave up my full time job as an account manager for a hospital linen services company and opened my own cake shop and cupcake cafe in January 2012.

Designa CakeKaren Bill*GOLD*

Designa Cake

The Pukka Cake Parlour

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Feature Vicki Louise Smith*SILVER*

I’m an artist and have always been creative by exploring new medias to express art. Two years ago my partner’s birthday cake made by somebody else was a disaster, so I decided to have a go myself. It turned out that good that I carried on making cakes. I love the challenge of making something different, unique and realistic in an edible form.It was difficult to get the cake to say as a whole cake without internal supports. I spoke to the judge afterwards and he said that if the cake wasn’t damaged I could have got higher.

This was my first time entering the show and I am excited to enter next year at Manchester and Birmingham

Melys Cake DesignWayne Price*GOLD*

Vix ArtThe cake before the damage

I am 42 and from North Wales, Dad of 2 girls and married for 22 years. Melys Cake Design is my trading name and the word 'Melys' is the Welsh word for 'Sweet'. I currently work full time for a Structural Engineering Company and make the cakes evenings and weekends as a 'hobby' so lots of very late nights and NO spare time.

I entered my Liverpool FC royal iced cake and it won a Gold which I was head over heels with on my first NEC competition entry!

Melys Cake Design

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FeatureDeborah Harwood*GOLD*

Vix ArtThe cake before the damage

I'm Deborah Harwood and I have been making cakes for about ten years. I don't currently have a business and a Facebook Page is coming after much pressure from my cake fans! Most of my work comes from word of mouth and I do many charity cakes to raise money. It's difficult to commit full time with cakes as my other passion is silversmithing.

I don't make your everyday cake and always like to create a story within my work therefore Handbag and Shoes were totally out of the question for my competition piece and a shop was a perfect choice. This cake took me around 5 weeks, 3 of those making the handbags and shoes. In fact I got too carried away and had to stop! I had a few challenges, hoping that the window aperture wouldn't collapse as internal supports were not allowed. But the biggest challenge was the 3 hour journey to Birmingham praying it wouldn't collapse on the way! The relief was immense!

This was my first entry into Cake International and I'm so pleased with my achievements as it got me a Gold and 2nd in category. What on earth will I come up with for next year?!

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FeatureMy Little Shop of CakesVanessa Mahy*GOLD*

My Little Shop of Cakes

I have been baking and designing cakes for over 20 years. Completely self-taught, I initially specialised in Royal iced paintings, then over time I have expanded my knowledge and now I can put my hand to most styles, most recently making shoes and handbags! I love new challenges and that’s why I have started entering competitions, I always want to improve my skills and seeing other people’s fantastic cakes always sets me new goals. All my cakes are bespoke, and I spend a lot of time working on each design before I even think about getting the icing out. I hope this is why people keep coming back to me, it’s that extra personal detail I give to each design to create a WOW cake! It’s also the taste, fluffy vanilla sponges, and rich chocolate cakes what more do you want in life.It took most evenings and weekends over a 3 week period, it takes time as you have to do it stage by stage and let things dry fully – I had to be patient! I have always been a bit of a tomboy and love the outdoor life, so a ‘his and hers’ boots seemed a good choice, and they are very ‘now’ at the moment. My boots are more likely to look like the guys than the floral pair!!

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Feature

The Clever Little Cupcake Company

The Clever Little Cupcake CompanyAmanda Mumbray*GOLD & SILVER*

I have been making cakes since my kids were very small, but only very amateur cakes for their birthdays, as most Mums do. I started seriously just over two years ago when I made cupcakes for my husband’s birthday and got a quip from him “they’re good, but not as good as a lady at work”. I was quite cross, but when I saw hers, I was amazed at the endless possibilities that cupcakes could offer, and how detailed I was prepared to go with them. A few months later, I started on the cake side and it has blossomed from there. I have had no formal training, apart from a modeling course at Slattery’s, making human figures. The design inspiration for my entry at CI was a pair of rockabilly shoes I saw on line. I wanted to make something less traditional and more youthful. I based the handbag cake on a bag by Irregular Choice, but changed bits on it to match the shoes. I had a big gap on the board, so decided to make a set of sugar keys modelled on my own. The cake took about 6 hours to make, including the decorations. The shoes also took about 6 hours. It was my first carved cake, and I had a few sleepless nights about how I was going to do it, but it was pretty easy once I had made the templates. The biggest challenge was lifting the decorated cake on to the cake board! It was first time visiting and entering Cake International, and I was absolutely delighted to have won Gold. My daughter also entered. She was 9 at the time of the show (she has just turned 10 – yesterday!). Her cake was a dummy, which she iced herself and made all the decorations for. She has been making a few bits and pieces from sugar for about a year, and is very creative. Her cake took about 4 hours. She won a silver medal.

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Feature

Nuthouse Bakery

Two years ago I walked away from my international career and spent the following 6 months prepping to set up my own cake business. In October 2011 I started making cakes and taught my first class and from there my business has grown. I entered my first competition in May this year, Telford British Sugar Craft Show and got a Bronze. This year I decided to enter Cake International and came home with 2 bronzes and a silver, I could not have been happier!

Nuthouse BakeryLaura Nolan

*BRONZE & SILVER*

I was born in Temple Cloud on the outskirts of Bristol, where I lived with my parents up to the age of 18. From there I moved to Doncaster to pursue my career in the Health & Safety environment, over the next 10 years I worked for 2 companies as their H&S and Environmental Officers. Baking has always been a strong passion of mine, whether it was helping alongside my mother or in my spare time to provide an arrangement of food for friends and family for special occasions. During my tenure as an H&S Officer I enrolled onto a course at Doncaster College during the summer of 2011, successfully completing with a distinction in Sugar Craft in my first year. I am now well into my second year and continually improving my skills each step of the way. I was recently made redundant unexpectedly from my employer; this has amplified my drive and determination to start my own business. The business is now in the early stages of development, with the ever-increasing demand for ‘Miss Abe’s Cakes’ customers keep coming back.

