The American

When I met Leora I knew her wedding was going to be unique and a reflection of her and her future husband.  I love when brides and grooms incorporate things that are special to them rather than choose something generic.  Leora met her husband in high school and they were in orchestra together.  I could tell that music was very important to her and I was very happy when she asked to have music on her cake.  I did not know what Leora had planned, but I knew it would be a memorable cake.  Leora chose The American by Dvorak.  She brought us the music and we carefully piped it onto strips of fondant which we later attached the each tier of her wedding cake.  It was beyond stunning.  We knew that it would be a challenge, but once we got the first strip of fondant onto the cake, covered in music, it took our breath away and we could not wait to finish it!  For a pop of color we added sugar paste butterflies in shades of reds, blues, purples, yellows and oranges.  They were each hand-painted with luster dust and attached to the cake in a cascade pattern.

Fondant strips waiting for their music notes!

Carefully piping notes by coping the sheet music.

The American.

Voila!

Thank you Leora for giving us such a rewarding challenge.  It meant a lot to me to make a cake that I knew was so special and important to you.  I believe that each cake should truly reflect the personality of the couple and you certainly surpassed that!  It was a pleasure working with you and your mother.  Congratulations!

Copyright © 2010 Kelly Kobus owner of A Piece O' Cake.

Wedding Cakes

Wedding season is in full swing and we've been busy!  Here are some of our favorites and a few little stories!

Molly & Jason

Molly and Jason are one of my favorite couples!  I met Molly a year ago and since we met she sent me numerous e-mails with ideas for her cake.  She knew what she wanted but could not commit to a certain design.  When we met again this past April I showed her a cake that I thought would be perfect for her.  She loved it!  I mean, LOVED it!  It made me so happy to see her so happy!  It made my Mom happy to hear her squealing over the cake!  I'll never forget Molly saying that the cake is just like her: pink, glitter and ruffles!  The groom's cake was just like Jason: a bacon cheeseburger!  I was so excited to show Molly and Jason their wedding cake when they stopped by the bakery on the Friday before their wedding.  Nothing makes me happier than making my brides happy!

Before

After

Michelle & Nick

I remember meeting Michelle and being very excited about her wedding cake.  I live vicariously through my brides!  She wanted ruffles, like Molly's cake, details like her elegant black and white invitation and lots of feathers.  It was going to be a fun one!  Again, it's not likely that I see the reaction of my brides to their cake, but I got to see Michelle when we delivered the cake.  She LOVED it and I even made her cry!  Tears of joy, of course!  Seeing her reaction reminds me why I love my job!

Kelly & Peter

I recently found out that Kelly's Aunt was one of my teachers in high school.  Small world!  It was fun working with Kelly and Peter, as they chose a cake that I adored, too!  Again, living vicariously!  Their cake posed a small challenge, as it called for sugar paste ranunculus, which I had not made before.  They are my new favorite sugar paste flower!  The lines on the cake ended up being a very modern spin on the idea of draping the cake with sugar paste.  We will have to do this more often!

Kelly and Peter's Wedding Cake

Up-close image of the ranunculus. 

Centerpieces by Petal & Forrest.

 

Centerpieces by Petal & Forrest.

Kelly surprised Peter with a groom's cake at their rehearsal dinner.  The cake was made to look like their black lab!

         

Black Lab cake complete with MSU bandana.

Shannon & James

Shannon and James had a clear vision for what they wanted for their May wedding.  The brought me one of their favorite Van Gogh paintings and asked that the cake be inspired by it.  It was a fun cake to make!  The painting was hanging at the reception and branches decorated each table.

Congratulations to all of our brides and grooms!  We wish you the best!

Copyright © 2010 Kelly Kobus owner of A Piece O' Cake.

