Finished Product (357/366)

(358/366)

Well, here it is.

I’m actually rather pleased with how this cake turned out. I was a little nervous about making the individual pieces, but when combined, I think it all came together quite well.

As I said yesterday, I wasn’t sure how the cats were going to come out until I started making them. They’re both hand sculpted out of fondant based off pictures of the actual cats. I think they’re pretty adorable myself. I’m pleased that their heads are proportional to their bodies and each one is proportional to the other. I think usually when I make things the heads come out too big.

The butterflies are cut out of edible wafer paper and colored with edible ink. I then brushed on some piping gel and a healthy sprinkle of edible glitter to give them a little extra shine. Next time I might try to get a more elaborate butterfly pattern printed out on edible paper. This was my first time using edible paper and I must say it was a lot easier and faster than I was expecting.

I really like this newfound painting technique I seemed to have discovered. I’ve never been much for  painting because I don’t have a lot of experience with painting in general, but I think it works quite well in this application. All it took was some fine tipped paint brushes, some gel colors, and a little bit of water. I think it’s simple yet charming. The rocks also came together pretty well. I basically just stood at my counter making four or five different rock color combinations with the fondant I had handy. I wasn’t sure if all the different colors were going to look odd next to each other or next to the cake, but the I think color scheme turned out well.

This was definitely one of my favorite cakes to make recently. I got to try a whole bunch of new decorating techniques and I just love the whimsy of the cake. I hope Amelia has a great first birthday!