Miss Abes CakesAbigail Webb*SILVER*

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Miss Abe’s Cakes

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Feature

Lady B’s Cupcakery

Lady Bs CupcakeryJune Brett*GOLD*

I'm a mum of two, wife, part time accountant and cake artist. I started playing in the world of sugar after my son was born last year, just for my sisters wedding and then a few friends birthday cakes and then the obsession took over.I'm dizzy, full of crazy ideas, very forgetful, but a really good friend :-)

B’

I started my cake journey in May 2011 when I made my first cake for my daughter’s birthday. It went down really well and soon people at work started to ask me to make cupcakes. This is where my desire and passion for all things cake grew.

Very quickly I reached a point where I had to choose between work and my passion. I took the plunge and Lady B’s Cupcakery was born in December 1st 2011.

I have had an incredible year and I cant wait to see what the next 12 months brings.

Cakes by HeatherHeather Bicknell*BRONZE*

Cakes by Heather Jane

Kathryns Homemade CakesKathryn Matthews*SILVER* I was persuaded to enter by a fellow tweeter Julie Gibson (@icemaidencakes) and

didn't really know what to expect. I have never entered a competition with my cakes before and am completely self taught, so had serious doubts about my abilities and if it would be worthy of a merit certificate. As the results took so long to come out on the saturday, I initially thought I hadn't received anything for it and was a bit down in the dumps. My friend Julie texted me a picture and it was the longest few seconds ever as I waited for it to download!!! I won a silver!!!!!! I have never been so shocked!

Kathryn’s Homemade Cakes

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W!h L!tChristmas

From left to right:Prestige sharp top edger £7.99, Non Pareils - Christmas Assortment £1.50, The FULL Sugarflair gel food colouring set of 36 £52.75, Reindeer and Christmas pudding transfer sheet £2.99, Patterned Hearts Mould £6.95 High strength natural flavours - Citrus collection £24.00

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From left to right:Earlene Ruth by Silicone Plastique £13.99, Patchwork Robbin cutter £2.75 Cupcake Lace Mats £17.50, Springerle Cookie Mould £24.95, 32 piece flower making set with book £12.99, Batifolage Print Chocolate Transfer Sheet £2.99

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Gingerbread Sn w GlobeFeature

When we first saw this excellent gingerbread creation, we thought that it was a neon edible image of a church that had been stuck on the front of the snow globe. Upon closer examination, we were astounded to find that inside the hollow gingerbread snow globe was a gingerbread house!

Exclusive to Cake Masters readers, we caught up with Kathy Boynton the architect of this amazing gingerbread creation.

Q:Tell us a little bit about youI married my Junior High School sweetheart 40 years ago today, December 8th. We had two beautiful children, Sandy who is married to Bobby with two children of her own - Taylor 15, and Austin age 11. Our late son Gary Joseph gave us a wonderful grandson Gary Tyler who is 13. My family is my life and grandchildren are the icing on the cake. My family and I moved to Fawn Grove, Pennsylvania from Baltimore, Maryland in 1990. Along with the move came a new job for me. After answering an ad in the newspaper for a cake decorating position at Klein's Family Market I got an interview with Mrs. Klein. I took pictures of my work to the interview and was hired on the spot.

I was an electrical drafts person prior to our move to Pennsylvania. The only cake decorating experience I had was making cakes for my family and friends.

I'm still at that job and still love what I do. I am truly blessed to work for the Klein's. They allow me to be creative and in turn I have very loyal customers. In fact I'm now making their grandchildren's specialty cakes. It is very rewarding to know your hard work is giving people joy. Time just flies when you're having fun.

My sister Bette and I took a 6 week cake decorating course together at The Cake Cottage in Fulerton, Maryland back in 1986. My initial intent behind taking that six week cake decorating course was to get good enough to make my own daughters wedding cake. That dream >>Kathy with her husband Gary

who is her biggest fan!

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>> came true in 1994. It turned out to be an ten tier cake with a fountain that took eleven hours to construct. Every tier was a different variety of cake.

Q: Tell us about your relationship with GingerbreadNow gingerbread is a different story. As much as I love cake decorating and its diversity, I love the challenge gingerbread gives me. Everything is from scratch and from my own imagination, which can be dangerous a times! Gingerbread to me denotes fond memories of when my Mom would take me to our local bakery as a child. I can still remember oogling over the decorated gingerbread people she would buy me one every once in awhile and would just admire them for hours.

It was in 1987 that a friend of mine invited me to a free gingerbread house demonstration at our local library. All I can say to that is that there have been gingerbread houses every year since! I've been in a few contests and won a few ribbons. I even badgered a few cake decorating co-workers of mine into joining me in a contest at the Fawn Grove Fire Station's Annual Craft Show one year. We all chose different themes on purpose to reduce the competitive edge and tomake it more fun. Let me see now, we had a church, a barn, a bakery, a Hansel and Gretel house and the Little Old Lady that lived in a shoe house. The shoe house was my son's girlfriend, Chelli's ingenious idea.

Chelli was the only one who wasn't a cake decorator by trade. They all turned out gorgeous. We wowed this quaint little town with our talent that year. Great times and great memories.

Q: Where does your inspiration come from?Pinterest is my new addiction. I can surf till my hearts content and my eyes start burning. That is where I'm always looking for inspiration and that is where I found a similar gingerbread globe that started my imagination running for my own version of a Christmas globe.

Follow Kathy on Pinterest

Q: Tell us about the globe and how you made itMy search started for 3-D round baking pans for the globe. The only thing my search came up with was Wilton's 3-D Sports Ball Pan Set. It was only 6" in diameter and I really wanted an 8" round globe but had to settle for the 6"pans. I greased the outside of the pans and draped my cookie dough over the top gingerly (no pun intended!). I then trimmed the dough a little above the bottom of the pans to leave room for it to spread while it baked. I then used a circle cookie cutter and cut a 1/2 circle from what would be the front of the globe. Once I determined how much height I had to work with inside I designed my miniature church.

