Brides.com has picked our purple cake with grey and black pinwheels as one of the "Best Wedding Cakes of 2009" Check out the gallery to see what other cakes made it on the list!
Also, if you are having a wedding within the next few weeks of winter and haven't decided on a cake yet, check out Brides.com selection of Winter Wedding Cakes. Our white shimmery cake with handmade flowers are among the selections.
I've been hearing that the most popular time of the year to get engaged is between Thanksgiving to New Years. Makes sense. Just enough time to plan for a summer wedding, a season surrounded by family, and what's a better Christmas gift than a diamond ring?!? :) To my friends who recently got engaged and all those who rang in the new year with a new fiancée, congratulations!!!
A couple months ago I made gumpaste cake toppers for a friend's wedding. Since then, there have been more orders for personalized brides/grooms. Here are some photos of recent couples :)
Happy New Year!!
I can't believe this year...and decade is already over!. 2009 was a fantastic beginning for EatCakeBeMerry and I have been so thankful for the various clients that have given us the opportunity to do what we love each day and make creative cakes. I am also thankful for the many bloggers and publications that have shared our cakes with their readers and helped us grow. I am so excited for what 2010 has in store for us and I hope this year is filled with many merry occasions for everyone!
Holiday cookies '09.
Hope you have a wonderful new year!!!!! 2010
For you Mets fans out there....
One tool I love to use when making gumpaste decorations is the stitching tool. I took this one from my mom's alteration kit :) It creates such a realistic pattern and dimension, which is perfect for the stitching on this hat!
Stay warm, it's almost Christmas!!
Sweet madeline cake for my friend Nanette's 25th Birthday!
White cake with fresh strawberry buttercream :) Hand-cut gumpaste numbers painted with edible gold.
Brides.com (website for Brides Magazine) posted us in a Get to Know feature.
Head to the Hip Hostess blog to read what I see as the top 5 trends in wedding cakes! Vibrant colors, monograms, graphic motifs, eco-friendly....Manolo for the Brides shares that our cakes can be cute and sophisticated at the same time :)
During the craziness of Thanksgiving week, I had an opportunity to help Kate Sullivan from Lovin Sullivan Cakes on an extraordinary Bar Mitvah cake. The cake was themed after AND delivered to the new Yankee Stadium. Kate is a seasoned cake competitor (Food Network cake challenges, TLC cake off...) and this awesome cake might as well have been one of them!
Kate stacking the bottom tiers.
Here's me painting the Yankee's hat for the top
Kate was the first designer that I interned for when I moved to New York and since then, she has been a cake mentor to me. Not to mention, she and her family are absolutely the sweetest people in the city! Her cakes are stylized, elegant, modern, and colorful. Appropriately named a Modern Bride Trendsetter in 2008, her work never ceases to amaze me.
About a year ago, I was also able to help her with the seasonal collection of cakes from the Real Simple Weddings magazine that's currently still on stands!
Check out her website not only to see her cakes, but also her blog, videos, and cake challenge photos!
Merci New York and I collaborated to answer a few commonly asked caked questions that brides might have as they look for their wedding cake. Check out their wonderful site and here are some of the questions to help you:
What should a bride bring to her initial consultation?
At consultations, I always ask a bride to bring various inspirations such as photos, color palettes, themes, their invitation samples, patterns, or any other ideas ideas they've been dreaming of. If your fiancée cannot come with you, it's always a good idea to bring a friend or family member rather than coming alone. They can provided valuable feedback in moments of indecisiveness and act as creative support.
Which frosting is the best for wedding cakes?
We coat all our cakes in a layer of buttercream and then finish it off with a layer of fondant. I believe it produces the cleanest finish and is the best method of preservation because it seals in the cake from air. Everyone thinks fondant tastes so horrible, but there are international brands that are delicious and flavored fondant (such as white chocolate and milk chocolate) that taste like tootsie rolls. It's also very simple for your caterer to remove fondant from the cake before serving it to your guests, so don't automatically rule it out because of the myths.
What is the biggest misconception brides have about their wedding cake?
I think the most popular misconception is that wedding cakes look great but taste bad. Wrong, your wedding cake can taste amazing! There are crucial points to consider to overcome this mistaken belief.