My Best Friend's Wedding: Destination Wedding Cake

May 8, 2010 my best friend married her high school sweetheart in Jacksonville, Florida.  When we met, four years ago, I never would have dreamed that I would make her wedding cake.  It is a joy making cakes for people I love.  We knew making her cake in Florida would be a challenge, as it turns out, it was anything but challenging.  It was easy.  Very easy!  It could not have gone any better!

The Story in Pictures!

My mother baked the cakes at A Piece O' Cake and then carefully packaged them.  They were put into a duffle bag and my boyfriend carried the cakes from Detroit Metro to Jacksonville!  It was a flawless delivery!  All other supplies, frosting, etc. were packed and stowed under the plane.

Tightly packaged cakes arrived in perfect condition!

Plenty of buttercream, raspberry buttercream and chocolate buttercream!  Yum!

Max's parents purchased a large sheet cake from a local bakery so I could decorate it for the rehearsal dinner.  This was very nice of them as it made my job easier!  Emily is a UNC graduate while Max graduated from NC State.  

These were brought down from Michigan, too.

The completed rehearsal dinner cake.

Then the wedding cake fun began!  Frosting, stacking and decorating Max and Emily's cake!  All work was done at Emily's parents home.  

Frosting!

Stacking!

Marking the placement of swiss dots.

She needs some decorating!

Piping swiss dots on the bottom tier.

Pearl dusting each petal.

Adding sugar paste gardenias to the top three tiers.

My cheerleader throughout the entire process and the one responsible for carrying the cake to the reception area!  

Emily and me.  She loved it!

Delivering the cake with the help of Emily's friends and her neighbor who drove us in his SUV.  THANK YOU!

Chilling in our hotel room until the wedding.  When you opened the door to the room there was an overwhelming scent of sugar!

The cake at Casa Marina.

Max and Emily about to cut their wedding cake!

Deconstructing the cake!  I've never seen this done before, they were incredibly efficient!  When they were done only cake crumbs were left on the table.

Some darling pictures of Max and Emily on their wedding day:

Congratulations Max and Emily!  I am very happy for you!  

P.S.-Thank you to my Mom for planning and orchestrating the cake packing and delivery and making sure I had everything that I needed in Florida.  You are the best!

Largest Cake in Our History.

Last week we had the honor and challenge of making the largest cake in our short two and a half year history.  This cake was a joy to make!  The cake was made for a Quinceañera and it served 250 guests. The two bottom tiers were made of styrofoam. Everything on the cake 

was edible and made by hand.

Building the Cake:

The two bottom tiers are styrofoam covered in fondant, the top pink tier is the first tier of cake.

It's getting bigger!

And bigger! Yes, I needed a step-stool to work on the cake! We had several visitors stop by to see the cake in progress and I often had to say, "Just wait, it's going to be even taller!"

Attaching lavender stripes to the pink tier.

Working away...

It's Finished!

On its way!  It just BARELY fit into the van!

It is complete! Congratulations!

Claire Visits A Piece O' Cake!

Some of you may or may not know that my best friend from high school, Emily, spent quite a bit of time working at the bakery during her pregnancy.  Emily broke her leg and came home to East Lansing from Boston during that time.  She was, of course, not very mobile.  Emily was getting bored so we put her to work!  It was wonderful spending so much time with her.  She is my first close friend to have a baby, so spending time with her during her pregnancy was a lot of fun for me!

The cake that Emily worked on while she spent time with us at the bakery!

Emily's own turkey cupcake design!

Emily moved back to Boston and Claire was born on February 10, 2010.  One day in March Emily and Claire paid me a surprise visit!  I was so happy to see Claire and hold her!  And of course I was happy to see Emily, too!  We all think that Claire recognized the smells and sounds of the bakery!  After-all, she did spend quite a bit of time here!  :-)

Sweet Baby!

My Mom holding Claire.  Claire is using the blanket that we bought her from one of our favorite stores, October Moon.

Emily, Claire and me.

I cannot wait to see how Claire has changed when she comes for another visit at the end of May!