I started with a small match box and built around it. It worked perfectly. My personal preference for shingles on a gingerbread house has always been Neco wafers.

To emulate those wafers for my miniature church I found that some egg shaped pastel quins, used as sprinkleson cupcakes, fit for the exact ratio for what I wanted for mychurch roof. The stained glass windowswere cut from white

fondant with a flower cutter I have from a Wilton flower making set I purchased years ago. I trimmed them down to size and after they were dry I drew on the colors of the stained glass with Wilton edible markers. The tiny trees around the church were made from green fondant stuffed up inside a #4 pastry tip. They turned out to be the perfect size that I needed. After they dried I wet them down and rolled them in Christmas colored nonpareils. The tiny stars atop the trees are also quins.

I always wanted to make a mini at gingerbread house

village but could never come up

with the perfect

>>

The wedding cake!

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>> format to display it. I think I achieved that with the globe this year. Q: How did you assemble the snowglobe?So at this point I had 2 half spheres with a circle cut out of the front. I iced the inside of both spheres with royal icing to preserve their roundness from the humidity factor and to make the globe sturdier. The 4" round flat interior base got iced underneath too for stability and to keep it from warping. Now the tricky part. How to cover the inside seam of the ball so it's not so evident there is it two half sphere when people pier in at the church. I wanted a finished looking background for the church. I learned a new trick this year from a webinar class I watched online. Sheila Miller uses a Dremel tool to sand down the edges of her gingerbread to make them fit perfectly. So I decided to try it and I loved the results! Even dried royal icing can be safely sanded with the Dremel tool. It is now my new favorite tool for gingerbread. The spheres fit together well but not perfect enough for me. I decided to add some snowflake wafers to the bottom half of the globe on the seam edge but I attached them higher than the sides so that when the top part of the globe was attached the seam

wouldn't be obvious to the naked eye. I then finished decorating the 4" inner base with the completed church and trees. I sanded off two openings on the base to allow the LED lights to shine through to illuminate the inside of the globe and make the church scene glow. Next, I decorated the outside of the bottom sphere with the scroll work before I finished off the inside only because it was just easier to work with that way. After that all dried I glued the top sphere to the bottom with royal icing, the outer seam was then covered using a #16 star tip in a zig zag design and poinsettias and holly leaves made from gumpaste were used to adorn the globe. The outside platform the globe is resting on was made from gingerbread cookie dough draped over a small Corelle bowl and baked. It required support putting the completed globe on it so I filled the inner gap with stacked cookies iced with royal icing for stability. Ask me how I know to do this?...Yup, I had to make two.

“My first attempt caved it. The only good thing about that is you get to eat your mistakes!”

I like the look of scroll work on gingerbread. The final touch was my favorite candy, a Reesey cup on top with a stringed piece of gumpaste stuck in the top to make the globe resemble a Christmas ball. Q: How long did it take?A common question that is hard to determine. I did try to log my time spent this year but it's still only an estimate. Approximately 40hrs was spent from the designing, the mixing, the rolling, the assembling and the decorating. All a labor of love, sponsored by my employer Klein's ShopRite and donated to The Chesapeake Cancer Alliance for their annual fund raiser. Q: Did you win a prize for your creation?The globe didn't win any ribbons this year. I'm not sure why. But I got my thanks when the person who won the silent auction for my church globe came specifically to my store to tell me how much she and her grandaughter absolutely loved the house. It made my day and reminded me of what it is truly all about.

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Tutorial from Charmaine from By Charmaine

Tuto"alChristmas Bauble

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You  will  need:2  mini  ball  halves  (I  use  the  Wilton  Mini  Ball  pan  and  a  Madeira  cake  recipe)50g  buttercreamSharp  knifePastry  cutter400g  blue  coloured  fondantSpacers2  smoothersPearl  and  Ice  Blue  Luster  DustSmall  bowl  and  large  brush  for  dusting

Christmas Bauble Tutorial

Step  1Trim  the  ball  halves  using  the  top  of   the  baking   pan   as   a   leveller.     Stick   the   two  halves   together   using   some   of   your  buttercream,  use  the  remainder  to  crumb  coat   the   entire   ball   and   place   in   the  fridge  overnight.  Colour   your   fondant  and   wrap   in   cling-­‐film,  place  in  an  airtight  container  or  bag  to  stop  it  drying  out.

Step  2Once   your   crumb   coating   is   hard   use  your  spacers  to  roll  out  a  circle  of  fondant  5mm  thick,  lay  over  the  top  of  your  ball.

Tutorial from Charmaine from By Charmaine

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Christmas Bauble Tutorial

Step  3Use  the  palms  of  your  hands  to  smooth  the  fondant  around  the  ball,  use  upward  strokes  to  prevent  gathering  creases  at  the  base.    If  you  do  get  creases  then  gently  lift  the  fondant  *do  not  pull*  and  level  out  before  smoothing  back  onto  the  cake.

Step  5Use   the   palms   of   your   hands   and   then  the   2   smoothers   to   remove   any   lumps,  bumps   and  creases.     The  weight   of   the  cake   will   create   a   flat   bottom;   help   to  prevent  this  by  placing  the  ball  on  a  soft,  foam  drying   pad   and  moulding   the  very  bottom   edge   under   the   ball   with   your  fingertips.

Step  4Gather   the   fondant   at   the   base   of   your  ball   and   use   your   pastry   cutter   to   cut  away  the  excess.

Tutorial from Charmaine from By Charmaine

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Christmas Bauble Tutorial

Step  6Mix  up  some  pearl  and  ice  blue  luster  dust   in  a   small  bowl  and  use   a   large   brush   applicator   (I  use   a   clean   make-­‐up   brush)   to  apply  all  over  the  ball  in  circular  movements.