1. Make sure you choose a great baker that will use the freshest and finest ingredients. Lots of bakeries use shortening instead of real butter, low quality cocoa, and imitation extracts to cut their costs. It's okay to ask these questions and it's always better to pay a little more for a baker that will use quality ingredients. The final product can only be as good as the ingredients that go into it.
2. Make sure they will bake your cake the week of the event instead of using frozen stock.
3. Be sure to keep it simple and choose flavors that complement each other. If you don't know what kind of buttercream goes best with your pumping cake, don't choose pistachio just because it's good and it's your favorite. Certain flavors pair better with each other so ask your baker for recommendations. {I'd say cream cheese}! This is why the tasting consultation is such a crucial part of wedding planning.
Regardless of how much turkey, casserole, and yams I eat, there's always room for dessert. I'm sure you can agree! My vote always go to pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving, but if you are not into pie, celebrate with a seasonal pumpkin cake/cupcakes with cream cheese frosting!
Cut out maple leaves...
Lay them on a silicon leaf impression and press. (Stores sell ones specifically for maple impressions, but I used a general one that is good for a wide variety of leaves. Plus, these are pretty pricey so unless you are making a lot of them or really want to be botanically correct, this will do.)
Time for some dusting to liven up these leaves. Here is the color lineup:
Cupcakes!
Enjoy! Have a delicious and merry Thanksgiving with family/friends!
Kelly from Glamour This! posted a short interview about us this week. Check out her beautiful blog or read on to learn a little bit more about myself and how EatCakeBeMerry started!
How did you come up with your company name?
When I was trying to name my business, the phrase “Eat, drink, and be merry” came to mind because it encompassed such a great action (eat) and emotion (merry). So I wanted to adopt the vibe for my business because I think its pretty natural for everyone to be merry after eating some delicious and beautiful cake! Hence EatCakeBeMerry.
What made you start this business – the major turning point?
After I finished culinary school in San Francisco, I came to New York and had the opportunity to work with some renown cake designers. Then I got married and stepped away for a couple months, which is the period when I truly realized there is no other job I’d rather do. So I started making cakes again for family/friends and from there it organically blossomed into my own venture.
What inspires you?
I’m a very visual person so most of what I see in my day to day life inspires me. Stationary, department store displays, greeting cards, magazines, scrapbook/craft supplies, clothing, jewelry/accessories, buildings, product packaging,…you name it. I’ve made cakes adapted from designs on a 3-ring binder and even bed sheets from Anthropology.
What is the best part about your job?
The best part of of making cakes all day is getting to eat the scraps :) Really, it’s being able to translate a couple’s personality and interests into a meaningful and unique cake for their special day.
Whats the process?
The process starts off months before the event with a consultation, which is when I get to know the bride and groom. There we collaborate to create a great design and chose flavor combinations. Few days before the cake is due, we start making the decorations, baking/building the tiers, and the day before the event we assemble the final product, which is then ready to head over to the venue.
Tell us a little about yourself, to get to know you more
I’m a midwest girl at heart. I spent half my childhood in Ilinois and the other half in Michigan. I went to Univ. of Michigan and was studying to be either a dentist (always wanting to work with my hands) or a math teacher until I discovered cake design the summer of my sophomore year. As soon as I graduated, I headed to SanFran to learn more about baking/pastry then went to New York City because that’s were my finacee at the time was. After a year there, I got married and moved across the river to Jersey, which was a great decision because now I get to awe over the NYC skyline every day :)
Jennifer of Destination I Do Magazine wrote up great feature about us and perfectly assigned some of our cakes to each of the four seasons! The pictures in their mag really makes me want to create a beach themed cake and makes me wish I had a destination wedding on some island rather than on the Hudson River :)
One White Dress is correct when they say our cakes don't take themselves too seriously. They are meant to be playful, fun, and colorful, yet graceful enough to be at your wedding. If you are planning your big day and looking for inspiration boards, go visit their site. They have a whole section dedicated to them in every color combination imaginable!
I stumbled upon...Mints Design blog. East meets West in floral design. They design stationary too. How cool is that? Check out our feature in the "inspiration" section.
