Sristi Book Release Cake

All in all, I’m fairly happy with the end result on this cake. It took me all of yesterday, and a few hours this morning (I finished somewhere around 1:30 after photographing, etc.) and here it is. If this was a full price commission it would have been a little more detailed, but for the money paid (about 1/2 price) I think it’s pretty generous! I’ve included a photocopy of the actual book cover for comparison. Here’s a link for the actual book, Sristi by Sharmila Desai. For anyone interested in ordering cakes, chocolates or any other confections … don’t forget to check out SweetElement!

Shiny chocolate is so hard to photograph!

The buttercream sides of the cake were combed to look like pages.

Side view for a look at the spine.

Hair detail shot.

Actual photocopy of the book cover that I used as a template.

[Just got paid the remainder for the cake, got an extra $10 – and the icing on this order – was being told the cake was worth at least $300 if not more. I love hearing things like that. I’ve given a whole stack of cards along with the cake, so hopefully this will bring me some more orders and expand the business.]

[Ms. L.P. – I’m throwing down some red ribbon on the floor tonight!!!]

Book Cake

I’ve spent the entire morning making this template for a chocolate plate for the cake my boss ordered for his wife’s book release party tomorrow. I am soooo not a day person though, so being artistic while the sun is shining hasn’t been easy. Granted, it’s been a lot of tracing, but I feel like even that was a stretch for me. I took a quick break to go buy some chocolate and some fresh air – and was very tempted to just stay out, but I am now back in the house and thinking a glass of iced coffee and a magazine are calling my name. PROCRASTINATION!

I was good last night and baked three layers of cake, and also made hazelnut buttercream and chocolate ganache. So all cake parts are made, but not assembled. At least something productive got done.

I’ve come to the digusting realization that I charged FAR too little for this cake. I know it will probably be a great portfolio piece, and I’ll like it when it’s done, but right now, after spending an entire day prepping to actually make this intensively detailed chocolate plate, I want to punch myself in the head.

Usually I make one of these cakes for a Thursday or Friday delivery, so I have the weekend in sight to recover from a sleepless, stress-filled night of decorating. Wednesday delivery means I still have half the week to go at work. Bah.

I’m hoping I feel better once Jay gets home and makes something yummy for dinner. I can’t even turn on a heating element at the moment – because I just KNOW that I will want to start cooking savory food, which is exactly what I should NOT be doing when I have an cake order for tomorrow that needs to get finished.

I wonder if cake artists would be good tattoo artists. Doing all that tracing made me feel kind of like the tattoo artists I see on TV when they are prepping stencils for clients.

Ok … off to grab some melted chocolate and some brushes and hope it all works out well. Wish me luck!