Step  7Take   a   small   piece   of   the   fondant   and   roll   into   a  sausage   1.5cm   long,  bend   in   the  middle,  level  off   the  bottom  ends  and  set  aside  to  dry.Roll   the   remaining   fondant   into   a   short,   fat   sausage  and   flatten   both   ends.     Use   the   other   end   of   your  paintbrush  or  a  palette  knife  to  score  lines  around  the  outside   of   the   sausage  then  press   your   ball   tool   into  the   top   to   make   an   indent.     Glue   the   smaller   bent  piece  into  the  indent  to  make  the  hanging  piece.    Mix  a   small   amount   of   gold   luster   dust   and   rejuvenator  spirit  to  make  paint  and  use  the  brush  to   colour  it  all  gold  –  leave  to  dry.

To   make   the   bauble   cap  you  will  need:Large   marble   size   piece   of  white  fondant.Gold  Luster  dustRejuvenator  spiritPaint  brushLarge  ball  toolEdible  glue  and  brushPalette  knife  (optional)

Tutorial from Charmaine from By Charmaine

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Christmas Bauble Tutorial

Step  8Roll  out   the   florist   paste   on   your  board  and  cut  4   icicles,  use   the  glue  and  brush  to   stick   these   into   position   on   your  bauble   before   they   harden.     Using   a  touch   of   glue   position   your   white   non-­‐pareils  around  the  icicles.    Mix  up  a  pearl  luster   paint   using   the   rejuvenator   spirit  and  paint  the  icicles  to  give  them  a  shine.    Attached  your  dry  bauble  cap  to   the  top  of  the  cake.

Step  8Step   back   and   admire   your   finished  creation!

Tutorial from Charmaine from By Charmaine

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Cookie Tutorials

Tutorial from Glorious Treats

Tutorial from Bubble and Sweet

Tutorial from Sweetopia

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Cake News

Share your news with us!magazine@cakemasters.co.uk

Our lovely helper Clare from Miss Fitz Cakery has a brother in the awesome band “The Robbie Boyd Band”.She got to make some cupcakes with the band’s logo on it and naturally they were taken with the band onto the set of This Morning! The fabulous Gino D’Acampo and Phillip Schofield ate her cakes and said how delicious the cakes were! Way to go Clare!

Some words from Robbie“We made our television debut playing 'I Won't Let You Go' live on ITV's This Morning just before we went on tour to Argentina, so that was an amazing week for us. It was really great to meet Holly and Phil, and we met Michael Parkinson too, which was awesome! Apparently 1.3 million people were watching us perform, so for an unsigned band that was pretty incredible exposure! We

Gin

o w

ith C

lare

’s cu

pcak

e!

The Robbie Boyd Band on This Morning

My name is Deborah Harris from Lincoln, aged 49. Married with 2 children, Liam aged 26 and Danielle aged 23. Grandma to 2 wonderful children - William and George. I don't have a cake business as such, but have always been interested in making cake and eating them of course! My son Liam, has Cystic Fibrosis. Although Liam has this disease, it has never stopped him doing anything. He is married to Nicola and they have a lovely little boy William who will be 3 in January. Liam lives life to the full, he works full time, plays snooker every week, goes to football matches and in his spare time has done all the work in his own home mainly on his own, this includes, plumbing a new bathroom in, fitting a kitchen, tiling, laying floors and decorating. Liam always gives more than 100% in everything he does. He has now decided it is his turn to raise much needed funds for Cystic Fibrosis. Along with a friend with CF, Liam is arranging a Charity Valentine's Ball on 9th Feb 2013 for Cystic Fibrosis. He is aiming to raise several thousands of pounds during this evening from sponsorships, auction prizes and raffle prizes. My part - I have volunteered to make approximately 350 cupcakes as a thank you gift for everyone on the night. In order for me to do this, and in order that we spend as little as possible and raise as much money as possible, I am asking if there are any kind people out there that may be able to help with the donation of a few things. I need large cupcake cases (red/pink/silver - to keep in with valentine/CF colours), clear individual cupcake pods to present the cakes in and to enable people to take them home undamaged and also thin red ribbon to attach the gift tags to the pods, also any ingredients to make the vanilla/choc cupcakes. If anyone has any oddments or spare items they are willing to donate, that would be fantastic, it doesn't matter how many, any amount would be very much appreciated.

Request for help!

Liam is also looking for sponsorship for the evening, in the form of event sponsorship, individual table sponsorship, wine and photographer sponsorship. He is also looking for auction prizes and raffle prizes for the evening. If anyone can help with any of the above requests, or requires any further info please contact me on 07904 868974 or email me at deborahharris100@hotmail.comThanks!

Deborah and her daughter Danielle

Liam, wife Nicola,son William

Liam with hisnephew George

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News

The  Exple)ves  Of  A  Stressed  Out  Mum

Ok,  I  do  cakes  for  people  now  and  then,  and  I’ve  got  4  kids,  yes  it’s  my  own  fault,  I  know.    On  both  counts!  Perhaps  this  piece  should  be  called,  “Just  Say  No!”

And  we  tend  to  put  kids  and  cakes  together  in  the  same  head  space  automatically,  mainly  I  guess  because  we’re  usually  making  a  cake  for  a  kid.    But  in  reality,  they  just  don’t  go  together  at  all…well  not  in  my  house.Let  me  explain.

Despite  my  best  efforts  to  get  cake  work  done  during  school  hours,  somehow  time  always  beats  me.  “Get  ahead”  I  always  say.  Get  all  the  flowers,  figures  and  other  paraphernalia  that  goes  on  top,  done  and  dusted  in  advance  so  it  has  time  to  dry  out…right?  Yeah.  Right.  But  something  always  crops  up  and  that  usually  means    that  they’re  still  “in  progress”,  and  worst  of  all,  on  display,  when  the  kids  come  in.  Not  good  news.  

At  the  crack  of  4pm,  they’re  stampeding  through  the  kitchen  like  migrating  wildebeest,  the  fridge  is  opening  and  closing  like  the  dunnie  door  in  a  high  wind,  there  are  drinks  on  the  go,  they’re  stealing  biscuits,  the  dinner’s  cooking,  the  littlest  is  charging  round  on  his  car  and  in  the  midst  of  all  this,  I  can’t  help  myself!  The  sane  person  would  give  up  and  pack  up.  But  no,  I  have  to  try  to  get  the  decorations  finished!  Lunacy!  So  you  know  what’s  coming,  my  patience  is  tested  to  breaking  point  and  what  goes  on  in  my  head,  most  definitely  cannot  come  out  of  my  mouth.  It’s  a  struggle  sometimes!  

This  was  the  chain  of  events  whilst  making  cupcake  toppers  for  my  mum’s  80th.

7  year  old  Child:  “Mummy,  can  I  help?”  Me:  (in  my  head)  “You  have  GOT  to  be  kidding”  (out  loud)  “No  that’s  alright  darling,  I’m  just  about  finished  anyway…”  (in  my  head)  “Now  s**  off  and  leave  me  alone  I’m  probably  going  to  be  here  all  night”.  

The  first  child  leaves  and  the  next  arrives.

4  year  old  Child:  “Playdoh!  I  want  to  do  it”  …(jumps  up  on  a  step  stool  and  grabs  the  nearest  cutter)Me:  (in  my  head)  “No  No  NO!  Get  out  of  it!  …”  (out  loud)    “Here  you  have  this  bit  –  over  there”  (in  my  head)  “and  don’t  you  DARE  come  near  mine!”

(Five  minutes  of  tense  peace  til  littl’un  gets  bored  and  trots  off.)

7  year  old  Child  (back  again):  “Oooh  that  looks  lovely”…  (fingers  go  straight  into  what  was  perfect  icing.)Me:  (in  my  head)  “The  next  time  you  touch  that  I’m  taking  your  finger  off  with  my  craft  knife”…(out  loud  and  through  gritted  teeth)  “Please-­‐Don’t-­‐Touch!”  (child  leaves  room  on  verge  of  tears  at  this  point)

(Distant  snivelling….then  the  arrival  of  the  next  visitor).

11  year  old  Child  (boy):  “Mum,  what  are  you  doing?”  There  are  about  40  moulded  flowers  drying  on  the  foam  mat.  Me:  (in  my  head)  “I’m  painting  a  bl***dy  wall,  what  does  it  look  like?”  (out  loud)  “Flowers!?”He  sneezes  over  the  whole  lot,  three  times.Me:  (in  my  head)  “F***  a  doodle  do!  They’re  going  in  the  bin  then,  make  that  another  3  am  finish”  …(out  loud)  “OMG….GET  OUUUUT!”    

(Yet  again  child  runs  from  the  room  crying…oooh  nasty  mummy!)

I  love  my  children  more  than  anything  in  the  world,  but  kids  and  cakes?….hmm!It’s  taken  a  bit  of  work  to  train  them,  but  they  know  better  now.  Shame  one  of  them  is  missing  a  finger  on  the  right  hand,  but  hey  he  didn’t  want  to  play  piano  anyway.  (Joking!)

Michaela  Harris  (Saunders)  is  a  40  something  mother  of  4,  freelance  broadcaster  and  cake  maker.    She’s  spent  the  last  20+  years  working  as  an  announcer/presenter  on  BBC  TV  and  Radio,  as  well  as  voicing  trails,  advertisements  and  corporate  videos.    Originally  trained  as  a  musician  she  plays  piano  and  sings,  currently  appearing  in  a  local  choir,  The  College  Singers.    She  launched  her  new  venture  Michaela’s  Cakes  at  the  beginning  of  the  year.    In  her  spare  time(!)  she  loves  to  garden  and  has  recently  been  dragged  into  a  punishing  fitness  regime  by  her  neighbour.    Favourite  things:    Thai  food,  fast  cars  and  beautiful  shoes,  but  she  never  has  enough  money  for  any  of  these  anymore!NB.  Michaela’s  children  do  still  have  all  their  fingers.Connect  on  FacebookWebsite

~  Michaela  Saunders

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I noticed the other day, that the baking ingredient

isle in my Tesco Extra is starting to look like something out of a

sugarcraft shop! My local Tesco now stocks gel colours, lustre dusts, edible

pens, and a fantastic new range of sprinkles - my favourite has to be

the popping candy, you must check it out!

@

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www.foodieflavours.com

www.sugaricing.comsales@sugaricing.com

www.centreattraction.co.ukcentreattraction@hotmail.co.uk

BUY NOW BUY NOW

www.patchworkcutters.co.uk

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Vintage Bauble Ribbon3m x 6cm£2.99 per reelFrom Floristry Warehouse

Finishing

Touche

s

East of India Christmas Ribbon3m x 1.5cm£2.99 per reelFrom Mollie and Fred

EDITOR’SPICK

Purple and Silvers Glitzy Ribbon Pack of 64m assorted widths£6.99 per reelFrom Lakeland

Gold Ribbon39 different Christmas designs, each reel at a bargain price!3m x 6cmPrices vary £1.35-£1.89From Country Baskets

Merry Christmas Ribbon4m x 2cm£2.79From Lakeland

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ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

BUY NOW

BUY NOW

BUY NOW

www.thecakedecoratingcompany.co.uk

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ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

We at Cake Masters have been amazed by some of baking and caking talent out there and thought that we would end the year in style by awarding several people with awards for their awesomeness.

When deciding who was going to win an award, sometimes we found it difficult as there were a few cakes that came to mind, other categories it was easy to decide a clear winner.

The awards are our way of recognising great talent and we hope that you join us in congratulating the winners.

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ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

Awards

Cake Pop AwardThere was only one person that stands out from the crowd when it comes to cake pops...our winner is

Lou Lou P’s DelightsLou Lou P’s Delights

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Awards

Novelty Cake AwardA stand out cake of the year for me in terms of how realistic this cake is. This is one cake that went viral across the internet getting exposure and recognition from some key players in the cake industry.

North Star CakesNorth Star Cakes

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Awards

Wedding Cake AwardThis was a really difficult category to choose a winner for. We wrestled between two other cakes before coming to our decision.

After much thought, we had to give the award to Rosie Cake-Diva.

Her cake is simply stunning!

Rosie Cake-Diva

Rosie Cake-Diva

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Awards

Best Retailer AwardThere has been one leader out there in getting new and exciting products into the cake decorating market.

The Cake Decorating Company were the first to bring us the fantastic Mat, Cake Play Isomalt and stock great products like sugarveil, beautiful designer moulds and stencils too.

The CakeDecoratingCompany

The Cake Decorating Company

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ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

Awards

Cupcake AwardA true master of vintage chic designs, the winner continues to WOW with beautiful cupcake collections fit for a King!

Carina’s CupcakesCarina’s Cupcakes

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Awards

Creative AwardThere are some bonkers people out there that really test the boundaries of sugar.However, we were blown away by the creative cakes made by our winner - not necessary on the outside...but on the inside!

One word - FANTASTIC!

Cakes and CookiesCupcake Wrappers

Cakes and Cookies Cupcake Wrappers

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Awards

Special Mention AwardWe wanted to give a special mention award to Niki Tompkinson from Sweet Creations. Her generosity and pure selfless qualities really stood out earlier this year.

Niki helped several brides by making wedding cakes for them with no payment after a company went bankrupt, and all was lost.

It is great to know there are some lovely people like you still about!

Sweet Creations

Sweet Creations

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Awards

Personality AwardThrough Facebook and various blog providers we have been able to not only marvel at your cakes but to also get to know a fair few of you online.

Facebook has become a daily part of life and if feels like we meet many of you every day!

We felt that 4 people especially have made themselves known, not only for their cakes, but for their personalities too. Here are our nominations:

Allison from Let’s Eat Cupcakes is lovely. We have had the opportunity to meet her several times and she is a bold, passionate, fiery character who is always smiling.

Her style is vintage shabby chic with twists that keep her designs current and fresh. Allison is a lovely individual who is selfless in helping others and does a lot of things without commercial gain.

Lesley from the Royal Bakery is an online celebrity in my eyes. She has such a great sense of humor and not only does she create fantastic cakes, she also seems to be super at interacting with every single one of her fans.Lesley has a thriving Facebook page which continues to grow from strength to strength.

Julie from Kiss Me Cake helps others with her YouTube tutorials for free. Julie interacts with all her fans and is on hand to help fellow cakers when in need.

Julie has a great YouTube personality and has posted 46 tutorials in the past 9 months.

Julie’s youtube channel has had over 125,000 views!

Carina from Carina’s Cupcakes has had a phenomenal year.She is a strong woman who drives forward with determination to achieve what is important to her.

Carina has expanded her business and stocks a variety of goodies for cake decorating.

Carina wows with her designs and naturally won gold at Cake International at the Birmingham NEC this year.

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Awards

Personality Award

Our four nominations are winners in their own right, but we had to pick one.

This lady has an infectious personality and great sense of humour. It is a joy to follow her online and we hope to get to meet you one day, even though we think we already know you...that isn’t supposed to sound creepy!

The personality award goes to Lesley Wright from the Royal Bakery - Congratulations!

The Royal Bakery

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Feature

Christmas CakingAround the World

Christmas cake; like the well-known brand of yeast spread says, you either love it or you hate it. And by Christmas cake, let's just be clear what we are talking about - this isn't the spongy, delicate confection that I bake most days for my CakeTails. This isn't something remotely light, that you could happily eat 2 or 3 slices of and then go hit the gym. I mean PROPER Christmas Cake in the truest, British sense - that dense, dark bake, studded with a variety of dried fruits and nuts, layered up with marzipan and an unflavoured classic icing (either rolled or Royal), which if consumed too quickly or in too great a quantity leaves you feeling like you've consumed a year's worth of calories in 3 bites. But whether you love it (I do - though I didn't always) or hate it (like my friend who actually pales at the thought of having to eat it - "it's just so...full of...stuff"), one thing we British bakers, agree on - and celebrate - is the incredible history that is packed into making a Christmas cake. The current version emerged - like so many of our current Christmas traditions - in the Victorian era, but the tradition of a dark, fruity cake stretches back so much farther, to...the original Christmas treat: porridge.

ORIGINS OF CHRISTMAS CAKE

Porridge?

Yes, porridge. In the 13th and 14th century (and forgive me for eternally feeling excited about being part of a written history that spans more than a thousands of years. It comes from growing up in a country that has less than 500 years of its own cultural history!), folks treated themselves to plum porridge on Christmas Eve. Gradually, various spices, dried fruits and honey were added to make it a treat instead of a dietary staple.

In the 1500’s, the traditional recipe evolved further, replacing the oatmeal with cake-type ingredients, which was then boiled up into a pudding. However as leavening was introduced and families acquired wealth – as well as access to spices - through trade and travel, these cakes became a tasty way to showcase a family’s riches. There was also a practical element to the construction of these cakes, in that they needed to last without drying out or spoiling. And of course, many sources point to the addition of spices symbolising the spices in the Nativity story from the Bible.

But a minor point was that the cake was actually eaten on Epiphany, 6 January, for Twelfth Night, instead of Christmas day – that is, until the 1830s when the Victorians began to emphasise and celebrate Christmas more than Epiphany. Bakers quickly shifted their baking to produce the same Twelfth Night cakes earlier in the month, which they rebranded as Christmas cakes, decorated with sugar figures and intricate lattice work

And nearly 200 years later, we still eat the same kind of cake, even though there is no “definitive” recipe. There are the standard ingredients – dried fruit (or “dried flies” as someone posted in a baking forum), nuts, booze, treacle, marzipan, and icing – but even within Great Britain and the Commonwealth, countries have their own tweaks to the “traditional” English version. For example, Scottish folks’ Christmas cake is a lighter but boozier version known as the Whisky Dundee. Ditto Wales. And ditto Northern Ireland. Ireland – yes, I know my geography – they’re not part of Great Britain but they ARE our closest neighbours – does the same but with a distinctive >>

By Posey Furnish ~ Cake Tails

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Feature>> decorative style involving green and red citron/glace cherries to look like a holly wreath. South Africa, Sri Lanka, India – anywhere the British Empire was, a traditional Christmas cake still remains. Even Scandinavian countries enjoy similar versions of the English Christmas cake, with slight tweaks like dates added to the mix. However – going back to what I said at the start – I came late to liking Christmas cake, and for that, I blame the scariest and ickiest cake of them all – American fruitcake. If you have never faced the horror of having to eat it (or even be in its presence), let me be honest. You ain’t missing anything. Imagine a Christmas cake reinterpreted as an alcoholic chewing gum. No, that’s still not conveying the true tasteless horror. Imagine a Christmas cake dehydrated and then rehydrated with whiskey. Lots of whiskey. And frozen and thawed a few times. And sat on. By an elephant.My grandmother, rest her soul, was fiercely proud of her Scottish roots and dutifully made a fruitcake every year which nobody, not even my adoring grandfather, could bring himself to eat. In fact, for many years, my father and aunt passed one back and forth as a joke gift. An unfunny joke gift, that is. So imagine my surprise when I moved here 15 years ago and discovered that Christmas cake was actually a) edible and b) delicious! Marzipan? Royal icing? What’s not to like?However, it got me thinking, is this what all of us who celebrate Christmas eat in December? Are we collectively munching our way through dried fruits and almonds around the globe? Or – simply put –

if you don’t like Christmas cakes, are there any options?The good news for those of you anti-Christmas-Cakers is, yes. In the Philippines Christmas cake can be a yellow pound soaked in brandy or rum, a palm sugar syrup and rosewater or orange flower water. In Poland they eat piernik, a chocolate-coated gingerbread loaf, or makowiec, a poppyseed-stuffed leavened bread. Poppyseeds feature heavily across Russia, the Ukraine and environs as filling for an Eccles cake-like treat. Chocolate features elsewhere, too, in Sachertorte (Vienna) or Buche de Noel (France), which provide further opportunities for keen cake decorators to flex their creative muscle. But for me, the biggest surprise was discovering Japanese Christmas cake. I have a strong affinity for Japanese culture; I adore the quirkier aspects of their art, fashion and entertainment in general. I was therefore delighted to find out that once again, yes, the Japanese have cornered the market in subverting the Western norm in terms of Christmas cake by serving a delicate layered sponge cake packed with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. So whilst the rest of the world is working to its way through the solid goodness of Ye Olde Christmas Cake, leave it to Japan to be carefully nibbling something light and frothy! (Some folks also apparently pre-order KFC up to two months ahead for their main meal, but let’s not get into that here.)The bottom line is this – Christmas cake is an important part of British heritage. So many traditional cakes and baked treats are gradually

being lost as our culture evolves and homogenises other countries’ ways of eating. Whether or not you personally like to indulge in a thick slice, even if only to eat the marzipan or icing (like my stepdaughter does), it is an important part of our British cakemaking heritage, and one that deserves to be passed on to future generations. Unlike my grandmother’s fruitcake (sorry, Grammie King)!

Japanese Christmas Cake

Piernik from Poland

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Your Local events

Beaconsfield

High School

Thought the Great British Bake Off was over?

Not for students at this school!

The   ‘Great   Beaconsfield  High   School  Christmas  Bake-­‐Off’   is  a  hugely   popular   annual  event   where  students   from   the   school   parCcipate   in   entering   their   cakes   to   raise   funds   for   the   school.   The  compeCCon  was  organised  by   local  chef  and  mum  of  a  student   at   the  school  Jo  Ollis,  where  there  were  over  137  cakes  entered  this  year  raising  over  £4,000  for  the  school.

The  icing  on  the  cake  was  having  Mary  Berry   at   the  event  to  award  the  prizes  to  the  students  that  won.  

The  next   few  pages  will  showcase  some  of  the  winning  designs  and  also  includes  some  words  from  the  winners.

If  you  have  a  local  event  that  you  want  to  be  shared  in  this  magazine,  we  would  love  to  hear  from  you!  Email  us  at  magazine@cakemasters.co.uk  

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GracieOverall winner Year 7-9

“I  couldn’t  decide  what  to  do,  so  I  looked  for  ideas  on  the  Internet.  I  decided  to  do  something  with  snowmen  and  the  idea  evolved  along  the  way.  I  really  enjoyed  making  all  the  different  facial  expressions  on  the  snowmen,  making  each  one  special.”

“This  summer  we  were  hooked  by  the  Olympics  and  were  thinking  about  how  Christmas  would  be  celebrated  around  the  World  hence  we  created  little  scenes  around  the  cake  from  various  countries,  with  Santa  delivering  present.”

Mya & PriyaOverall winner Year 10-13

“We  wanted  to  be  inventive  and  creative  and  have  some  lighthearted  fun  so  together  we  came  up  with  idea  of  cute  mice  nibbling  away  at  our  delicious  cake.”

Annabelle, Caitlin, Mackenzie and Alia

Overall winner Year 10-13

Holly & MeganOverall winner Year 9

“We  wanted  something  different  and  so  we  created  Santa’s  Workshop.  The  idea  just  came  together  as  we  went  along,  making  all  the  different  parts  using  sweets  and  biscuits  allowed  us  to  get  really  creative.”

“I  love  the  idea  of  making  snowmen  and  wanted  to  make  the  cake  colourful  so  decided  to  add  the  roses.” Hannah

Overall winner Year 11

“I  wanted  to  do  something  original  and  that  wouldn’t  take  to  long  to  make.  The  Advent  calendar  was  a  challenge  but  it  was  great  working  on  it.”

AngelicaOverall winner Sixth Form

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Winners with their prizes!Below is Priya and Maya’s cake on display; Mary Berry and Gracie with her prize and competition organiser Jo Ollis

Other cakes entered into the competition

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Business

In 2010 I returned to work after the birth of my fourth child to find my job role changed from deputy manager to book-keeper and my hours reduced from 30 to 4. Desperate to help my husband financially support our large family I took my interest in baking and started Charmaine’s Cupcakes in October 2010. No formal training or qualifications and very little experience apart from baking for family and friends meant I spent literally 100’s of hours trawling the internet and watching YouTube videos to learn the art of baking and decorating cupcakes whilst still undertaking the roles of Mum and wife!

In January 2011 I added Giant Cupcakes to our range and taught myself some sugar crafting skills, by now I had started to increase my client base and was getting more and more orders. I began attending local events and plucked up the courage to start taking wedding orders.

By June 2011 my confidence in my products had strengthened and I felt the need to increase my client base by finding a suitable method of shipping cupcakes by post – whilst contemplating this task I came up with the idea of deconstructing a cupcake and reconstructing it in a portable cup with an attached spoon – 2

days later the Cup-O-Cake was born! After a month of trials we trademarked it then showcased the unique product at a street festival where it was very well received, immediately afterwards I entered a competition with Virgin Media to take the Cup-O-Cake to their VIP Louder Lounge at the V Festival. I overcome my fear of public speaking and travelling on the underground and successfully pitched to a room full of executives winning the opportunity to be part of the festival.

Well the rest is history – since that amazing day in July I have re-branded our business to By Charmaine, been a finalist at the National Cupcake Championships in 2011 and 2012, had a full page article in the daily Mirror, met dozens of celebrities, journalists and VIP’s and even had a photograph with Rupert Grint in OK! Magazine. We have provided our products and been guests for the Virgin Media Short Film Award ceremony, business festivals across the country, the press event for 2012 Britain’s Got Talent (Simon Cowell is much shorter in real life!) and a launch party for The Only Way Is Essex cast members Sam & Billie Faiers online boutique ‘Minnies’. I’ve personally handed over a box of my cupcakes to the >>

We love to know about you and your business,and to hear how and where you have got to and how you did. It is amazing how far people have got with their cake journeys in business and in this issue, Charmaine from By Charmaine tells us her story.

Charmaine with Alexandra Burke

Charmaine with Rupert Grint

Sam Faiers with Cup-O-Cake

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Business

>> inspirational Sir Richard Branson and received a kiss from the man himself! I’ve had my products in every major newspaper and magazine office in London due to a 5th Birthday press gift organised with Virgin Media, became a preferred supplier for them and was invited back to the VIP Louder Lounge this year to run a tea room for the guests which included Emma ‘Baby Spice’ Bunton, magician Dynamo and Kelly Brook, we even got to ‘party’ with members of One Direction on a tour bus and have a drink with Alexandra Burke in a ‘secret’ bar…….not a typical weekend!

The last major event we attended was in September where we once again met Richard Branson whilst serving up cakes and sweets at an event at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

I’ve had an amazing journey and learnt a great many things about cake making and decorating as well as working with corporate business and growing my own business by watching for new trends emerging and making my own mark in the cupcake market.

Harry Derbarge with Cup-O-Cake

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ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

SPECIALCh"#mas Cake

Showcasing your Christmas Cakes...

Beautifully finished Christmas Cupcakes.There is a delicate nature to designs which

portray true craftsmanship.Carina’s Cupcakes

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Shereen’s Cakes & BakesFun Christmas designs and loads of tutorials on her facebook page!

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Favourite design has to be the snowman, although the sleeping baby is just too cute!

Mon Cottage Cupcakes

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Love the foot prints in the snow!Love is Cake

Our front cover stars!Snowmen cupcakesCake by Chantelle

Cupcake designed by Ella Willow

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Mulled wine collection Another appearance from Shereen’s Cakes and Bakes

Penguin and Mr & Mrs Claus fromShereen’s Cakes and Bakes

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Christmas cupcake collection fromVicki’s Cuppa Cakes

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Beautiful traditional Christmas designsFlutter of Fondant

Fun Rudolph design cupcake from Sift + Stir

This design is so cute! Love the sugar ice pieced designed

by Sarah Harris

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Gorgeous decorated cookies from Sweet Ambs

Royal iced snow globes Sugar Rush Cookies

Flickr

Winter scenes from Small Things Iced

Detailed royal iced embroidery cookiesJulia M Usher

Julia  M.  Usher,  Author  of  Cookie  Swap  and  Ul:mate  Cookies

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Christmas fun from Adore Cake

Christmas figuresSweet from Zwolle

We’re walking in the air!Fifi’s Cakes

Christmas figures Fancy Cakes by Linda

Christmas sugar fairy VP Cakes

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Three tiered Christmas Awesomeness!

Let’s Eat Cupcakes

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Toys at ChristmasCaroline’s Cakes Middlesex

Carol singing snowmen from Vanniny (Spain)

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T h i s b u s i n e s s h a s awesome des igns for macaroons - love their Christmas offerings!Crumbs

Macaroons !

Christmas macaroonsBento Bakery

We were fooled by these ones- fake macaroons for

decorations!Pei Li Miniatures

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White on white classic bauble cakeBebalicious Cakes

Bau

ble C

ollect

ion

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Christmas Bauble Collection from hobby baker

Brenda Brummitt-Bourne

Christmas Baubles The Sweetest Tiers

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One of my favourites!Elegant design in bold colours

Couture Cakes by Rose

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Red green and gold Christmas bauble Bliss Pastry

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Beautiful colour combinations finished with snowflake stenciling

From hobby baker Sue Wall (McIntyre)

ISSUE 5 DECEMBER 2012

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ISSUE 4 OCTOBER 2012

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